Going to the ophthalmologist’s office can be quite time-consuming for most. But in this world of infinite possibilities, is there a way to skip those visits, and possibly get contact lenses online?
Meet 1-800 Contacts and ContactsCart. Both of these offer a huge variety of contact lenses, and with your prescription, you can either opt-in for a one-time purchase, or subscribe to their service with which you never run out of contact lenses. Pretty neat, if you ask me.
But what are these two exactly, and what services do they offer? Surely, choosing between them might be a tad bit overwhelming. Well, to answer all those questions, we did an in-depth comparison of both, and also reviewed them separately.
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Are 1-800 Contacts & ContactsCart Too Good To Be True?
Short answer is no. Many people have mixed thoughts about these, and most consumers aren’t really sure what they are. To elaborate, most of the confusion is caused when talking about whether they’re manufacturers of lenses or marketplaces.
Indeed, 1-800 Contacts and ContactsCart are marketplaces, and in the case of contact lenses, that is actually a very good thing.
Meaning, you can get contact lenses from well-renowned brands like Johnson & Johnson, Alcon, Proclear, Biofinity, among others. With the subscription too, you can never run out of contact lenses from your favorite brand.
With that said, it is really interesting and convenient how customers can get high quality lenses, often with a little bit of savings if they opt-in for the subscription, straight to their door.
What Are The Differences? – 1-800 Contacts VS ContactsCart In-Depth Comparison
One might think that these two seem to be completely identical. After all, what they offer is quite similar, and most of the brands that each have are available on the other.
However, that cannot be further from the truth. So, to make things easier for you, we did an in-depth comparison of both, side-by-side, in order to see what the most crucial differences are:
| 1-800 Contacts VS ContactsCart |  |
 |
|---|---|---|
| Top Brand Offers | Acuvue, Air Optix, Biofinity, DAILIES, Proclear, FreshLook, SofLens, Clariti, Biotrue, AquaSoft, and others. | Acuvue, Biofinity, Air Optix, DAILIES, Proclear, SofLens, Clarity, Biotrue, Ultra, Avaira, PureVision, Freshlook, Hubble, and ohers. |
| Prices | Usually with bigger price tags | Affordable |
| Shipping | Free | Free |
| Prescription Renewal? | Yes | Unavailable |
| Lens Types | Toric and Astigmatism Multifocal and Bifocal Color and Enhancing Daily Disposable 1-2 Weeks Disposable Monthly Disposable Soft Vial |
Toric and Astigmatism Multifocal and Bifocal Color and Enhancing Daily Disposable 1-2 Weeks Disposable Monthly Disposable Soft |
| Initial Promo Deal | 20% off your first order | 60% off your first order |
| Return Policy | Returns and exchanges possible on unlimited time period. Also, opened boxes but with unworn contact lenses can be returned. | Returns available on unopened contact lenses’ boxes, within 30 days of receiving the package. |
| Get your contact lenses now: |
One thing which is very interesting with 1-800 Contacts is the fact that customers can renew their prescription using the online evaluation, with a medical professional.
So, some points must be given to 1-800 Contacts, especially for how convenient it is.
Subscription Comparison – 1-800 Contacts VS ContactsCart
Up until this point, it is really hard to grasp the differences between the two, no matter of what angle you look at it.
One thing which is different is the subscription. Now, of course, prices will vary between the two, and there are so many variables to consider like brand of contact lenses, subscription frequency, quantity, and more, which makes determining the pricing challenging.
But on average, 1-800 Contacts tends to be slightly pricier than ContactsCart, at least, that is the general consensus. But in terms of subscription frequency, well, it can be evaluated.
Again, things like manufacturer or brand for your contact lenses, and the quantity will also play a role in both things. However, if you’re looking to go with 1-800 Contacts, you’re looking at three, six, or twelve months subscription frequency.
For ContactsCart it is far lower, coming in at one, three, or six months. Still, this doesn’t mean that you get more with ContactsCart, in fact, in quantity, people often get more with 1-800 Contacts.
But it comes down to what you prefer, more frequent packages, or bigger packages which are less frequent.
1-800 Contacts Review
1-800 Contacts is the oldest marketplace for lenses, that is still operating today.
It was founded back in 1995, and customers usually placed calls on the number 1-800-*, which made its trademark name pop. 1-800 Contacts could be considered one of the world’s most well-renowned marketplace for contact lenses.
This might be the biggest reason why 1-800 Contacts has a huge competitive advantage over the other brand in this comparison- ContactsCart. That advantage is the ability to renew your prescription, which is powered by ExpressExam.
In the end, this ends up as being one of the most important factors that people that use contact lenses consider. It is mainly due to the fact that if that’s a possibility, then there is no need to go back to the ophthalmologist’s office for a prescription renewal.
1-800 has proved time and time again that it is a reliable supplier of contact lenses, and contact lenses which are coming from reputable brands for that matter.
If you’re looking for a convenient and extremely reliable way to get your contact lenses, then 1-800 Contacts is the best bet. But there are some pros and cons that customers should consider before making the switch:
PROS
- Prescription renewal
- Reliable
- Flexible return policy with unlimited time for returns
- Vial lenses available
- Exceptional customer care
CONS
- Subscription frequency starts from three months
ContactsCart Review
ContactsCart is slightly newer than 1-800 Contacts, but this brand does have a lot to offer.
What it does differently is how the subscription works. It is much more flexible compared to 1-800, and you can get your contact lenses more frequently just because of it. Sure, this doesn’t matter much since with both you can get the same quantity, just with different frequency, but it is nice to be able to get fresher lenses more frequently.
Unfortunately, ContactsCart doesn’t offer a one-time purchase, which might be difficult to test drive its service. Many have also complained just because of that fact, since not many knew that ContactsCart is subscription-based only.
It might get more affordable than the other brand in this review, but the difference is quite minor. On the long-run though, it might make a substantial difference. But it comes as a trade-off for some of the things that ContactsCart doesn’t offer, and 1-800 Contacts does.
In addition, there are frequent promos and discounts that ContactsCart does, which might be appealing to some. This is mainly due to the fact that it is substantially less renowned than 1-800, so it is trying to attract new customers daily.
NOTE : Get 60% Off ContactsCart on your first order here
Still, what are some of the positives and negatives one should consider with ContactsCart? Here’s a list of the pros and cons:
PROS
- Flexible subscription
- Affordable deals
- All reputable contact lenses’ brands available
- Quite a few lens’ types
- Caring customer support
CONS
- No one-time purchase available
Which One Is Pricier? – 1-800 Contacts VS ContactsCart
We’ve already touched on the fact that 1-800 can get a little more pricier than ContactsCart. But just how big is the pricing difference, is it as high as to not be viable anymore?
The short answer is no, it isn’t. Most of the popular brands’ contact lenses are relatively the same price, with 1-800 Contacts being higher by a few bucks. Now, we didn’t cover all of the prices, as there are thousands, but we suspect that a few dollar difference is present on most.
In the long-term this might make an impact whether you go with ContactsCart or 1-800 Contacts. But in short-term use-case, it doesn’t really make much of a difference going with 1-800 Contacts.
Just as a reference, we took the Acuvue Oasys with Hydraclear Plus 12 pack as an example. With 1-800 Contacts you can do a one-time purchase for $77.99 or with a 5% discount if you use the subscription, and at ContactsCart, it is priced at $73.99.
NOTE: At the time of writing, the above-mentioned prices were advertised on the websites of 1-800 Contacts and ContactsCart, these although, are subject to change in the future and shouldn’t be taken as a fact.
Head-to-Head Comparison
A common theme up until now was that 1-800 Contacts and ContactsCart are very similar. So, in order blow that theory, we put both brands in a head-to-head. This way, we can further distinguish their differences, and see how both perform in use-case scenarios.
1-800 Contacts VS ContactsCart: Which Is Better?
In all honesty, this question cannot be answered. Since they’re both marketplaces for contact lenses, the services they offer aren’t that different. But in terms of practicality, and whether one thing will work more for you than the other, then it is a different story.
To elaborate, depending on whether you want one-time purchases or how many times your contact lenses get delivered if you’re on a subscription, then these two are different.
For starters, for me, ContactsCart works better. (Note : Click here for 60% off) I would like to receive my shipments every month, instead of having to wait six months or three months, or even a year for a huge batch. However, that’s just a subjective preference, and in terms of quantity, you do get the same amount.
It all boils down then, to subscription frequency, or whether you need Vial lenses, which only 1-800 offers.
With all that said though, I have to make a confession. All things considered, 1-800 Contacts is the clear victor for me. This brand has been around for years, and they’ve really pushed their service repertoire to another level. 1-800 Contacts is reliable, fast, long-standing, and above all, offers a prescription renewal.
The Verdict: Go With 1-800? – ContactsCart VS 1-800 Contacts
The possibility to renew a subscription with a simple online exam is very appealing to me, and as I’ve gathered, to most contact lenses’ users out there. ContactsCart doesn’t offer that just yet, but it might do in the future.
At the moment though, if you really want to minimize doctor’s appointments and find a reliable and well-renowned supplier for your contact lenses, it doesn’t get any better than 1-800 Contacts.
Sure, ContactsCart might be more affordable in some cases, and if you’re on a tight budget, then it might be a better idea to go with this brand. But this appears to be the only case that seems acceptable to go with ContactsCart.
If you choose to go with 1-800 Contacts though, you get quite a lot of things: prescription renewal, unlimited-time return policy, returns available on opened boxes but unused lenses, more lens’ types, reliability, and more.
All in all, 1-800 Contacts appears to be the better choice.
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