Clip-On Sunglasses vs. Prescription Sunglasses: Which Is Right for You?

If you wear prescription glasses, stepping into bright sun usually means squinting or swapping to a second pair. There are two main ways to solve that: prescription sunglasses or clip-on sunglasses. Both work, but they suit different people. Here's how they compare.

What are prescription sunglasses?

Prescription sunglasses are a separate pair of glasses with your prescription built into tinted lenses. You wear them instead of your regular glasses whenever you're outside.

What are clip-on sunglasses?

Clip-on sunglasses are tinted lenses that attach to the front of the glasses you already wear. Your prescription stays in your everyday lenses, and the clip-on adds the sun protection. When you go back inside, you take the clip-on off.

Cost

Prescription sunglasses mean buying a whole second pair of frames and prescription lenses. If your prescription changes, you need new sunglasses lenses too.

A clip-on doesn't contain your prescription, so it's usually the more affordable route. And when your prescription changes, your clip-on keeps working as long as you keep the same frame.

Convenience

With prescription sunglasses, you carry and switch between two pairs of glasses, and it's easy to end up with the wrong pair at the wrong time.

A clip-on stays with the glasses you're already wearing. It goes on in seconds when you walk outside and comes off when you walk back in.

Look and fit

This is where clip-ons get an unfair reputation. Cheap universal clip-ons come in a few generic sizes, so they often hang past the edges of your frame or don't sit flat.

A custom clip-on is different. It's cut to the exact shape of your frame, so it lines up with your lenses and looks like part of the glasses. That's how we make every clip-on at CustomClip: you mail us your frame, and we build the clip-on with your glasses in hand.

Which should you choose?

Prescription sunglasses may be better if:

• You want a completely different frame style for the sun
• You'll wear sunglasses for long stretches and rarely switch back and forth

A custom clip-on may be better if:

• You love your current frames and want sunglasses that match them
• You go in and out a lot, like driving, running errands, or working outdoors on and off
• You'd rather not buy and keep track of a second prescription pair
• Your prescription changes often

Ready to try a custom clip-on?

We make polarized and non-polarized clip-ons shaped to your exact frame, ready 2–4 days after we receive your glasses, with free standard shipping. Shop custom clip-on sunglasses or read how ordering works.