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1. Board certified optometrist is board certified optometrist, doesn't matter where they work (WAL-MART, Pearl Vision, whatever).

2. Eye exam done by board certified optometrist will be to state board & AMA standards regardless of where they work (WAL-MART, Pearl Vision, whatever).

3. See if your health insurance covers some or all of eye exams and frames - it might.

4. Eyeglasses.com can sometimes save you money over brick and mortar retail shop.  Make sure your eye doctor puts your pupillary distance on your prescription - you will need it to order glasses on-line.

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As somebody who is preparing for optometry school I would like make some points

1. Unfortunately, while I would like to agree that it doesn't matter, it sometimes does. From growing up with an optometry practice I have seen countless doctors mess up their patients RX (even when an autorefraction is used as a baseline). Some doctors just don't have a 'nack' for the subjective part (for the more picky patients, who complain about a single diopter variation in the sph, cyl, or add). Some optometrists are also better/worse when it comes to fitting contacts based upon the person's eyes and lifestyle.

2. The exams themselves are more or less the same. Optometrists, like everybody else, have certain tendencies.

3. Eye insurance for the most part is a rip off that will cause you to pay more 'when all is said and done' due to the adding up of monthly payments and the copays. *Some jobs give pretty good benefits, while others will give pretty good amount of credit on 'flex spending' cards.* There are a lot of 'upgrades' that are not covered under various insurance coverage policies (there's a ton of variations here, so its hard to say theyre all bad). Another downfall is that many insurance companies require the frames to be sent out to their personal labs to have lenses cut. This will increase turn around time to at least x3 longer.

4.The downfall of online stores is the fitting and warranty that is sometimes involved with getting glasses. Not a huge problem, but for many its easier to take the glasses back to the optical to get them fixed. However, the bigger issue is if you believe the RX is wrong, then you have to go back to the prescribing optometrist and get the RX adjusted, then try to get the lenses replaced for free from the online place you bought them from. Having your PD written down is also a wise thing to have done, but if you decide to go to another optical, they will undoubtedly have pupilometers to take these measurements before you get new glasses.


Hope this helps

EDIT: I would NOT go to an ophthalmologist for my RX. Yes, they can give you an rx that many will see fine out of, but they specialize in the diseases involved with the eye and do not spend as much time on refractions as do optometrists. I frequently see patients come in with an ophthalmologists RX, have glasses made, then complain they're not right. They then have to go back to that doctor to have it fixed and then come back to us to have lenses remade. For the majority of patients who find it necessary to go to an ophthalmologist, this is a hastle as most all need corrective lenses for both the sph., cyl., and add (bifocals or progressives). Nearly all optical practices have to order these and many take 5-10 business days.