If you need glasses but don’t like wearing them, contact lenses are amazing. They might be a pain at first, but once in place, it’s usually not hard to forget about them for most of the day. Nowadays it’s most popular to order contacts online through a subscription service that conveniently ships to your doorstep, often for less than buying through your doctor.
For many people who don’t currently wear daily lenses, the benefits of online contact subscription services — better long-term eye health at a lower cost — make it well worth “upgrading” from monthly or weekly lenses. For those who already wear dailies, you are well aware there’s no going back, it’s just a matter of choosing the best brand.
Avid wearers of Dailies® brand contact lenses can buy them at online contacts stores like ContactsCart, 1-800 Contacts, or other third-party marketplaces. Such online retailers typically offer a large selection of lenses, including Dailies® as well as dozens of other brands. They also make it exceedingly easy to set up a recurring subscription plan so that you never find yourself without a fresh pair.
In this article we’ll explore the difference between Hubble’s contacts and Dailies®, a more established brand that’s been around for a long time. How do Hubble’s contacts compare to Dailies®? Is the lens quality similar? And regardless of which brand you choose, how is the experience purchasing on ContactsCart, Hubble’s online lens marketplace, compared to ordering from 1-800 Contacts? Let’s take a deeper look.
How do Hubble and Dailies® compare to the optometrist?
Before modern online contact subscriptions, the way to get lenses was to see an eye doctor or optometrist in a physical eyeglass store. Of course, many still do that today, and we definitely recommend it if a) this is your first time procuring corrective lenses, OR b) your eye care needs are quite complicated or have noticeably changed.
The traditional process of buying contact lenses was often too:
- slow (since you have to visit an optometrist several times in person), and
- expensive (since you pay a copay or more each time depending if you have vision insurance), and
- opaque (since most people would just blindly buy whatever brand their optometrist recommended).
Consumers didn’t conduct much (if any) research on their own, wasted a lot of time in waiting rooms and in their car, and typically ended up with overpriced lenses.
Modern subscription services by Hubble, Waldo, Scout by Warby Parker, and 1-800 contacts changed this process dramatically. Those with a prescription still need to get an eye exam and contacts prescription from a local optometrist first, regardless of which online provider you choose. That part remains the same.
But after determining your prescription, you can either shop at an online marketplace and choose between hundreds of contact brands (including traditional brands like Dailies®), or buy a modern brand of lenses (like Hubble) directly from their website.
Both routes are great because they afford the convenience of regularly scheduled contact deliveries, all for a much lower price than via an optometrist.
They both allow you to go to the doctor less and set up a flexible delivery schedule once and forget about it forever. Hubble will even remind you when your prescription is about to expire and prompt you to take action. And as we keep alluding to, most Americans can save money by skipping the costs of extra doctor visits and finding cheaper daily lenses that feel just as good.
So how exactly do contact subscriptions work from Hubble vs Dailies®?
It’s a bit different getting a subscription to Hubble vs Dailies® contacts. Hubble is sold direct-to-consumer, meaning you can sign up directly on Hubblecontacts.com and start your contact subscription right away.
Dailies®, on the other hand, is a more traditional contact lens brand that does not sell its contact lenses directly on their website. Other than through optometrists, its contacts are distributed on third party marketplaces like ContactsCart.com and 1800contacts.com, which are both reputable and convenient retailers if you’re looking to get a Dailies® subscription.
Why buy from online contact marketplaces like ContactsCart or 1-800 contacts?
1-800 Contacts and ContactsCart aren’t lens manufacturers like Hubble or Alcon, the maker of Dailies® brand. Instead, they merely sell established contacts brands from top players (Alcon, Bausch & Lomb, CooperVision and Johnson & Johnson).
Like Amazon for contact lenses, they allow you to choose your favorite brand and then subscribe for recurring shipments, not unlike the experience of signing up directly on hubblecontacts.com for a subscription to Hubble lenses.
With either company, you’re able to sign up, pause or cancel shipments at any time. When your prescription expires, renewals can be fairly easy. 1 800 Contacts even offers an Express Exam, which is an online eye exam when renewing your prescription so long as you’ve been previously examined by an eye doctor in real life (IRL).
Basically it’s a way to take an eye exam online, which is similar (albeit slightly less robust) than the eye chart and questions you might remember from your in-person visit. The results of your virtual exam are then reviewed by a real optometrist and in most cases, they are able to renew your prescription within 24 hours. pretty neat, right?
So while 1 800 contacts may have made renewals easier than Hubble’s subscription plan, there are other benefits to Hubble that, for many, tip the balance in its favor. Let’s review them so you can choose the best option for your lifestyle.
Hubble vs Dailies®: Which subscription service is better?
While these subscription services are similar in terms of cost and structure, there are definitely a few key differences. Scan the following chart to quickly grasp the important nuances of Hubble vs Dailies.
Daily Contact Lens Subscription Comparison: Hubble vs Dailies® | ||
|---|---|---|
| How to Purchase Subscription | Direct from Hubble’s site: | Indirectly from a 3rd party like: |
| Monthly Cost | $36 per month | $34.99 per month |
| Shipping | $3 | Free |
| Accept FSA (Flexible Spending Account) and HSA (Health Savings Account)? | Yes | Yes |
| Free Trial? | First 15 pairs for free ($1 shipping/handling) | Save 20% on first order from ContactsCart |
| Quantity | Box of 30 daily lenses | Box of 30 daily lenses |
| Offers Toric Lenses (for astigmatism)? | Not yet | Yes |
| Offers Multifocal/Bifocal Lenses? | Not yet | Yes (multifocal) |
| Returns | No returns | Free torn lens replacement; exchange unused lenses |
| Website |
We’ll point out that Hubble has a much better introductory offer (a month of free lenses for just $1!), so if you’re on the fence, you might as well take advantage and see how they fit for yourself.
Otherwise, the two subscriptions are very comparable in terms of price and user experience. If you have an astigmatism, or require multifocal correction, we recommend buying lenses from 1 800 contacts because Hubble can’t help you.
As you can see, there are pros and cons to each, but when it comes to contact lenses, you probably want to know about lens quality as well. We’re talking about your precious eyeballs after all….
So how does the quality of Hubble’s own proprietary brand compare to a well-known brand like Dailies®?
Hubble vs Dailies®: How does lens quality compare?
You know Dailies® is an established, well-respected contact brand akin to Acuvue or CooperVision. How does the quality of Hubble’s lenses compare?
Hubble’s own website tells us that they care about quality so much they spent nearly a year vetting manufacturing facilities before pulling the trigger. They went with an FDA-approved company based in Taiwan called St. Shine that’s been manufacturing lenses for more than 20 years using cutting-edge methods subject to rigorous quality assurance tests and inspections, which on the surface, all sounds legit.
But for a more detailed look, we compared the exact specs of Hubble vs Dailies brand lenses® so you know exactly how each measures up:
Contact Lens Quality Comparison: Hubble vs Dailies® | ||
|---|---|---|
| Manufacturer | St. Shine | Alcon |
| Material | Methafilcon A hydrogel | 31% nelfilcon A |
| Water Content | 55% | 69% |
| UV Protection? | Yes (80% UVA and 95% UVB) | No |
| Lens Diameter | 14.2mm | 13.8mm |
| Power Range | #ERROR! | #ERROR! |
| Base Curve | 8.6mm | 8.6mm |
| FDA Approved | Yes | Yes |
| Website |
One of the notable differences between Dailies® and Hubble brands is UV protection, where Hubble offers 80% UVA and 95% UVB, while Dailies UV protection remains conspicuously absent. Especially for folks with lighter colored eyes, this is a big deal.
The Verdict: Which contacts are better, Hubble or Dailies®?
First and foremost, eye care isn’t something to be taken lightly, so please go see an optometrist before making a decision if:
- You’ve never consulted an eye doctor before
- It’s been a long time since you’ve seen an optometrist
- You have a very complicated eye condition that requires very specific, non-standard corrective lenses
However, if you’re a regular contact user who’s looking to save a bit of cash, a subscription from Hubble or Dailies® (via ContactsCart or 1-800 contacts) is likely a great move.
That said, your decision to subscribe to Hubble or Dailies® shouldn’t come down to my personal opinion. For that reason, I decided not to include my own experience using each brand. After all, I don’t think my individual story would be helpful since eye care is personal, and everyone’s needs are extremely different.
What I can say though is that I’ve spoken to many customers happy with both brands, and ultimately I think you’ll need to give each a try to determine which works best for you.
Since Hubble offers a free trial of 30 contacts for just $1, that’s where I recommend you start. If you like them, that’s great! Congrats on figuring out how to save money and time by going direct to the manufacturer. Likewise, you could start by enjoying 20% off your first ContactsCart order, and then promptly cancel if/when you decide they aren’t for you.
Speaking of discounts, we have a newsletter that covers all the latest offerings. Subscribe below to stay in the loop:
Ultimately, I’m 100% sold on contact subscription services in general, as they offer greater convenience and lower prices vs the traditional way of buying contacts in-person. Thus, services like Hubble’s ContactsCart or 1 800 Contacts (for Dailies®) can give you a convenient and cost-effective way to get contacts without requiring that you buy in bulk.
But if you’re still torn about which is better — Hubble vs Dailies® — here are a few last pros and cons in summary.
Dailies (via ContactsCart or 1-800 Contacts)
1-800 Contacts isn’t a contact lens manufacturer like Hubble or Alcon, the maker of Dailies® brand. Instead, it sells established contacts brands from top players (Alcon, Bausch & Lomb, CooperVision and Johnson & Johnson).
Like Amazon for contact lenses, they allow you to choose your favorite brand from its selection and then subscribe for recurring shipments, not unlike the experience of signing up on hubblecontacts.com for a subscription to Hubble lenses.
Dailies® is for sure the better bet if you need toric or multifocal lenses, since Hubble doesn’t offer correction for those conditions at the moment.
As on online retailer, 1-800 Contacts shines because it allows you to renew your prescription with a free exam online instead of going back to your optometrist. Hubble still hasn’t streamlined the renewal experience to nearly the same degree, but their new online marketplace for all contact brands (not just Hubble’s own) is sleek and absolutely worth checking out as well. Take a look here and enjoy 20% off your first order.
Hubble
Hubble is sleek D2C brand that offers a very comparable alternative for anyone who’s less than 100% satisfied with Dailies®.
Hubble’s lenses offer more UVA and UVB protection than Dailies®, which has no UV protection whatsoever. So if you wear your contact lenses a lot without sunglasses or you have light-sensitive eyes in general, this difference is definitely worth considering.
Since Hubble offers a free trial, you might as well give the brand a try. Click on one of the banners below to get started with 15 pairs of contacts for free.
PS Waldo is another modern daily contact subscription company you should know about. Similar to Hubble, Waldo sells directly to consumers and is offering a generous free trial. It’s worthwhile giving them a shot too, and if you’re really discerning, throw Warby Parker’s new contact brand, Scout, into the mix. Cheers!
Discover more eye care reviews
Stoggles Review – Are Stylish Safety Goggles Worth It?
Home › Eye Care › Stoggles Review Rating: 4.5 / 5 ★★★★★ 4.5/5 Most of us have been trying our best to protect ourselves from
Best Online Eye Care
Best Eye Care Online Compare top vision care startups Best Eye Care Online Overview Related Reviews Eyebobs is a direct to consumer eyewear brand offering
Felix Gray vs Warby Parker vs Zenni vs Eyebobs: Which Blue Light Glasses Are Legit?
Home › Eye Care › Felix Gray vs Warby Parker vs Zenni Blokz vs Eyebobs These days you’re either part of the 43% of Americans
Pair Eyewear Review – Are Customizable Glasses for Kids Worth It?
Home › Eye Care › Pair Eyewear Review Warby Parker brought the world stylish prescription eyeglasses you can order easily online at an affordable price.
ContactsCart vs 1-800 Contacts: What’s the Best Site for Contacts?
Home › Eye Care › ContactsCart vs 1-800 Contacts When you’re ready to re-up on contacts or explore options beyond glasses, traditionally folks start by
Hubble vs Scout by Warby Parker vs Waldo: What are the Best D2C Contacts?
Home › Eye Care › Hubble vs Scout by Warby Parker vs Waldo Contact lenses are great, but let’s face it—dailies are expensive. As a
