You don’t have to become a nocturnal Luddite to save your eyes. You just need a pair of blue-light-blocking glasses. Below, you can peruse our picks for the best blue light blocking glasses for men and let us know if you like what you see (pun intended). These stylish options can be purchased with or without a prescription.
Best Blue-Light-Blocking Glasses for Men
Best Overall: Felix Gray
Felix Gray’s collection of blue light blocking specs are more than just lookers. (Pun intended.) They boast the sheen, heft, and solid craftsmanship you associate with a high-end sunglasses brand like Ray-Ban, but without the sticker shock that makes you afraid to use them. More surprisingly, while the gold tint of the lenses is nice and dark when you’re looking out, it’s barely noticeable from a looks perspective. The brand’s frames come in a variety of classic profiles, but we’re partial to the rounded Roebling frame. Beware of working at the coffee shop with these — you’ll get interrupted with compliments all day.
Best for the Accident-Prone: Nectar Black Crux
Made from ultra-flexible and shatterproof Swiss thermoplastic, these glasses can withstand being sat on while still in your pocket, getting jammed into your messenger bag, being played with by kids — the whole nine. When looking for the best blue light blocking glasses look for an expanded line of colors coming out for fall and new shapes coming in 2020. The clear, polarized, anti-reflective lenses filter out 50% of blue light, which makes them perfect for all-day wear.
Best for the Options Lover: Jins Screen
Jins has a wide variety of frames to choose from, and every single one has the option to add Jins Screen, the brand’s blue-light-blocking tech for your usual daytime computer-staring, and Jins Screen Night, which is tailored specifically for screen-watching before bedtime. Just choose your favorite style — the square MCF-17S-243 will stand out in a crowd or a cubicle den — and your preferred lens at checkout for an additional $60.
Best for Blending In: Spektrum Prospek-50
If your eyes could use a rest, but you’re not into the whole tinted lens thing, Spektrum’s blue-light-blocking glasses are the solution you’ve been waiting for. The acetate and titanium construction makes them super durable and lightweight. We like the Destiny model for its classic charm.
Best for the Socially Conscious: Warby Parker Kimball
Everyone’s favorite get-one-give-one glasses brand has jumped into the blue light game, bringing all its beloved brand features with them. Warby’s virtual try-on tool lets you narrow down the selection before your purchase, as is the free at-home try-on that captured the hearts of America’s bespectacled masses. The brand’s selection of frames is impeccably stylish, even if it is a tad homogeneous. But who cares when you’ve got options like the Kimball, a hip vintage-inspired number in just-flashy-enough tortoiseshell. Best of all, every pair of Warby Parker blue light glasses means sending a pair of real glasses to someone in need.
Best for Gamers: Gunnar Intercept
If you’re a Call of Duty addict, these are the glasses you need. The dark amber-tinted lenses protect your eyes during all-nighter campaigns, a silicone coating prevents scratches, and the ergonomically balanced frame means you never have to let go of the controller.
Best Budget Option: TruVision Readers
Do you love the simple, rectangular black frame look? Do you love deals even more? Amazon blue light blocking glasses might be for you. You can snag a two-pack of these easy readers for $30 on Amazon. For even more budget options, head over to our brother site, Digital Trends, which has a list of deals on computer-reading glasses.
Best for Improving Sleep: Gamma Ray Optics Orange Glasses
Constant exposure to blue light can affect your sleep schedule. These orange-tinted glasses that block out 97% of blue light can help improve your sleep. Say good riddance to restless nights after facing a screen for long hours. You’ll wake up feeling more well-rested than before and ready to tackle the day. These affordable glasses come with a case and cleaning cloth and it doesn’t compromise quality.
Best for General Computer Use: J+S Vision Blue Light Shield Glasses
If you find yourself browsing on your computer for hours, you’ll need these classic pair of blue-light-blocking glasses by J+S Vision. These glasses can help improve your productivity by lessening headaches and eye strain caused by blue light. They are also suitable for light gaming and computer reading. The low color distortion lens that blocks 90% of blue light also gives you a clearer view. The last thing you want is to be distracted by heavily tinted glasses.
The Background on Blue Light
I got hooked up with a pair of my own by Nectar founder Sean Holmes, whose line of blue-light-blocking glasses started with a niche collection of protective glasses developed for marijuana growers. Turns out their eyes really take a beating from the super-bright ultraviolet grow lights.
But cannabis industry professionals are far from the only ones suffering from overexposure to blue light. Blue light comes hard at all of us through everyday devices such as LED and fluorescent bulbs, computer monitors, smartphone, and tablet screens, and even things like cash register consoles.
Is blue light bad? Well, it’s not that simple. The short wavelength and higher energy quotient of blue light are great for boosting alertness, aiding memory and cognitive function, and even elevating mood — all fantastic benefits, unless you’re trying to wind down and get some rest. The problem arises when overexposure to blue light (especially at night) begins to disturb the wake and sleep cycle, leading to problems sleeping and daytime tiredness. Over time, overexposure to blue light can lead to fatigue, sore or irritated eyes, difficulty focusing, and even age-related macular degeneration.
Yes, as the skeptics will tell you, sunlight contains more blue light than any man-made device. However, sunlight contains an equal measure of all the other colors of light in the spectrum, whereas the blue light is turned way, way up on our screens to deliver a bright, crisp image. Moreover, while sunlight reaches us indirectly and from a distance, we tend to stare directly at the blue light from our screens, at quite close range.
(This, by the way, is especially bad news for kids, whose developing eyes could be seriously messed up by the time that they spend exposed to blue light at close range. In case you needed another good reason to fight the battle of limiting screen time.)
All this accounts for why blue-light-blocking glasses have achieved explosive popularity since they came on the market. Sean says he was blown away by the response when Nectar started offering them, not to mention how much they helped him, as well. After a long, manic day at a startup company, the blue-light-filtering lenses help him settle down and get better sleep, which only improves his productivity the next day.
Nectar’s corporate clients seem to have discovered the same effect. Companies will buy the glasses in bulk to gift to their teams, not only to offer some practical (yet stylish) relief but also to help lower their group vision health insurance. “I’m excited to see how this all develops,” says Sean. “It gives us a little bit of an edge, something we can be proud of being among the first companies to offer. It ties into our brand of encouraging people to do what they love. Helping people work hard and play hard is why we make our products.”
My Experience with Blue-Light-Blocking Glasses
Feeling heavy-limbed and tired, yet unable to go to sleep. Waking up at three in the morning and staring at a dark ceiling for an hour or longer. I thought it was some hormonal change brought on by aging. Maybe my body didn’t get the memo that the 30s aren’t the new 20s.
But then I spent a couple of weeks camping out in the forest, away from work and most sources of technology. During those two weeks, everything went back to normal. I could sleep again, and my eyes no longer felt dry or itchy.
It wasn’t aging that was messing with my eyes, after all. It was more like my eyes were aging me, thanks to how much blue light they were taking in from computers, phone screens, and TVs, as well as everyday technology such as cash register consoles, digital billboards, and more.
When I was 23, I bought a pair of fake frames from an East Village sidewalk stand and spent the rest of the evening trying to feel like I belonged. The first night with blue light blocking glasses, I felt a little like that. I didn’t notice much of a difference, either. The lenses did make the computer screen look a little warmer, a little less intense, but that was about all.
I really noticed the soothing effect of the glasses by day three. Less when they were on, more when I looked at the screen without them.
By day six, I was looking forward to putting them on. My eyes felt like they were the equivalent of weary limbs that were slipping into a clean, soft set of sheets. I really never appreciated how much work my eyes do all day. The phrase “rest your eyes” isn’t a euphemism at all; it’s a real thing you should do because it feels awesome.
By day 10, I wasn’t just wearing the blue blockers at night. I was slipping them on for all-day use — anytime I planned to spend more than 15 minutes on my computer. By then, my partner was used to the sight of them and didn’t rib me anymore for wearing fake glasses. (In fact, he put them on and admitted that he noticed a difference. Just wait until he starts having sleep problems.) While the nectar ones work great, I’m already thinking about buying the darker red lenses for intense eye rest at night.
Editors' Recommendations
- Cloos X Tom Brady Glasses Review: One of the Best Men’s Sunglasses Collection
- How to Remove Scratches from Glasses in 5 Easy Steps
- 6 Best Outdoor Sport Sunglasses for the Adventurous Man
- The Best Men’s Anti-Fog Sunglasses for Any Outdoor Workout
- The Best Products for a Comfortable and Productive Work-From-Home Space
