See better for less money.

The cost of a new pair of glasses may leave you seeing double. Fancy frames, special lenses and protective coatings can add $500 or more, even with insurance. You can get cheaper pairs online or in discount stores, but can you trust them to correct your vision and look good, too? Consumer Reports offers this advice:

Don't focus on brands. One reason glasses cost a lot is that they are part fashion accessory. You can spend hundreds on frames from Chanel, Prada, Versace and other big names. But those frames are often designed and manufactured by companies that license the names -- not the designers themselves. And they may not be sturdier than store-brand frames.

Shop discount stores. Just 38 percent of Americans buy their glasses from an eye doctor or optometrist, according to Mintel, a market-research firm. Instead, they are turning to inexpensive places such as Wal-Mart Vision Center and Costco Optical. In Consumer Reports' survey of 19,500 of its readers, published in 2013, Costco topped the ratings for overall satisfaction, beating out retailers such as LensCrafters and Pearle Vision. But readers weren't very impressed with Costco's selection of frames, and you might have to wait a week or more for your glasses.

Look online. Sales of glasses online are growing steadily. Warby Parker (warbyparker.com) entered the market in 2010 as an independent online shop. (It now also has more than a dozen stores nationwide.) To keep prices low, generally $95 for single-vision glasses and $295 for progressive glasses, the frames are designed in-house. Shoppers can request up to five pairs to try on at home for five days.

There are other online sources, often with huge selections and low prices. Zenni Optical (zennioptical.com), which also offers single-vision specs for less than $100, was the most widely used online source of glasses among Consumer Reports readers. And most Web shoppers said they would buy glasses online again.

But buying online isn't for everybody. "If you have a complex prescription...