Ready in 20 minutes or 1 to 2 days: every Express Service lens at Vision Express, listed

Not every lens takes a week. Vision Express has a short Express Service list of lenses that are in stock or turned around in 1 to 2 days. If you have lost your glasses, broken a frame or need a pair before a trip, this is the list to know. Here it is, sorted by how long you wait.

Ready in 20 minutes (in stock)

These three lenses are held in stock:

• Basic 1.50: single vision. The everyday choice when you need a pair fast and your needs are simple.
• Opulens Advanced 1.60: blue light category. Our menu names it for a child's everyday pair.
• Opulens Ultra 1.60: blue light category. Our menu names it for humidity, sweat and smudges.

"Ready in 20 minutes" refers to the lens. Your frame still needs to be fitted and adjusted, so ask the team for the full time on the day. The stock lens must also suit your prescription, and the optician will confirm that first.

Ready in 1 to 2 days

Five lenses take a little longer:

• Opulens Blue Light 1.56: blue light. Named on our menu for screen use.
• Essilor Photochromic Elements White 1.56: photochromic, single vision. It darkens in sunlight and clears indoors.
• Essilor Transitions Classic HMC 1.56: photochromic. Named on our menu for UV and the outdoor commute.
• Essilor Elements White 1.56: progressive.
• Essilor Photochromic Elements White 1.56: progressive, with the photochromic feature.

That is eight lenses in total. Essilor Photochromic Elements White 1.56 appears on the menu in both single vision and progressive form, so ask which one applies to you.

What if your lens is not on the list?

Everything else is made to order. Essilor and Nikon lenses arrive in 3 to 5 days. Shamir lenses take 7 to 9 days. Tokai lenses take 10 to 12 days, and so does Opulens Pro Max, made in Hong Kong. The Express list is for speed. The full menu is for the lens that fits you best.

Which situation calls for which lens

• You broke your only pair this morning. Basic 1.50 or Opulens Advanced 1.60, if your prescription suits a stock lens.
• You need a spare pair for the car or the bag. Opulens Ultra 1.60 is the one we name for humidity and sweat.
• You are turning 40 and need progressives soon. Essilor Elements White 1.56, ready in 1 to 2 days.
• You want sun protection on a prescription. Essilor Transitions Classic HMC 1.56, or Essilor Photochromic Elements White 1.56.

What Express Service cannot promise

Speed does not mean a compromise in every case, but it does limit choice. A very strong prescription, a complicated astigmatism or a demanding progressive design may need a made-to-order lens. Your optometrist decides, and we would rather tell you to wait a week than fit a stock lens that does not suit you.

Using Express as a bridge

If you order a made-to-order lens and cannot be without glasses in the meantime, ask the team whether an Express pair can cover the wait. Raise it when you order, not after.

What to do next

Book a Vision7 eye test at your nearest Vision Express store. The exam tells us which Express lenses suit your prescription, and it tells you if a made-to-order lens is worth the wait.

Ask for Opulens Advanced 1.60 at the counter. It is in stock, ready in 20 minutes, and one of the lenses we name for a blue light routine. If your day is hot and humid, ask about Opulens Ultra 1.60. Every Vision Express pair also comes with free lifetime ultrasonic cleaning, free lifetime custom fitting and adjustment, and a 1-year warranty.