Whether you're a daily commuter or a weekend vacationer, the proper driving sunglasses can make the difference between an enjoyable drive and a stressful one. Get the clearest view of the road with lens colors designed to enhance details, block glare, and keep you comfortable. Join SportRx as we reveal the best sunglass lens colors for driving!
Table of Contents
A. Video Review
B. Best Sunglass Lens Colors for Driving
1. Neutrals
2. Contrast-Enhancing
3. Transitions®
4. Other Features
5. Night Driving Lenses
C. Prescription Driving Glasses Online at SportRx
Video Review
Join Eyeglass Tyler as he discusses the best lens colors for driving sunglasses! To see the recommendations in its entirety, keep on reading below.
Best Sunglass Lens Colors for Driving
While the lens color for driving sunglasses can easily be a personal style choice, there are a few key lens categories to consider. Let's review which lens colors work best behind-the-wheel.
Neutrals
For a true color experience, neutrals are the least disruptive to natural color vision. Most often seen as greys and green-greys, like Ray-Ban's G-15 lens, these lens colors provide sun protection without altering the color experience. Neutrals are also one of the most dense lens colors, which means it absorbs a higher percentage of light. Your eyes will be free from squinting, receive maximum sun protection, and have natural color vision.
Ray-Ban RB3138 Shooter in Arista with G-15 Lenses
Shop Ray-Ban RB3138 Shooter
Neutral Color Recommendations
- Grey
- Grey-Green
- Ray-Ban G-15
Contrast-Enhancing
For a boosted color experience, contrast-enhancing lens excel at making details pop. By manipulating the light spectrum, you'll get greater contrast and clarity. Contrast-enhancing lenses also have an impressive versatility factor. They perform well in a variety of lighting conditions and make a perfect everyday lens color. Some of our favorite contrast-enhancing lens colors are browns, ambers, and rose-coppers.
Maui Jim Red Sands in Black and Grey Tortoise with HCL Bronze Lenses
Shop Maui Jim Red Sands
Contrast-Enhancing Color Recommendations
- Brown
- Amber/Bronze
- Rose-Copper
Transitions®
Transition lenses darken, and lighten, according to the level of UV exposure. While they make a practical choice for their versatility, our Senior Opticians do not recommend traditional Transitions® for driving. The reason being that car windows have an anti-UV treatment, which prevents UV rays from entering the interior of the vehicle. Since Transitions® require UV exposure to change, this prevents the light adaptation of the lens.
With that said, there are specific types of transition lenses that can work behind-the-wheel. One of our favorites? Transitions® Drivewear®. These lens have been designed to adapt seamlessly during the drive by using light intelligent technology®. To learn more, visit our blog on the best transition lenses for driving.
Transition® Lens Color Recommendations
- Drivewear®
- Xtractive® Grey
- Xtractive® Brown
Other Features
Now that we have a broad foundation for the best driving lens colors, let's take a look at some of the more specific lens options available.
Gradients
Gradient lenses start at a darker shade at the top of the lens and gradually lighten towards the bottom of the lens. A largely cosmetic choice, gradients are most often selected for their unique look. The one positive to consider when driving? If you find yourself struggling to see the dashboard due to too-dark sunglasses, a gradient lens will give you the upper sun protection you crave while making it easier to view the odometer below.
Polarization
To get the least amount of glare during your commute, our opticians recommend polarized lenses for your driving sunglasses. Polarized lenses combat glare from reflective surfaces such as open road, the car in front of you, and open bodies of water. You'll get greater clarity and more comfortable vision on particularly sunny days.
Now, there is one caveat to polarized lenses for driving. While they most often work seamlessly with the digital screens of today's modern vehicles, there are some of which are not compatible. Keep this in mind when shopping for polarized lenses as a driver with digital screen displays.
Night Driving Lenses
We've got you covered for your daytime commute, but what about after hours? Our #1 recommendation for night driving lenses is a clear lens with a high-quality anti-reflective coating. This will protect you from glare while allowing the maximum amount of light through the lens so you can see the road ahead.
For ultra HD vision, Maui Jim has a lens that is made specifically for night driving called Maui High Contrast. It's available when you order Maui Jim prescription eyeglasses. Not only does this lens feature AR on both sides, it has properties built in that increase contrast and definition while driving at night. It reduces glare from headlights and streetlights by diminishing yellow light where red and green receptors meet in the eye. During the day, it also increases contrast, making things appear more vivid than most eyeglass lenses. And for the cherry on top, it makes reading more enjoyable by boosting the contrast between words and pages, allowing for easier reading of small print. What more could you ask for in night driving glasses?
If you're considering a yellow lens, we invite you to read more on Do Yellow Lenses Help You See Better at Night?
Prescription Driving Glasses Online at SportRx
Need prescription driving glasses? Done. When you shop with us, you’ll find video guides and tooltips throughout the customization process as you build the perfect pair. An answer to all your questions is at your fingertips, and if you want to chat with an expert, give us a call! We’ll put you in touch with one of our friendly in-house opticians who can help you build your prescription driving sunglasses.
Ditch risky online shopping with our See Better Guarantee. Try your driving sunglasses for 45 days. If you’re not satisfied, send them back. Get a full refund, exchange, or credit towards a better pair. And return shipping? Covered. Get your pair of prescription driving sunglasses at SportRx today!
