The Complete Guide to Binoculars for Eyeglass Wearers
Contents
Normally if you plan to buy a binocular you think of the magnification and purpose of use.
Purpose of use is the most important aspect. Once you know why you need a binocular you know what magnification to choose.
But there is a group of people that wear glasses and when they decide to choose a binocular they get confused.
So, I decided to write a post and help glass wearers to choose the right pair of binoculars.
To choose the right pair of binoculars for you as a glass wearer you need to pay attention to binoculars eye relief feature.
How to make sure that you choose the right binocular with eye relief suitable for you?
What is eye relief then?
Binocular eye relief is a the distance between the eyepiece or exit pupil of a binocular and human’s eye.
Manufacturers normally set an optimal distance between eye position and binoculars lenses (exit pupils).
With the right eye relief you get an entire field of view when looking through a binocular.
If you choose a binocular with eye relief not suitable for your eyes you will see only portion of the field of view or blackouts.
As a result you with binoculars will not be as good as you expected.
In fact, most binoculars produced nowadays are eye relief and most of the time suitable for glass wearers.
You can even use binoculars without glasses.
Binoculars will compensate any issue with your eyesight and you will get a clear image when looking through it.
But fo some glass wearers due to more serious problem with their eyesight binoculars with long eye relief may be highly recommended.
Useful TIP: There is no any restriction for eyeglass wearers. Eyeglass wearers can get as good image looking through binoculars as any other normal user.
What is the ideal eye relief for glass wearers?
The main problem with binoculars for eyeglass wearers is that when eye relief is not suitable you can’t hold binoculars close enough to see things properly.
If distance between exit pupil is too short you will see black spots when looking through binoculars.
That’s why eyeglass wearers should look for binoculars that have a long eye relief.
Important TIP: Some manufacturers describe their optical instruments as long eye relief while in fact they are not. For example, eye relief 13, 14 or even 15mm may not be suitable for eyeglass wearers. For glass wearers binoculars with eye relief 19mm, 20mm would be an ideal choice. 16mm is the minimum you should be looking for.
Magnification
Some people think high power binoculars with magnification higher than 12x are not recommended for eyeglass wearers which is not true.
If eyepiece distance is more than 15mm, 16mm this type of binocular will be suitable for you.
But it’s true that finding binoculars suitable for eyeglass wearers among 8x, 10x binoculars is much easier than choosing among high power binoculars.
Eyecups
Most binoculars produced nowadays have eyecups that allow you to adjust the distance between your eyes and binoculars exit pupil.
Thanks to eyecups you can get a whole image when looking through binoculars without black spots.
There are two types of eyecups: retractable rubber eye-cups and twist up/down plastic eye-cups.
When you need a binocular for eyeglass wearers?
There is also some misunderstanding on this question.
Many eyeglass wearers think if they wear glasses it means they need to buy a binocular designed specifically for eyeglass wearers.
In fact, it’s no so. Your choice depends mainly on the reason why you wear glasses.
If you wear glasses due to short-sightedness or farsightedness it’s not so important to buy specific binocular.
Because you can easily use a binocular without glasses. The binocular will correct your vision.
But if you have some serious problems with your eyesight which may be astigmatism (common vision condition that causes blurred vision).
In case of astigmatism you may need a long eye relief binocular to get a crystal clear and sharp image.
Normally, if you have no any issues with your eyesight you fully extend binoculars eyecups and get a clear image.
If you wear glasses, you either take your glasses away or use the eyecups.
You extend the eyecups by twisting them up until you get a clear image when looking through your binoculars.
Normal users twist eye-cups up to maximum while eye glass wearers keep eye-cups as they are because their glasses already take up the space between their eyes and binoculars exit pupils.
Best binoculars for eyeglass wearers:
Binoculars under $100
Levenhuk Karma Plus 8×42
- Magnification 8x
- Eye relief 17.8mm
- Fully Multicoated Roof – Schmidt/Pechan
- Field of view: 6.8° (355 feet / 1000 yds)
- Waterproof/ Fog proof
- Customer satisfaction 90%
- Suitable for eyeglass wearers
- Price: $79
Levenhuk Karma Pro 8×42
- Magnification 8x
- Eye relief 17.5mm
- Fully Multicoated optics
- BAK-4 prism
- Field of view: 7.4° (388 feet / 1000 yds)
- Waterproof/ Fog proof
- Customer satisfaction 89%
- Suitable for eyeglass wearers
- Price: $75
Binoculars under $200
Opticron Savanna R 8×33 Binocular
- Eye relief 20mm
- Magnification 8x
- Phase corrected prisms for extra clarity
- BAK-4 prism,
- fully multi-coated optics
- Field of view: 7° (370 feet / 1000 yds)
- Waterproof/ Fog proof
- Customer satisfaction 95%
- Suitable for eyeglass wearers
- Price: $144
Nikon Sporter 8×42 EX
- Magnification 8x
- Eye relief 19.7mm
- Eco Glass optics
- Field of view: 7° (370 feet / 1000 yds)
- Waterproof/ Fog proof
- Customer satisfaction 100%
- Suitable for eyeglass wearers
- Price: $180
Levenhuk Bruno Plus 15×70 Binoculars
- Magnification 15x
- Eye relief 19mm
- Fully Multicoated optics
- BAK-4 prism
- Field of view: 4.4° (230 feet / 1000 yds)
- Waterproof/ Fog proof
- Customer satisfaction: Yes
- Suitable for eyeglass wearers
- Price: $159
Carson RD Series 8×42 Binoculars
- Magnification power 8x
- Eye relief (exit pupil distance) 17mm
- Field of view: 7º (372 ft at 1000 yards)
- Waterproof/fogproof
- Fully multi-coated optics
- BaK-4 prism
- Customer satisfaction: Yes
- Price: $149
Levenhuk Bruno Plus 20×80 Binoculars
- Magnification 20x
- Eye relief 18mm
- Fully Multicoated optics
- BAK-4 prism
- Field of view: 3.2° (170 feet / 1000 yds)
- Waterproof/ Fog proof
- Customer satisfaction: Yes
- Suitable for eyeglass wearers
- Price: $184
Wingspan Optics Skyview Ultra HD 8×42
- Eye relief 17.8mm
- Magnification 8x
- Extra-Low Dispersion Glass
- ED Glass BAK-4 prism
- Field of view: 7.4° (393 feet / 1000 yds)
- Waterproof/ Fog proof
- Customer satisfaction 82%
- Suitable for eyeglass wearers
- Price: $179
Binoculars under $300
Steiner Marine 7×50 Binoculars
- Magnification 7x
- Eye relief 20mm
- High-Contrast Fully Multi-Coated Optics
- Field of view: 6.7° (352 feet / 1000 yds)
- Waterproof/ Fog proof
- Customer satisfaction 91%
- Suitable for eyeglass wearers
- Price: $299
Athlon Optics Midas Binoculars 8×42 ED
- Magnification 8x
- Eye relief 17.2mm
- Extra-Low Dispersion Glass
- Dielectric Coated and Phase Corrected
- Fully Multi-Coated Optics
- BAK-4 prism
- Field of view: 8.1° (426 feet / 1000 yds)
- Waterproof/ Fog proof
- Customer satisfaction 92%
- Suitable for eyeglass wearers
- Price: $309
Nikon Monarch 5 8×42
- Magnification 8x
- Eye relief 19.5mm
- Extra-Low Dispersion Glass
- Phase-Corrected Dielectric-Coated Prism
- ED Glass BAK-4 prism
- Field of view: 6.3° (330 feet / 1000 yds)
- Waterproof/ Fog proof
- Customer satisfaction 82%
- Suitable for eyeglass wearers
- Price: $246
Alpen Optics APEX XP 10X42
- Magnification 10x
- Eye relief 16mm
- BAK-4 prism
- PXA phase coating for superior resolution
- Field of view: 6° (315 feet / 1000 yds)
- Waterproof/ Fog proof
- Customer satisfaction 100%
- Suitable for eyeglass wearers
- Price: $300
Hawke Frontier HD X 8×42 Binoculars
- Magnification 8x
- Eye relief 18mm
- Fully Multicoated optics
- BAK-4 prism
- Field of view: 8.1° (426 feet / 1000 yds)
- Waterproof/ Fog proof
- Customer satisfaction 90%
- Suitable for eyeglass wearers
- Price: $299
Bresser Pirsch ED 8×56 Binoculars
- Magnification 8x
- Eye relief 19.6mm
- Fully Multicoated optics
- Premium ED Glass
- Field of view: 6.5° (340 feet / 1000 yds)
- Waterproof/ Fog proof
- Customer satisfaction 90%
- Suitable for eyeglass wearers
- Price: $309
Celestron TrailSeeker ED 8×42 Binoculars
- Magnification power 8x
- Eye relief (exit pupil distance) 17.2mm
- Field of view: 8.1º (426 ft at 1000 yards)
- Waterproof/fogproof
- Fully multi-coated optics dielectric coated
- BaK-4 prism
- Customer satisfaction: 83%
- Price: $282
Binoculars under $400
GPO Passion ED 8×42 Binoculars
- Magnification 8x
- Eye relief 18mm
- Fully Multicoated optics Roof – Schmidt/Pechan
- Field of view: 8° (420 feet / 1000 yds)
- Waterproof/ Fog proof
- Customer satisfaction: Yes
- Suitable for eyeglass wearers
- Price: $399
Binoculars under $600
Minox BV 8×56 BR
- Magnification 8x
- Eye relief 23mm
- Phase corrected roof prisms
- Field of view: 6.5° (341 feet / 1000 yds)
- Waterproof/ Fog proof
- Customer satisfaction 100%
- Suitable for eyeglass wearers
- Price: $569
Binoculars under $1000
Tract Toric UHD 8×42 Binocular
- Magnification 8x
- Eye relief 19mm
- ED (Extra Low Dispersion) lens
- Field of view: 7.1° (377 feet / 1000 yds)
- Waterproof/ Fog proof
- Customer satisfaction 80%
- Suitable for eyeglass wearers
- Price: $714
Binoculars under $2000
Vortex Razor UHD 10×42 Binoculars
- Magnification power 10x
- Eye relief (exit pupil distance) 16.7mm
- Field of view: 6.6º (346 ft at 1000 yards)
- Waterproof/fogproof
- Ultimate anti-reflective coatings
- Razor UHD Abbe Koenig Prism
- Customer satisfaction: 100%
- Price: $1,499
Binoculars under $3000
Swarovski EL42 Binocular 8.5×42
- Magnification power 8.5x
- Eye relief (exit pupil distance) 20mm
- Field of view: 7.6º (399 ft at 1000 yards)
- Waterproof/fogproof SWAROVSKI optics
- Customer satisfaction: 81%
- Price: $2,659
Swarovski EL 10×50 Swarovision Binoculars
- Magnification power 10x
- Eye relief (exit pupil distance) 20mm
- Field of view: 6.6º (345 ft at 1000 yards)
- Waterproof/fogproof
- Phase-coated BAK4 roof prisms
- Customer satisfaction: Yes
- Price: $2,559
About the Author: Adam
We review and recommend quality binoculars so you don't waste your money on useless ones. 
Great content and fantastic content. I have young kids that are starting to get into athletics. I will be returning to this site to do my research when I’m ready to purchase a set or two. I really had no idea that there was this much to consider when purchasing a set. Thank for the info.
Though buying a set of binoculars may seem super simple in fact it needs some research. I have many other educating articles on my blog. Read them just shoot me a message with questions and I will help you make the right choice.
Great and informative article of binoculars for eyeglass wearers I would say! My wife uses eye classes and we are hiking and photographing pretty often and I have been considering to buy binoculars for her, this information was really helpful. Is there any sort of “adapters” to use normal binoculars with eye glasses? If no or not practical way, I will take a further look at those camo style binoculars.
No, I don’t know about any adaptors. Most binoculars have eyecups that you can adjust to your eyes or choose binoculars with eye relief of at least 18mm. That will be enough for any eyeglass wearer.
I have learned a thing or 2 about binoculars that I didn’t know. I thought anyone can use any binocular and I had no idea that they had to be an appropriate size for you in order for you to get a clear image without blackout. I also did not think about people that wear glasses in regards to their use of binoculars but it was interesting to learn that they can use them without their glasses and see the image clearly as it corrects eye sight issues while in use and the consideration of eye relief!
Don’t worry about black outs. If you adjust eyepieces to your eyes you will not see any black outs when looking through binoculars. Many eyeglass wearers can use binoculars without glasses except those that have serious astigmatism