PUBLIC STATEMENT - International Optical On 22 April 2026, I had a rigid gas permeable (RGP) contact lens exam at International Optical. After the exam, I was told I would only receive my prescription if I purchased lenses directly from the provider. When I refused, I was denied my prescription, pressured into a $700 rigid contact lens, and told I would no longer be accepted as a patient. My $200 exam fee was refunded, and the service was terminated instead of providing my prescription. I was also denied access to my medical records. This situation raises serious concerns under the FTC Contact Lens Rule, which protects patients' right to receive their prescription after an eye exam regardless of purchase. I have filed formal complaints with the Better Business Bureau (BBB) and the Massachusetts Attorney General. Patients should not be forced to purchase products to receive their own prescription. -- Patrícia Pesarolo read more

My glasses (purchased elsewhere) were damaged and they fixed for free. I even offered $ and they said 'no'. Great service and friendly staff. I will definitely be back when it is time for new glasses. read more

My last contact ripped and I called to see if they were open (pandemic life) cause I had a work meeting in 40 minutes. They said come on down. Parking was easy just around the corner. They practiced good social distancing techniques and the optometrist in the back came out to help me as the floor saleswoman was busy with other ppl. He immediately helped me out, an absolute angel and I was back home w minutes to spare before my meeting began! Very friendly, professional, helpful, quick. Will visit again. read more

This review is not about the actual service. I purchased a $300 gift certificate for my friend 3 years ago that he hadn't had a chance to redeem. In meanwhile he lost it. His fault. agree. I went in with my friend to retrieve the certificate and use it. We were not allowed to do so because the certificate was expired one year after the purchase. It did say on the certificate in a very small print on the bottom. However MA STATE LAW says: gift certificates must be good for at least 7 YEARS (as of June 2003). I brought this to the owner's attention and she still refused to honor the certificate. She did offer 50% off any purchase. We obviously refused the offer. read more

Great experience here. Super friendly service from Amanda -- she greeted with a smile, answered all my questions and went out of her way to help me. Come support an amazing local store instead of a big chain! read more

I didn't purchase anything from international optical, however, they did adjust my glasses (which I purchased elsewhere) for free and I think that speaks volumes about the owner and their customer service. Large national chains, looking at you Pearle Vision, with much more revenue want to charge $25+ for a quick adjustment. That's ridiculous. Glad I found this place. Conveniently located, locally owned, and friendly. I'd go here for my next pair. read more

Presbyopia, my latest middle age milestone. Add to that myopia and astigmatism, and what you get is a poor candidate for non-prescription reading glasses or regular single lens glasses. SO, for my first pair of progressive lenses eyeglasses, I opted for a local, independent eyeglass shop with a good reputation and a selection of stylish frames. Amanda made me feel at ease right away. Even after I warned her that I may be the most indecisive person when it came to picking out glasses, she attended to me with warmth and attentiveness, while also giving me time and space to try on as many pairs I wanted to and taking photos of each pair so that I could get input from my style-savvy advisors (who don't live close enough to come to the store with me). There is a wide selection of frames and lenses for every budget, and I especially appreciated that they were very knowledgeable about different technologies. There was no pressure at all to buy one product over another, or any product, for that matter. Amanda laid out all of my options, answered my questions (some of them multiple times, because it's a lot to take in!), and Mita weighed in on her experience with the particular lenses she wore. It was like shopping with trusted friends and family. I ordered 2 pairs of glasses (regular and sunnies) on a Tuesday afternoon and they were ready for me by Friday of the same week. read more

I stopped in at this place because one of the nose pads on my glasses broke off, and International Optical just happened to be the closest shop nearby. I was prepared to pay for the fix, but they did it for free - super impressed by their customer service. I will definitely be returning when I need new glasses! read more

I loved my experience there. Friendly, competent, and thorough. They discussed all the options and prices that are available without any kind of pressure. For example: progressives, bifocals, antiglare, etc.. They were done unless than a week at a very reasonable price! read more

For the past two years i change like 4 doctors. and it's not that i'm picky but i don't feel comfortable when i visit them. some of them was in rush or not really was paying attention what i was saying. But when my friend recomend this place i went couse i broke my glases. And i really like them. The staff and the Doctor are VERY friendly, warm! And it's very clean and nice design place. They have a big choice of very good stuff! Doctor check my vision on like 10 different mashines. They look very professional. They help me to choose the frame and when i buy contucts they give me lot's of free stuff. It's not that i'm looking for free stuff but such small things make u feel good! And in the end they give me like 10% discount! I love this guys and finally i find the best eye doctor for me! read more

I am adding this note at the beginning of the older review. The owner was very helpful, apologized for the incompetence and rudeness of his staff and he did the following things: 1. He gave me a free eye exam after I told him I worry about getting new lenses if they would be wrong again. 2. He is re-doing my lenses for free AND 3. he is giving me a new frame, also free as I disliked the old one as well. So this is the service I was used to. However, I am keeping my rating at 4 stars because it is unacceptable to have staff who can't speak English well enough to be able to help English speaking clients and also given the terrible service I was given in his absence. If I were a new client I would have never returned to this place given the awful service I received. In their defense I should add that the doctor made a small correction in the prescription and even on the axis. I had this new-new prescription made at Costco and they are still too strong, I can wear them but only for short periods of time. The glasses from International Optical are not ready yet. They should be done soon -- using the prescription done by the owner, which would be the third trial in getting it done correctly. Hopefully it's a charm! ****************** What a massive disappointment this place has become! We had used this shop for probably 18 years. We never had problems with them; they gave us good discounts and were always very easy to deal with. Everything changed for the worst with my last visit two weeks ago, in the middle of January 2014. The owner is a great guy and very competent but his staff working right now in there is below the worst level of customer service I have ever experienced. Also, the machine that reads the axis for cylindrical lenses (astigmatism) has probably not been calibrated and is giving seriously wrong readings. The prescription in my glasses said 160 degrees for one eye. They made that lens at 5 (five) degrees, I can't see with the glasses. I told the owner I could not see well when I picked them up and he suggested I give them a try then come back to get the lenses replaced for free if I can't get used to them. There is nothing to get used to, they are wrong, I can't see. I went back to the eye doctor. They checked the newly made glasses and discovered the axis was 5 degrees. I then went to Costco and asked them to check the new glasses. Their result: 7.58 degrees. This is not a precise "science" and a few degrees off is perfectly fine for the eyes. A difference from 160 degrees to 5 degrees is a huge difference and the eyes can't compensate for that. The worst part is that the machine reading those axes that they have in the store reads 160 degrees. Yet two different machines at the doctor's office and at Costco read values totally different and very close to each other (5 and 7.58.) I can't see with the glasses. So let's see -- two different machines in different places read almost the same value of the axes, I can't see with the glasses. Guess who's wrong? And even if say I and two other machines are all wrong, I am the client therefore I am always right. The girls working there should know this basic business mantra. The owner is away and all they told me is that he will not be back until Monday. One girl in the store can't speak English so we could not understand each other. Another one with better English had the nerve to call me home and leave a long message telling me they checked the glasses and they are perfect. I called her back and guess what she did? She put me on hold. So I hung up and will wait for Monday when the owner comes back to at least try sort this out with him and also inform him about how his staff is treating his clients. If I can sort it out great if not it doesn't matter because one way or another they lost three loyal customers who spent a lot of money there over the last 18 years and would have kept going there if this had never happened. The attitude of the staff is horrible, most of them can't speak English, none of them understands the concepts of a good capitalist business model and all I can do is cry over my $660 pair of useless progressive glasses. You'd think that for that much money I would get some decent service. You can be the judge of this business reading what I experienced there. I will write a follow up on Monday after I hopefully will be able to get in touch with the own read more

I like the service here. They offered to order some frames in different colors that they didn't have in stock so I could have a broader selection. They clearly care about customer satisfaction. It's a straight-forward, no frills kind of place. I think prices are a bit steep, as they are at most stores (as opposed to online retailers which seem to be discounted) so I think I will probably just get my rx and go online for contacts in the future, even though I would love to support a local establishment. They do have extended hours some nights and Portuguese-speaking doctors and receptionists...maybe also Spanish? Parking can be tough in Union Square depending on the time of day, but there are meters right in front and some permit spots. read more

I recently switched eye doctors and couldn't be happier with International Optical. Everyone who works here is extremely friendly and very helpful. The eye doctor is very nice and very easy to talk to! They are in a great location and are easy to get to. Also, they have a great selection of glasses, even though I haven't bought any from International Optical, I do plan on buying a pair from them in the near future. Very happy I switched to International Optical. read more

Even though sometimes one can order glasses on line for less, and we depend on glasses to see, you don't get customer service or a quick adjustment from those establishments. It's nice to support a local business but it's also very nice to have a positive experience. I will recommend this business and keep coming back. I/family members have been going to International optical for a few years (even though I have a BJ's membership and can go there) we are always treated with professionalism and everyone is always very helpful with frame selection and never feel rushed. If adjustments need to be made or glasses are not just right, they don't point out what we did wrong or try to sell me something else but simply fix our issues and make sure the customer is happy. read more

I can't say enough about this place. They are the kindest and most helpful people I've run across in some time. They've fixed my glasses on several occasions from elsewhere and each time they charged me a pittance and did great work. I've never purchased from there but I can swear to the quality of repair and more than fair pricing. i'd take a leap of faith and bet everything else they do is top notch as well. read more

Excellent service and very kind staff. I had bought a pair of glasses from a different optical shop and the screw had come out. I just dropped by International Optical and they replaced the screw for free. Will definitely come here for future optical needs. read more

International Optical blends into the mish-mash commercial strip leading into Union Square, but the inside feels polished and professional. Prices seem fair and the staff is warm and friendly (especially in comparison to the larger optical shops attached to clinics). They were even gracious enough to provide me a PD (pupilary distance) measurement for free, something my eye doctor would *not* do. Next time I'm up for prescription renewal, I'll be coming here. read more

Excellent service. They spent a long time fixing my glasses and didn't charge a thing. I would highly recommend them!

Dr.Lino is the only doctor that can handle my tricky vision issues! He rocks!

This place is great! I bent a pair of my sunglasses pretty bad so I took them in here to see if they could fix them for me and they were able to fix them up real quick, good as new. Friendly people, good service. It's good to support local shops like this one. read more

I have never experienced the level of service, knowledged and professionally at an optician that these folks provided. They are #1 most highly recommended, especially for the (likely) majority of folks who have only experienced the big chains, will you be pleasantly surprised! AND this is a locally owned business I get to support. read more

What a discovery close to my home! It's a long story, but I have to tell you: after an eye injury and several months of treatments, and I was finally able to see my eye doctor on a Wednesday, just three days before my scheduled vacation out of state. As suspected, I needed a new prescription, and because I became sensitive to light, I decided that I needed transitions lenses. On Thursday, I called several eyewear stores in Somerville/Cambridge area, asking them if they could get me a new pair of transitions lenses by Friday, as I was leaving for my vacation on Saturday. The answer was no all the time, but then, one big eyewear chain in Somerville responded positively. When I went to see them, it turned out that they could only turn around a pair of grey lenses in a day, and I needed brown ones to fit my existing frame. Also, the price they quoted me was ridiculously high. Then I kept calling other random stores, using Yelp, and no one was able to help me until I called International Optics. Edson, the store owner, was not only able to produce brown transitions lenses by the following day, he also quoted me a very, very reasonable price! I was sold over the phone, and since it turned out that I live in the neighborhood, I was in the store in 15 minutes. Edson took the measurements, took a look at my prescription, and voila - the next day I had my lenses on and I was able to enjoy my vacation. It was a random discovery, thanks to Yelp, but boy, am I happy with the service - that's the way to go, and thank you Edson!!! read more