UKH

Do coloured lenses make a difference for cycling? I've read the suggested yellow for this, blue for that but I'm not certain. I've currently got yellow lenses in my prescription glasses which are needing replacement and I'm wondering whether to get coloured or clear. I can't currently afford photochromic ones but will consider them if they're really worth it in people's opinion.
I ride a mix of road and gravel with these glasses on so am looking for a general purpose lens colour.

I used to have yellow ones which I called my happy glasses. They made the world look sunnier on a grey day! I used them for mountain biking more to keep dirt out of my eyes, but could be nice on the road too I guess to just brighten up the day!

Yellow improves contrast (and supposedly depth perception) which is why they're used in shooting glasses. Also meant to cut out blue light which is scattered in cloudy / foggy conditions giving you better clarity, but I'm not sure how measurable the effect is.

I think a yellow/orange tint makes a good difference in terms of being able to pick up surface changes etc. Most obvious difference on snow and in fog (which is why its popular in ski goggles) The biggest issue is in brighter conditions they might be "too bright". Having said that I've got some 20 year old Oakleys with a yellowy tint that are quite dark and great in the summer in and out of the woods

I've got photochromic ones, but I rarely wear them mountain biking - they don't change tint fast enough when going in and out of sun and shade in the forest. I just stick with clear ones, or very light static tint in the summer. Agree with the comment that yellow lenses can be "too bright" in sun.

Wear them all the time for road biking. Only issue I've had with them is in bad weather on high mountains in the summer - high UV makes them too dark in low visible light.

I use my orange shades in low light....means I get to cycle to work pretending I live in California...

Clear for winter. I use cheap safety goggles.

Yes yellow is great on mixed weather days and mine are still better than nothing in bright sun light

I never cycle without glasses due to the bugs and don't own clear lenses 

Definitely. I would deeply cynical until I actually tried them but the Oakley Prism lenses are amazing. The particular tint on the Trail lenses does make trail obstacles stand out more and I find similar with the Road lenses. If you can try a pair I'd recommend you do.

Yes, they are. I use them for road cycling and they’re a cut above other glasses I’ve used. 

I simply don't believe that a coloured lens increases contrast, this is snake-oil of the highest order dreamed up by purveyors of overpriced plastic eyewear. They also flog tinted glasses for night driving and for computer use and a whole lot more, I bet. The more expensive the glasses, the more believable the juju.

If you want protection from insects or debris there are some pretty smart safety glasses sold by various DIY retailers for a few pounds, which are designed to, er, protect your eyes.

If you need a prescription, buy some frames from TK Max and get them glazed by your optician or get the optician to supply sport-styled glasses with a regular sunglasses tint, or photochromic, with your prescription, which can be vaifocal.  I use photochromic varis for cycling and they are fantastic by day and clear when I night ride. 

All interesting replies thanks

Do photochromic change quickly enough for mixed days? What are they like when going from daylight to tree shade for example? Do they help with making road / trail obstacles clearer?

My rose tinted ones make everything seem nicer when I'm out on the road.

I've used photochromatic lenses in my cycling glasses for years - the original ones I have were pretty low priced Planet X sold ones with changeable lenses - but its the photochromatic ones I use most. They never seem to look that different but they are fine when its sunny but also fine riding as its getting dark or even got dark. I do wonder how much its placebo effect! But even if so, I've still used them for thousands of hours on my bike over probably 10 years. The nose fitting piece has dissolved a bit from recently (all those hours of sweat and UV light I imagine!) so back in the winter I found another pair of claimed photochromatic ones on Planet X again - a tenner - and bought them. Again I can't really see how much the lens is darkening or lightening, but they have comfy frames and seem to work well again. I've been wearing them almost daily through lockdown when cycling - early morning, sunset rides, middle of the day - and again they seem to work!

BTW Decathlon do their absolute basic cycling safety spec either in clear or yellow tint if you want to try them out. I use the clear ones, or some other DIY/lab safety spec I accumulated over the years in winter when I'm riding at night. My favourites are Bolle ones because I think they look cool - but they cost about 7 quid rather than 4 so are rather pricey!

https://www.decathlon.co.uk/arenberg-cycling-sunglasses-category-1-yellow-i...

I find I have to be looking backwards for my rose-tinted ones to have that affect.

The lenses I have don't seem to darken as much as some regular glasses I had made up in photochromic. I soon gave upon those because the lenses were quite small so in bright weather I would have a dark blob in front of my eyes with bright light all around, which was disconcerting. Also they made me look like an ageing kiddy-fiddler pop star. 

My cycling glasses are a wraparound style, usually difficult to glaze because of the curve but mine have flatter lenses in sub-frames clipped onto the main frame. They are not the ones where the prescription lenses are secondary behind the tinted lens. Because they fit quite snugly round my eyes I don't suffer the dark patch annoyance and don't really notice the darkening unless I see myself in a mirror. They are varifocal meaning I can read maps and my bike speedo, same by day or while night riding, when they go perfectly clear. In answer to your question, they darken in seconds and take about a minute to clear, which isn't a problem when going under trees because it's easier to see when the scenery is moving and changing shape. They weren't cheap but the vision is excellent. My optician has advised me to protect my eyes from UV now because he says he can see early signs of sun damage in the lenses. Certainly driving at night isn't as comfortable as it was 10 or 20 years ago due to flare.

Depends on the relative contrast.

They're terrible if you're coming from really bright sunlight into dense shadow - you'll be blind for the first few metres until the tint adjusts.

Not such a problem if it's a cloudy day into light cover, for example.

To qualify my previous answer, I'll use mine if I'm going out for an all-day ride where I'm not going crazy, as don't like bright sunlight and can take the hit on the adjustment time for the odd bits of shadow, rather than taking 2 pairs of glasses.

I wouldn't wear them for an couple of hours of thrashing around my local woodland trail centre.

I mostly use the yellow ones. Being ancient and long sighted I use these "safety" glasses, which are bifocal:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B004VRKTCW/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_...

thank you all

I have photochromic ones from decathlon, about £20 and seem to be ok- I use most days commuting. No doubt not as great as expensive ones but all glasses get pretty scratched up quickly in my household (even fancy ones) for me not worth extra money for more expensive ones 

I have a pair of the Oakley trail glasses for mountain biking*. Not convinced it makes any real difference although a counter argument would be trails vary massively throughout the world anyway so something suitable for the sunny states aint so good for singletrack through a wood with sod all sunshine. It does shift the colour massively (its really, really weird wearing them for an hour or two and then taking them off) but not sure it helps features stand out.

So not overly convinced and its one of those things that is going to be really hard to test properly since you cant blind it let alone double blind.

*I got them since they were heavily discounted and i like eye protection after pulling a thorn out of my cheek after ducking just about in time to not get it in my eye.

If you cover one side of a lens with something and leave it in bright sunlight, then take it off after 20 minutes you should see the difference

I got some photochromatic perscription sunglasses. My main aim was so that I could go for long rides and not have to carry my normal glasses for wearing in the dark cafe. They don't change that quickly, takes a few minutes, so I normally still end up squinting a bit in the dark cafe while making my order. But they do change. Good to know that if you set off for an evening ride you can wear them and you'll still see when the light fades.

I was initially hoping they'd change quick enough that popping in and out of trees would change them, but they don't work fast enough for that. In that respect they're no worse than regular sunglasses.

You could always wear cheap coloured safety goggles.

I have a pair of yellow safety goggles I use at work, they seem to make everything brighter, though I mainly use then for keeping flies out of my mincers.