The 7 best sunglasses for men in 2024
Men’s sunglasses are far from a one-size-fits-all investment. What looks good in the mirror to you could be the complete opposite for someone else. When you’re in the market for your next set of shades, take as many styles into consideration as you can — even ones you hadn’t considered before.
Here are our top picks for the best sunglasses for men in 2024:
Best overall men’s sunglasses: Ray-Ban Original Wayfarer Classic
If you’re waiting for Wayfarers to go out of style, don’t hold your breath. Wayfarers have been around since the 50s, and their thick, cellulose frames always find a way into the conversation.
In the ever-changing world of style, it’s hard to imagine anything staying relevant for seven decades, but Wayfarers have managed it.
The sunglasses are so well-loved that Facebook (Meta) selected Wayfarers as the basis for their first pair of smart glasses: Ray-Ban Stories. Stories are available in two other styles, too, but the Wayfarer version has been promoted front and center.
Ray-Ban.com, $161
Best men’s polarized sunglasses: Maui Jim Sunny Days
Sunny Days feature Maui Jim’s trademark polarized lenses with a trendy double-bridge build. They give the wearer a round frame shape with a stainless steel upper bar, akin to a pair of aviators, a style that’s been regaining popularity the last few years.
Polarized lenses include a special coating that helps reduce the sun’s glare. It can slice through reflections and comes in handy on a bright day.
Always a popular choice among people who spend a lot of time in the sun, Maui Jim’s polarized lenses are known for their PolarizedPlus2 technology, in addition to SuperThin glass that’s thinner than most other lenses.
MauiJim.com, $329
Best cheap sunglasses for men: EyeBuyDirect Deja Vu
Like Wayfarers, Deja Vus boast full-plastic frames and a pitch-black color that always looks sharp.
The Deja Vu design is a throwback to classic sunglass styles that have stormed back in recent years. Their simple, rounded look includes a keyhole nose bridge, which many find to be more forgiving than the standard arched bridge.
Priced at $25 with non-prescription lenses, Deja Vu’s price point is hard to beat on a budget. They also include complete UV protection and an anti-glare coating at no extra cost.
EyeBuyDirect.com, $25
Best men’s aviator sunglasses: Ray-Ban Aviator Classic
Ray-Ban, again? With no shortage of worthy aviator styles on the market in 2024, it’s still too hard to beat the original.
Aviator Classics combine a thin, metal frame (often gold, but available in other colors too) with dark lenses, bridged by that signature brow bar. They’re recognizable down to the cursive, angled logo in the corner of one lens.
Celebrities, athletes and even U.S. presidents sport Ray-Ban’s Aviator shades year in and year out. It doesn’t look like 2024 will be an exception.
Ray-Ban.com, $211
Best round sunglasses for men: The Rockefeller by Tomahawk
This up-and-coming brand offers small-batch frames at reasonable prices. The Rockefeller is almost a mirror image of some of Tomahawk’s other styles but in a tortoiseshell frame with dark green lenses. The round, nylon lens frames are complemented with sleek metal temple bars that shift back into nylon for each earpiece.
Tomahawk also adds UV400 protection and polarization to each pair of Rockefellers lenses.
And, like Maui Jim’s Sunny Days and Ray-Ban’s Aviators, The Rockefeller sports a metal brow bar of its own. It is 2024, after all.
TomahawkShades.com, $75
READ MORE: The latest trends for round sunglasses in 2024
Best sport sunglasses for men: Oakley Flak 2.0 XL
Oakley is a perennial player in the world of sport sunglasses, and their Flak line (formerly “Flak Jacket”) always seems to rise to the top.
Flak 2.0 XL sunglasses have angled sport lenses that dip down slightly along the nose and slim down near the temple. The “XL” means they provide more lens coverage overall, compared to their non-XL counterparts. A lightweight build and wraparound arms make them popular with runners and cyclists.
Change your mind about the XL lenses? No problem — they’re interchangeable, and an optician can help you replace the lenses without getting rid of your frames.
Oakley.com, $184
READ MORE: Oakley sunglasses: The brand, popular styles and the NFL partnership
Best men’s reading sunglasses: Foster Grant Jorge Tortoise SunReaders
The farsightedness that comes with presbyopia doesn’t need to stop you from reading books or digital devices in the sun. Foster Grant’s SunReaders lenses include a small bifocal lens at the bottom that makes it easier to read. The rest of the lens isn’t magnified, so you’ll be able to get up and go about your day without having to swap to another pair of glasses.
The magnified lenses are available in powers between +1.00 and +3.50.
The Jorge model includes a wider, angular build with plastic frames and metal arms. This version features a tortoiseshell frame and brown lenses, but another Jorge style is available in a black frame with blue, mirrored lenses.
FosterGrant.com, $20.95
READ MORE: Reading sunglasses: What are they and what types are available?
Best prescription sunglasses: All of the above (almost)
Most sunglasses manufacturers now offer prescription and non-prescription lenses when you buy a pair of their frames. If you’re buying online, you’ll usually see the option to add your vision prescription during the checkout process.
Tomahawk’s Rockefellers are the only frames on our list not currently offered with prescription lenses, but the company could add that option in the future.
If you don’t have a vision prescription and need to get one, give your local eye doctor a call and schedule a comprehensive eye exam.
READ NEXT: Ray-Ban Aviator, Clubmaster and Wayfarer sunglasses
Page published on Wednesday, January 26, 2022
