The Best Eyewear Retainers

I believe most of us do not seem concerned about protecting our pairs of glasses until something bad happens. For example, a glasses case or cleaning cloth can be a great investment to secure your valuable glasses at reasonable pricing. I would like to introduce a similar item known as eyewear retainers.

We see an eyewear retainer as normal strap holders for glasses but far more than that, we have to acknowledge the unbelievable diversity in its form design and functions. Let me introduce the top best eyewear retainer list as well as providing some informative user guidance for each of them.

Best Eyewear Retainer Reviews

1. ONME Sport Unisex Eyewear Retainers

To select a reasonable sporty sunglass neck strap for my personal work and summer trips, I would go for this eyewear retainer from ONME. It is made from polyester in the form of a braided cord, which has a fine longevity and looks fashionable in black color.

This eyewear neck cord allows workers to hang their safety glasses on their chests or rest on their heads in moments that you currently do not need to use them. You would not have to sit your safety glasses somewhere else out of your sight anymore.

There is a toggle available for length adjustment as a wish. This ensures your safety glasses do not fall off and they are perfectly compatible with multiple head shapes and sizes. It can be stretched to a maximum of 23.6 inches or more owing to its powerful extensibility.

In cases where you perspire a little more than usual during work with safety glasses on, the ONME eyewear retainer promises not to soak up body sweat and get stinky. I understand that we cannot be patient enough to wash a dirty neck strap again and again daily.

You can take advantage of this sunglasses strap for outdoor activities, namely hiking, biking, fishing or skiing in different weather conditions. It can endure much pressure not suddenly to fall apart.

I love how the manufacturer offers customers to get 6 identical retainers per package. That way, you would not have to wait for long shipping process of a single strap every time. You can use this neck cord for various safety glasses types and brands.

2. Chums Original Cotton Standard End Eyewear Retainer

This particular eyewear retainer from Chums has a tempting color in teal, whereas this manufacturer offers a stunning color and pattern variance. The main material to create a cord like this is original premium cotton that gives a soft sense of touch and does not scrub onto your face or neck in a disturbing way.

It is designed in the form of knit tubes that are in 100% seamless cotton. The surgical tubing ends allow you to insert this retainer into safety glasses temple arms and minimize slippage while being used, which occupied workers will enjoy to fully concentrate on their jobs.

I am fond of this Chums eyewear retainer for another reason that it contains a slidable black bead in the back of the strap. In this manner, its tightness is not limited and can be modified completely based on different head shapes. Despite not being sure about its maximum extension, I know this neck cord is ideal for adults.

You can use the sunglasses cord for diverse form of actions including sports activities on land or water, in snowy or sunny days. It makes every occasion possible to be worn and maintain balance for your safety glasses.

I see that it weighs around ½ oz and is capable of fitting into most standard glasses frames by its soft cotton tubes. Being ultra-lightweight, it will not become a burden to your tasks with safety glasses on, as it feels feather-like that can still secure your glasses effortlessly.

3. Pilotfish No Tail Adjustable Eyewear Retainer

These glasses strap from Pilotfish can extend to a reasonable length of 14 or 16 inches and in this case, I am referring to the 14-inch model. They attached a fashionable Pilotfish brand logo on each side of the retainer in black. I see that there are other colorful cord options depends on your favor.

I appreciate how I am able to custom its fitting in order to provide enough comfort without being too tight or too loose off my neck. If an eyewear retainer can ever get on my nerves, then I think it is only because of a difficult length adjustment that interrupts my working process.

In my point of view, the overall retainer look is not restricted to a certain gender to use daily. Either a man or a woman at work and engaging in sports events are the perfect subject for trying on this Pilotfish No Tail sunglasses neck cord to support them in multiple outdoor tasks.

It is designed as small rubber tubes to be inserted into the end of the glasses temple arms. I believe it will fit snug to most standard types of eyewear, so you needn’t concern much about its versatile compatibility with safety glasses.

This item claims that it will not get dirty or unravel out of its initial form easily. The most stressful part of owning an eyewear retainer is its high chance of absorbing body sweat and ends up stinky without any smell removal solution. I am glad Pilotfish included this life-saving factor to their product.

4. Luxe Performance Premium Eyewear Retainer

Similar design compared to the cord from Pilotfish, the Luxe Performance eyewear retainer also removes the tail and only has silicone with steel coating cable strap in black color. In my opinion, this is a sustainable elastic material as it handles pressure quite well and will not lose its form after being casually stretched.

The shortest extension of this sunglass strap is 9 inches (which honestly I underrated for being too short for adult heads), while the longest is approximately 13.5 inches. With this length, it can fit a wide range of prescription glasses or sunglasses of any forms and brands.

As far as I am concerned, its pricing is fairly reasonable for a product that protects your valuable eyewear. Just think of this as an inexpensive insurance policy to help benefit from your glasses on endless different occasions like boating, camping, skiing, running, tennis, golf or hunting, etc.

I understand that sometimes eyewear retainers can be irritating, but not anymore with the Luxe Performance neck cord. It provides feather-like comfort for long continuous hours of work and sports engagement like it’s not even there to trigger your body parts in a disturbing way.

Furthermore, I love the Lifetime Craftsmanship Warranty from its manufacturer and free replacements in case the eyewear retainer is lost or broken – all you need to do is pay for the shipping fee. How wonderful is that! Literally, there is nowhere to be found such a dedicated eyeglass strap brand like this one.

5. PAWALT Sport Eyewear Retainers

This one from Pawalt is a set of two full premium package of the sunglasses straps themselves along with two additional glasses lens cleaning cloth, and I am like wow! The manufacturer does not care for securing your pair of glasses only, but it is obvious that they also attempt to prolong its lens usage.

Whereas other eyewear retainers only fit on adult head sizes, the retainer here is compatible with both kids and grownups at the fair length extension from 10 to 14 inches. By fair I mean it might be a little short for large heads, but I hope that you will find it suitable.

It does not include any irrelevant tails or sharp parts that can injure your body parts without cautions. The overall form of this Pawalt eyewear retainer is an adjustable fastener cord made out of high-quality carbon fiber in black color.

I see that its connectors are made from silicone and they completely resist water. In which can grip onto your glasses temple arms much tighter during water-related events. Followed by anti-slip hooks, this could be considered one of the best sunglass holders.

As a result, I have high expectations in the Pawalt eyeglass retainer. In terms of taking good care of my glasses while I leave them hanging on my chest and do not automatically slip its tube out of their temples. I am thinking about using this item for fitness and other hard-working activities.

Its brand Pawalt has a serious 100% Quality Warranty over 6 months after purchase for all customers. In case your strap breaks into half or got defective within this time, just contact their customer service without a doubt. I wish all retainer brands can offer this.

6. YR Soft Silicone Eyeglasses Retainers

Have you ever imagined of eyeglass retainers with the lack of their straps? Neither have I, until I found this one in the shape of temple tips sleeve. They are meant for injecting into glasses frame arms on each side of an expandable width from 0.15 to 0.4 inches.

The YR eyewear retainer comes in 5 pairs made out of soft silicone in black color which counts as 10 identical pieces. At 1.2g each and being cordless, this item is ultra-lightweight and claims not to put pressure onto your upper ears while wearing like common straps.

It is designed to resist slippage and fit snug to your glasses temple arms so you will not need to re-attach it back on constantly during high-traffic work. Since its primary material is silicone, it is indeed elastical for temple sleeves insert in almost all types of eyewear.

For your information, the manufacturer YR also offers two more item colors of dull gray and transparent retainers. They worth $1.00 less than black but in general, I believe the price of these glasses holders is still reasonable for something you can use in 5 separate pairs at a time.

I like their Money Back Guarantee within 3 months of purchase. You cannot disagree that not all buyers would be pleased with a product at once or during the shipping process, there might have been some unwanted damages. A warranty to refund is one way to show respect to your customers.

7. Ukes Premium Floating Sunglass Strap

To be honest, I have never seen such an eye-catching colorful collection of an eyewear retainer-like what this brand uke offers us. One advantage of being flamboyant is that you can recognize it from a distance and barely lose it even if it is left somewhere hard to search. I will refer to the strap pattern called The Cobijas.

This eyewear keeper has the design of tubing to be inserted into glasses temple ends and allows you to hang them decently on your chest when not being used. Its stretchiness makes it easier to fit plenty of sunglasses frames, for instance, it could be the undeniable perfect sunglass retainers for Ray Bans.

They chose a material known as high-quality Neoprene, which feels soft and does not absorb stains at ease to apply for the retainer. Not only is this sunglasses strap completely waterproof, but it is also floatable to be freely worn in watersports and activities such as boating, rafting, surfing, fishing, etc.

I approve of this eyewear cord from Ukes to be durable enough to stand all kinds of weather conditions, including wet, snowy, humid or sunny – it was tested to powerfully resist these extreme situations without fading or falling apart under pressure. Your glasses would get the cheapest insurance for sure!

I notice that Ukes does mention a Money Back Guarantee in their product description. It is really nice since we can return the eyewear retainer when not satisfied anymore and get a refund from the manufacturer. I just wonder about the time limitation after purchase to return this item legally.

8. TAGVO No Tail Adjustable Eyewear Retainer

If you are looking for a basic no tail eyewear retainer, this one from TAGVO is undeniably a fantastic recommendation. Made of sustainable steel, it is easily adjustable in a range of 9 inches to almost 14 inches to suit with variable head shapes. They sell this strap for 3 identical pieces per package.

The TAGVO eyewear retainer includes firm silicone connectors on each side that is environment-friendly. And instead of a redundant tail, you would use a magnetic slider in the back of it to modify the length. I see that it will not be able to break instantly under pressure.

When I try it on, it indeed lies comfortable on my ears and does not cause any displeasure. At the same time, it still holds my pair of sunglasses perfectly on my face to help me get through a tough working day.

From what I have found, this neck cord is absolutely able to be crowned the best sunglass retainer for fishing, biking, rock climbing along with diverse outdoor activities. The external coating is in black color, so it will ensure a stronger stain-resistant than the ones with a nice pattern but get dirty quickly.

This is also an item that is attached with a free microfiber cleaning cloth to form a routine of taking care of your glasses daily. Both of them work in harmony to support you and your glasses on multiple occasions and different weather conditions, just like I am experiencing it myself.

Every glasses frame would do for inserting this eyeglass strap because it will fit snug and hold them tight but not in a disturbing way. I enjoy this adaptability in each eyewear retainer since I would not have to think if the glasses keeper I purchase can be used for my pair of glasses at home.

9. Halisis Premium Leather Eyeglasses Holder Strap

This sunglass chain from Halisis to me is really stylish for its 4 classic colors and braided cord design that is made from solid PU leather. I assume this strap material is able to resist water and does not get dirty if being exposed to different conditions at work or sports events.

When you choose to purchase this eyeglasses holder, it will arrive in a pack of 4 retainers for you to use all of them with 4 distinct pairs of glasses at one time. However, I am not certain whether you would get 4 versatile colors of the black, gold, red and brown per package or only one in quantity of 4 pieces.

It has an incredible length of 27 inches so users can hang it over their necks at ease while using. There is a high possibility that adults would feel comfortable wearing them because it does not tighten onto their back heads like other eyewear straps.

It is applicable for almost every glasses type as its small anti-slip loops fit a wide range of glasses temple. Ready to serve multiple occasions such as working, participating in sports or simply hanging out. The Halisis eyewear keepers will complement your appearance with its fashionable texture.

I enjoy how a sunglass cord like this comes with extra accessories to protect your eyewear. A soft protective pouch and a lens cleaning cloth are available if you plan to acquire a full glasses equipment combo at a reasonable price.

The manufacturer Halisis provides a 100% lifetime satisfaction guarantee for both online and direct customers in the store. They promise to send you a new package of eyeglass cord + its attachments if any product issues occur and you are no longer content with wearing them.

10. Bundle Koala Lifestyle Eyewear Retainer

To me it is no surprise that eyewear retainer brands nowadays are catching up with the trend of selling their product in a bundle. Koala Lifestyle offers to their customers 3 adjustable black retainers in Gorilla Grip style and extra Koala microfiber lens cleaning cloth. They are two beneficial accessories for your eyewear.

Since nylon ropes are durable and elastic, they had applied it for this neck cord from Koala to be in the form of a braided 3mm climbing lanyard chain that is 27 inches long – an incredible number for common retainers. When I touch and put it on, it gives a lightweight and smooth sense to my hands and back neck.

The Koala eyewear retainer can be considered an adjustable sport strap for glasses. As you are capable of bringing it along in sports events like cycling, running, hunting, fishing or take advantage of it in the office to keep your prescription glasses stable.

What I like most about this eyeglass retainer is how it is flexible to be attached to both men and women’s glasses. It has small hole lines on each connector for glasses temple arms to enter and fit snug without causing irritating slippage. You can rest glasses safely on your chest with a retainer like this.

For your information, these glasses holder has a waterproof function to stay in shape during rainy days or watersports. It is resistant to stain as well so you would not have to care much about daily washing even with extended use. This kind of material is proved not to fade its coating off rapidly.

11. Relentless Tactical Tactical Sunglass Straps

This sunglass strap catches my attention for its unique premium material: woven stainless steel accompanied by aluminum. They are not popular substance to make eyewear retainers because of high pricing and limited resources. I must compliment on Relentless Tactical for this winning factor.

Though looking simple and minimal, its US-made patent pending design enables a powerful yet lightweight will clear your fears away from cheap eyewear retainers that are produced in bulk without any qualifications. The craftsmanship to build these glasses cord is above standard from my view.

I have witnessed my Relentless Tactical eyewear retainer being exposed to intense sunlight and getting body sweat constantly, but until now there is no sign of bleaching or visible odors on my strap. I wear this on daily for work and even weekends hangouts to be a glasses keeper and so far, it has been doing well.

If you value your expensive pairs of glasses such as safety goggles or prescription ones, you should invest worthy additional protective accessories for them such as this high-quality eyeglass retainer. It can also maintain your glasses’ balance and will not slip off the temple arms at ease.

Usually, when I request a product return, I would be asked a few questions about what’s with the product that disappointed me before they can confirm. On the contrary, this manufacturer promises to repair or replace your fail strap as wish with zero curiosity and no extra charges.

12. Chums Slip Fit 3mm Rope Eyewear Retainer

Made out of durable nylon material, another retainer from Chums – this Slip Fit 3mm braided eyeglass cord will also be the final piece to my product review list. I see it more as a strong rope to fully become my favorite Ray Bans sunglasses strap for weekend hangouts and beach sports.

The brand Chums is famous for offering a likable color board to select per each of their eyewear retainers and this is not an exception. It may sound insane but there are exactly 30 versatile and fashionable color options for this retainer model, and I will refer to the most classic one in black.

This strap consists of a bead at the end of it to easily alter the length as wish; consequently, it does have an extra tail for superb custom fitting. I notice that its greatest length is roughly 23 inches, which are considered usable for adults – not too long to lose or too short to tighten on their heads.

I like how they built the Chums Slip Fit 3mm sunglass retainer to have forward-mount ends that are streamlined. You will be able to insert your glasses temple arms through its hole in order to secure them around your neck or above your head all day long.

Since this rope cord enables a universal fit made in the USA, it is compatible with most standard glasses frames on the market, from regular prescription ones to qualified PPE eyewear. So you can blow away worries about whether your pair of glasses match with this strap from Chums as I do right now.

What to Look for When Buying Eyewear Retainer

Length extension – After a few insight research, I see that eyewear retainers, in general, can be expandable from at least 9 to over 25 inches. It also depends on the model design but I advise you to choose a strap that has a medium length extension in between this measurement, especially if purchased online.

You must also take note that eyewear retainers split into children and adult sizing. That explains why we have a 10-inch cord and another 23-inch one at the same time. Try not to make a mistake while reading the product description to prevent receiving the wrong length extension as this is essential.

Extra functions – Besides being additional equipment to hold glasses, an eyewear retainer comprises of other effective functions to prolong its own longevity. For instance, waterproof and stain-resistant are the most common ones, which are both beneficial to your pair of glasses.

Most of them claim not to soak up body sweat and turn smelly after several uses. The best part is to purchase a floating glasses strap in order to freely participate in watersports or work on rainy days at a construction site, without the fear of that retainer to sink underwater dragging your expensive eyewear along.

Other Important Factors to Consider

What is an eyewear retainer?

An eyewear retainer, in general, can be known as additional accessories to multiple kinds of eyewear from prescription glasses, fashionable sunglasses to safety worker ones; having the responsibility to help secure the glasses to yourself during work, sports events or break time without leaving them out of sight.

How does it work?

From my perspective, I divide the way eyewear retainers work depends on each of their versatile design. Kindly scroll down further below to learn separate comprehensive functions I have conducted through 4 distinguished kinds of popular eyewear retainers on the market at present.

For a particular reason that all 4 of them perform in such different ways to join into one common section, I must apologize in advance for getting to the bottom of this essential matter in my upcoming question & answer related to eyeglass keeper types. Thank you for your understanding.

Who is this for?

An eyewear retainer is one favorable item for literally anyone who requires to maintain their glasses safe and balance near them, while engaging in work tasks or sports activities under different weather conditions, such as biking, fishing, skiing, golf, tennis, surfing, baseball and so on.

I think adults will benefit more than children in making use of these sunglass keepers since most of them are created in large sizing. Especially people who frequently lose or drop their pair of glasses should not hesitate to try an extra eyewear retainer to their advantage.

What are the different types of eyewear retainers?

Regular cord – The neck cord form is the most popular design among eyewear retainers. It can either be braided, lanyard or straight-forward, and the typical material to make regular eyeglass cords are polyester and soft cotton. It contains extra tails with a bead at the end of the cord for length adjustment.

People would wear an eyewear retainer in this form, particularly for hanging glasses around their necks or resting them on their heads, thanks to its greater extension than other forms. It is ideal to be used at jobsite where workers require safety glasses at all times and the need to rest them nearby.

Tubing connector – If a regular neck cord does not perform up to several customer expectations for some reason, I would suggest another simple no tail eyeglass chain resolution in the form of (knit) tubes that are made from high-quality carbon fiber.

It usually goes with rubberized connector ends so you can insert them into the glasses temple without effort. However, this type of eyewear retainer is a bit limited in sizing and some might find the injection process unease but in fact, I manage to do it with extra delicacy and patience.

Do not risk to forcefully shove it to fit those temple arms in your first attempt, unless you want a defective, broken eyewear tube holder in return.

Temple tips sleeve – This one must be a real minimal retainer design because there are only compact pairs of non-slip temple tips sleeve available with complete strap exclusion. The so-called “sleeve retainer” is often manufactured from silicone material to ensure high elasticity.

If you ever struggle with applying this type of eyeglass holder to some glasses temple arms, then I have just the right thing for you, which will be revealed later below to simplify this procedure. It actually varies in width enough for different frames to fit into, so please read the product description carefully beforehand.

Lanyard chain – Last but not least, a special attractive eyewear retainer type that cannot be missed out on glasses lanyard cord. I find most of them in the form of braided leather ropes, which gives a strong sense of durability. This lanyard chain seems to have a longer extension than other types of up to 23 inches.

In order to connect this cord to your pair of glasses, there are small rubber loops for glasses temple arms to go through to maintain balance and boost your confidence with its fashionable design. Despite that, some people commented on this eyewear retainer type to be quite slippery and slides on temples.

Long glasses chains like this may not be a proper item for people who have to constantly remove and put their glasses back on. The cord does not come out along so it stays dangling around your neck, which is disturbing and a burden to certain vocations and activities.

Advantages and disadvantages of eyewear retainer

Advantages:

Provide a higher security level for your pair of eyewear.

Flexible length to fit multiple head shapes.

Diverse retainer types made from premium material.

The capability of enduring different weather conditions.

Disadvantages:

Inconvenient for sudden glasses removal from your face.

Non-floating ones cannot be used underwater.

Strap color and pattern may fade after several uses.

Poor quality ones tend to reek soon.

Frequently Asked Questions

What are the most trusted eyewear retainer brands?

From the beginning of my article until now, you would probably be able to name some of the most trusted eyewear retainer brands like Chums, Ukes, Luxe Performance or Pilotfish. Not only do they supply us with high-quality glasses cord made from durable material, but they also offer a lifetime warranty.

How to use it?

I would suggest applying some hand cream to the glasses temple ends. So it can allow smooth injection of an eyewear retainer, especially those in tubing form, if you experience difficulties with that process. It is definitely not hard to use when you learn how to handle measurement issues properly.

One trick I know for expanding silicone temple tips sleeve is to heat it up with hot water for 30 seconds. Because I have read a lot of complaints about the retainer being too tight to fit into some temple arms, I expect my method to work on yours since it succeeded in my eyewear retainer for Oakley glasses.

If it is sold in a certain number per package (for example 2 to 10), take advantage of that to try those eyewear straps on different glasses frames. In my case, I own prescription glasses, sunglasses and safety worker ones, so I would be fond of the same retainer in large numbers to use for 3 of them at once.

Where can I get it?

When you already have an eyewear retainer target to purchase, I advise you to click straight into online sites such as Home Depot, Walmart, Amazon, eBay or Lowes to put it into your shopping cart, and have it delivered to your doorstep without coming to a local store and get confused among various products.

The shopping websites I have just mentioned are verified by millions of users to be reliable addresses for a high-quality eyewear strap of multiple kinds. They display clear product descriptions, conditions (new or used) together with apparent pricing and legit customer feedbacks.

So far I have had good experience with all of their customer services whenever I encounter problems with the items I receive. Specifically, different eyewear retainers to conduct careful tests and provide comprehensive reviews for potential buyers like yourself.

What is the warranty policy?

I notice that most eyewear retainer brands offer their customers at least 30 days to a 100% lifetime warranty of their products or sometimes a Money Back Guarantee as well. With these to take advantage of, you have the right to ask for a refund or product return if there is any dissatisfaction.

It is totally your customer rights when going online shopping while still being able to experience the best sunglass strap. There are loads of deceiving online sellers nowadays that even the hosting website is not aware of and as a result, you should learn to protect yourself from those risks before they can occur.

How to take care and clean it?

In order to give an eyewear retainer a sparkling clean look, I would normally use basic soap to wipe any dirt available off of it. Then strongly rinse out leftover water that it is still absorbing. The final step is to let dry naturally or with the help of a hairdryer and voila, it is ready for your next extended use.

If you wish to shelter your eyewear retainer from external impacts, I suggest you store it inside a soft pouch or a hard protective case along with your pair of glasses. That way, you can have one accessory to contain two different items at the same time.

Because an eyeglass strap tends to be thin and hard to see from a distance, you should arrange a specific place for its storage. So you will not lose a small cord and wait for a devastating process of having to rebuy it online.

Conclusion

After my well-collected article of sunglass retainer reviews and following user guidance, I expect it to motivate you to get an eyewear cord for your own pair of glasses no matter what type it is: prescription reading ones, safety goggles or luxury sunglasses.

Anyhow, I hope you will find this massive amount of information helpful for your shopping experience for the best eyewear retainer of 2020. I had already mentioned all of the possible risks and I wish you would never have to face them. Thank you for reading.

Daniel Rocha

Our PPE expert, Daniel Rocha, has been working in the industry for 23 years. He provides guidance to our content editor and writers so they may provide well-informed suggestions and tips for machinery and equipment.