Eclipse glasses: where to buy eclipse glasses, and where to buy solar eclipse glasses near me
Eclipse glasses are the cheapest thing on this shelf and the only one that can blind somebody, so this page is about how to buy a safe pair rather than a cheap one. The short version: buy from a supplier the American Astronomical Society has actually checked, and never use them with any instrument.
- $305median printed price of the entry instrument
- 5brands with a verified printed price
- 4categories with measured demand
Figures on this page come from the TelescopeCompareHQ price index: 5 brands, median printed entry price $305, every figure quoted from the brand's own page and dated.
- 5 brand product pages verifiedevery figure matched verbatim to the brand's page
- Quoted and dated, never estimatedlast verification pass 2026-09-09
- 4 categories coveredeach with measured search demand behind it
Printed prices, verified
| # | Brand | Entry price | Aperture · Focal length | Source | Checked |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Celestron | $79.95/unit | Aperture 76 mm apertureFocal length 300 mm focal length | celestron.com | September 2026 |
| 2 | Explore Scientific | $91/unit | Aperture 114 mm aperture | explorescientific.com | September 2026 |
| 3 | Sky-Watcher | $305/unit | skywatcherusa.com | September 2026 | |
| 4 | William Optics | $498/unit | williamoptics.com | September 2026 | |
| 5 | Lunt Solar Systems | $995/unit | Aperture 40 mm aperture | luntsolarsystems.com | September 2026 |
| 6 | Bresser | No price printed on the page; dealer or quote only (checked September 2026) | |||
| 7 | Unistellar | Product page could not be read (checked September 2026) | |||
| 8 | Vaonis | No price printed on the page; dealer or quote only (checked September 2026) | Aperture 50 mm apertureFocal length 250 mm focal length | vaonis.com | September 2026 |
How to buy a pair that is actually safe
- Start from the supplier list, not the marking. Counterfeit ISO 12312-2 markings are widespread before every eclipse. The marking is a claim printed by whoever made the product, which is exactly the thing in question.
- Buy from a named, traceable maker. A pair whose manufacturer is named, located and traceable is a pair somebody can be held to. An unbranded pack from a marketplace listing is not.
- Inspect before use. Hold them up to a bright indoor light. Anything visible except the light source itself, and any scratch, pinhole or crease in the filter, means the pair goes in the bin.
- Never use them with an instrument. Eclipse glasses are for naked-eye use only. Behind a telescope, binocular or camera lens they fail instantly, because the instrument concentrates the light.
The one rule that matters more than all the others
A telescope, a pair of binoculars or a camera lens gathers sunlight over its whole aperture and brings it to a point. A 76mm objective concentrates roughly a hundred and fifty times the energy that reaches your naked pupil. Eclipse glasses held behind that are not a filter, they are a piece of film in a furnace, and they melt or crack in a fraction of a second.
The filter for an instrument goes over the FRONT of it, so the sunlight is cut before it is concentrated. That is why a solar filter for a telescope costs more than eclipse glasses and looks nothing like them, and why the two are not substitutes in either direction.
Why the ISO number is a standard and not a certificate
ISO 12312-2 sets what a solar viewer must do: how much visible, infrared and ultraviolet light it must block. A compliant filter transmits about one part in a hundred thousand of the visible light and blocks essentially all of the infrared, which is the part that does invisible damage.
Nothing about that standard verifies itself. A print shop can put the number on a card; the American Astronomical Society keeps its list precisely because the marking alone cannot be trusted, and this site lists a solar product only where the supplier is on that list or the maker is named and traceable.
Common questions
- Where can I buy safe eclipse glasses?
- From a supplier on the American Astronomical Society's checked list, or from a named manufacturer you can trace. Buying from a marketplace listing with no identifiable maker is the specific thing to avoid.
- Can I use eclipse glasses with a telescope?
- No, never, and this is the one absolute on this site. The instrument concentrates the sunlight and destroys the filter, and the eye behind it, in a fraction of a second. A telescope needs a filter fitted over its front aperture.
- Do eclipse glasses expire?
- The old three-year advice was withdrawn: modern filters do not degrade on a schedule. What matters is physical condition, so inspect for scratches, pinholes and creases before every use and discard a damaged pair.
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Cite or embed this figure
The median printed price of the entry instrument in each category in the consumer telescope and observing optics market was $305 in September 2026, across 5 verified retailer product pages recorded in TelescopeCompareHQ Telescope Price Index.
Cite as: "TelescopeCompareHQ Telescope Price Index", updated 2026-09-09, https://telescopecomparehq.com/eclipse-glasses/.