Choose sunglasses lenses in two steps: the colour of the tint, then how it is finished. Grey and brown are the everyday tints, and gradient lenses fade from dark at the top to light at the bottom. Coloured lenses in purple, blue or pink are as much about style as light. Mirrored and polarised lenses are the specialists. Whatever you choose, look for the UV marking in the description, because the colour of a lens tells you nothing about its UV filter.
What Does the Colour of a Lens Change?
A tint changes how much light reaches your eyes and how the world looks through it. Grey lenses dim everything evenly, so colours stay close to how you would see them without sunglasses. Brown lenses warm the view a little and lift contrast, which many people like on bright, hazy days. Green sits between the two, with a slightly cooler cast than brown. Purple, blue and pink lenses colour the view more noticeably, which is part of their appeal.
A darker tint is not the same thing as more protection. Tint is about comfort in bright light; UV protection is a separate filter in the lens. That is why the marking matters more than the shade.
What Do UV400 and 100% UV Protection Mean?
Both describe the UV filter. UV400 means the lens filters light up to a wavelength of 400 nanometres, which covers both UVA and UVB. "100% UV protection" and "100% UVA/UVB" are other ways sunglasses houses describe the same kind of filter. Each pair below carries a UV statement or a lens description in its own record, and we repeat it as the house gives it. If you need prescription sunglasses, ask an optician, who can fit a tinted or polarised prescription lens.
Gradient Lenses in Grey and Brown
A gradient lens is darkest at the top, where the sky is brightest, and lighter towards the bottom, so you can still read a phone screen or see your step clearly. It is the most versatile everyday lens, and it is softer on the face than a solid dark lens.
These four from Guess show the two classic colours. The Black Square Sunglasses pair a black plastic frame with brown gradient lenses. The Tortoise Square Sunglasses set gradient brown lenses in a tortoiseshell frame of metal and plastic. For grey, the Silver Metal Aviator has gradient grey lenses which the house describes as giving 100% UVA/UVB protection, and the Patterned Square Sunglasses combine a beige and black frame with gradient grey lenses and UV400 protection.
Coloured Gradient Lenses: Purple, Blue and Pink
Coloured lenses work best when you treat them as part of the look. Purple and pink flatter warm and neutral outfits; blue reads cooler and a little sporty. As gradients, they keep the same practical shape as the classic tints, darker above and lighter below.
The Retro Cat-Eye Sunglasses have purple gradient lenses in a black and clear frame, with 100% UV protection. The Transparent Rectangular Sunglasses set gradient purple lenses with UV400 protection in a grey transparent frame. The Retro Square Sunglasses pair a brown frame with blue gradient lenses and UV400 protection, and the Gold Aviator Sunglasses bring a gradient pink lens to a gold metal frame.
- Retro Cat-Eye Sunglasses
- Transparent Rectangular Sunglasses
- Retro Square Sunglasses
- Gold Aviator Sunglasses
Solid Tints: Green, Brown and Grey
A solid tint is the same depth across the whole lens. It gives a calmer, more even view than a gradient and suits long days outside, by the sea or on a road trip, when the light comes from every direction.
The Amber Square Sunglasses set green lenses in a transparent amber frame, with 100% UV protection. The Tortoiseshell Rectangular Sunglasses have warm brown lenses which the house describes as offering UV protection, and the Tortoise Rectangular Sunglasses carry dark green lenses in a full-rim plastic frame. For grey, the Silver Hexagonal Sunglasses set dark grey lenses in a metal frame.
- Amber Square Sunglasses
- Tortoiseshell Rectangular Sunglasses
- Tortoise Rectangular Sunglasses
- Silver Hexagonal Sunglasses
Mirrored and Polarised Lenses
A mirrored lens has a reflective coating on the outside, so less light passes through and your eyes are hidden from view. A polarised lens has a filter that cuts glare reflected from flat surfaces such as water, wet roads and car bonnets. The two are often confused, but they do different things, and a pair can have either, both or neither.
The Silver Aviator Sunglasses are the polarised pair here: a metal aviator with a double bridge and polarised green lenses, which the house says reduce glare. The Reflective Sport Sunglasses have blue-purple mirrored lenses in a plastic frame, with UV400 protection, and the Gunmetal Aviator Sunglasses pair mirrored lenses with a gunmetal metal frame and 100% UV protection.
How to Choose
- For every day and every outfit, start with a grey or brown gradient.
- For long days in strong light, choose a solid tint.
- For water, snow or driving into low sun, look for polarised lenses.
- For style first, choose a coloured gradient or a mirrored lens.
- Whatever the colour, check the UV marking in the description.
For more on frame shapes and fit, read How to Choose Sunglasses: Frame Shape, Lenses and UV Protection, and Cat-Eye, Aviator, Oversized or Round: Sunglasses Shapes Explained.
In Short
Tint decides how the world looks; the UV marking tells you about the filter. Our suggestion is to choose the tint for where you will wear them most, then check the UV statement before you decide.
