An anti-reflective coating on your glasses serves many purposes. At the same time, there are some drawbacks to anti-reflective coating. Therefore, the decision whether or not to use it on your glasses is a highly personal one that should be made after weighing the pros and the cons.

An anti-reflective coating can be beneficial when driving at night. Often, individuals who wear glasses or contacts experience a halo effect around headlights and streetlights when driving in the dark. An anti-reflective coating eliminates this effect and can make night driving less of a distraction.

An anti-reflective coating on your glasses can also be beneficial if you spend a great deal of time on the computer. Working on a computer for an extended period of time can lead to eye strain, as your eye muscles struggle to view specific areas of the monitor and battle the glare. Typical symptoms of eyestrain while working on the computer include blurry vision, dry eyes, and irritation. Anti-reflective coating can reduce eyestrain and make it possible to work on the computer for longer periods of time without difficulty.

Eyestrain can also happen to people who do not work on computers on a regular basis. Spending a great deal of time in a dimly lit room, for example, can lead to eyestrain. If you experience eyestrain, no matter the reason, an anti-reflective coating on your glasses may be able to help.

Anti-reflective coating on glasses also improves your appearance, particularly when taking photographs while wearing your glasses. With glasses that do not have anti-reflective coating, outside images tend to be reflected by the glasses and block out the wearer’s eyes. Anti-reflective glasses ensure your eyes are seen.

On the downside, an anti-reflective coating makes glasses more prone to scratches. When purchasing an anti-reflective coating for your glasses, your eye doctor will likely provide you with a special cloth and cleaner to use on your glasses. Simply cleaning glasses with an anti-reflective coating on your shirt can cause scratches. Another drawback to the anti-reflective coating is that it tends to pick up fingerprints and dirt more easily than glasses without the coating. This results in the need to clean your glasses more often, which can be difficult if you do not have the proper cleaning tools on hand.