Eyewear "virtual try-on" covers two different products. One is an AI tool that produces finished catalog photos of your frames on a model or in a styled scene. The other is a live try-on widget that puts a 3D model of the frame on the shopper's own face through their camera. This page compares seven tools across both kinds, using only what each vendor publishes on its own website, documentation or Shopify App Store listing, read on 24 September 2026.
It is not a hands-on ranking. We did not put the same frames through every tool, so there is no realism score here and no claim that one renders acetate or metal better than another. Every price and limit below links to the page it came from, so you can re-check it before you buy.
Quick answer: which tool fits which job
| If this is your situation | Start with | Why (documented) |
|---|---|---|
| You need catalog photos of frames on a face or in a styled scene, without a photo shoot | Photta | Generates downloadable images in a product-only mode or on an AI model's face (API docs) |
| You want a live try-on widget on Shopify and many of your frames are from known brands | Fittingbox | Maintains a database of nearly 200,000 frame references from more than 1,200 brands (Fittingbox FAQ) |
| You are building your own app and want an SDK rather than a plugin | Banuba | Ships a Face AR SDK for iOS and Android and a Web AR SDK, plus the no-code TINT platform (Banuba) |
| You want pupillary distance measured automatically and 3D frames built from photos | Perfect Corp. | Builds the try-on from 3 static images per frame and measures PD with facial landmark detection (Perfect Corp.) |
| You want a Shopify plugin with automatic PD at a lower product count | Auglio | Automatic cardless PD from its Basic plan, basic 3D digitization included (Shopify App Store) |
| You also sell lenses and want shoppers to compare tints | GlassOn | Lets shoppers try tints on the glasses they are already wearing (GlassOn) |
| You want to start free, with face tracking that stays on the shopper's device | Makemetryon | Free plan for up to 5 models and 1,000 try-on sessions; face tracking runs on-device (Makemetryon) |
AI eyewear photos or live try-on?
Decide this first, because the two kinds of tool do not replace each other.
AI eyewear photos are images you publish like any other product photo: in the listing gallery, on marketplaces, in ads and in email. You upload a product photo of the frame and get back a studio shot, a flat lay, a lifestyle scene or the frame worn by a model. Nothing runs on the shopper's device, so they work everywhere an image works, including marketplaces that do not allow widgets. They show the frame on a model, not on the shopper.
Live try-on is an interactive widget on your own product page. The shopper allows camera access, and a 3D model of the frame follows their head as they move. It answers "how does this look on me", which a photo cannot. It needs a 3D version of every frame, it only runs where you can install the widget, and it is usually priced by the number of products and monthly users.
Many eyewear stores end up with both: AI photos for the gallery and for channels they do not control, live try-on on the product page for shoppers who want to see the frame on their own face.
Comparison table
Every cell below was read from the vendor's own pages on 24 September 2026. Where a vendor does not publish something, the cell says so rather than guessing.
| Kind | How frames are added | Face measurement | Where it runs | Entry price published | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Photta | AI catalog images | Upload one product photo per image (docs) | Not applicable, no live camera | Web app and REST API | Free to try with a photo of your own product; plans on the pricing page |
| Fittingbox | Live try-on | Frame database, or 3D digitization in its own studios (FAQ) | Frame size check | Shopify app, websites | $59 a month for up to 10 active products on Shopify (Shopify App Store) |
| Banuba | Live try-on | "All plans include free AI product digitization" (Banuba) | Not stated on official pages | TINT platform, Shopify extension, iOS/Android/Web SDKs | $49 a month for 1,000 try-ons (Banuba) |
| Perfect Corp. | Live try-on | 3 static images per frame (Perfect Corp.) | Automatic PD | Shopify plugin; guides for Wix and Squarespace | Not published; free trial of 30 days (Perfect Corp.) |
| Auglio | Live try-on | Basic 3D from 2 images; full 3D models sold per SKU (Shopify App Store) | Automatic cardless PD on Basic and above | Shopify app | $49 a month for up to 15 products (Shopify App Store) |
| GlassOn | Live try-on and lens tints | 3D created from 1–2 product photos (GlassOn) | Fit calibrated against physical glasses | Shopify, PrestaShop, WordPress, custom sites | Not published on its site |
| Makemetryon | Live try-on | Not stated on the glasses page | IPD and face-shape detection | One iframe on most platforms | Free for up to 5 models; paid plans €49 to €299 a month (Makemetryon) |
The seven tools
Photta: AI photos of your frames
Photta's Eyewear Studio turns one product photo of glasses or sunglasses into a finished image. It has two modes (API docs, checked 24 September 2026):
- Product only: the frame alone, styled as a studio shot, a flat lay, a lifestyle scene or floating frames, each with its own controls (backdrop and lighting, surface and props, scene and mood, angle and shadow).
- On model: the frame worn by an AI model, with the face angle, expression, lighting and the way the frames are worn chosen per image. The same model can be reused across a collection.
Product photos can be JPEG, PNG or WebP up to 10 MB, and the documentation lists a typical completion time of 20–60 seconds per image (Photta API docs, checked 24 September 2026). You can try it free with a photo of your own product; the plans are on the pricing page. The same studio is available in the web app and through the REST API, so it can run inside a catalog pipeline.
What it does not do: it is not a live try-on. Shoppers see the frame on a model, not on their own face.
Fittingbox: live try-on with a frame database
Fittingbox runs a camera-based try-on that works "as if they were standing in front of a real mirror" on phones, tablets and computers. Its FAQ describes a database of nearly 200,000 frame references from more than 1,200 brands, and frames that are not in it are digitized in 3D in its own photo studios in France or the USA (Fittingbox FAQ, checked 24 September 2026). The same FAQ says a shopper's photo is kept in the browser cache only for the duration of the try-on.
On Shopify, plans are priced by active products and unique monthly users: $59 a month for up to 10 products and 500 users, $99 for 50 products and 1,500 users, and $199 for 200 products and 3,500 users, each with a free trial of 14 days (Shopify App Store, checked 24 September 2026). Larger catalogs go through a quote.
Banuba: SDKs and a no-code platform
Banuba covers several categories, glasses among them, and offers three ways in: the no-code TINT platform, a Shopify extension, and SDKs for iOS, Android and the web for teams building their own app (Banuba, checked 24 September 2026). Its published plans are priced by try-ons per month: $49 for 1,000, $99 for 3,500 and $349 for 15,000, with custom Enterprise pricing and a free trial of 14 days. Banuba states that all plans include free AI product digitization.
Perfect Corp.: 3D frames from three photos, automatic PD
Perfect Corp. builds a virtual try-on from three static images of each frame and measures pupillary distance automatically with facial landmark detection (Perfect Corp., checked 24 September 2026). It offers a ready-made Shopify plugin and installation guides for Wix and Squarespace, and a free trial of 30 days. Prices are not listed on the eyewear page.
Auglio: a Shopify try-on with automatic PD
Auglio's Shopify app has three plans: Starter at $49 a month for up to 15 products and 200 users a month, Basic at $119 for 100 products and 1,500 users, and Professional at $369 for 400 products and 5,000 users (Shopify App Store, checked 24 September 2026). Automatic cardless PD measurement comes with Basic and Professional. Basic 3D digitization from 2 images is included, and full 3D models start at $35 per SKU on the Professional plan. The trial is 14 days.
GlassOn: try-on plus lens tints
GlassOn combines frame try-on with lens visualization. Its site lists fit calibrated against physical glasses, 360-degree viewing, 3D models created from one or two product photos, and a mode where shoppers try tints on the glasses they are already wearing, or remove their own glasses from the camera view to try new frames (GlassOn, checked 24 September 2026). It integrates with Shopify, PrestaShop and WordPress and with custom sites through Web Components. Pricing is not published on its site.
Makemetryon: on-device tracking and a free plan
Makemetryon's glasses try-on uses a 468-point face mesh, adds pupillary-distance measurement without a reference card and classifies face shape as oval, round, square or heart (Makemetryon, checked 24 September 2026). It installs as a single iframe on Shopify, WooCommerce, Magento, BigCommerce, PrestaShop, Wix, WordPress, Squarespace and Webflow, among others. The vendor says face tracking runs on the device and no images are uploaded or stored. A free plan covers up to 5 models and 1,000 try-on sessions without a card; paid plans run from €49 to €299 a month.
How to choose
- Name the job. If you need images for the gallery, marketplaces and ads, you need an image generator. If you want shoppers to see frames on their own face, you need live try-on. If you want both, budget for both.
- Count your frames. Live try-on plans are priced by the number of products and monthly users. A catalog of 300 frames rules out any plan capped at 200.
- Check how frames become 3D. A database match is fastest for branded frames. Your own designs need digitization: from photos (Perfect Corp., Auglio, GlassOn) or in a studio (Fittingbox).
- Check where it runs. A plugin for your platform is quicker than an SDK. Marketplaces will only ever show images.
- Read the data terms. A try-on processes faces. Prefer tools that state plainly what happens to the camera image, and link that statement from your own privacy policy.
What to check in a pilot
Run a small pilot on your own frames before committing:
- For AI photos: compare every output with the physical frame. Check the bridge, the hinges, the temple shape, the lens colour and the logo. Reject any image where the frame has changed.
- For live try-on: test on several phones, in poor light, with and without the shopper's own glasses, and with long hair over the temples. Check that the frame scale looks right and that the page still works when the shopper refuses camera access.
- For both: record the cost and the time per approved image or per live frame, including retries and review, not just the list price.
A visual PD estimate helps with frame choice. It is not a prescription measurement, and a store that sells prescription lenses should say so next to it.
How this comparison was made
Every statement about a vendor comes from that vendor's own website, documentation or Shopify App Store listing, read on 24 September 2026 and linked where it is used. Prices were copied as published, in the currency each vendor shows. We did not test output quality, did not receive anything from the vendors, and do not rank them. Photta is our own product, and its section is held to the same rule: only what its public documentation states.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between AI eyewear photos and virtual try-on?
AI eyewear photos are finished images of your frames, on a model or in a scene, that you publish like any product photo. Virtual try-on is a live widget that places a 3D frame on the shopper's own face through their camera. Photos work everywhere, including marketplaces; try-on only works on your own site, but shows the frame on the shopper.
How are frames turned into 3D models for try-on?
It depends on the vendor. Fittingbox matches frames against its database or digitizes them in its own studios. Perfect Corp. builds the model from 3 static images, Auglio from 2 images for its basic model, and GlassOn from 1 or 2 product photos.
Can virtual try-on measure pupillary distance?
Some tools estimate it from the camera. Perfect Corp. measures PD automatically, Auglio includes automatic cardless PD from its Basic plan, and Makemetryon measures IPD without a reference card. Treat the result as a guide for frame choice, not as a prescription measurement.
Are shoppers' face images stored?
Check each vendor's terms. Fittingbox's FAQ says the photo is kept in the browser cache only for the duration of the try-on, and Makemetryon says face tracking runs on the device and no images are uploaded or stored. For the others, read the data terms before you install.
How much does eyewear virtual try-on cost?
Live try-on is usually a monthly subscription priced by products and users: published entry plans start at $49 a month for Banuba and Auglio and at $59 a month for Fittingbox on Shopify, and Makemetryon has a free plan for up to 5 models. AI eyewear photos are priced per image instead. You can try Photta free with a photo of your own product; the plans are on the pricing page.