Virtually all contacts lenses are actually colored contacts. Depending on the desired result, the amount of color tint ranges from invisible when on the eye, to a providing a complete change in eye color. The reason for wearing colored contacts can also vary from serious to playful.

The lightest tint that colored contacts have is called a visibility or handling tint. The color is usually a light blue or green and is meant to make the lenses easier to see when handling them. Because the amount of coloration is slight, they normally they don't affect the appearance of your eye's color and most contact lenses have at least this degree of tint to them.

The next level of tinting for colored contacts is enhancement tinting. Enhancement tints are designed to complement your natural eye color. Enhancement tinted lenses are semi-transparent and can make your natural eye color more intense, but not change it. This style of colored lens works best with light eye colors.

The highest degree of tinting for colored contacts is with opaque lenses. You can change the appearance of your eye color with natural-looking styles or get wild with the various novelty types. Due to their popularity for purely cosmetic effects, these lenses are available with or without vision correction("plano"). It should be noted that even plano contact lenses are still considered "medical devices" and require a current prescription.

The most recently developed type of colored contacts is light-filtering tints. They're designed to enhance your vision when engaging in certain sports. By accenting some colors and muting others, golfers, tennis players, skeet shooters and other sports participants can more easily see the ball or target.