Best Time to Buy Camping Gear: The REI Garage Sale Playbook

Camping and outdoor gear is a category where the savings calendar genuinely rewards patience. The same tent, sleeping bag, or hiking boot can vary by 40–70% in price depending on when and where you buy. The single best window in the outdoor industry is the REI Garage Sale, but it requires a strategy. The broader calendar matters too.

Here’s the full playbook.

The REI Garage Sale

REI runs scheduled member-exclusive sales of returned, used, and overstock gear, branded as the Garage Sale. These events run twice yearly at most stores (typically February/March and August/September), with smaller monthly events at some locations.

What’s available:

• Returned gear in like-new condition. Often returned because of color preference, size mismatch, or the customer changed their mind.
• Floor models and demo gear.
• Cosmetic seconds with minor visual flaws.
• Older-model-year inventory.
• Closeout brands REI no longer stocks.

Typical discount: 40–70% off MSRP, with full REI return policy intact.

How to play the Garage Sale

1. Be an REI Co-op member. The Garage Sale is members-only. Membership is a one-time $30 fee with lifetime member benefits, including 10% annual dividend on purchases.
2. Show up early on the morning of the sale. Most stores open 30 minutes early for Co-op members.
3. Have a target list. Garage Sale is overwhelming. Walking in with a list of three items you want is more useful than browsing 200 items hoping for inspiration.
4. Inspect the gear before buying. Returns are accepted, but a 5-minute inspection saves the return trip. Check zippers, seam tape, stitching, and obvious wear.
5. Online Garage Sale (the under-the-radar option). REI also runs an online version of the Garage Sale at rei.com/used. Inventory rotates constantly; checking weekly turns up specific gear at deep discount.

What to prioritize

Camping gear with the highest typical Garage Sale value:

• Tents (Big Agnes, MSR, REI Co-op) — Returns from one-time use are common. 50–60% off normal pricing.
• Sleeping bags (Western Mountaineering, Feathered Friends, REI Co-op) — Same logic.
• Backpacks (Osprey, Gregory, REI Flash) — Often returned because of fit; check sizing before buying.
• Hiking boots and trail runners — Sometimes returned after 1–2 wears. Inspect tread; if it’s broken in correctly, $40 instead of $200 is a real deal.
• Rain jackets and shells (Patagonia, Arc’teryx, Marmot) — Cosmetic seconds are common.

What to avoid:

• Stoves and cookware with food contact — Cleanliness is hard to verify.
• Hydration bladders — Same.
• Electronics with batteries — Hard to verify performance.

The REI Anniversary Sale (May)

REI’s other major sales window is the Anniversary Sale, held annually in May. Different from the Garage Sale — these are new items at 20–30% off, with the REI Co-op brand at the deepest discount tier.

The Anniversary Sale is the right window for:

• REI Co-op brand items (their house line is genuinely high quality and cheaper than name-brand equivalents).
• Major outdoor brands at moderate but reliable discount — Patagonia, Black Diamond, Smartwool, Darn Tough, La Sportiva.
• Bundles (tent + footprint, jacket + pants).

The Anniversary Sale stacks with the 20% off one full-price item coupon that Co-op members receive annually. This is genuinely the best window for new-condition outdoor gear at REI.

The broader camping-gear calendar

Beyond REI specifically, outdoor gear follows seasonal patterns.

Tents and shelters

• Cheapest: August–September (end-of-summer clearance). 30–50% off at most retailers including Backcountry, Moosejaw, Public Lands.
• Manufacturer-direct: Big Agnes, MSR, Nemo, Hilleberg all run quarterly promotions. Sign up for emails.
• Worst window: April–May (peak buying season for spring/summer trips).

Sleeping bags

• Cheapest: August–September (post-summer-season clearance). End-of-year sales (December) also strong.
• Manufacturer-direct: Western Mountaineering and Feathered Friends rarely discount but make exception clothing-clearance items occasionally.
• REI Garage Sale: Strong category for finding gently used premium sleeping bags.

Backpacks

• Cheapest: End-of-season at retailers.
• Best manufacturer cycle: Osprey’s outgoing model years drop to 25–40% off at REI, Moosejaw, Backcountry from September onward.
• Mid-tier brands (Deuter, Gregory): similar calendar.

Hiking boots and trail runners

• Cheapest: November–February for outgoing color/model years.
• Strong sales: Black Friday at all major outdoor retailers, REI Anniversary Sale.
• Specific brand calendars: Salomon, La Sportiva, Hoka all follow standard retail calendars.

Outerwear (rain jackets, insulation)

• Cheapest: March–April (end-of-winter / start-of-spring transition). Outgoing winter models clear at 40–60% off.
• Secondary window: August–September clearance of summer hiking shells.
• Patagonia specifically: Their “Worn Wear” program sells used Patagonia at 30–50% off new, with the same warranty. Genuinely excellent value.

Cookware, stoves, and accessories

• Cheapest: Black Friday and Cyber Monday for the deep individual-item discounts.
• Manufacturer rebates: MSR and Jetboil sometimes run bundles in spring.

Where else to shop

Backcountry.com

• Largest online outdoor retailer.
• Strong “Steal of the Day” daily flash deals.
• “Outlet” section with 20–60% off year-round.
• Sign up for email for first-purchase 15% off.

Moosejaw

• Walmart-owned but operates with its own outdoor culture.
• Strong “Bargain Bin” clearance section.
• Frequent code promotions.

Public Lands

• Dick’s Sporting Goods’ outdoor brand.
• Strong on broader-market items (Coleman, Eureka, Yeti) at competitive pricing.

Sierra Trading Post

• The “TJ Maxx of outdoor gear.” Closeout pricing on overstock and discontinued inventory.
• Hit-or-miss inventory but real bargains when they exist.

Manufacturer direct outlets

• Patagonia outlet stores (limited locations).
• Columbia outlet stores.
• North Face outlet stores.
• Smartwool, Darn Tough direct sales (rare, but real).

Local consignment and used gear

• Gear Trade, GearTrade.com — Used outdoor gear marketplace, similar to eBay for outdoor specifically.
• Local outdoor shops with consignment sections.
• Facebook Marketplace and Craigslist for individual items.

The build-out strategy

For a camper starting from scratch in 2026, the right sequence:

1. REI Co-op membership ($30 one-time) — Pays for itself in the first major purchase.
2. First major purchase at the next Garage Sale or Anniversary Sale. Tent + sleeping bag is the foundation; aim to spend $200–400 instead of $600–800 retail.
3. Backpack at end-of-summer clearance (August–September). 30–40% off.
4. Outerwear in March–April (end-of-winter clearance) for the following year’s trips.
5. Cookware and stoves on Black Friday to round out the kit.

Done with this sequence, a full camping kit (tent + sleeping bag + sleeping pad + backpack + cookware + stove + apparel) typically lands at $400–600 instead of $1,000–1,500 retail.

The rule

The outdoor industry rewards patience and information. Anyone who walks into an outdoor retailer in April or May and buys a new tent at MSRP is paying for the convenience of impulse. Anyone who plans ahead — Co-op membership + Garage Sale + seasonal clearance + manufacturer direct — gets the same gear for half the cost.

The trips are the same. The math is different.