Best REI Brand Gear Worth Buying: 13 Picks That Earn Their Place

Introduction

REI brand gear carries a reputation problem it mostly does not deserve. The question shoppers ask most often is a fair one: is the house label genuinely as good as the pricier names sitting beside it on the shelf? In most categories the honest answer is that it depends on the item. In a handful of categories, REI has been quietly outperforming the competition for years.

This guide covers 13 REI brand products that consistently earn their place, from a one pound backpacking chair to a rain jacket that has held the value crown in its category for roughly a decade. Each entry explains what the product does well, where it makes compromises, and who it actually suits.

What Makes REI Brand Gear Worth Buying

Three things separate the picks below from the rest of the catalogue.

First, honest material choices at the price. The Flexlite Air Chair and the Rainier Rain Jacket do not hide behind premium pricing. They compete directly with more expensive rivals and win on value.

Second, thoughtful details that only show up in daily use: thumb holes on a sun hoodie, a shoulder strap pocket sized for a phone, a storage cube that is rectangular rather than tapered.

Third, longevity. Several of these products have been refined across multiple generations rather than replaced, which is usually a sign the original design was right.

The trade-offs are equally consistent. House brand gear rarely wins on the most advanced fabrics or the absolute lowest weights, and a few items carry compromises worth knowing about before you commit.

REI Camp Dreamer Slippers

Camp Dreamer Slippers sit in a category that is easy to overlook and surprisingly hard to get right. The upper is soft, the fit is close, and the insulation does the one job that matters: keeping cold feet warm around camp or at home. They arrived after the comparable Teva design, and the comparison is unavoidable. In practice the REI version matches or beats the original while asking less money.

If you tend to run cold, this is the pair to look at first. They are also the kind of item that gets packed for a car camping weekend and then worn every evening afterwards.

REI Trail 2 Print Fanny Pack

The Trail 2 Print Fanny Pack is a hip pack built around sensible pocketing rather than a single bucket. There is a small pocket at the front, a larger main compartment, a rear-facing pocket that keeps a phone, charger and wallet flat against your back, and a second rear pocket for small extras.

The main body is generous enough to swallow a lightweight shell jacket, which makes it a realistic option for short hikes rather than just a phone-and-keys pouch. The print shown here is one of the brand’s Pride designs, so if the colour story appeals, that is a genuine reason to choose this version over a plain one.

REI Flexlite Air Chair

This is one of the lightest backpacking chairs available. The fabric seat detaches and the legs fold into a compact bundle, and the whole chair weighs about one pound. At $100 it undercuts its closest competitor, which sells for $150 and carries a slightly higher 265 pound weight limit against the Flexlite’s 250 pounds, at the same one pound weight.

For a traditional backpacker, a one pound chair is genuine luxury at camp. Ultralight purists will skip it, and that is a reasonable choice. Everyone else gets a comfortable seat for a hundred dollars.

REI Sahara Sunshade Hoodie

The Sahara Sunshade Hoodie is the piece that converts people. The hood sits properly without pulling, the thumb holes extend sun coverage over the backs of the hands, and the fabric moves moisture well. The fit is the real story: comfortable, flattering and easy to wear for hours at a time.

It is a warm-weather layer rather than a technical shell, so treat it accordingly. It also handles several days between washes, which matters on longer trips.

REI Active Hipster

Hiking underwear is not glamorous, and it is one of the few items where a poor choice can ruin a long day. The Active Hipster is a simple, well-cut option that works on the trail and stays comfortable over distance.

It is inexpensive enough to buy several pairs at once, which is how most people end up using them. If you are building a multi-day kit, this is an easy place to save money without giving anything up.

The lack of technical features is the point. There is nothing here to fail, and nothing that needs to be washed after a single wear.

REI Trailsmith Joggers

Trailsmith Joggers are the pants that owners wear constantly. They are comfortable, versatile and cut well enough to pass as everyday wear, which is unusual for a pair of outdoor trousers. The pocket layout is the standout: a drop-in thigh pocket, a zippered thigh pocket, two rear pockets, and main hand pockets deep enough to swallow a phone and considerably more.

They are the pick if you want one pair that works for a walk, a commute and a casual dinner without looking like hiking gear.

REI Rainier Rain Jacket

The Rainier Rain Jacket has been the value benchmark in its category for about a decade. It is not the lightest or the most technical shell on the market and it does not pretend to be. What it offers is a mid price point, around $100, with build quality that holds up against jackets costing considerably more.

If you need a dependable rain jacket for commuting, day hikes and travel, and you would rather not spend premium money, this is the straightforward answer.

REI Mini Multi Towel

The Mini Multi Towel looks like a trivial purchase and turns out to be one of the most useful small items you can carry. It dries far faster than the cheap microfibre cloths sold in general retail, and it handles an absurd range of jobs: washing your face, drying dishes at camp, wiping down the inside of a wet tent and serving as an emergency pee cloth.

The mini size is the one to get. The larger deluxe versions of the same towel line are a different proposition entirely.

REI Flash 22

The latest redesign of the Flash 22 makes it one of the best all-round day packs in the range. It carries well for hiking, works in the city and is simple enough to be the bag you grab without thinking about it. Two water bottle pockets handle hydration, and a zippered pocket on one side is reachable while the pack is on your back, which is exactly where quick-access items should live.

Inside there is a single large cavity with a sleeve at the back for a reservoir or a notebook, plus a zippered pocket on the lid. It is a light daypack, so keep heavy loads in mind: fill it with dense gear and the shoulder straps will let you know.

REI Big Haul Duffel

The Big Haul Duffel is the most durable bag on this list and one of the best travel options for the money. The 40 litre version is the sweet spot because it lands at carry-on size, and the range runs from 28 litres up to 120 litres if you need more volume.

The shoulder straps are comfortable enough for a loaded walk through an airport, and compression straps on the sides let you lash a rolled blanket or jacket to the outside. Comparable duffels from other brands cost considerably more.

REI Pack Away Cube

The Pack Away Cube is a 100 litre storage cube, and it is easy to dismiss until you use one. It is completely rectangular, so there is no dead space along angled sides, and it is soft enough to overfill and still zip shut while conforming to whatever gap you are stuffing it into.

It is a storage and car camping accessory rather than a backpacking item, but it does its job so precisely that it becomes oddly satisfying to own.

REI Flash 55

The Flash 55 is the best piece of gear on this list. It weighs 2 pounds 10 ounces, which is light for a 55 litre pack, yet it keeps a full internal frame and a properly padded hip belt. Forward-facing water bottle pockets hold a Nalgene and stay reachable while you are wearing the pack, side pockets take an umbrella or other quick-access items, and there is a phone pocket on the shoulder strap.

The modularity is what sets it apart. Remove the detachable pieces to strip it down, or add REI’s separately sold straps to attach a closed-cell foam sleeping pad to the bottom.

The current redesign improved the front pocket by moving from mesh to a more durable fabric and made the harness adjustable, so shoulder straps can be moved up and down and the hip belt extended for a better fit across more body types. One change went the other way: the lid pocket is no longer a rain-shield, water-repellent zippered pocket. It compares closely with the Hyperlite 3400 and the Gregory Facet 55, is slightly heavier than both, and costs roughly $50 less than the Facet 55 and about $200 less than the Hyperlite.

LMNT Chocolate Salt

Chocolate Salt is an electrolyte drink mix flavour that sounds wrong and works surprisingly well. On its own it tastes like chocolate milk. Stirred into coffee it turns into something close to a mocha, which is why it has become a daily habit rather than a hiking-only item. Electrolytes are useful for preventing cramps and, for some people, migraines, and a chocolate flavour is an easy way to keep intake up in hot weather.

On mixing: start with half a packet in about 10 ounces of cold brew coffee and adjust from there. A sample pack covering all eight flavours is a low-commitment way to find your own favourite.

Buying Advice

The pattern across this list is worth noticing. REI brand gear wins where the design brief is simple and the priorities are comfort, durability and price. It is less compelling where the goal is the absolute lowest weight or the most advanced fabric, and the Flexlite Air Chair is a good example: it is about a pound, it is comfortable, and it is not aimed at ultralight purists.

If you are building a kit from scratch, start with the Flash 55 if you need a backpacking pack, the Rainier if you need a shell, and the Flash 22 if you need a daypack. Add the small items, the towel, the cube, the hip pack, as they fit the way you actually travel. Clothing is where the value is most obvious, and the Sahara hoodie and Trailsmith joggers are the two pieces most likely to become daily wear.

One practical note: for the clothing picks, fit matters more than any specification. Treat the hoodie and the joggers as items worth trying on before you settle on a size.

Conclusion

Thirteen products, one consistent theme: REI brand gear is worth considering whenever the design goal is a comfortable, durable version of a familiar item at a fair price. The Flash 55 stands out as the best of the bunch, a lightweight pack that stays comfortable, modular and cheaper than the comparable alternatives. The Rainier Rain Jacket remains the safest hundred dollars in its category, and the small items, the towel, the cube, the hip pack and the slippers, are the kind of purchases that quietly become indispensable.

Pick the ones that match how you actually spend time outside, and the value is straightforward.