The 89 best REI Labor Day deals, from a $16 sock to a $1,499-off e-bike

The massive outdoor retailer only throws a couple huge sales every year. These Labor Day deals on gear, apparel, and more are worth your time and money.

By Stan Horaczek

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REI runs two big sales a year and the Labor Day event is where the co-op clears summer stock before winter inventory needs the shelf space. That means tents, sleeping pads, camp chairs, and trail shoes get cut hardest just in time to enjoy the tail end of warm weather. The Labor Day sale runs through September 7, and REI members who spend $50 or more also earn a $30 single-use promo card during the same window. I went through roughly 2,500 discounted items and pulled the size runs on every pair of shoes below, because a 50 percent markdown on a shoe that only exists in a men’s 9.5 isn’t a deal, it’s a leftover.

NEMO Stargaze Evo-X Folding Reclining Camp Chair $99.99 (was $179.95)

A suspended, rocking camp chair for $80 off, in five colors

Nemo Stargaze Evo-X Folding Reclining Camp Chair

Nem
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The NEMO Stargaze Evo-X at $99.99 hangs the seat from a frame so the whole chair swings and reclines without you doing anything, which is a different experience from sitting in a folding quad chair, and it usually costs $179.95. All five colorways are live at this price. NEMO rates it to 300 pounds and it packs into its own carry bag.

HOKA Clifton 10 Road-Running Shoes $99.83 (was $155.00)

The current Clifton, not last year’s model, under $100 in both men’s and women’s

Hoke Clifton sneaker on grass

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You won’t typically find current-generation HOKA Clifton 10 under $100 while it’s still the model on the store shelves. The men’s version has 30 sizes live and the women’s Clifton 10 has 34, so this is a real size run rather than a picked-over one. Both are $99.83, down from $155.

Hydro Flask Wide-Mouth 32 fl. oz. Water Bottle with Flex Cap $30.73 (was $44.95)

The standard 32-ounce Hydro Flask, in the two colors REI marked down

Purple Hydro Flask water bottle on grass

Hydro Flask
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Hydro Flask discounts are usually colorway-specific, and this one is no exception. The 32-ounce Wide-Mouth with the Flex Cap is $30.73 instead of $44.95, but only two colors are still live at that price, so pick before you deliberate. This is the plain vacuum-insulated bottle with the loop lid, not a straw or tumbler variant.

Garmin inReach Messenger $199.99 (was $300.00)

Two-way satellite texting and SOS for $100 off

Garmin Inreach messenger on grass

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The Garmin inReach Messenger is my wife’s go-to choice when venturing into a world without cellphone reception. It’s the stripped-down inReach, so you get two-way messaging, location sharing, and an SOS button routed to Garmin’s response center, without the maps and navigation of a Mini 2. Garmin rates the battery at up to 28 days in 10-minute tracking mode. A satellite subscription is required and sold separately, which is the part people forget to budget for.

Mountain Hardwear Mineral King 3 Tent with Footprint $239.99 (was $400.00)

A three-person tent with the footprint already in the box, $160 off

Mountain Hard Wear Mineral King 3 Tent with Footprint

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Tent footprints are the accessory everyone skips and then buys separately at full price, so the Mountain Hardwear Mineral King 3 including one at $239.99 does better than the $160 off suggests. It’s a freestanding three-person with two doors and two vestibules, which is the layout worth paying for if two people plus gear is the actual load. The two-person version is $209.99 if you never carry a third body.

Best REI Labor Day tent deals

Tents are the deepest cut in this sale. The Mountain Hardwear Mineral King 2 at $209.99 is 40 percent off with the footprint in the box, and the Coleman Skydome 4-Person at $142.49 is the least expensive tent here that sleeps four under a full rain fly.

Best sleeping bag and sleeping pad deals from $37

Sleeping pads discount more reliably than bags do, and this year is no different. The Therm-a-Rest Z Lite Sol starts at $37.39, and the REI Co-op Magma 15 starting at $299.19 is the least expensive 15-degree down bag I turned up in the sale.

Best camp stove, coffee, and water filter deals under $125

This is the section where the prices are low enough that you buy the thing you’ve been meaning to replace. The MSR PocketRocket 2 at $44.89 is the canister stove I’d hand a first-time backpacker, and the Platypus QuickDraw at $29.89 is the cheapest hollow-fiber filter here.

Best camp chair, cooler, and camp furniture deals

Camp furniture is the category people wait on sales for, and the Coleman Broadband Mesh Quad Chair at $26.59 is the cheap one that will outlast three seasons of tailgates. The Rumpl Backcountry Puffy Blanket at $89.83 is the one I’d add if you already own chairs.

Best hiking boot and hiking shoe deals

Hiking footwear held its size runs better than road shoes did here. The Merrell Moab 3 at $104.73 is the default recommendation for a reason and it’s discounted in both men’s and women’s, while the Arc’teryx Kopec Mid GTX at $139.93 is the closest thing to a bargain Arc’teryx ever gets.

Best running shoe deals under $120

Every road shoe in this section is under $120, and the Nike Pegasus 41 at $71.83 is the cheapest daily trainer I found from a major brand, though it’s down to sizes 9.5 through 11. The Brooks Ghost 17 at $110.83 has the deepest size run of anything here, wides included.

Best backpack, duffel, and travel bag deals

Bags are where the cheap end of this sale is strongest. The Herschel Heritage Pack at $44.83 is half off a $90 daypack, and the Osprey Arcane Tote Pack is $70.73 against a $120 list, though it’s down to black and one orange.

Best bike helmet, light, and cycling gear deals

Two things here are worth more than their discounts suggest. The Garmin Varia RTL515 at $149.99 is a taillight that also warns you about cars closing from behind, and the Smith Session MIPS at $119.93 is a $200 helmet, though only two colorways are still at that price.

Best bike deals from $519

Complete bikes are where the dollar savings get silly, and REI is one of the few places that discounts them at all. The Co-op Cycles CTY 1.1 at $518.93 is the least expensive adult bike here, and it was the only one of the six I stock-checked with every frame size from XS through XL still available. The Salsa Moraine CUES 10 e-MTB is $1,499.07 off, the largest dollar discount I turned up in the whole event, but it’s down to large and extra-large. Frame sizes thin out fast on the expensive ones, so check yours before you get attached.

Best camp lighting, power bank, and outdoor tech deals

BioLite has more discounted gear in this sale than any other electronics brand REI carries. The BioLite Range 400 headlamp at $44.89 is the one most people should buy, and the Black Diamond Apollo at $45.87 is the steepest lighting cut here, down from $69.95.

Best climbing shoe and hardware deals

Climbing shoes discount in a narrow band, so the interesting picks are at the ends. The La Sportiva Tarantulace at $74.19 is the beginner shoe worth owning, and the La Sportiva Solution at $164.19 is the aggressive one people usually pay $219 for.

Best jacket, fleece, and outdoor clothing deals from $16

Base layers took the deepest apparel cuts, which is REI clearing last winter before this winter arrives. The REI Co-op Midweight Base Layer Half-Zip at $19.83 is down from $59.95, though it’s picked over to XS, small, and medium, and the Mountain Hardwear Stretchdown Hoody at $174.83 is half off a $350 jacket.

Best paddle board, dry bag, and water gear deals

Water gear gets marked down in September because the season is ending, which is exactly when it’s cheapest to buy for next year. The BOTE WULF Aero inflatable paddle board at $399.99 comes with the paddle, and the ALPS Mountaineering Torrent dry bag multi-pack at $24.73 covers three sizes at once.

If you buy one thing out of all of this, make it the NEMO Stargaze Evo-X at $99.99, because $80 off is a lot for a chair you’ll open on every single trip. The Big Agnes Tiger Wall UL3 at $383.87 is the biggest dollar cut left on a backpacking tent, and the HOKA Clifton 10 at $99.83 is the pick with the size run to actually fit you. Everything above runs through September 7, and prices on the thinnest-stocked items will move before then.

 
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Stan Horaczek

Executive editor, gear and reviews

Stan Horaczek is the executive gear editor at Popular Science. He oversees a team of gear-obsessed writers and editors dedicated to finding and featuring the newest, best, and most innovative gadgets on the market and beyond.