Free gear list

The complete beginner's camping gear list.

What to buy first. What can wait until trip three. What to never buy at all. The exact order Grant wishes someone had handed him before the $400 tent mistake.

Get the list. Skip the mistakes.

One email. The full buy-order checklist by budget tier — starter kit under $300, the upgrade path after that, and the 6 items beginners waste money on.

Tier 1 · First trip

The 8 items that make or break night one — shelter, sleep, light, and the one thing everyone forgets.

Tier 2 · Trips 2–5

Comfort upgrades that are worth real money once you know you'll keep camping — and not a day before.

The skip list

6 things beginners buy and regret. Grant owns all 6. Learn from his garage.

Prefer to browse first? See every review or the field guides.
Want this in one place? Grant's Guides — instant-download gear guides.Browse the guides →
Partner brands

Brands we partner with

These are affiliate partners in this category, not ranked picks — we earn a commission if you buy through these links, at no extra cost to you. They sit separately from the list above precisely so the ranking stays independent of who pays us.

Electric trikes
mooncool

Stable three-wheel e-trikes built for riders who want range without balancing a two-wheeler — the campground-to-trailhead and rail-trail use case.

Visit mooncool
Knives & EDC
Atlas Knife Co (US)

American-made fixed blades and everyday-carry knives. Worth a look if you've decided a real knife beats the multitool blade you've been abusing.

Visit Atlas Knife Co
Outdoor equipment
Big Horn Outdoors

Outdoor and backyard gear across camp cooking, shelter and site setup — the category where buying once beats replacing twice.

Visit Big Horn Outdoors
Training gear
FED Fitness US

Home fitness equipment for the unglamorous part of hiking: the training that makes the climb feel shorter.

Visit FED Fitness US
Waders & hunting boots
TideWe

Waders, rubber boots and insulated outerwear for wet, cold conditions. The category where the cheap version fails on day one and you feel it for the next nine hours.

Visit TideWe
Emergency & survival kit
Survival Frog LLC

Emergency preparedness gear — solar chargers, water filtration, fire starting, shelter. The stuff you buy once and hope stays in the trunk unused.

Visit Survival Frog LLC
Hunting apparel
Kings Camo (US)

Camo apparel and layering systems built for Western hunts. Relevant if you're sizing a layering system rather than buying one jacket and hoping.

Visit Kings Camo
Camp comfort
GetOut

Packable insulated blankets and camp gear for the part of the trip nobody photographs: sitting still after dark, getting cold.

Visit GetOut