Is REI a good company to work for?

REI has an overall rating of 3.6 out of 5, based on over 4,508 reviews left anonymously by employees. This rating has been stable over the past 12 months. 63% of employees would recommend working at REI to a friend and 34% have a positive outlook for the business. The best reviews about REI have been left by employees working as Store Sales Specialist , Retail Specialist and Frontline Staff .

Does REI pay their employees well?

According to anonymously submitted Glassdoor reviews, REI employees rate their compensation and benefits as 3.5 out of 5. Find out more about salaries and benefits at REI. This rating has improved by 1% over the last 12 months.

How satisfied are employees working at REI?

63% of REI employees would recommend working there to a friend based on Glassdoor reviews . Employees also rated REI 3.8 out of 5 for work life balance, 3.8 for culture and values and 2.9 for career opportunities.

What are the top reviewed jobs at REI?

Sales Associate (636) , Sales Specialist (462) , Retail Sales Associate (327) , Retail Sales Specialist (179) , Sales Lead (151) , Customer Service Specialist (109) , Customer Service Representative (103) , Cashier (49) , Sales Associate/Cashier (37) , Retail Sales Manager (35) , Customer Service (31) , Warehouse Associate (31) , Sales (30) , Sales Representative (29) , Frontline Cashier (27)

What are the pros of working at REI according to real employee reviews?

"Great for people that enjoy the outdoors particularly if you are looking for deep discounts on outdoor product for yourself." ((in 472 reviews)); "Coworkers are great and the general technical acumen is high." ((in 353 reviews)); "Benefits including 401k and health insurance are great after you work for them for one year." ((in 349 reviews)); "REI has a great culture for those who are or want to be involved with the outdoors." ((in 191 reviews)); "Great work life balance is great." ((in 135 reviews))

What are the cons of working at REI according to real employee reviews?

"Low pay and even lower pay for those with over 20 years in the company." ((in 374 reviews)); "Bad management and not much growth" ((in 256 reviews)); "Some managers don't appreciate hard work and favor employees who make them feel liked." ((in 117 reviews)); "Long hours and difficult to have a consistent schedule" ((in 100 reviews)); "Layoffs Could Always Happen" ((in 29 reviews))

What are employees saying about REI layoffs in 2026?

Explore Glassdoor’s employee reviews to understand what current and former employees are saying about REI layoffs and their outlook for job security at REI in 2026.

What are the top reviewed REI locations?

Seattle , Kent , Sumner , Denver , New York , San Diego , Portland , Atlanta , Austin , San Francisco , Chicago , Boston , Berkeley , Bellevue , Houston , Tustin , Boulder , Issaquah , Los Angeles , Goodyear , Salt Lake City , Framingham , Washington , Columbus , Bloomington , Dallas , San Antonio , Bedford , Phoenix , San Carlos

REI reviews

3.6

63% would recommend to a friend

(4,369 total reviews)

Mary Beth Laughton

38% approve of CEO

34% positive business outlook

Company ratings over time

Ratings trend for the last 6 months (4,369 reviews)

Ratings by demographic groups

Race / Ethnicity

Gender

Sexual orientation

Disability

Parent or family caregiver

Veteran status

REI has an employee rating of 3.6 out of 5 stars, based on 4,369 company reviews on Glassdoor which indicates that most employees have a good working experience there. The REI employee rating is in line with the average (within 1 standard deviation) for employers within the Retail & Wholesale industry (3.5 stars).

Reviews by job title

4K reviews

1.0

Jun 14, 2013

Horrible place to work

Front end

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Great discount when you work there

Cons

Management is horrible and very dishonest. If you don't fit in to the so called REI crowd they will try everything in the book to get you to quit. I have worked over 20 years in my life and this is one of the worst jobs I have ever had. They are so focused on what REI has to offer and REI will be there for you.

1.0

Jun 13, 2013

Poster Child of Passive Aggressive Management

Retail sales

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Majority of employees are kind and cooperative. Excellent discounts and pro-deals. Good health insurance for Part time employees as well as 401k plans offered.

Cons

It sad how they blow smoke in your face during New Hire Orientation. Management Makes you believe its a Community and a Family Co-Op company. It's all CoRPorate now. Its been Corporate for over 10 years! But Now with Sally out of the house, Headquarters/Management has now run amok with their stores and management has even segregated themselves from the employees. They pretend to care about your goals of moving up the ladder if you're interested in pursuing a career in that circus, they usually listen, take your thoughts into consideration and then forget about you and 'painfully' avoid you if you want to follow up with them. If there is an issue with your schedule or requesting time off, so if they Dont like you, they ignore you. They also apply this passive aggressiveness in getting you to quit. They cannot face you and let you go, instead they screw with your hours and schedule and wait for you to get frustrated and leave. They dont like employees that speak up, voice their concerns, and call out the Truth where they see fit. Being the squeaky wheel actually gets you black balled amongst all of management. This is all Fact.

5.0

May 29, 2013

REI Rocks!

Anonymous employee

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Great co-workers, fantastic costumer interaction and conversations about the outdoors, great managers, flexible part time hours! Sometimes free food for employee's!

Cons

Nothing is a con with REI

Viewing 4114 - 4116 of 4,369 Reviews

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