REI reviews

3.6

64% would recommend to a friend

(4,365 total reviews)
avatar

Mary Beth Laughton

38% approve of CEO

34% positive business outlook

REI has an employee rating of 3.6 out of 5 stars, based on 4,365 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
Jan 8, 2013
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

There aren't too many pros to working for this company. They may be on the top 100 places to work list, but it should not be. The discounts were fantastic, the benefits were second to none. My co-workers were awesome as well. Everyone loved being outside and doing what we were selling.

Cons

I agree with many people here. The pay gap between the management staff and the sales staff is WAY to big. I find it quite ridiculous that I was working 36-40 hours a week and was still under the poverty line. There is absolutely no room for growth unless you want this to be your life. They say that they are about a work life balance, but when you are required to work one day a weekend and at least 2 nights a week, that makes work life balance very difficult. I was told that I would be able to run the warehouse when I was the S/R, but when it came down to it, they wanted it their way and any other would be wrong. Also the company eliminated a position and no one assumed that position, so it was passed off to me and I was not compensated for it one penny. That is why I left.

2.0
May 11, 2011
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

It's a relatively easy job, even in customer service with difficult customers that come there w/ problems.

Cons

The ideals/image of REI & the reality are not exactly the same. Very corporate The scheduling became increasingly difficult. Low compensation Having to push "memberships" Boredom factor... it is retail after all. Could be worse (as in sales associate) It's not as portable of a job as one would think... I know one person who moved cross country & was promised close to FT hours but kept getting less than 20h/wk. Evaluations are done thru some system that was clearly brought (bought) from some management consulting (software) company... not always reflective or considerate of all the factors.

2.0
Jan 15, 2025

Plummeting quickly

Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Meeting coworkers who are like minded, share your love of the outdoors and anything outside the box. Industry discounts and prodeals are wonderful.

Cons

Wow, as a result of new leadership, Eric Artz, the company is hemorrhaging money. We exist for profit, that is it. They do excel at campaigning otherwise, the outdoors is for everyone, well yeah, if everyone can pay for the gear, which a small percentage of people can. Store management is hysterical. I wish they were as good as they seem to think they are. And boy, do they believe they're awesome. They're lazy yet demand more from you than they are willing to do. Business is booming but they still schedule only one opener and one closer, we're expected to serve classic REI customer service, sell memberships, sell credit card applications, do the MRA (restock process) and stock the floor....all by yourself. It's completely exhausting and demeaning. You feel depressed when you get home. The radio chatter is enough to make you want to seriously hurt yourself or someone else, it's a crazy, crazy environment that depletes you.

Viewing 136 - 138 of 4,365 Reviews

Glassdoor has 4,503 REI reviews submitted anonymously by REI employees. Read employee reviews and ratings on Glassdoor to decide if REI is right for you.