Last month I had the opportunity to take an in depth look at a Nomadik Subscription Box. They sent me a second box to review, and I’m excited to tell you what’s inside and whether or not it is a good value!
The Better Basecamp Nomadik Box
This month Nomadik sent out their Better Basecamp box. For those of you who aren’t familiar with subscription boxes, you pay a monthly fee and you get a box of goodies mailed to you. Nomadik and Cairn are both outdoor subscription box companies. Be sure to read my reviews of the Cairn Subscription box when it first came out, and again after a couple of years of them refining the business, as well as last month’s review of the Nomadik subscription box.
Hiking Lady’s Review of the sample Nomadix Subscription Box
This month Nomadik sent out a box called The Better Basecamp! Just like last month, it was exciting to receive it in the mail, not knowing what was inside until I opened it (I love the surprise element of a subscription box!).
Inside were the following items: Ultra-Power Pro Lantern by 1tac, a Paracord Cleat, 550 Paracord Heavy Duty Utility Line, and a pack of Gorilly Goods nuts in the Baja flavor. Again, just like last month I had never tried any of these products before, and I wasn’t familiar with these brands previously.
Is A Nomadik Subscription Box a Good Value?
The total retail value of the items in the box based on my calculations was $53.84 (see below). Nomadik boxes start at $29.99, and have UP TO $70.00 in retail value in each box. The $29.99 pricing is for a 12 month subscription (i.e., paying $359.88 up front). The most expensive option is $32.95 for monthly billing. See last month’s review for more details on Nomadik’s pricing.
I decided to check the retail prices of the component items in the Nomadik box and this is what I found out:
| Item: | Retail Price of Item: | Online Prices Found & Comments: |
|---|---|---|
| Ultra-Power Pro Lantern by 1Tac | $39.99 | They are for sale at Amazon for $39.99. However, there is a very similar lantern by Etekcity for $23.99 that comes in a 4 pack, so just $5.99 a piece! The 1Tac lantern doesn’t seem to be worth $39.99, and if I were to see it at a store I wouldn’t pay that much for it. I would have preferred that Nomadik include a higher quality product, such as the Black Diamond Orbit Lantern (retails for $29.95). |
| Paracord Cleat (2pack) by ReadyMan | $4.99 | Avoid tying knots…this handy little two pack is necessary with any paracord you take with you to set up hammocks, hang bear canisters, etc. Available for $4.99 at ReadyMan.com. Seems to be priced appropriately. |
| 550 Paracord Heavy Duty Utility Line by GearAid, 30 feet | $6.50 | Available at GearAid.com for $6.50. This seems to be decent quality paracord. |
| Gorilly Goods Baja seed mix | $2.37 | A 12 pack is available at Amazon for $28.49. The taste wasn’t to my liking, but that could just be me 😉 |
Conclusion: Should You Consider A Nomadik Subscription Box?
Based on having received two boxes, the Nomadik Subscription Box seems to be a good value and a fun way to get introduced to new products. While I haven’t been overly thrilled with the two most expensive items in each box (the Multi Tool by Tactica and the Ultra-Power Pro Lantern by 1Tac), you definitely get a better deal than if you were to buy the items individually.
Have you tried an outdoor subscription box? What do you think of it?
Happy trails!
Hi Morgab,
Thank you so much for letting everyone know! I ended up doing two months of the subscription. Both times I found the value to be OK, not great. And the first month I was disappointed with the main item. Have you tried Cairn subscription boxes? I’ve tried them twice with good experiences.
Happy trails!
Hi! So I always want to give things a fair go but after three boxes I’m still let down.
We reviewed the prices of items, they were the same as if we had purchased them on the internet solo AND many of the items were things that are totally unrelated to our wants and our profile requests. Its definitely not worth the monthly subscription or the 3hundred something you mentioned upfront. But they do make sure to waste a lot of boxes/cards/wrapping and of course a nomadik sticker in each and every box so how great is that!
Thank you for your review and it appears it could be fun item to try new products in a box!
We appreciate your website and all the great information that you share with us.
Hi Hiking Lady,
It couldn’t hurt to try this. Thank you for the suggestion!