How Sustainable is Nemo Equipment?
Average Sustainability Score
Excellent
Relative to outdoor gear brands such as Arc’teryx and REI Co-op, Nemo Equipment is small. However, the New England-based outdoor brand is making an outsized impact when it comes to sustainability. Nemo has taken its circularity initiatives to the next level, most recently by developing highly repairable sleeping bags and backpacks that can be fully recycled at the end of life. The brand also offers top-notch repair services and a resale program for used gear. To top it off, Nemo is also making progress toward reducing its carbon intensity, reporting a 40% decrease between 2021 and 2024. Here’s how Nemo is setting an example for other small brands to decrease their impact.
This sustainability analysis evaluates both product- and brand-level initiatives to capture the full scope of Nemo’s efforts to reduce its environmental impact. Our research draws from Nemo’s published sustainability data, other reputable sources, third-party certifications (a cornerstone of our process), and correspondence with brand representatives. We have independently researched over 20 Nemo products to date and counting, giving us a broad understanding of the brand’s use of low-impact materials, chemistry, and manufacturing practices.
You can also explore our analyses of other outdoor brands, or use our advanced search to find products that align with your sustainability values.
Nemo Equipment earns an “Excellent” rating for transparency surrounding sustainability initiatives. The brand clearly labels low-impact fabrics, such as Bluesign-approved and recycled materials, on its product pages, leaving little room for confusion. A sustainability page on its website outlines its general initiatives, while its annual impact report provides more detailed information and emissions tracking data. It should be noted that Nemo’s emissions reporting lacks some of the detailed data offered by some brands, such as a breakdown of Scope 1, 2, and 3 emissions. Additionally, representatives at Nemo have been highly responsive to our inquiries when we have reached out with questions about sustainability at the brand.
In an effort to cut its carbon intensity in half by 2030, Nemo has made a significant effort to prioritize recycled materials in its products. To do so, it has developed fabrics like Osmo, a fully-recycled polyester-nylon blend that Nemo now uses in all of its backpacking tents. We’ve found recycled content in approximately three-quarters of the Nemo gear we’ve evaluated, but unfortunately, the brand has not released a statistic detailing its total use of recycled materials. However, we appreciate that Nemo aims to ensure traceability by primarily sourcing recycled materials certified to the Global Recycled Standard or Recycled Content Standard. The brand has also been a leader in developing both recycled and recyclable materials, which it incorporates into its Endless Promise backpacks and sleeping bags, which are designed to be recycled when you’re done with them (read more about this under “Resale and/or Recycling Services”). To date, Nemo is one of the few brands making notable progress in both recycled and recyclable products.
Compared to other outdoor brands, Nemo has gone above and beyond in its partnership with Bluesign, a third-party certification system that ensures textiles and products meet high standards for chemical safety and environmental impact. It has been a Bluesign System Partner since 2020, and ever since, Nemo has made impressive efforts to innovate new types of Bluesign Products. For example, Nemo developed the first sleeping pad and backpacking tent on the market to be certified as Bluesign Products (meaning that they contain at least 90% Bluesign-approved materials and 10% Bluesign-approved accessories), pushing the needle forward in sustainable camping gear. The Bluesign-approved Flyer sleeping pad was launched in 2023, and the Dagger Osmo backpacking tent hit the market in 2024. Nemo continues to increase its use of Bluesign-approved materials across its product lines, using low-impact materials in its Endless Promise sleeping bags and Tensor sleeping pads. Similar to recycled materials, however, Nemo does not report a statistic detailing its total use of Bluesign-approved materials.
In 2025, Nemo completed its transition away from PFAS, or per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances. PFAS, otherwise known as “forever chemicals,” were once common in durable water-repellent (DWR) coatings and waterproof membranes, but were recently banned in states like California and New York due to their harmful impacts. Nemo first made the transition to PFAS-free sleeping bag DWRs, and in 2022, it launched its first PFAS-free tents. The brand continued to test for unintentionally added PFAS across its product line in the following years, completing its phase-out in the spring of 2025. Additionally, the brand adopted Bluesign’s restricted substance list in 2016, which prohibits the use of a variety of chemicals that are harmful to human health and the environment. For example, in 2018, Nemo began its phase out of flame-retardant chemicals, which have been linked with endocrine disruption, immune dysfunction, and neurotoxic effects. Now, all Nemo products are free from flame-retardant chemistry.
Though Nemo uses few natrual fibers in its gear, it has made notable strides to incorporate only responsibly-sourced materials when it does. Since 2017, Nemo has required that all down it sources be certified to the Textile Exchange’s Responsible Down Standard, which ensures that ducks and geese are raised according to high standards for animal welfare. The certification also increases down traceability throughout the supply chain. To date, all Nemo sleeping bags feature responsibly sourced down. The brand does not use leather or wool in its products, unlike many brands we have evaluated.
While Nemo has made substantial efforts to increase transparency in its supply chain, it does not meet our responsible manufacturing criteria. To do so, we require brands to be part of a third-party program that provides certification and/or annual audits of factories to ensure safe working conditions, fair wages, and a decreased environmental impact (such as Fair Trade or Fair Wear). Nemo does not participate in any of these programs. However, like many outdoor brands, Nemo has a publicly available supplier code of conduct aligned with International Labor Organization standards.
Nemo discloses the names and locations of its supplier partners on its website and highlights sustainability programs at top suppliers in its annual impact report. Several of its suppliers, including Unicorn Recreation Products Co., LTD., are powered by renewable energy, reducing the footprint of Nemo products manufactured at those facilities. Unfortunately, the brand does not disclose the percentage of its products made in these low-impact factories.
Nemo set the goal of eliminating its use of virgin plastic packaging, and thus far, it is 70% of the way toward achieving its target. The brand is also committed to ensuring that packaging waste from Nemo products is curbside recyclable or home compostable, but as of its most recent 2024 data, it still has a ways to go before all of its packaging materials have a sustainable end-of-life disposal option. (We believe that’s partially due to its use of recycled plastic poly bags, which require special recycling infrastructure.) On the upside, Nemo uses 100% recycled or Forest Stewardship Council-certified cardboard shipping boxes. It is also decreasing its reliance on plastic poly bags, which the brand uses to provide additional protection for sleeping bags in transit (though it is moving away from using them in other product categories).
We love that Nemo offers comprehensive repair services, which are provided for free under warranty and at a reasonable cost if not. The brand is working toward ensuring that a Nemo-certified repair center is available in every market where its products are sold. In 2024, the brand reported that its repair centers covered over three-quarters of its markets. Designers at the brand are working to develop easily repairable products that can be fixed at home through its replacement parts program, without the need for a sewing machine. In practice, that looks like simple patterns, fewer sewn-on buckles, and other design features that make Nemo products easy to repair. When you do need to send a piece of gear in for repair, the brand offers a wide range of services, which include tent repaneling, zipper replacements, hole patching, and more.
Nemo shines when it comes to circularity initiatives. In 2024, the brand launched a resale program in partnership with Out&Back through which you can exchange your used Nemo gear for a cash payment or gift card. The brand even offers a pre-paid shipping label when you send in gear. Next, Nemo is working toward the ambitious goal of exclusively designing recyclable products—while more brands are working toward incorporating recycled content into their products, we love that Nemo is taking it a step further by ensuring that its products are made with sustainable end-of-life solutions in mind. As of 2024, 20% of Nemo gear (all of which comes from its Endless Promise collection) is recyclable. Endless Promise products are made with single-polymer fabrics, rather than blended ones, to ensure recyclability (for more on this, read our Recycled Materials article) in partnership with recycling services, including AmberCycle and Allied Feather + Down.
Tracking greenhouse gas emissions is a key component of sustainability, and we love to see brands that not only keep track of their impact but also take meaningful action to reduce it. Nemo began tracking its emissions in 2020 and has since made significant changes to its materials and manufacturing practices to achieve its goal of cutting its emissions intensity (measured in kilograms of carbon dioxide per product) in half by 2030. Additionally, the brand set the Science Based Targets Initiative-verified goal of reducing its Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions by 42% by 2030, and to measure and reduce its Scope 3 emissions (though no target reduction is specified). Scope 3 emissions typically comprise the majority of a brand’s total emissions, and we hope to see a concrete target in this category soon.
Still, we’re glad to hear that in 2024, Nemo reduced its carbon intensity by 40% compared to its 2020 baseline year. Additionally, according to representatives at the brand, its Scope 1 emissions are negligible, with most of its emissions falling under Scope 3. Notably, while the brand reports on its impressive reduction in carbon intensity, it does not report on its absolute emissions, which brands typically break down into three emissions scopes (Scope 1, 2, and 3). Reduced carbon intensity indicates that each product has a smaller carbon footprint, but unlike using an absolute emissions metric, carbon intensity fails to decouple emissions from business growth. We hope to see absolute emissions reduction data from Nemo in the future, as it will paint a more complete picture of its progress toward decreasing its impact.
Nemo published its first annual impact report in 2023. While its sustainability reports thus far have been shorter than those from other leading brands, they offer valuable insight into Nemo’s sustainability progress. The 2024 report covers most of our sustainability criteria, highlighting Nemo’s emissions intensity reductions, sustainable material use, packaging, and circularity programs. It also includes many low-impact product highlights, with in-depth information about their sustainability characteristics. The report is sparser on concrete data than some of the leading reports we’ve seen, lacking information about its total use of recycled and Bluesign-approved materials, among other topics. It also eschews data describing its absolute emissions over time. Still, the report does a solid job of covering examples of its progress and addresses many of our key sustainability metrics.
Nemo is politically active and advocates for government support of public lands and climate action. It does so in partnership with the Outdoor Recreation Roundtable, the Outdoor Alliance, and the California Outdoor Recreation Partnership, among others. Actions have included sharing emails with links to letter-writing campaigns. The brand was previously a member of the Outdoor Industry Association Climate Action Corps, but in 2024, it ended its partnership with the group, as it now has a clear path forward to cut its carbon intensity in half by 2030.
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These products are among the most sustainable on the market and earn our Better Trail Certified distinction. They often meet 80% or more of our sustainability criteria for their category.
These products are solid, middle-of-the-pack options for sustainability. In general, they meet at least half of our sustainability criteria for their category.
These products are among the least sustainable in their product category and have significant room for improvement. Most meet about 25% or less of our sustainability criteria.
Better Trail Certified Process
The world of sustainability can be murky, but Better Trail is here to help bring clarity. We’ve exhaustively researched thousands of outdoor gear products, communicated with brands, and created a detailed and rigorous ratings system to bring it all together for you. At the pinnacle is Better Trail Certified.
Better Trail Certified products score 4 out of 5 or higher in our sustainability ratings and generally meet around 80% or more of our criteria. While it’s true that no product is 100% sustainable—all take resources to create and arrive at your doorstep—these products are industry leaders and among the most sustainable on the market.
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