Who Makes Climbing Gear? We List all the Climbing Brands.

When your job is to find all the gear that exists, and you look at gear all day, you feel like you should just know who all the climbing brands are. Yet, I’m still finding new climbing equipment companies. I figure if I am still finding new climbing gear brands, the average climber may be missing out on a few, so this post is to let you know a little bit about all the awesome companies and manufacturers making climbing gear hardware, shoes, and bouldering pads (we don’t yet cover climbing accessories like chalk bags, chalk, brushes, and clothing). Here we go, alphabetically.

All the climbing gear brands (in the world?!):

6A – Headquartered in France they design rock climbing shoes for schools and guiding groups.

ABC – This brand has been retired. The acronym stands for Advanced Base Camp. Liberty Mountain owned and distributed ABC.

Alpen Pass – A brazilian brand, check out their website if you can read Portuguese and want more information. They list carabiners, quickdraws, belay devices, ascenders and basic harnesses.

Alpkit – This team has been making pads since the late 90’s in the UK. These pads aren’t available in the US, but along with the pads, they distribute other climbing hardware brands for the folks across the pond.

Andrea Boldrini – Headquartered in France, they make all their shoes there too.

Arc’teryx – After a long hiatus, Arc’teryx is back to making harnesses. Their harnesses are light and packable with great features like huge gear loops. After visiting the factory, we wrote a long blog post about their harness features and construction.

Asana – Bouldering pads hand-made in Boise, Idaho. Folks like Paul Robinson enjoy falling on their colorful pads as they boulder V15’s. You can also work with them for some home gym flooring options.

Aspiring – A harness manufacturer in New Zealand that started making harnesses in the 1980’s and still makes them in New Zealand today.

AustriAlpin – Initially part of Stubai, AustriAlpin became it’s own brand in 1996. Since then, they have been creating very unique and interesting gear all in-house in Austria, from designing to source and manufacturing.

Beal – Less than 50 employees in France have manufactured over 8 million meters of rope! Beal mainly carries ropes but they also have harnesses, crash pads and chalk for all those non-rope climbing exploits.

Big Wall Gear – Run by John Middendorf (80’s Yosemite guy) he’s been creating big wall gear for years and has brought forth most of the portaledge innovations you see today. He’s part of the Handbuilt Alliance supporting local production.

Black Diamond Equipment – Climb, Ski, & Mountain gear. BD traces back to the 50’s when founder Yvon Chouinard started forging his own gear (under Chouinard Equipment) and became Black Diamond Equipment in 1989.

Blue Ice – Based in Chamonix, Blue Ice also has an engineering headquarters in Salt Lake City, Utah. They make harnesses, ice axes, ice accessories, packs, and more. Their specialty is lightweight gear for alpine adventures.

Blue Water Ropes – This family-owned business started manufacturing textiles in 1903. They started making ropes for adventurers in 1969 creating a caving rope. Six generations of family business means proper knowledge transfer.

Boreal – Is headquartered in, and makes rock climbing shoes in Spain.

Bufo – Is headquartered in, and makes rock climbing shoes in the Czech Republic.

Butora – We don’t actually know much about this brand, but they appear to be Korean and they have rock climbing shoes and a bouldering pad option.

C.A.M.P. – This humble company seems to spends money on R&D. They pride themselves in innovation have some of the lightest gear in most every category. With 100+ years experience in metallurgy, they are still based in Premana, Italy.

Cassin – You’ll find all the Cassin products under C.A.M.P.’s website, many under Big Wall and Aid Climbing. Though if you look hard enough you’ll find a belay here and a harness there too.

Climb X – A fairly new company as these things go. Their product range fluctuates significantly. Currently they are mostly focused on affordable rock climbing shoes. They are based in Oregon, USA.

Climbing Technology – An Italian brand that has little distribution in the US but makes a LOT of gear, under their name, and also for many other climbing companies. Liberty Mountain distributes their Click Up and Alpine Up belay devices in the US and some carabiners.

ClimbTech – From Austin Texas these guys specialize in bolting and rigging needs for all the hard-working climbing pioneers, and they also have all the essentials like draws, carabiners, belay devices, helmets and slings for the rest of us.

CMI – A family business (really, it’s still run by the Kirk family). If you ever need a pulley then you have every reason to familiarize yourself with CMI. They have been making pulleys, descenders, and rigging hardware since 1978.

Corazon – A manufacturer from the Czech Republic they make crash pads (along with backpacks and baby carriers). They’ve been around since the late 80’s, mostly with backpacks more recently with bouldering pads.

Cousin-Trestec – A French manufacturer, they have been making ropes for over 150 years. They have made (and make) ropes for many climbing brands. They also have their own line of climbing ropes.

Cypher – We’ll send you to Liberty Mountain again, the US distributer. Cypher is out to make a name for itself with competitively made and priced carabiners, quickdraws, and shoes.

DMM – It surprised us that DMM has only been around ~30 years because their product range is so vast. Almost all their hardware is hot-forged and is beautiful (and well-designed and expensive). They make all their hardware locally in Wales.

EB – Holds the claim of the first rock climbing shoe, and is still making rock shoes today. Headquartered in France.

e-Climb – Headquartered in Barcelona, Spain, e-Climb specializes in ice gear. They make lightweight aluminum screws with replaceable tips. They also have a comprehensive list of ice tools.

Edelrid – Claims 150 years of alpine expertise. Ropes started as their trade but they’ve expanded to all the products that accompany you on a climb whether its ice or rock that you fancy. You’ll recognize their bright green products anywhere. Headquartered in southern Germany where they still make all their ropes and sew dogbones and parts of their highest end harnesses.

Edelweiss – Another rope company that is starting to branch out to other climbing hardware. To Edelweiss: Alpinism, Canyonning or Climbing, safety, freedom and fun are a whole (their words).

Eliteclimb – A Polish company that makes Carbon/Kevlar ice axes, ice tools, and snow shovels. Every piece is custom and made to order (in Poland), so expect about a 2 week production time.

Evolv – Mostly known for their climbing shoes that show off a US Made title, they also sell bouldering pads. They’re currently branching into other types of shoes including approach and casual styles.

Faders / Fixe – Both owned by TechRock now, they distribute a small selection of gear to the US through FixeHardware where you can once again get CCH Alien Hybrid Cams! Of course you can still get your Fixe hangers there too.

Firn Line Design – A one-man show out of Oregon, USA, looking to make some better ice tool accessories.

Fish -They have portaledges, ladder aiders, harnesses, hooks and heads, haul bags and more, American made.

FiveTen – Previously headquartered in California, USA, they’ve been making shoes since 1985. Most of their employees have moved to Europe after they were bought by Adidas and the shoes are no longer made in the USA.

Flashed – Finally a Canadian company among the ranks! A Calgary bouldering pad-only type who started making chalk balls with pantyhose and plastic ties in 1996. The also furnish gym floors (home and beyond).

Flipp – A crashpad company from Sofia, Bulgaria. They make pads and rent them too.

Furnace Industries – Originally starting with wood dry ice training tools (Icicles), they now have a wood ice tool (the Kronos).

Fusion – Another company that sneaked by us for awhile. They started designing safety & tactical gear but have since moved into the climbing, caving, rappelling, bungee jumping and zip-lining worlds. Cheers for more US made harnesses!

Gadd – A Polish company that specializes in bouldering pads.

gear4rocks – Was created to fill the needs of the Ukrainian and East European climbing community. They know where they stand as stated in their appropriate tagline, “functional, serviceable, affordable & safe, not pretty or trendy.” It’s true. As of 2016 their website no longer exists and we can’t find any trace of them.

Gilmonte – A ropemaker from Slovakia (formerly Žilmont). They make dynamic and static ropes along with slacklines. Thanks to Lada in the comments for the add.

Gipfel Climbing Equipment – Based in India, they offer a local alternative to the high export tariff goods from other brands. They have a broad array of gear from bolts to harnesses. Thanks to Soc in the comments.

GrandWall – Based in Canada, where they design and develop gear, they manufacture in Taiwan (where most climbing gear is made). They ship to Canada, the US, and beyond and have all the common hardware options.

Grivel – Grivel just celebrated its 200th birthday, from the days as a blacksmith who made the first crampon. Grivel continues to make gear for adventuring on snow, ice, or rock. Their specialty is ice gear, and they’ve been expanding into the skimo realm recently.

High Mtn Gear – Based (and manufactured) in Washington, they specialize in lightweight Big Wall textiles.

Howey Tool – Based in Canada, they make pick replacements and dry tooling holds.

Ice Rock – A fairly small Russian company making some of carbon ice tools. They also make more ice-related gear like crampons and ice screws, and non-ice stuff like pulleys, descenders, and carabiners.

Jurax – Made & headquartered in Argentina, they make climbing shoes for Latin American climbers.

Kailas– A Chinese company that specializes in Chinese distribution of climbing gear. They have all the basic hardware and even (Totem) cams. Thanks to Gen in the comments for the heads up.

Kinetik – They officially started in 2008 and make bouldering pads and chalk bags with custom colors available in Boulder, CO.

Kong – Another Italian brand, that makes a LOT of climbing products. Since World War II everything has been done in-house, down to the springs. They also make gear for many other companies and specialize in high-end rescue gear as well.

Kouba – Based out of the Czech Republic, this brand has been around for over 20 years selling active and passive protection. They also have been the manufacturer for other rock climbing brands. In Europe they have some of the most competitively priced gear.

Krukonogi – Produced in St. Petersburg, Russia, Krukonogi specializes in ice accessories and big wall gear. Expect to find ice tool picks and front point replacements for Petzl, Black Diamond, and Grivel products and their own brand of aid gear. Thanks to Lada in the comments. 

Kush Climbing – With a 2016 Kickstarter campaign kicking off their inception, they’re printing custom topsheets and bringing eco-friendly (hemp) taco pads to the market. All pads are made in Boulder, CO and sourced as locally as possible — even the foam comes from the Mid-West. Read our Interview. RIP

La Sportiva – Rock climbing shoes made and headquartered in the heart of the Italian Dolomites in Italy.

LACD (Lost Arrow Climbing Division)  – Based out of Germany, they have a full line-up featuring all the gear needed to go bouldering, sport climbing or alpine mountaineering.

Lavan – Perhaps the only rock climbing company headquartered in Iran, Lavan has been selling rock climbing shoes since 2002.

Lhotse – Started in Poland in 1991, they specialize in rock climbing harnesses. They also make gear slings, chalk bags, and other webbing based products.

Lowa – Making all sorts of shoes including an impressive array of rock climbing shoes all handmade in Germany and Italy. Lowa is headquartered in Germany but also imports a great deal to the US.

Mad Rock – I love the story of Mad Rock founder, Young Chu who started making his own gear when he was 16, and is still the main designer today. Mad Rock strives to provide gear that any climber can afford.

Mammut – This company is perhaps the only one that sells technical clothing AND one of the most complete lines of climbing equipment. They are headquartered in Switzerland.

Maxim (New England Ropes) – Maxim is the dynamic rope (aka climbing & recreation) division of New England Ropes. Alex Honnold is a Maxim rope guy, when he bothers to use one.

Metolius – Another garage start turned legit company. From outdoorsy Bend, OR, Metolius has a large product line focused on Berry and Buy American Compliant products that includes all their trad protection and most their ‘biners. Hell yea! They also re-sling their cams for an incredibly cheap price.

Millet – Millet has ropes and climbing shoes along with a vast array of technical outerwear. Based in France.

Milo – A Polish company that specializes in bouldering pads, chalk bags, and rope bags.

Misty Mountain – A tiny, wholesome company that makes all their harnesses in North Carolina. I believe they are the only folks making XXXL harnesses. And little can compare to the comfort of their Big Wall Cadillac Harness (see how it’s made on Vimeo).

Moon Climbing – Most known for their climbing holds and the Moon bouldering system, Ben Moon also designs a few bouldering pads. Training is the name of the game here.

New England Ropes – See Maxim (above) for climbing ropes. Although many climbers still reference New England Ropes, the brand name evolved and NERopes is all about Marine, Arborist, Industrial & Utility, Safety & Rescue, and Equine ropes.

Obrworks – As Lada in the comments writes: another garage company from Czech Republic with crack gloves and active crack device from slings (designed for Czech and Saxon sandstones where metal gear is banned).

Ocun – A Czech company that is growing quickly. The only North American Rock Empire distributer we know of is Escape Route. Neat and Cool who ran RockEmpire.com is no longer doing so.

Omega Pacific – In Spokane, Washington, Omega Pacific makes carabiners and nuts and other rock gear in the US. Their Link Cams exhibit a huge camming range – and are either loved or hated depending on which forum you’re reading.

Once Uno – We have scant info on this brand. We know they sell shoes (thanks to Felipe in the comments) but we don’t know where the headquarters or manufacturing is done or what other products they might carry (we can’t find a website!).

Organic Crash Pads – Making home-made USA pads from Philipsburg, Pennsylvania. They source as many materials from the US as possible, making their pads extra strong and with the heartiest foam around.

Petzl – They continue to hone in on all climbing aspects. Petzl is often thought of as the most design-conscious brand in the industry. Based in France.

PMI – Pigeon Mountain Industries may seem like an unlikely name for a rope company – unless you know just how much rope Pigeon Mountain (in NW Georgia) has consumed. PMI started with caving and quickly moved to climbing.

Red Chili – Headquartered in Germany, the brand makes shoes and crashpads. The founders have the wanting to make things better story down. After a drunken night listening to Red Hot Chili Peppers they were inspired to start their own climbing company, which is now owned by Edelrid.

Roca Ropes – Making ropes out of their own factory in Spain.

Rockstone – Based in Chicago, Illinois, they sell USA made bouldering pads, along with training equipment, and softgoods (chalk bags, shirts, hats, etc).

Rock Empire – Another Czech company that was distributed in North America by Neat & Cool via RockEmpire.com and GoRockSteady.com, (they no longer exist). The Canadian store Escape Route seems to have picked up the slack.

Rock Exotica – We love their started in a garage story. Rock Exotica continues to make everything in Utah and promises never to go foreign. *High Five* They are always coming up with new ideas and inventions for the niche climber and rigger.

Runout Customs – Based on Colorado, Luke makes portaledges, haul bags and more in his shop. He also re-slings cams. Products are designed, built, and sourced in USA. He’s part of the Handbuilt Alliance with Big Wall Gear and TUFA Climbing.

Salewa – This Italian company started checking out the climbing scene in 1962 with their ice equipment (the company started in 1939). Today they have quite a large array of climbing gear options that are sold in select stores across the US.

Saltic – Makes rock climbing shoes and is headquartered out of the Czech Republic. Most likely their shoes are made there too, but we’re not 100% sure.

Scarpa – Another historic brand that is headquartered in and makes rock climbing shoes by the Dolomites in Italy.

Send – For more than 15 years Send has been making kneepads and other soft goods like chalk buckets and crag bags. They just recently started making crash pads. All their gear is made in El Paso, Texas.

SFT Climbing – Located in northern California SFT makes custom fitted rock climbing shoes using laser-cut patterns to reduce the cost. RIP 2016

Simond – Another 150+ year company these guys are in the thick of it all in Chamonix. No matter what type of outdoor recreation you do, hiking, climbing, skiing, “glacier walking,” they will surely be able to supply you with a full kit.

Singing Rock – Add another tally for the Czechs, and a full line of gear ready to send you to the snowy mountains. Fortunately, Liberty Mountain is the main distributer, so you can easily get many of their products in North America.

Skylotec – A German company that sells harnesses, carabiners, ropes, and helmets. They started in 1948 making harnesses for miners and have since delved into the climbing space.

SMC – Seattle Manufacturing Corporation actually resides just about 2 hours north of Seattle. They are proud to say that all their equipment is dreamed, designed, and manufactured in the US and that’s a fact we can get behind!

Snake – Out of Brazil, they feature climbing shoes (in addition to hiking boots and trekking shoes).

Snap Climbing – This French company pumps out bouldering pads and chalk. They got their name originally from the carabiner “snap” sound, which was the first product of Snap.

So Ill – A Missouri-gym based company that just keeps expanding. They now have their own shoe line and bouldering pad line in addition to ropes, holds, and training materials.

Spotter – A one-man show, Lowell Stevenson makes bouldering pads out of the old Hueco Tanks climbing shop that he recently bought and is bringing back to life for the climbing community.

Sterling – If Sterlings rockstar team of climbers have anything to say about their ropes, then it’s hard to beat with a line-up of Will Gadd, Chris Sharma, Freddie Wilkinson, Jean-Pierre Ouellet, Sonnie Trotter, Audrey Sniezek and many more.

Stonelick – A Vermont company, they stitch all their pads in the USA. Although they only make bouldering pads, each of their pads includes a “step” hinge for easy folding and elimination of weak spots. Defunct : (

Stubai – A quick nod to Liberty Mountain for distributing Stubai’s products in North America. Otherwise we’d miss this Austrian company who has an entire force of alpine mountaineering products ready to help assault any peak.

Suluk 46 – Engineered Backcountry Gear, made by Steve Evans in Toronto, Canada since 2002. They have a super light (carbon) ice axe, and other mountaineering tools.

Teknia – Out of Argentina, they have a selection of climbing shoes (in addition to hiking and trekking boots).

Tenaya – They are headquartered in Spain where they also make their rock climbing shoes. The shoes are imported into the US by Trango, a brand you’ll see shortly down the list.

Tendon – Lanex is a huge rope manufacturer in the Czech Republic and Tendon is their own climbing rope brand name (they make ropes for many other brands too). In the US Tendon is distributed by Ryan at Spindrift.

Totem – There was a time when you couldn’t get the CCH Aliens, and Totem stepped up to try and fill the gap. In Spain, they make the Totem Cam and Basic Cam which are small flexible cams for all your thin crack & seam endeavors.

Trango – I have a soft spot for anybody that roots for the underdog and that’s just what Trango does. They have an incredibly distinct product line and carry some of the most unique, and also some of the most specialized gear in the industry.

Trangoworld – A ton of products for any outdoor adventurist, they do have bouldering pads but mostly specialize in camping/apparel. They primarily reach the Spanish market and have a company history starting in 1928.

Triop – A rock climbing brand that makes shoes in the Czech Republic, where they’re also headquartered.

Trongau – A brand we admittedly don’t know much about it took a lot of sleuthing to find their 51pa.cn website. They’re from China and make rock climbing shoes.

TUFA Climbing – Josh is based in the Pacific Northwest and makes mini-portaledges, chalk bags, packs, and other climbing accessories. He’s part of the Handbuilt Alliance with Big Wall Gear and Runout Customs.

Valley Giant – Their product line is small, consisting of two cams (not two cam lines, two individual cams), but they are the only place you can go to get a 9″ and 12″ cam. Even Wild Country’s new large cams are only half the size of the Giants!

Vcrux –  Re-branded to Spotter.

VLine – Brandon Gonsalves makes custom bouldering pads out of a warehouse in Salt Lake City, Utah. We visited the shop and were so impressed we wrote a story about it. Another guy who is all about sourcing in America.

Voodoo – Gina Richer is responsible for the plethora of Voodoo pads out there. All Voodoo pads are 100% stitched in Flagstaff, Arizona, in small batches, with the finest materials Gina can get her hands on.

Wild Climb – A brand making rock climbing shoes that is headquartered in Italy and most materials used are from Italy.

Wild Country – Out of the UK, WC has continued to innovate top of the line gear. They put quality at the highest priority, far above “price-point” like so many other companies feel compelled to do.

Wired Bliss – You can thank Wired Bliss as they are the pioneers of the three cam unit (TCU). All their cams (the Quad Cam and the TCU lines and Cam Keychain), are happily designed and manufactured in Loveland Colorado. And we love that. RIP

Yates – Yates was started by Jim and Jon Yates in their garage in the early 80’s. Check them out for Big Wall and Aid gear. Or if you climb ice it wouldn’t be hard to imagine a screamer or two on your rack.

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The brands below have been brought up in the comments, but we are not [yet] adding to our main climbing list. This may be because a) we can’t find more information about them b) we cannot confirm they carry certified climbing gear c) they sell gear made for industry use that is not made specifically for climbing (we are focused on brands that design products for climbing).

If we have confirmed a brand does not carry CE/UIAA certified climbing hardware, we will not add them here and/or will remove them from this list. You’ll still be able to find them in the comments below.

• Stein Safety – mostly industrial but some gear that could be used for climbing
• GVIEW – A Chinese brand that I cannot find an official site for (they at least make mallions, pulleys, chalk bags and webbing). We have not seen any certifications for CE/UIAA standards, but we have been unable to confirm that they definitely don’t exist.
• Yoke – Thanks to Rankin for the find, this is a Taiwan Company that specializes in industrial use safety equipment. But that means they have locking carabiners – some of the toughest around too (aluminum and steel).
• Once Uno – From Columbia, but we can’t find any official online representation. (Thanks to Felipe for the find)
• Robinson Harnesses – Based in Nevada, USA, they mainly specialize in commercial, rescue and military harnesses, but they do make a few webbing harnesses that are not UIAA/CE certified, but are ANSI certified and made in the USA.
• Superclicp Rescue Tools – They make a popular stick clip device, and also sell a few steel carabiners. Based in California.
• Zou Tian Ya – A Chinese company that has 2 UIAA certified belay devices and 6 UIAA certified carabiners. I currently have no more information about them.

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There are still more climbing specific brands out there, especially when you include the folks who make climbing holds, chalk bags, nutrition/supplements, and other non-metal accessories. We’re open to listing those brands in the future, so please feel free to drop us a line in the comments with those brand names and we’ll keep them in mind when we decide to expand this list.

Currently we’re laser-focused on all the brands that carry the products we’ve researched for WeighMyRack. This includes the hardware side of climbing gear plus shoes, harnesses, and bouldering pads.

Did you catch a company we missed? We’d love to hear about it in the comments!