Where to rent (almost) anything

Whatever happened to borrowing? The convenience of modern shopping has made us feel like we have to own the gear we need for every eventuality and occasion. The result is that many people have attics, garages, basements, closets, and whole storage units absolutely jammed with stuff they might only use once or twice a year—if ever.

And it’s not just the big, bulky items taking up space. Consider this: The average woman in the U.S. owns more than 100 pieces of clothing—but regularly wears about 20% of them. The rest just sits there, waiting for the right occasion that rarely arrives. That flavor of excess isn’t limited to closets: Fast fashion, frequent tech upgrades, and endless online deals all encourage us to buy more than we need.

We’re fed the idea that getting ready for any vacation, wedding, camping trip, or DIY project means gearing up. This fuels problems far worse than clutter. In fact, as much as 45% of global greenhouse gas emissions trace back to the production of the stuff we buy every day, according to the Ellen MacArthur Foundation. At the same time, waste is skyrocketing: Americans make about twice as much trash per person per day as they did in the 1960s. 

One answer? Borrow before you buy. Whether it’s tools, toys, camping gear, e-bikes, or faux florals, peer-to-peer networks and specialized rental marketplaces offer short-term access to an incredible array of objects. There isn’t one big flashy number to point to tout the emissions impact of swapping stuff, but research in individual markets finds that it can be an effective curb on carbon. Tool-sharing alone can cut up to 3% of household emissions. 

Those gains, naturally, come with caveats, particularly when it comes to shipping goods at massive scale. In many cases, though, there are plenty of local options available—particularly for bulkier stuff like party tables and pop-up movie theater setups—which will allow you to save on both the emissions and expense of delivery. We rounded up the best places to rent what you need, category by category, including a first stop where you could find what you need without spending a cent.

Before you do anything: Check your local library

Your local library has way more than books. According to one 2023 survey, there are more than 2,000 so-called “libraries of things” worldwide. These lending hubs stock everything from tools and lawn equipment to camping gear and musical instruments. Some are standalone, but many of them are baked right into existing library systems. 

So check to see if there’s an organized lending library for stuff in your local area. If there isn’t, the next-best step is to try a social sharing app. These networks allow locals to find borrow-able wares in their area. Some of our favorites include Yoodlize and Olio. (There’s also Fat Llama, but that one does come with rental fees.) Of course, there’s also no shortage of free wares up for grabs on megasites like Facebook Marketplace, Nextdoor, Freecycle, and local BuyNothing groups.

AV gear

There’s absolutely no shortage of places to rent high-end audio visual gear, but most of us aren’t trying to fill amphitheaters or music halls with walls of visuals and sound. At least we don’t think so. If you’re going smaller, it’s best ito find a local service that specializes in what you need. For instance, if you want to host a backyard movie night, FunFlicks operates a nationwide network that’ll show up with a screen, projector, and sound. If you need to set up a small concert or stage, GuitarCenter offers bundles for audio and lighting. 

Beach chairs, umbrellas & towels

Outfitting an oceanside day (or seven), requires doing a little research into what’s available at your destination. Most popular beach locations have local businesses that specialize in chairs, towels, coolers, umbrellas, and more. Do your research ahead of time, though, especially if you’re traveling in peak season: Plugging “[beach name] umbrella rentals” into your search engine of choice should surface plenty of options. That way you can reserve what your crew will need well in advance, either over the phone or on the rental company’s website. Many even offer setup and teardown services, which means zero time hauling a family’s worth of chairs over the dunes. 

Bikes & e-bikes

If you’re just looking to zip from Point A to Point B and you’re not in a city or town with one of the 3,000-plus bike-sharing programs that exist worldwide, an hourly rental is probably your best bet. If you’re out for a longer journey, a camping trip, or more intensive trail riding, a local bike shop is likely a better option for finding a two-wheeler to rent. 

Searching by city or zip code is easy enough online, but RentABikeNow maintains a database of everything from comfort cruisers to mountain bikes through a network of local bike shops. Filter by state and then drill down to a specific destination—like a particular park or trail—and reserve right from the site. 

Boats

Waterfront areas are often replete with marinas where you can find a boat to rent, but peer-to-peer marketplaces also abound. Boatsetter is a top resource for finding available ships in popular locations. Passenger’s life more your speed? Check out a service like GetMyBoat.com, which is like a nautically-minded Airbnb. It allows you to reserve anything from a sailboat to a yacht and hit the water with an experienced boat owner or captain. 

Cameras & lenses 

When it comes to photo gear, LensRentals is, arguably, the GOAT. A favorite among pro picture-takers, the site is also an excellent resource for anyone who needs a gear to capture a special occasion. Now, it can be easy to feel in over your head when it comes to lens specs and other camera details. But if you’re unsure about exactly what you need, Lens Rentals offers pre-built packages, like this DJI action camera kit or this drone setup for adventurous vacationers, and curated camera-and-lens kits for specific pursuits like wildlife photography or social-media content creation.  

Clothing

Rent the Runway was the trailblazer for online clothing rentals, but now it’s got plenty of company with the likes of Armoire, Nuuly, Tulerie, and Nova Octo. While many of these rental services are built on the idea that sharing clothes is gentler on the Earth than buying something new for every occasion or trend, their logistics can undercut their big promises. Know this: Dry cleaning, many services’ preferred method, can be more energy intensive than “wet” cleaning, and shipping emissions can add up quickly. That’s why it’s best to tap these sites sparingly for special occasions.

Computers, tablets & other electronics 

Though LensRentals’s main business is camera gear, it’s also a great spot to pick up tech for one-off needs. Hoping to hand the kid a tablet on a long car ride? They’ve got it. Wanna test drive a pair of AirPods Max to get through a red-eye flight? Got that, too. Or, if you happen to find yourself lacking for power on a hefty computing task like editing a big batch of family photos or digitizing a bunch of old home movies, you can also enlist a temporary laptop to get the job done. 

Flowers

Flowers can be one of the priciest—and most wasteful—line items on a special occasion budget. They can also be climate bad news, as many floral varieties require either highly emitting air freight or energy-intensive greenhouses. Silk stems offer a more-durable alternative. Something Borrowed Blooms, for example, curates wedding bouquets and everyday arrangements—and also offers decor options including candles, signs, vases, and wreaths. You can also check out the Silk Stem Collective. 

Furniture & decor

Not all furniture needs are permanent—maybe you’ve got to set up a temporary home office or  flip a game room into a guest room. Cort offers pre-bundled furniture sets and also lets you mix-and-match what you need. They’ve also got a pretty decent catalog of decor options if you’ve got the itch to try a new piece of wall art or some fresh accessories. AFR Furniture Rentals has a similarly well-curated library of lighting, furnishings, housewares, and decor. The one catch here is that, over time, you might wind up spending more than an item’s worth, so this is an instance where hitting the secondhand market might be a smarter financial bet.

Outdoor & camping gear

Whether you’re going on a week-long off-grid hike or taking the family for a more casual weekend of s’mores and hammock-sleeping, you can get outside without spending a ton—or cramming your coat closet with an army’s worth of dusty hiking boots. Today’s rental options offer everything from walk-in services at familiar stores to show-up-at-your-door packages filled with a curated selection of the gear tailored for your trip. Here are some of our favorite options:

In-person: REI

REI runs rental services out of its network of retail locations. They can outfit you for car camping, backpacking, biking, skiing, snowshoeing, kayaking, paddle boarding, rock climbing, and more. They also offer a handful of prebundled kits for backpacking and car camping. If you rent something big like a kayak or bike, you’ll also get half off a car rack rental. REI Co-op members can rent at up to a 33% discount. 

Simple shippable kits: Kit Lender or Xscape Pod

If lugging an entire family’s worth of gear to a destination sounds less-than-appealing, Kit Lender and Xscape Pod will ship a complete kit to your designation—free of charge. At the end of your adventure, you just drop it back at a FedEx location. There are dozens of setups available, from simple one-person backpacking or fly-fishing bundles to car camping gear for a family of six. They’ve also got sizes for everyone from toddlers to adults—and even dogs. Just note that Xscape Pods are limited to camping and backpacking, while Kit Lender has a broader array of options. 

Larger shippable kits: LowerGear Outdoors & OutdoorsGeek

If you’re going a la carte, LowerGear or OutdoorsGeek have pretty much anything you’ll need from cookstoves and pots to satellite communicators and lanterns. LowerGear’s premade kits leave extremely little to worry about: Its two-person camping set, for instance, comes with a total of 28 items, including nice-to-have additions like a privacy shelters (translation: portable bathroom walls) and tools like a shovel and mallet to make camp setup and teardown easier. Outdoors Geek, meanwhile, has some creative options, like kits for popular destinations like Yellowstone, setups for music festivals, and even add-ons for your four-legged friends.

Tools & lawn equipment

Stuck on a home-improvement or lawn-and-garden project because you don’t have the right tool for the job? It’s entirely possible to find what you need entirely for free, as tool lending libraries continue to pop up nationwide. To search for a local tool library, check the directory at localtools.org. And, if you can’t find anything there, consider starting your own. You can also check out a local lending app like Lindrs, But, if all else fails, Home Depot and Lowes both rent out tools—as do many local hardware stores. 

Toys & games

Sometimes (often?) a kiddo’s zeal for a new toy can be fleeting. If you’re looking to rotate in something new, your first stop should be a toy library. Many local libraries maintain a catalog of playables—including board games and videogames. The USA Toy Library Association also maintains a database of lending locations. If you’re after bigger (or big-kid) toys like arcade games, table games like foosball, or outdoor games and bounce castles, your best bet is to search for a local service that can handle delivery, setup, and pickup.