Our Editorial Standards
At Backpackers.com, our mission is to provide reliable, honest, and practical outdoor advice — the kind you’d give to a friend before they hit the trail. Whether it’s a gear review, how-to guide, or trip idea, we hold every piece of content to high standards of accuracy, transparency, and usefulness.
Here’s how we keep things trustworthy, helpful, and human:
Independent Reviews You Can Trust
We don’t accept payment for gear reviews or positive coverage — ever.
Every review is based on real-world testing in actual outdoor conditions, not stock specs or press releases. If a product falls short, we’ll say so. If it blows us away, we’ll tell you why. You’ll get the full picture, not a sales pitch.
Experienced, Outdoor-Savvy Contributors
Our team includes hikers, backpackers, campers, and professional guides. They bring firsthand experience and a critical eye to everything they write.
Each article goes through a thorough editorial review to ensure it’s accurate, easy to understand, and genuinely helpful for our readers.
Affiliate Link Transparency
Some of the links in our content are affiliate links, meaning we may earn a small commission if you make a purchase, at no cost to you.
These links help fund our work, but never influence our opinions. If we recommend something, it’s because we believe it’s worth your time and money.
For more details, see our Affiliate Disclosure.
No AI-Generated Filler
We don’t publish generic, machine-written content. While we may use AI tools to assist with formatting or internal research, every article is written or heavily edited by a real human, then reviewed for clarity, accuracy, and voice.
What you read on Backpackers.com reflects our own experiences, not auto-generated fluff.
We Keep Content Fresh
Gear changes. Prices shift. Products get discontinued. That’s why we routinely update our articles to reflect current availability, user feedback, and field-tested insight.
We don’t believe in “set it and forget it” — our goal is to make sure the advice you find today still holds up tomorrow.
Reader Feedback Matters
We aim to earn your trust with every post. If you spot an error, disagree with a recommendation, or think something could be improved, we want to hear from you.
Thanks for trusting Backpackers.com. We’ll keep doing our best to earn it.