Is it better to rent or to buy your ski equipment? The reality is that the rented equipment, especially when we start skiing, has many advantages related to comfort: it’s always in good condition, we don’t have to take care of its maintenance, it does not occupy a fixed space in our house, as we pick it up directly at the resort and we can change it depending on our needs. But buying the equipment can also have its advantages. In fact, we already tell you everything in this post: the advantages and some tips to do it.
However, we know that buying ski equipment can also have its advantages and we are going to show you some.
Is it better to rent or to buy your ski equipment? Answer considering the price
Sometimes, what interests us the most is knowing which of the two options is more economical.
- Renting the equipment may be more expensive in the long run than buying it; It depends on how much we amortize it.
- If we buy the equipment, we mustn’t forget about the cost of the material necessary for its maintenance (waxes, tools …).
We have prepared a comparison chart that serves as an example. The chart is based on the data of the cost of rental of the equipment in alpinresorts.com to compare the cost of the purchase of new equipment with the cost its rental in the resort of Val Cenis (France) during a week in March.
The amortization of the equipment
The most important thing, when comparing the purchase prices of the equipment and its rent, is to take into account if we are going to amortize the equipment purchased enough to make it worth it to invest on it.
In order to do this, when you look at the “days needed to amortize the purchased equipment” column, bear in mind that a person usually skis a week on average every year. Don’t forget to take into account that, especially in the case of equipment for beginners, you may want to replace your ski equipment it shortly after buying it, before you have given time to amortize it. This also happens with children’s equipment, since they grow and improve their level very fast.
You are the one who must decide whether to rent or buy your ski equipment taking into account your needs. If you decide to rent it, you can consult this I love ski article with tips for renting ski equipment.
On the chart:
- In the column of days required to amortize the purchase, the number on the left represents the days necessary to amortize the cheapest option and the number on the right to amortize the most expensive one.
- Keep in mind that equipment prices vary depending on the store and the different products.
- In the rental price columns, there is a range from the cheapest products from the cheapest store to the most expensive products in the Val Cenis area and during a week in March.
- The longer we rent the equipment and the sooner we rent it, the cheaper it becomes.
- This chart does not include extra discounts (special promotions, groups, etc.). However, it does include the discounts that alpinresorts.com makes for renting the material online instead of at the establishment itself.
- The purchase prices of the material are based on the Decathlon website
- For some businesses, the minimum rental time is two days.
