The tide stopped lifting every boat.
Post-pandemic participation growth has settled back to the pace of the wider economy. Campgrounds, marinas and outfitters now grow through technology, pricing and discovery.
Outdoor recreation · a $1.3T U.S. economy
Every trail you download, campsite you book and boat slip you reserve passes through a tech company. Hundreds of them now serve outdoor recreation, and we want to further foster growth and innovation across the category, so we're building both sides: research for the people who build and fund it, and a community for the people who use it.
Annual economic output of U.S. outdoor recreation
Share of U.S. GDP, larger than many industries with their own analysts
Companies on the RecreationTech Market Map, and counting
Consumer categories, plus the software behind the experience
Why now
Post-pandemic participation growth has settled back to the pace of the wider economy. Campgrounds, marinas and outfitters now grow through technology, pricing and discovery.
Private equity is rolling up the booking and operations platforms that run parks, campgrounds and guide services. The map is being redrawn in real time.
The way someone picks a trail, a guide or a campsite is shifting fast. The companies that understand that shift will win the next decade of outdoor demand.
Pick your trailhead
The research makes the community smarter, and the community makes the research better. Join the one that fits, or both.
Pinned · RecreationTech.org
Welcome to RecreationTech. The State of Recreation Technology lands in your inbox the day it ships, followed by the monthly RecreationTech Brief.
Know a company that belongs on the map? Reply to the welcome email and tell me.
Spend your weekends outside too? Add RecTechy, the community for people who use outdoor tech. Same email, one click.
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Checked in · RecTechy.com
You're in. Watch your inbox for a welcome note from RecTechy with the first picks for the way you get outside.
Thanks for joining the Enthusiast Panel. Your first survey will help shape the next State of Recreation Technology report.
Work in outdoor tech? Add RecreationTech for the monthly industry brief and the State of Recreation Technology report. Same email, one click.
You're on RecreationTech too. Watch for its welcome note.
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Work in the industry and spend your weekends outside? Join either one, then add the other with one click.
Trail rules
An analyst is only useful if it's neutral, and a community only works if members trust it. So these are written down from day one.
Map legend
Ten categories an enthusiast recognizes on sight, plus the business software that runs underneath them.