Lets face it, there aren't that many good surf shops online. The ones that are tend to also be massive retail outlets, which is good because it means your going to get reliable service and a broad selection. To make is easier for everyone to find what they are looking for I've decided to compile a list of the surf shops I check online regularly, and give a little review of each with my personal experiences.
Top Surf Shops Online
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Tilly's Surf and Skate Shop
Tilly's is pretty great. They offer free shipping on any order over $99 year round, and have a really broad selection with a well designed web site. Based out of California, Tilly's Surf Shop is celebrating their 25th anniversary this year- and currently have over 70 stores in the us. Never had a problem with this surf shop, -
Becker Surf Shop
For an online surf shop, Becker Surf has the best product images of any in this roundup. Becker also offers free shipping on any order over $99, and 365 day returns. They currently have 6 shops in California, and have been at the core of the surf industry since 1974. Becker Surf is truly run by some old surf shop dogs. Great place, great service. -
Pacific Sunwear
Pac Sun is huge. They currently have over 900 retail locations (including the outlet stores) in the United States. This puts them at the front of the pack with circulation, because you simply can't compete with having a close retail option. It's kind of unfortunate that the company has grown to be so large though, because they have lost a bit of touch with the core of the surfing community. But hey, they've got a huge selection and a bunch of retail stores. They aren't going anywhere. -
CCS Boardshop
CCS is the Pac Sun of the old school mail world. Most of CCS's business comes from their free quarterly catalog, which I recommend everyone subscribe to. The reason I listed CCS here even though its a skate shop and not a surf shop, is because some of the generic CCS branded products offer a great cheap alternative to other more expensive brands. CCS also usually has free shipping offers going on year round so check that out, and make sure you search around for discount codes before you order. -
Hanger 94
Hanger 94 honestly has kind of an annoying site. But they carry jedidiah, and you can't find clothes from them anywhere else. I shop here solely for that reason. Whoever runs this store though needs to seriously stop keyword loading every page on the damn site cause it makes it almost impossible to use. Other than that they are a good company, with good shipping, and decent service. -
Island Surf Shop
Kind of a sketchy site, but it loads fast, and they are a great company. They also have the 365 return day policy, and have UPS shipping with tracking on every order. Their corporate motto is "Do Good Things", and they do. Donating to groups like the Surfriders Foundation, and Rip Curl Planet- these guys are the most conscious about their impact on the industry.
So there you have it. A brief roundup of 6 of the biggest surf shops on the Internet. I know I didn't include them all, because there are hundreds- I just wanted to get my experience with these guys out there!
If you have an experience with any of these surf shops, or others please leave a comment here and share your thoughts! Hopefully this will become a hub for shops across the nation.
