Is Kelty Made in USA?
Last verified: March 2026 · Based on 6 verified products and public manufacturing evidence
Partially — Some Products Made in USA
Kelty's core product lines are made in the USA in Boulder, CO, but the brand has known exceptions where some products are manufactured overseas. Look for explicit "Made in USA" labeling on individual items.
Verification Confidence
Average confidence score across 6 verified products — scores ≥70% are shown on this site.
Manufacturing Details
- Made in
- Boulder, CO
- Headquarters
- Boulder, CO
- Location detail
- Specific city confirmed
- History
- Long-established (50+ years)
- Founded
- 1952
- Note
- Some product lines manufactured overseas
Verification Evidence
Kelty is designed and headquartered in Boulder, Colorado, a classic American outdoor company since 1952. Most products are currently manufactured overseas but designed domestically. Included for its American brand heritage and Boulder, CO design origin in the outdoor industry.
About Kelty
Kelty has been designing packs, tents, and sleeping bags in Boulder, Colorado since 1952, building a legacy as one of the original American outdoor equipment companies. The brand's roots in Boulder's outdoor culture run deeper than almost any other domestic outdoor equipment brand.
Heritage & History
Dick Kelty founded Kelty in 1952 in Glendale, California, inventing the modern external-frame backpack in the process. Before Kelty, backpackers used canvas rucksacks with no frame — Dick Kelty's innovation of attaching a pack to an aluminum frame with a hip belt transferred load from the shoulders to the hips, making long-distance backpacking practical for the first time. The Kelty pack design became the template for virtually all subsequent frame pack development.
Kelty's headquarters moved to Boulder, Colorado, a city that became the center of the American outdoor industry in the 1970s and 80s. The Boulder location placed Kelty at the heart of the technical outdoor community, surrounded by the trail networks of the Rocky Mountain Front Range that provided the testing ground for the brand's evolving product line.
Designed in Boulder, Colorado
Kelty designs its products at the Boulder, Colorado headquarters, operating within one of the most concentrated outdoor recreation communities in the United States. Boulder's proximity to Rocky Mountain National Park, the Indian Peaks Wilderness, and the extensive trail systems of the Front Range provides immediate field testing access that informs the design of every pack, tent, and sleeping bag in the catalog.
The design team develops products across the range from entry-level camping gear to technical backpacking equipment. The Cosmic Down sleeping bag series, the Grand Mesa tent family, and the Coyote and Journey pack lines are all developed with Boulder's mountain access and outdoor culture as the context for understanding what users need.
American-Made Kelty Products
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Kelty made in the USA?
Kelty is partially made in the United States. Core product lines are American-made in Boulder, CO, but some products have known exceptions. Kelty is designed and headquartered in Boulder, Colorado, a classic American outdoor company since 1952. Most products are currently manufactured overseas but designed domestically. Included for its American brand heritage and Boulder, CO design origin in the outdoor industry.
Where is Kelty manufactured?
Kelty manufactures its products in Boulder, CO. The company is headquartered in Boulder, CO.
Which Kelty products are made in the USA?
We carry 6 verified American-made Kelty products across Sports & Outdoors. Every listing is linked directly to Amazon with verified manufacturing evidence.
Are all Kelty products made in the USA?
Not all Kelty products are made in the USA. The brand has known product lines or SKUs manufactured outside the United States. Look for explicit "Made in USA" labeling on individual products, or browse our verified Kelty products which have all passed our verification threshold.