I tried Rent the Runway, Nuuly and Haverdash: Which clothing rental subscription is the best?

With the busy holiday season here, I thought this would be the perfect time of year to test out clothing rental services for the first time. I had events and gatherings filling up my calendar, so I turned to Rent the Runway, Nuuly and Haverdash to see if they're worth the hype. Spoiler alert: I enjoyed all three. Rent the Runway and Nuuly tied as my favorites. Read on to find out which clothing rental subscription may be right for you.

What is a clothing rental service?

Me (right) in the Ronny Kobo Zack dress from Rent the Runway. Carolin Lehmann

There are sites popping up left and right that allow you to borrow both casual and formal clothes for a month, or even longer, at a time for a fee much smaller than buying the pieces new. After you're done with them, these clothes are mailed back, cleaned and rented out to another customer. More clothing rental sites to check out include Gwynnie Bee, Vince Unfold and The Devout.

Clothing rental services are ideal for people who don't like to take photos in the same formalwear twice or want to get their shopping fix at a more affordable price point and in a more environmentally friendly way than buying new clothes each month. All of the services reviewed here also allow you to buy the pieces that you love at a lower, used price point, in case you just don't want to send them back.

What are the pros and cons?

Let's start with the cons. During my month of testing out these clothing rental services, I was sick for 10 days. That meant I wasn't able to wear several of the pieces I borrowed, even though I loved them. That's the downside to renting: If you're sick or your plans are canceled, you simply won't be able to wear the pieces you spent money borrowing. If you buy clothing instead, you know you'll get the chance to wear it in the future. Some items you borrow may also not look brand new. I received several items that still had tags attached, so there's a good chance you'll be the first to wear something, but other items did look lightly worn. It can also feel like a battle to find the styles you want in stock in your size. You sometimes need to check back at different times to order all the items you want. A final con is that if you damage an item, you may be required to pay for it, depending on the site you order from.

The biggest pro of this whole experience is that it was so much fun. If you love fashion, you'll find yourself scrolling these sites and hearting items at all hours of the day as a form of entertainment. I felt so special in all of my outfits that I wore out, many of which I wouldn't otherwise have been able to afford – I borrowed thousands of dollars worth of clothing during my month-long trials. I was especially surprised by the compliments I received from complete strangers on my outfits. I also found a new brand I love – ASTR The Label – and a pair of jeans from Paige that I decided to buy. Clothing rental sites offer a great way to try out new brands to find which fit you best.

Rent the Runway

Rent the Runway offers both memberships and one-time rentals. I tried the eight-item per month rental plan, which is the most popular. It costs $144 a month. Getting started on Rent the Runway is quick – you're just asked for your clothing size. I appreciated this because I know what I like, and I don't need the site to recommend items or brands to me. You can scroll through any brand you want, plus new arrivals and curated collections, to heart items you're interested in borrowing. The site had plenty of formal and casual styles that I was interested in. I found they had an especially impressive collection of formalwear compared to other sites as well.

Once you've hearted items you like, the stress begins. Only some items will be available in your size to borrow at that moment, so you can check back anytime to see what's come in and out of stock. You need to strike when enough items that you want are available. When you refresh your hearted items page, things will come in and out of stock every few minutes, so it can be a bit overwhelming to decide when the best time to check out is. Initially, Rent the Runway had the least items I wanted in stock of the three services I tried, but I ended up getting all the things I wanted by checking back hours or days later.

With my plan, I was able to swap out the items I didn't like once, which is nice in case you've ended up with items that don't fit. Rent the Runway has a robust reviews section where shoppers rate each item as fitting small, just right or large, and share photos of themselves in the clothing, which is incredibly helpful when picking out your pieces. Even so, I ended up with two items that didn't fit me. It was alright, though, since I could just swap them out.

Rent the Runway offers the Returnmates service, where someone comes to your doorstep to pick up your returns and deliver your new items. You don't even have to be home for this. I absolutely loved this service, as I didn't have to drive to the post office. The communication Rent the Runway offers is also excellent. I received frequent text updates about when my clothes would be delivered and picked up, and they were delivered very quickly. My items arrived on hangers in a reusable bag that is better for the environment.

Rent the Runway's damages policy alarmed me a bit, as you're responsible for paying up to the retail price of the item if it's significantly damaged or stolen. That is not something you want to hear when you're wearing a $1,000 dress. But minor damages including even small rips to the fabric are covered. That's great news for anyone who has ever pulled on a dress only to hear a seam rip (me).

I found Rent the Runway to be the most high-fashion option of the rental services I tried. Overall, I think Rent the Runway is for the person who is willing to put in the work to get the great selections available on the site. As it turns out, I'm one of those people.

Nuuly

I tried Nuuly's six-item rental plan, which costs $88 a month. Nuuly felt a bit more casual than Rent the Runway, although it offers formal styles as well. You're allowed to scan the whole site, instead of being recommended items or having to fill out tedious quizzes. There are tons of brands available and I quickly found enough items to order that were in stock at the time I created my account.

This Nuuly plan doesn't offer the same swap option as Rent the Runway, but thanks to customers ranking clothes as fitting small, just right or large, everything I ordered fit me. I was so impressed to find a pair of jeans that were actually long enough for me – I'm 5'10" – that I ended up buying them, and at an excellent price. I purchased the Paige jeans for around $100, when they retail for $239 new. Several of the items I rented even arrived new with tags. Nuuly shows many of its items on both standard and plus-size models, which is so thoughtful and helpful.

My Nuuly order arrived in an eco-friendly reusable bag. I wish Nuuly offered the same Returnmates service as Rent the Runway, as I had to go to the post office to return my items. You could schedule a mailman pickup, but that seemed more involved than Rent the Runway's super easy option. Nuuly does not have damage or repair fees, so I didn't have to worry while wearing these clothes.

Overall, I found Nuuly to be more affordable and more relaxed than Rent the Runway. If you don't want the high-fashion and high stakes of Rent the Runway, go for Nuuly. If you'd rather receive more items at once instead of swapping out items throughout the month, Nuuly might be the better fit for you as well.

Haverdash

With Haverdash, I got three items at a time, which I could swap out as many times as I wanted throughout the month. You have to return all three items to receive new ones, and you must have at least eight items in your closet for new shipments to trigger. Haverdash is the most affordable option here, at $59 a month. I would personally rather receive more items at once, because I don't like running to the post office all the time. But if you're on a budget, this service may offer the most bang for your buck.

I thought the clothing selection on Haverdash was super cute. I was immediately able to find three items in stock to trigger an order. The site stocks more casual options than formal like Rent the Runway. You have to search through the clothes on Haverdash by product category. So, you can click on "dresses," and then click on a brand you'd like to see more of. I'd rather see all of a brand's items on one page, which is not possible. I wasn't able to find all items I wanted available in my size at the time, but I had more chances to do so in the future thanks to the swap option.

I wish this site would have more reviews and a fit slider to show if items fit small, true to size or large like Rent the Runway and Nuuly do. My Haverdash items did not come in a reusable bag as with Rent the Runway and Nuuly, and I had to go to the post office to return them. All of these points help explain Haverdash's lower price point.

As with Rent the Runway, you'll be charged to replace an item if it's severely damaged, lost or stolen with Haverdash. You won't get charged for normal wear and tear.

If you're on a budget and like the idea of getting as many items as you want each month (as long as you're willing to go to the post office each time to swap them out), choose Haverdash. I'm personally too busy for this, but it's still nice to have an option like this available, and I had no issues with the service.