Beekeeping suits on the market look very similar. Basically, they all include a hood and veil, along with a complete body cover that is mostly white. However, some suits on the market certainly have more bells and whistles, along with a higher price to go with those features. Where does a beekeeper turn to get a beekeeping suit that offers everything he or she needs at a modest price? The REAMTOP professional beekeeper suit initially caught our attention for its budget price, so we compared this basic suit with three others on the market to determine whether it is truly a good bargain.
When you select a beekeeping suit, there are a few things to always consider and keep in mind. Materials, seals, and fit are all important. Since this is vital protective gear, the least expensive option might not be the best choice for you, It is critical to consider the safety features and overall quality before making a purchase. With this in mind, we went looking for a high-quality, yet budget-friendly beekeeping suit.
A REAMTOP professional beekeeper suit is a great choice for a beginning beekeeper or an experienced hobbyist on a fairly tight budget. It also works great for high-intensity bee farmers who want a spare suit handy for visitors or emergencies, and for beekeepers who like the convenience and versatility of separate protective clothing items.
This is a complete beekeeper’s suit that will cover the wearer head to toe with a veil, gloves, pants, and jacket. You can also wear the most basic beekeeper protective attire separately, such as just the veil, hood, and jacket, or even just the veil and hood.
Inexperienced apiarists should start out with full protection, but the option to work with less protective gear is nice to have, especially when doing quick maintenance tasks or tending to bees in steamy weather.
The REAMTOP professional beekeeper suit includes a jacket, pants, and gloves, all manufactured from tough and heavy cotton fabric. The pants have an elastic waist for protection from bees, which also helps with comfort and fit. You’ll also find elastic cuffs on the sleeves and pant legs to keep out bees, an essential function for any beekeeping clothing. The separate garments make the REAMTOP professional beekeeper suit easy to take on and off, even for beekeepers with mobility or balance issues.
The veil on the hood fastens snuggly to protect your face from bee stings, and it can be removed from the garment when not needed. The hood has a soft steel rim so it is self-supporting, and the veil allows a wide field of view. Further, the gloves are made of high-quality goatskin leather, linen, and cotton fabrics for comfort and protection.
The jacket is long-sleeved, well ventilated, and has elastic cuffs. Large patch pockets on the pants and jacket let you easily carry beekeeping equipment such as a bee brush, hive tool, or anything else you might need, such as a cold drink for a hot summer’s day. This unisex suit is a one-size-fits-all product with these key measurements and dimensions:
- Sleeve: 22”
- Shoulder: 28-1/8”
- Hat Diameter: 14-9/16″
- Jacket Length: 28-1/8”
- Pant Length: 45”
- Glove: 19″
All told, the REAMTOP professional beekeeper suit weighs just two pounds. This lightweight suit is made from a ventilated cotton-blend material that reduces sweat and moisture buildup in warm conditions. Like most beekeeping suits, the REAMTOP professional beekeeper suit is provided in a light color to prevent disturbing or attracting the bees.
The REAMTOP professional beekeeper suit covers all the bases, providing all essential gear from the veil to elastic sealed ankle cuffs. This suit can be worn comfortably by people of different body types.
This suit is a truly budget-friendly option at around $40, making it a great choice for someone who is taking up the hobby and simply needs the basics as they get started. That price is also attractive to more experienced beekeepers who may want to have one as a spare or for visitors who want to see the hives to wear.
We picked a few similar products available on the market to see how they compare.
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The separate jacket and pants make this a highly useful, flexible product because you get the ability to wear just the jacket and veil or the veil hood alone for greater convenience. Zippers and elastic make these garments easy to put on and take off.
The REAMTOP professional beekeeper suit fulfills all the basic requirements for a functional, protective, full-body beekeeper’s suit.
The manufacturer indicates that your satisfaction with this suit is 100% guaranteed.
- Budget price
- Breathable fabrics
- Lightweight
- Separate garments for convenience
- Not a true (connected) full body suit
- More likely to get snagged than some tighter-fitting options
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The Xgunion professional beekeeper suit is another budget-level beekeeping suit option, retailing at around $30. This basic beekeeping suit includes a jacket, pants, and gloves made of strong cotton, featuring elastic closures on the sleeves, pant legs, and waistband to protect you from agitated bees. The veil is self-supporting.
As with the REAMTOP professional beekeeper suit, the jacket, pants, and veil hood with this product are all separate items of clothing. Therefore, it delivers the same convenience features: It’s easy to use and pieces can be worn as needed. Like most beekeeping suits, the Xgunion product is white to avoid agitating the bees. The cotton fabric offers decent ventilation and airflow.
This is a unisex garment, but some users report that the sizing runs smaller than expected, so it might not be suitable for taller people. Purchasers with fit concerns should consider these measurements and dimensions:
- Hat diameter: 15-1/2″
- Hat Height: 6″
- Shoulders: 25″
- Jacket: 26″
- Pants: 44″
This basic beekeeping suit is easy to put on and take off. You can wear the jacket, veil, and other components separately.
The design quality of this suit is acceptable for its purpose.
Satisfaction is 100 percent guaranteed by the manufacturer.
- Budget price
- Separates
- Everything essential is included
- Not a true full-body suit
- Can get snagged, tearing seals at the waist
- Baggy pants
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Unlike the XGunion and REAMTOP professional beekeeper suits, this Natural Apiary beekeeping suit is a true full-body garment. This design eliminates two major areas of potential bee access for better protection against stings. Forearms and ankles have elastic seals, and the pockets can accommodate small tools and other necessary items. In addition to the tough fabric and elastic seals at wrists and ankles, this suit offers a reinforced, extra-thick collar to protect your neck from bee stings. The waist is elasticized to offer a better fit for all body types, and the detachable fencing veil offers a wide view.
We liked the large tool pockets positioned on both sides of this suit for both left-handed and right-handed access. There is also an attached key fob to keep your car or building keys from getting lost. Made from a cotton/polyester blend (65% cotton/35% polyester), this Natural Apiary beekeeping suit is lightweight and long-lasting. The fabric allows good ventilation and air circulation.
With over a dozen sizes from extra small to “plus” and “XX” sizes, this suit offers many more options to the purchaser than the other suits considered in this article. It is also available in five different colors: white, sand, pink, khaki, and camouflage. Finally, this item is machine washable.
This beekeeping suit offers full protection, a wide field of view, large pockets, and somewhere to keep your keys—all useful to the beekeeper. This full-body suit offers more thorough protection from angry bees than other suits, and it offers the beekeeper more peace of mind since bees have less access than when wearing separate items.
This suit offers durable fabric, strong stitching, and full-body protection, plus extra reinforcement at the neck.
Natural Apiary stands completely behind their products by offering a full replacement warranty. You can contact the company if you are dissatisfied with this suit, and they pledge to provide a refund or replacement.
- Full-body suit
- Comprehensive warranty
- Pockets on both sides
- Handy key fob
- Range of sizes
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Mann Lake’s economy beekeeper suit is another full body suit, but it is available at a lower price than the Natural Apiary suit covered above. This suit’s construction offers extensive protection from bees and pests with strong zippers at the neck, ankle, and front, plus Velcro closures for double protection where the front and neck zippers meet. The hood is made from two fabric layers at the back to prevent bee stings, and it is self-supporting and collapsible.
Elastic seals secure the wrists and ankles of the suit, and the sleeves include thumb holes to help keep the sleeves from riding up and exposing your skin. Four pockets are positioned at the hips and on the front of the jacket, and you’ll also have a hive tool pocket along the leg to keep small tools and other necessary items close at hand. The fabric is a comfortable cotton blend (60% cotton/40% polyester). Various sizes are available.
- Hat diameter: 15-1/2″
- Hat Height: 6″
- Shoulders: 25″
- Jacket: 26″
- Pants: 44″
With the extra zippers and Velcro closures, this suit may take a few more seconds to don and remove than most suits, but this is only a small drawback. We expect most beekeepers would take no notice of those few extra seconds, and if they did, they would consider them well spent. The extras make this suit more protective.
This suit offers extra protection through a reinforced neck, zippers, and elastic at the wrists and ankles, plus thumbholes to help keep the sleeves from riding up and exposing you to stings.
If you find your suit to be defective within 30 days of purchase, Mann Lake will refund your purchase cost and shipping charges.
- Full-body suit
- Extra protection at vulnerable points
- Thumbholes
- Hive tool pocket
- Collapsible hood
- Various sizes
After much consideration, we awarded The REAMTOP professional beekeeper suit four stars out of our maximum five. This suit offers all the basics one needs in a beekeeping suit, and the price makes it an attractive buy whether you are just starting out or have years of experience. While some apiarists might find this suit too basic, others might find it to be just the piece of gear they need.
One key feature of the REAMTOP professional beekeeper suit is that it offers separates instead of a full-body suit, making this piece of necessary gear that is more versatile and more convenient. Being able to use just the jacket and veil/hood in hot weather or for a quick task is appreciated.
For those just taking up beekeeping, the costs can be a barrier, and the REAMTOP professional beekeeper suit will certainly help with that problem. Spending less of your beekeeping budget on protective gear means you’ll have more to spend on your bees and hive. Purchasers of the REAMTOP professional beekeeper suit can also feel good about moving on to an upgraded beekeeper suit in the future, having managed their initial investments well. For the price, we don’t think you can go wrong with the REAMTOP professional beekeeper suit.