Key takeaways
- Ripstop is fabric woven with a reinforcing grid that stops tears from spreading.
- The crosshatch pattern (visible as faint squares) gives high tear resistance for low weight.
- Most often nylon, it's used in tents, sleeping bags, jackets, packs, and ultralight gear.
- Denier (D) indicates fiber thickness — higher denier is more durable but heavier.
'Rip' + 'stop' — it stops rips.
What ripstop is
Ripstop is a fabric — most often nylon — woven with a grid of thicker reinforcement threads at regular intervals. The point of that grid is right there in the name: it stops rips. A small tear or puncture in the thinner fabric is halted when it reaches a grid thread, so a tiny hole doesn’t become a big rip.
How it works
During weaving, stronger yarns are inserted in a crosshatch pattern, giving ripstop its characteristic faint squares. Those threads act as built-in barriers against spreading tears, delivering a high tear-resistance-to-weight ratio that’s ideal for gear that must be both light and tough.
A backpacker snags their ultralight tent fly on a branch, putting a small nick in it — but the ripstop grid stops the nick from running into a long tear, and a strip of repair tape over it keeps the tent fully usable.
Denier and where it’s used
Ripstop is rated by denier (D): ultralight 10D–30D for premium tents and sleeping bags, heavier 70D+ for packs and hard-use gear. It’s found throughout outdoor equipment, and sits alongside tough Cordura and ultralight Dyneema in the fabric lineup.
The bottom line
Ripstop is the clever weave that gives outdoor gear its tear resistance for minimal weight: a grid of reinforcing threads that halts small tears before they spread. Found in everything from ultralight tents to packs, it's identifiable by its faint crosshatch — and its denier rating tells you where it sits on the lightweight-versus-durable scale.
Frequently asked questions
What is ripstop nylon?
Ripstop nylon is nylon fabric woven with a grid of stronger reinforcing threads at regular intervals. If the fabric gets a small tear or puncture, those grid threads stop it from spreading further. The result is a lightweight fabric with excellent tear resistance, which is why it's so common in outdoor gear.
How does ripstop fabric work?
During weaving, thicker, stronger yarns are inserted at intervals in a crosshatch pattern (you can often see faint squares in the fabric). These reinforcement threads act as barriers: a tear that starts in the thinner fabric is halted when it reaches a grid thread, preventing a small hole from becoming a large rip.
What does denier mean for ripstop?
Denier (D) measures the thickness/weight of the yarns. Lower denier ripstop (like 10D–30D) is ultralight, used in premium tents and sleeping bags; higher denier (70D and up) is more durable and abrasion-resistant for packs and heavier-use gear. The ripstop grid adds tear resistance at any denier.
Sources
- Gear fabrics — The Mountaineers
- Textile basics — Textile Exchange