If you’ve been looking to replace your old overstuffed leather wallet, it’s no surprise you found your way to Bellroy Wallet. They’re some of the most talked-about minimalist wallets, with a loyal following and some bold claims about their quality, utility, and style. In this Bellroy wallet review, we dig deep into Bellroy to see if its products match the hype and help you find the best Bellroy wallet for you.
Bellroy Wallet Slim SleeveQuick Overview
The Bellroy Slim Sleeve is a minimalist’s dream. It’s a light, slim, and incredibly pocketable leather wallet with impeccable style, functionality, and gorgeous attention to detail.
Functionality
9.0/10
Style
9.8/10
Dependability
9.4/10
Value
7.5/10
What We Like
Ultra-sleek, stylish and slim design
Large range of color options
Timeless styling fits anywhere
Commitment to sustainability, labor equity, and material sourcing
What We Don’t Like
Pricey for such a small package
Leather requires regular conditioning
Larger bills (Yen, Sterling, etc.) require a triple fold to fit
What are Bellroy Wallets?
Bellroy is a product design focused company that spends an insane amount of time making sure every tiny detail of its products mesh. The team focuses on building beautiful, highly functional, and long-lasting products while causing minimal impact on the Earth.
Their wallets show this through the seamless melding of clean lines, sharp design touches, and responsibly sourced high-end materials.
Bellroy Products Design and Style
Too often EDC focused products we review try (and fail) to radically change whatever daily carry item they’re making. Wallets are simple tools. They hold money and cards and sit in our pockets. Bellroy Wallets don’t try to reinvent the wheel.
They take the standard wallet design of the last century, a folding piece of leather to hold money, and meld it with a minimalist design to make it more functional, more pocketable, and undeniably more stylish. The results are leather and woven material wallets that are ultra-slim, ultra-sleek, and versatile enough to fit in with any outfit.
In most cases, these wallets are the perfect size for everyday use. Most offer quick card access, a cash pocket, color options, and other design features. If you’re looking for the perfect wallet, Bellroy probably has a product for you. Plus everything is made from sustainable materials at an exceedingly high level of quality.
Bellroy Wallet Usability
Functionality is just as important as style for an EDC slim wallet. Our Bellroy Wallet Review focused on three key factors: Pocketability, card carry and access, and cash carry and access.
Pocketability
Pocketability is the area where Bellroy hits it out of the park. The design aims to be the slimmest and most pocketable options you can find without sacrificing function.
The Slim Sleeve is only about a centimeter longer than a credit card itself and is whisper-thin. We found it exceptionally easy to slip into and out of front, back, or jacket pockets.
Going into our Bellroy Wallet review, we were concerned about cards slipping loose, but after wiggling and jiggling them a bit those concerns have been resolved. So long as you’ve got a pair of cards in each slot they’re not going anywhere you don’t want them to.
Card Carry and Access
If you’re looking to carry a moderate number of credit cards or debit cards, the Bellroy Slim Sleeve is tailor-made for you. While it can carry up to 12 cards with no cash or 8 with cash, we found the real sweet spot was 6-8 cards.
That gave us one to two in the quick access slots, plus four more in the main card compartment. The quick-access cards slip right up with the touch of a finger, while the main card compartment has a small pull tab.
We found it easy to access every card in the Slim Sleeve, though we did once push the tab into the card compartment. Thankfully, it was easy to pull back out, and we didn’t have a problem with it again.
Cash Carry and Access
The Slim Sleeve can hold notes folded either in half or tri-fold for larger notes. There’s no traditional cash compartment as in a billfold wallet, but one of the slots can be used to store them.
While you won’t be packing a massive wad of cash in the Bellroy Slim Sleeve, it’s certainly capable of holding a reasonable amount of bills. We slipped up to five bills in without a noticeable increase in thickness, particularly if you were already packing a bunch of cards.
Coin carry isn’t recommended, though, so if you like to keep a few coins, we recommend you check out something like the more substantial Bellroy Hide and Seek or the Zip Wallet.
Durability, Reliability, and Sustainability
Bellroy wallets are made primarily from leather and woven materials. Leather has been used to make high-quality and highly durable goods for millennia, and with good reason. A leather wallet like the Slim Sleeve can last a lifetime when treated right.
All Bellroy’s leather is produced by gold-rated Leather Working Group tanneries. That certification means that the leather is strong, durable, long-lasting, and meets the stringent and verified standards of the Leather Working Group for environmental, working standards, and labor practices.
In our Bellroy Wallet Review, we found their products supple yet sturdy. The leather was more than able to stand up to moving around in a pocket all day long without showing marks or damage.
Let’s be clear, though, these are leather goods. They aren’t going to stand up to the kind of (ab)use that a carbon fiber or titanium hard shell EDC wallet can laugh off. They require essential consideration and care. So long as you give it to them, they’ll continue to look and function beautifully for years and years.
Warranty
Bellroy offers a 3-Year Standard Warranty on all their products. It covers the usual things like material failure or workmanship issues, as stated below:
Our products are covered by a 3 year warranty from the day they were bought, when used under normal conditions and for the purpose intended. Try not to over stuff your Bellroy or put things in there that don’t belong (like ninja stars). If you do put more cards in there than recommended, things can stretch out of shape and put undue stress on the stitching and other materials.
This warranty covers faults in materials and workmanship and doesn’t apply if damage is caused by unreasonable use or neglect, normal wear and tear, or if you change your mind.
In order to make a warranty claim, you need to have purchased your Bellroy through our website or one of our authorized re-sellers, and you must provide proof of purchase.
Bellroy Wallet Sustainability
Bellroy is an Australian Certified B-Corp dedicated to making stylish and highly functional EDC bags, wallets, and accessories in an eco-conscious and equity-focused way. Their global team produces innovative, attractive, and long-lasting gear in line with their high ecological and ethical standards.
All materials are procured from the cleanest and most ethical sources possible and manufactured to be as durable and ecologically friendly as possible.
Too many gear brands we see out there are total black holes as far as material origin, and labor practices are concerned. If you’re striving to minimize your purchases’ ecological and ethical impacts, a Bellroy Wallet is a great choice.
Super slim profile for minimalists who carry sparsely. Suited to 4 – 8 cards and folded bills. 2 quick-access slots for daily cards, plus a clever pull-tab section for the rest. Made from environmentally certified top-grain leather. 3-year warranty.
Who are Bellroy Wallets For?
Bellroy Wallets are the minimalist EDC wallet for the stylish and ecologically aware. They’re visually similar to classic leather wallets but with a sleeker and more modern appeal.
Functionally, the Slim Sleeve is fit to hold every day essentials plus a few contingency cards. You aren’t going to stuff 20-30 cards/business cards into a Bellroy wallet, nor will you be carrying around a big wad of cash.
We like to be honest, and this Bellroy wallet review is no exception: These wallets won’t be for everyone in the EDC crowd. They’re undeniably expensive and don’t offer any additional functionality past what a traditional wallet would bring you. They are, however, sleek, beautifully made wallets with an impeccable ethical and ecological pedigree that fit with nearly any style.
Are Bellroy Wallets Worth It?
Bellroy Wallets are elegant and exceptionally well-crafted minimalist wallets, but they certainly aren’t cheap. The flagship Slim Sleeve wallet runs just under $100 USD, with some of the more specialized versions like the Apex Slim Sleeve topping out noticeably higher.
Unlike some EDC wallets we’ve reviewed, you aren’t paying a premium for function with Bellroy. Instead, it’s entirely a style and quality difference. Bellroy wallets are gorgeous examples of minimalist style. They fill their intended role well and look extremely sharp while doing it. If you consider appearance and style essential, the Bellroy Slim Sleeve Wallet is an excellent choice you’ll find worth every penny.
What’s the Best Bellroy Wallet?
Bellroy has an oversized lineup of wallet choices for a minimalist gear company. We picked out a few of the most popular options to help you find the best one for your needs. (If you want something a little more unique, check out the Fantom wallet or Ridge wallet.)
Bellroy Slim Sleeve
The Bellroy Slim Sleeve is the jack-of-all-trades wallet in their product offerings and the wallet primarily profiled in our Bellroy Wallet Review. It accomplishes everything a wallet should do, holding cash and offering quick access to cards, while maintaining a sleek and stylish form. It allows you to hold 4-12 cards and a few bills in a slim and easily pocketable package.
If you want to switch from a traditional wallet to a minimalist option, this is a great place to start. It also makes a great travel wallet for when you only want to carry the essentials.
Bellroy Apex Slim Sleeve
The Apex Slim Sleeve is the same concept as the Slim Sleeve but with a more futuristic focus. Its stitch-less, precision-designed shape makes it an even more ergonomic fit in your pocket, while the magnetic closure helps hold your debit card or credit cards in place. It offers quick access card slots and a cash pouch. It’s also noticeably pricier. Expect to pay nearly twice as much as for the OG Slim Sleeve.
Bellroy Card Sleeve
The Card Sleeve is for true minimalists only. It’s a razor-thin sleeve of molded leather capable of holding up to 4-8 cards (in vertical card slots) and a couple of folded bills. It has a few access and ergonomic tweaks to make getting to specific cards easier, including a nifty pull tab for the main card pocket. Still, functionality takes a backseat to form and size reduction.
That said, it’s a sharp and tiny wallet that holds enough cards for most folks in their day to day.
Bellroy Flip Case
Like the Bellroy aesthetic but looking for something a bit more rugged? The Flip case integrates that gorgeous Bellroy leather style with a modern hard shell wallet. It offers dual-sided storage for up to 8 cards accessible through a pair of neat flip-open magnetic trapdoors. It’s an entirely different feel to the more traditional Bellroy’s but still looks incredible.
Bellroy Note Sleeve
The Bellroy Note Sleeve is the perfect compromise for those who want to cut down on bulk but like the functionality of a traditional bifold wallet. It’s a slim and ergonomically designed bifold capable of holding up to 11 cards plus full-length bills.
It offers three quick-access slots for your most essential cards plus a pull tab for less-used cards. Where it displays its value is in holding bills. The height of the Bellroy Note Sleeve has the international traveler in mind. It can handle bigger notes like Yen or Pounds without issue and has the capacity for plenty of cash.
Bellroy Low Wallet
The Low Down Wallet is virtually identical in function to the Note Sleeve, just slightly shorter. It fits USD/AUD but won’t hold larger notes. This is another great Bellroy travel wallet.
Bellroy Hide & Seek
The Hide & Seek is a slim all-rounder with classic good looks and clever hidden pocket storage for extra bills, coins or business cards. It can hold 5-12+ cards in several horizontal card slots.
More of Our Favorite Bellroy Wallets
- Bellroy Note Wallet – Fit your cash, coins, and 11 cards in a slim profile.
- Bellroy Card Pocket – Full zip leather wallet with coin pouch that holds 3-8 cards.
- Bellroy Coin Wallet – Leather bi-fold wallet with magnetic snap. Holds 4-8 cards, flat bills, and coins.
- Bellroy Folio – Full zip leather folio holds 10-14 cards, bills, coins, and a smartphone.
- Bellroy Travel Wallet – 3.8 inches by 6 inches. Designed for passport, tickets, bills, and 10 cards.
Bellroy Shipping Policy
If you order from Bellroy’s site, their shipping policy is simple. They offer free shipping to the US. Delivery times are calculated at checkout, but we found them to be quite reasonable. They ship anywhere in the world. They usually dispatch orders within 2 working days. Delivery times vary based on selected service and destination. Regular post ranges from 3 to 28 working days depending on the shipping address. They also offer express delivery to most locations with tracking available.
Bellroy Wallet Alternatives
The Bellroy Wallet is a slim and stylish minimalist wallet that combines modern design aesthetics with traditional materials. It’s excellent at what it does, but that’s not to say that there aren’t other style and function choices out there.
Here are a few of our top picks:
Nomatic Minimalist Wallet
If you’re looking to abandon leather as a wallet material entirely, the Nomatic Minimalist Wallet is a great alternative. It keeps the ‘just enough’ feel of the Bellroy but eliminates the fold and goes with an attractive dual-sided card slot design.
An intuitive pull tab allows you to quickly access your most used cards, while a utility slot enables you to keep a few folded bills, some coins, or even a key close at hand.
Airo Collective Stealth Wallet
The Airo Stealth Wallet is best described as the futurist cousin of the Bellroy. It replaces natural leather with the latest and greatest high-tech materials but maintains a remarkably similar design.
If you like the idea of a minimalist folding wallet but lean more towards a cyberpunk aesthetic, the Airo Collective Stealth is a good alternative.
Bellroy Wallet Review Final Thoughts
Overall our Bellroy wallet review had almost universally great things to say about the Slim Sleeve and all Bellroy’s products. They aren’t for everyone, particularly if you’re looking for the most rugged EDC wallet, but they truly shine in style.
To sum it up, the Bellroy Slim Sleeve is a minimalist’s dream. It’s a light, slim, and incredibly pocketable leather wallet with impeccable style, classic functionality, and exquisite attention to detail.
Super slim profile for minimalists who carry sparsely. Suited to 4 – 8 cards and folded bills. 2 quick-access slots for daily cards, plus a clever pull-tab section for the rest. Made from environmentally certified top-grain leather. 3-year warranty.
