Is ZYIA as good as lululemon? Too good to be true or legit dupe? Let’s go deep!
It depends…
In my opinion, ZYIA Active leggings are as good as lululemon, provided you can find your preferred size and don’t need tailoring, which Lululemon does free of charge.
The shorts? Eh, not so much.
On price: lululemon honors 10% military and R&D discounts (10%) both online and in person so the price is almost identical if you’re eligible for one of these.
This used to be 15% off, but I guess we are all dealing with inflation, huh?
There you go. You can stop reading here.
As a lululemon obsessed marathon runner for the better part of a decade, I was briefly fully converted to ZYIA for a couple of years when I was a rep.
I’m longer formally associated with this brand, though. Here’s why. It’s such a popular article I had to do a follow up article about how I left.
It wasn’t a bad breakup and I still run ultramarathons, so hopefully that qualifies me to answer this question for you!
Note: there are many alternative brands these days if you’re shopping based on price, including Senita Athletics which is female owned and not multi level.
Made in the same place?
The CEO, Erin Bradley, has shared in interviews that the overseas manufacturing is shared with different brands, including e-commerce competitor Love Her, which sells identical leggings at $25-35 each.
Once upon a time, it was rumored to be lululemon themselves. Can I be honest? I have no idea if that was true.
Like many reps, I just did what I was taught so now I’m like, “did I tell people that because it was true or because I knew they’d listen if I mentioned it?“
I don’t know. I honestly don’t.
I’ve seen videos of ZYIA clothing in AliExpress facilities, so your guess is as good as mine.
Here’s what I do know: they are great quality and many of my former customers agreed. I still prefer Light n Tight to Fast and Frees.
Leggings winner: ZYIA
In every category- fit, performance, aesthetics- ZYIA Active leggings beat out lululemon. The best blend is called Light n Tight, which is very similar to Fast & Free only with the softness lululemon Align fans enjoy (without the pilling!).
You can decide which are more flattering in the rear area; ZYIA’s high waist is positioned about 1/4″ higher, which many not seem like much but it’s the difference between muffin top and smooth line.
Check out this comparison- that’s lululemon on the left and ZYIA on the right:
Shorts winner: Lululemon
You can see my review on multiple styles of ZYIA shorts below, but allow me to save you time: they aren’t as good as the lululemon Speed collection. They’re just not.
Whether you’re a Run Speed or a Speed Up fan, the price difference is only about $10 (depending on design features such as Block-It pocket or reflective detail) and I believe it’s better spent at lululemon.
Sports Bra winner: it’s a tie
From a price perspective, you are saving about 20% on almost every bra in the line when you choose ZYIA.
Depending on the style, ZYIA can be more flattering.
Check out the back area of the Lulu bra on the left versus the ZYIA on the right:
Pssst- that’s my pal Brooke Trogdon of Feenix Apparel, which is also another brand to check out! She used to be a ZYIA rep but decided to do her own at a lower price point.
My favorite ZYIA bra is the All Star because I’m an ultra marathoner who depends on her bras for upwards of 10 and 12 hours.
I don’t like to change clothing during those efforts or use body glide- the All Star does not chafe.
Lover Her makes a bra like this too, but the price difference isn’t that much ($35 v 49) and ZYIA has a better variety of colors at this point.
Senita Athletics recently announced an option that offers even more support (real talk: it’s a SheFit dupe!) and I’m excited to try it!
Use RLM for 15% off if you want to grab one.
Let’s Hang!
I’d love to connect with you on my podcast or over on Instagram. Let’s hang out!
