How To Find Discounted R.M.Williams Boots

Updated 09 January 2025

Australians love their R.M. Williams boots almost as much as finding them on sale. They're the most sought-after boots in Australia for both men and women.  But with prices now just shy of $700, their mythical outback appeal can sometimes be an odd bedfellow with our devotion to the discount. 

Enter R.M. Williams Clearance Outlets. The thrifty amongst us can visit one of these stores, dotted around most of our major cities, and pick up a pair of RMs at up to (and sometimes more than) half the RRP. The catch? R.M.Williams doesn't advertise these outlets. You won't find them on their website, and information online is scarce. So, I decided to find out for myself how it all works and this post gives the low-down. 

Boots that have walked the earth but will always be Australian. photo@ R.M. Williams. 

Most clearance items are not factory seconds 

I expected to find a sea of rejects. Deep scratches, mismatched tugs, chipped heels. The fish John West rejected.

That assumption turned out to be wrong.

After spending time in-store and speaking with staff, it became clear that most R.M.Williams clearance boots are not defective at all. The majority are seasonal stock that hasn’t sold through, rather than factory seconds.

In practical terms, this means suede and non-core colours dominate clearance shelves. These styles rotate more frequently and are less forgiving for buyers, so they are the first to be cleared when ranges change.

I was told that for every Comfort Craftsman that ends up in clearance due to a defect, there are roughly five seasonal boots with no defect. That ratio explains what you actually see on the floor.

Factory seconds are still part of the mix, but they are the exception, not the rule.

Three out of four of these boots are seasonal clearance items in perfect condition

Reasons R.M.Williams Boots end up on the clearance floor

End-of-season stock

Styles move on. Colours change. Materials get rotated. When a range is refreshed, is seasonal in nature, or dropped altogether, whatever’s left goes to the clearance rack. That’s why suede boots showed up in such numbers during my January 2026 visit.

Factory seconds

R.M.Williams seconds are boots that have minor cosmetic flaws, never structural ones. Typical examples are growth marks in the leather, small colour variations, or finishing that fell short of internal standards. Some issues jump out. Most don’t, unless you know exactly where to look.

Old stock, near new

These are returns that can’t be sold as new. Maybe they were tried on too many times, or used briefly for display or promotional work. They don’t appear often, but they do turn up.

Made-to-order

Now discontinued. Occasionally, uncollected custom orders resurface. They’re rare and probably thinning out, but if you find one that fits, it’s not something to hesitate over.

Popular Styles

The availability of styles and sizes can be a bit of a lucky dip and vary from store to store. You will likely find the popular styles, such as the Craftsman series, but in limited numbers and likely reduced to one rack. I also came across a range of Comfort Turnouts, Suede Craftsman, lace-up boots, and older stock in less popular styles and shape. 

PROTIP: If you're looking for something specific, a phone call to your nearest outlet on a Friday or Monday might save you a wasted trip. 

They will probably have your size and standard fit

The boots were displayed in their respective sizes. Again, my concern was proven wrong.  If you’ve ever been to a sale you know how it usually goes, anything half decent will only be available in XXXS or XXXL. What I saw was an even spread of boots across shoe sizes. 

They carried some sizes in narrower and wider widths too. I'm on the cusp of a normal (G) and wide (H) RM boot fit. They had both widths in my boot size across the popular styles (although most were in G fitting). Notwithstanding, the availability of sizes can change from week to week and may not be in the model you seek.

My first clearance pair bought around 2017. Not a standard colour for sure, not the standard RRP either. Served me well for several years before I moved them on. 

Expect to pay between $399 to $489+

Prices generally sit between $389 and $489+, depending on the style, leather, and how close the boot is to R.M.Williams’ core range. On observation, the majority of boots sat around the $489 mark. Occasionally they'll have clearance sales where you can pick something up for as low as $199. 

Seasonal styles, particularly suede, are often at the lower end of that range. Core models, when they appear, tend to sit higher. Even then, they’re still meaningfully cheaper than full retail. Some clearance prices noted during my store visit to DFO South Wharf in January 2026 include:

• Lady Yearling Coffee Suede $399 (RRP $699)
• Risden Lace-up $489 (RRP $699)
• Comfort Turnout $489 (RRP $699)
• Adelaide Black Yearling $489 (RRP $699)
• Rosebery Cognac Suede $489 (RRP $699)
• Comfort Craftsman Chocolate Pull Up Leather $519 (RRP $749)

Most people walk into these stores hunting for the familiar Craftsman range. Stock turns over fast and rarely in a predictable way. Sizes vanish quickly, new pairs show up without warning, and what’s on the floor one week may be gone the next. If you find your size in a style that works, waiting usually means missing out.

Boot Sale starting at $499 at R.M. Williams DFO South Wharf

The quality is pretty good

Despite ownership changes in 2014 and 2020, R.M.Williams' 300+ craftspeople still use the same century-old machines and rigorous quality standards. Inevitably, as their prices continue to creep northward - now just shy of $700 for their popular styles - people have begun to look more closely at their quality output, justifiably; however, you'll still be hard pressed to find a better quality ready-to-wear boot in Australia and their factory seconds reflect the high standards we've come to expect.

Every pair with defects that I inspected was structurally sound and perfectly wearable. Where R.M. Williams still seems cautious is on cosmetics. Small visual flaws are often enough to see a pair pushed into seconds. In all the years I’ve been visiting these outlets, I’ve only come across one boot with a genuinely large gash on the toe, and issues of that scale don’t appear to leave the factory as a rule. That’s why many factory seconds look fine at first glance and are often hard to tell apart from end-of-season stock.

Where to find R.M.Williams clearance outlets

Boot Clearance Sale at R.M.Williams DFO South Wharf 

R.M.Williams clearance boots in summary

At the end of the day, everyone's criteria for shoes are different. Yet if the price is holding you back from purchasing a pair of these heritage boots, then the R.M.Williams clearance outlets are well-worth the visit. The selection and quality was good. There are some real bargains to be found. Ultimately, our love for RMs need not be a strange bedfellow to our aversion of paying full-price. 

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