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Alright, everyone, we have to talk about the Hide & Seek wallet from Bellroy! Listen, if you are wanting a wallet that may just never let you down, this may be it. There are a lot of people who have used Bellroy for many, many years, and they have held up – and, for just under $100, it better.
Now, I’ve only had this wallet for just over three weeks—it was gifted to us by Bellroy—but all the opinions you are going to hear are my own. They’re mine… my own. If you are like me, you’ve run the gamut with wallets. You’ve had the classic velcro wallet your mom bought you when you turned 11 because you had that one dollar you saved and needed a place to keep it. That was a great wallet.
Then you graduated and bought a $10 wallet you saw in the checkout line at ROSS. You’ve tried the minimalist wallet, and all those other wallets are great, but if you’re looking for a simple, great-looking wallet that’s not close to $10 or $400, this may be your next wallet.
Let’s take a look at what holds these little owl-clad wallets! I feel like I want to name this Owl… is that a thing Bellroy people do? Anyways…
Jump to:
What is the Bellroy Hide & Seek?
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Let me introduce you to the Bellroy Hide & Seek wallet. It comes in two sizes: Hi (74mm or 2.91 inches) for taller bills and Lo for bills shorter than 74mm. This one is the Lo, and that’s the way… uh-huh, uh-huh, I like it. You may like this if you’re like me and don’t necessarily want an ultra-minimalist wallet or to carry a library’s worth of paper around with you all day.
It comes with RFID protection, which is a nice bit of added security if you travel a lot or at least gives you a little more peace of mind. This wallet comes with a three-year warranty, which is nice and definitely gives you more confidence that you’re not going to get a product that falls apart in two weeks.
The one I have is made of 70% leather, some polyester, and 5% “other materials”—not sure what that is. Something very cool is that the Hide & Seek comes in around eight different colors. This one is their caramel.
Here’s what it offers:
- Four quick-draw card slots. Honestly, for me, this is perfect because I hate having more than 2-4 cards in a wallet like this.
- It has stacked storage for extras like insurance cards, coffee punch cards, or whatever else you want to keep in here.
- This wallet holds up to 5-12+ cards, which is impressive. It also has a great spot for your flat bills.
But if you’re looking to hold even more than that, don’t worry because it’s not even close to being done. It’s called the Hide & Seek for a reason…
- There is extra flat bill storage right here, and then it has what Bellroy calls their “Sneaky slot for one more.” This is pretty cool. It holds really tightly.
- If that isn’t enough, there is a second hidden compartment for coins, guitar picks, or cards.
Bellroy says that the Hide & Seek (Paid Link) can hold up to 12 (or more) cards, along with bills, coins, or whatever else you want to store. And if you’re wondering what that would look like, stick around because we are going to test that out.
For its size, this wallet comes with a lot of features. There’s one more we should look at, and that is the Bellroy owl! It comes with this little metal owl built in. I love this owl.
What do I like about the Hide & Seek?
1. The Bellroy Owl is great.

I think one of the coolest parts of this wallet is the Owl. Honestly, if this wallet didn’t have the Owl and you saw it sitting on a table, it would seem very basic and simple. But this little piece of branding and design is such a quality feature.
They could have stamped the leather or stitched in an owl, but the fact that they fastened on a metal owl is so cool… it makes you want to name it. Also, if you saw any other Bellroy wallet, you would definitely know what kind it is, and that’s a pretty cool conversation starter.
2. I really like the color of the wallet.

I really do like the color of this wallet. Like I said, the Hide & Seek comes with eight colors to choose from, from black to green. I’d probably like to get the Java—not only because it’s a nice color but also because the inside is close to the Sienna or this caramel, and those two colors look really good together. If you’re considering this wallet, you need to go to Bellroy’s website and check it out. (Paid Link)
3. The stitching is perfect.

I like the stitching of the wallet, both inside and out. It looks like it’s reinforced in all the right places, and honestly, I really like the curve on the bottom edge and that it’s not curved on the top. I know it’s a small thing, but this makes it so much easier to get in and out of your pants or jacket pocket.
4. It’s quite functional.

Big open hole on the bottom (keeps things clean). I’ve had so many times, either from working in a mill, hiking, or whatever, where sawdust or dirt got into my wallet, and it can be hard to remove. When I first got this wallet, I opened it and didn’t like the opening in it, but after using it, I like that debris will fall right out.
The pattern and inner materials are nice, and I think it’ll hold together for a lot longer if dirt, sawdust, or debris can fall right out. That’s pretty nice. When I first opened it, I honestly didn’t like how it looked—the wallet had a gaping hole—but after a few more opens… I understand now.
If you like having things tucked away, more hidden, or just more organized places in your wallet, then you and I are going to like this wallet for a long time. I really like how Bellroy designed the extra and hidden compartments in this wallet.
5. I took the Hide & Seek name a bit literally.

As a matter of fact, they may have gotten the “hide & seek” part of it down too well. I’ve had this wallet for two weeks, and somehow, I’ve managed to lose it twice! But, thankfully, I was able to seek it out and find it (maybe I should get a tracker card), and now I can do this review to tell you about how to find the hidden compartments!
I found the first one right away because I was looking for it, but if someone actually stole your wallet and did a quick search, they might overlook it, which could be very helpful if that were ever to happen to you. This is something I think about whenever I travel—where should I put really vital cards so they’re less likely to be stolen?
The second hidden compartment got me! I didn’t even realize it was there until about three or four days in. This one is sneaky! Great job, Bellroy.
I like that this wallet holds up to 5-12+ cards. But, I love how slim this wallet is even though it can hold up to 12+. It’s the perfect thickness! It’s too thin, and it feels weird. If it was too thick, you’d feel like you’d need extra cash just to cover the chiropractor visits from sitting on something so bulky.
There are a lot of things that are so great about this wallet, but there are some things I really don’t like.
What do I NOT like about this leather wallet?
1. Again, the Bellroy Owl

Now, this one I honestly have mixed feelings about. The Bellroy Owl sticks out when it’s in your pants pocket, and I feel like it might look a little weird. I’m not sure what this would do to your pants long-term or if you sit all day and forget to take it out—are your pants going to have a wear mark on them?
Granted, this is a very small thing, and I’d be pretty disappointed if it didn’t come with the Owl, but maybe a slightly lower profile would be better. That said, if Bellroy came out tomorrow with a slightly bigger owl, I like it so much that… I’d still buy this wallet and carry it with pride.
2. Coin Compartment Placement (if you’re storing coins in there)

Here’s something I really don’t like about this wallet, and to be fair, I don’t like this in any wallet: the compartment for coins. It’s so close to the outside leather that when you put a coin in—or if, like me (or Austin, our founder), you play guitar and like to keep a backup pick handy—you can see it sticking out. I personally don’t like that.
Not sure what the fix would be for this; maybe reinforce this area. But then, if you do that, you won’t have such a thin wallet. Here’s my suggestion: get the wallet (Paid Link), but don’t put coins in it. You don’t want to spend almost $100 on a beautiful wallet like this and then start seeing wear marks on the leather. And by that, I mean weird wear marks. Everyday wear marks in leather are part of the appeal.
Who should buy this wallet?

This is for someone who wants a timeless wallet. We’ve all seen people carrying wallets that make them look, well… kinda goofy. This is never a good look (picture a three-inch-thick wallet) or this (a bulky wallet sticking out of a front pocket). To me, this type of wallet says the person is unorganized or stuck in a weird trend.
You can, by all means, try those types of wallets, but just know it’s not doing you any favors. However, people are going to see this wallet and have something positive to say. Everyone who saw this wallet in the past two weeks that I’ve used it has mentioned how nice it looks. They didn’t know I was testing it; they just thought I bought a new wallet.
If you’re into trying a new trend just because it’s new, there are plenty of weird, amazing, questionable, and smart wallets in the world now, so by all means, keep exploring. You need to find what works and feels good to you. But if you want a wallet that will match everything and never go out of style… this is for you.
Now, if you carry a lot of cards—and there have been times in my life when I didn’t have the option of only carrying a few cards, like when traveling, needing to carry passports, plane tickets, and hold onto business receipts for weeks on end—then this wallet is for you. It can hold a lot of cards, bills, and yes, even coins, all while remaining relatively slim.
This will help you keep things organized, so you’re not that guy in line or at the airport with your wallet bursting open and unorganized cards and papers spilling out onto the counter. Instead, this wallet allows you to hold all those bills, cards, tickets, and guitar picks in organized, easily accessible compartments. You’ll go from being the person holding up the line to someone who keeps things moving smoothly!
For example, I’ve always carried my main debit card on the right-hand side of my wallet, next to my work cards. At times, this has led to me making a purchase with the wrong card, and then I’ve had to go back and make corrections. With this wallet, I’ve switched where my main card and work cards are stored, which should help me avoid those annoying little mistakes.
If you’re a minimalist who will never carry more than a few simple cards and you’re definitely not carrying two months of receipts and five dollars’ worth of change, there are definitely other wallets that will work better for you, and this isn’t the one you’ll want to get. What’s the point of having all these compartments if you’re simply never going to use them?
But if you’re like me and sometimes carry only a few items but, at other times, need to hold multiple work cards along with personal cards, travel receipts, and insurance cards, then make sure you head over to Bellroy and pick up the Hide & Seek! Just make sure you keep track of it and avoid losing it once a week.
Just kidding… Big thanks to Bellroy for gifting this wallet to us, and an even bigger thanks to the newest “pet” in my household… this little guy, the Bellroy Owl. I think I’m going to name it. How could I not? It’s so cool.
I hope this helped you decide whether or not the Bellroy Hide & Seek is for you. You can head over to bellroy.com to learn more about the Hide & Seek and grab one for yourself. I might actually go pick up the Java—it’s such a good color match. Go check it out for yourself!
Where should you buy the wallet?
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