55 Best Places to Shop in Montana, USA

The Missoula People's Market showcases more than 80 local artisans, featuring unique Montana arts and craft. Stop by to check out fine pottery, metalworks, fine woodworking, photography, leather work, clothing, jewelry, and functional and whimsical art---and the artists who created it. Open Saturday morning from mid-May to mid-October.

A refreshing stop in the historic center of town, the independent Montana Book and Toy Company lines its shelves with regional and hard-to-find books, toys, games, and gifts.

Pick up a paper bag and fill it from the bushel baskets overflowing with what once was called "penny candy" at the Montana Candy Emporium.

Since 1993, this gallery has been where Montana's finest artists go to see and be seen. Stop by to browse a private collection or purchase an original souvenir.

Situated in a lovingly restored turn-of-the-20th-century building, Noice Studio and Gallery features ongoing exhibits of paintings, pastels, sculptures, fiber arts, and photography by Montana artists such as Rudy Autio, Russell Chatham, and Marshall Noice.

Old West Gallery and Antiques is a huge shop selling gifts, collectibles, Native American and Western art, and furniture. The kids are likely to be enamored of the Old West Candy Store inside, which features fudge and hand-dipped chocolates. The entire family will enjoy player piano and other music machines.

For an old-fashioned sweet treat, pull up a stool at the Parrot Confectionery, a soda fountain and candy store built in the 1920s that sells everything from chocolate malts with homemade ice cream to hand-dipped chocolates and a regional favorite, cherry phosphates.

Rand’s Custom Hats creates cowboy hats for working cowboys and movie stars, and will custom-fit a felt fur hat. Prices range from $300 to $2,000.

Opened in 1864, Rank's Mercantile is Montana's oldest continuously operating store. Period clothing, books, toys, gifts, and groceries are for sale here.

This center promotes local, regional, and national ceramic artists. Exhibits change monthly.

A nonprofit artist cooperative, Sandpiper Gallery shows the work of local and regional artists and holds workshops throughout the summer. Don't miss their annual art show on the county courthouse lawn the second Saturday in August.

The floorboards creak as you walk through Sax and Fryer, an old-time bookstore specializing in Western literature, especially books by Montana authors. It's the oldest store in Livingston.

In business since 1946 Schnee's sports two rooms filled with fishing gear and Western gear including its signature Pac boots made in Schnee's Bozeman boot factory.

One of Montana's largest bookstores, Second Edition Books, buys, sells, and trades books on many different subjects but specializes in hard-to-find regional tomes.

If you need outdoor equipment of any kind, this well-equipped sporting goods store probably has it. They can also tune your skis and bikes, and rent you either if you didn't bring your own. There's also a store in the Whitefish Mountain Mall off Highway 93.

Sylvan Peak Enterprises carries a large selection of top-quality mountain-country dry goods, hiking gear, locally-made fleece jackets, hats, and kids' togs. In the winter, they rent cross country skis and offer info on local Nordic trail conditions.

Find everything you need for outdoor recreation at The Base Camp, a longtime outfitter that rents camping gear, stand-up paddleboards, and cross-country ski equipment. They also offer clothing, books, maps, and are considered footwear specialists.

Contemporary artists are represented at the downtown Toucan Gallery. On display are paintings, sculptures, ceramics, fabric art, glass pieces, jewelry, and artisan-made gifts.

While visiting the historic district, stop at the Uptown Butte Farmers' Market for fresh garden produce, fruit, flowers, baked goods, and local crafts. It's open Saturday in summer from 8 to 1.

This is the place to look for contemporary Western and wildlife art, including numerous works on the fly-fishing theme, from paintings and bronzes to hand-carved flies.

Dick Zimmer is a local legend who has been fishing the Flathead Valley for decades. He makes his own lures and jigs and can set you up with all the gear and information you'll need to catch fish of all kinds, from 20-pound lake trout and pike to smaller perch and kokanee.