Side by Side Comparison of: Alaska Bear vs Goson

I was skeptical about making the switch from jam-packed wallet to money clip, but I had a friend who swore by it. I got an Amazon gift card for my birthday so I thought, hey, I'll give it a shot. I could not be happier with the decision. I researched like crazy trying to find an inexpensive, but well-regarded product. The Alaska Bear clip met both of those requirements: it had good reviews and was under $20. Again, I was skeptical about down-sizing. I selected four cards that I figured were priorities (driver's license, student ID, debit card, and Chipotle Chiptopia card). In addition to those, there's also occasionally been 5-8ish bills in there. This clip has reliably, faithfully contained all its contents with zero degeneration of its grip. After about 7ish months of use, it still gives a hearty snap closed when I remove everything. I've never tried to overstuff it or purposely stretch it out, so I can't speak to how well it'd hold up trying to cram 10 cards in there, but with my regular, conservative use, it has maintained its integrity. It's accumulated some superficial, light scratches from being in the same pocket as my keys, but it's a nondescript stainless steel money clip; I couldn't care less about how it looks.

Overall, the Alaska Bear money clip gave me exactly what I was looking for. It's a tremendous product at a low price for anyone looking to downsize their wallet game.

This clip has been fantastic, the perfect implement to move me permanently from a bulky wallet to the lean, trim world of money clips and I don't intend to every go back. Prior to using the money clip, I already avoided cash whenever possible. It seemed that coins were always just in the way. Having a money clip has been a great motivator to continue this trend. And it fits so sleekly and unobtrusively into any pocket, no matter how skinny.

I fit 3 credit cards and a driver's license, as well as about 4 bills folded in thirds. Previously, I had 5 cards in the clip and didn't feel comfortable with the bills in thirds so they went in half and got severely beat up on the edges because they extended past the clip. I recommend thirds, as shown in the attached picture.

The clip has held up great and I have no concerns about it losing its springy-ness.

Absolutely love my money clip. I'm glad that it isn't doing too much it's very simple and classy. What I like most about it is the fact that it can someone be adjusted to hold the amount of money you needed to you just squeeze on it a little bit. This is all that I can ask for in a simple money clip

this is the second one I purchased. I gave my first one in silver to a friend of mine (which i soon regretted) and he loves it and still is using it. I just got this one for the color. I feel like this gold one (or perhaps gold colored one - I believe its brass) is much more solid and substantial than the silver and silver was solid in its own right.

A trick to tightening a loose clip is simply take all the money our of it and grip the bend on the clip with some pliers and squeeze hard. then just like that its good as new and you can do this over and over again for years. even titanium clips need to be conditioned like this one in a while. just make sure to put some cloth or a face towel between the pliers and the clip so you dont damage its finish

all in all, money clips are classy and low profile. they are great to have if you want you swagger to increase and elevate your respect while not taking up any space on your person.

I have four cards (debit card, credit card, college ID and Drivers license) and two bills but i could have up 7 max with the amount of amount of cards i carry. for every card you put in you give up around four bucks of cash complicity in my opinion so I would say that it pack about 20 bills with no cards or 4-5 cards with embossed information(i.e. back or credit cards with raised lettering) or 6-7 cards without embossed writing. choose whatever combo suits you(i like the 4 cc and 5 bills personally). I like the limitation because it keeps it slim and keeps me efficient with my every day carry choices (ie i only take what i need)

this is a great buy plus it looks great with my AMEX Premier Rewards gold card and my corporate gold!!!!! (also looks amex delta sky miles gold card ~my parent's card~ and citi American Airline AAdvantage gold card~my classmate's card. I have seen it on all those and it looks stunning.) So if you have a gold card of any sort, then this is a must buy if you wanna look like a boss on a date.

--for give the typos and/or grammar mistakes if any exist in this review--

My first money clip. I had avoided trying one before because all the ones I had seen were flimsy and didn't seem like they would keep everything together securely. Or they were just far to fancy for me.

Used it for a week or so now - and it is definitely secure. No worries about your bills or cards sliding around loose or flying out of your pocket when you pull this out. I have about a dozen bills (folded in thirds), my DL, CC and a few business cards in my clip.

The finish is just right - stylish without being 'blingy'. And the price seems perfectly reasonable for something that will last forever.

Item received ahead of schedule. After reviewing many other items of this type I am exceptionally pleased with the quality and usefulness of this clip. The magnet is strong, cards are held well and easy to remove. I will recommend to others and would purchase again in the future if needed.

I love this wallet. It keeps all the things I need without feeling overburdened with the extra leather. It's small enough to fit in either your front or back pocket without issues. I loved my last wallet but it tilted my body when I sat down, potentially causing back issues. Not a problem with this one.

Pretty happy. I'm still using it and will continue to.
Ideal for 3-6 cards and 15 bills, maybe more. Magnetic clasp holds the bills well as long as you don't have a giant wad of cash (I think 20 bills is about the limit). Pretty easy to get cards and cash in and out of their spots, including driver's license. I like the size. Small enough to sit in my front pocket without bulging too much. I can't do the "Costanza" wallet in the back pocket thing so I've learned to "travel light" so to speak.
I really just needed something to hold my ID and a few credit cards in way that wouldn't damage them. Previous to purchasing this, I actually went a long while using a rubber band as a wallet, which ruined my cards (cracked in half) as you can imagine. No longer a problem.
I can't think of anything wrong with this product (hence the 5 stars), but it obviously isn't for everyone. If you need to carry pictures, or receipts, or more than a few cards, or a ton of cash, then you should look for something else.

I have to say for the price I had initial doubts but upon receiving product I was EXTREMELY satisfied. Not only is the leather real it is so nice and slim and it fits comfortably in my pocket. No more bulky "wallet print " on my pants and no more crazy amount of old receipts collecting in my wallet. It has the perfect amount of storage for my main cards along with two extra pockets to hold a few extra goodies . The money clip is out of this world. Looking at the magnet I was worried about putting cash in there but that little magnet is so strong that I say good luck to gravity trying to make your money fall out. I love this product so far and I would buy again from Goson. Great product thank you !!!

great wallet for your bank card and license and a few extra credit cards I have 9 cards plus my license and they fit pretty good. when I first got it I had to use force to slide them in place and I struggle a little bit to take some out but I can already tell since its leather it's gonna stretch and it'll get easier to access them so I really like this wallet for my front pocket. I was also skeptical about the magnet for bills but as others have said its a really strong magnet and u won't loose your bills :)

Great clip for the price, what you see online is what you get. I'm giving it 4/5 stars because after just one drop on the floor in NYC it got semi scratched up. You can tell if you're 1 ft from it and checking it but normally glancing over you wouldn't be able to tell. It appears a darker/black is underneath this silver finish. But for the price I dont regret the purchase at all and I'm still using it. From this angle it seems the scratches are still silver but there is a black area.

Bought this money clip for a friend when I found out he lost his. His name initials happen to be “AB” so this was a great match. The money clip came in a black gift pouch with Alaska Bear’s name on it. The money clip itself only has the letters AB on it. I got the brushed aluminum which is decent enough, but nothing out of the ordinary. I compared it to the money clip I currently own (since 2006) and I do like mine better. The AB is on the thinner side and although will hold 3 cards and a few bills, that would be maxing it out and spreading it wider than the top loop. Not sure if it will hold up too well and if it will spring back being spread wide for a long time. Again for comparison, it is made of thinner metal and is longer and narrower than mine. Another feature that mine has over this one is a “spring” bar on the shorter back side. It keeps the contents tighter. Again, all these things are personal preferences and my opinion is based on comparison to the one I currently own. Mine was more expensive though. So considering the price and actual functionality I would rate this as a 4-star money clip. See pictures for more info. If you found my review helpful, please click the [YES] button below. Thanks.

Yes, the price is very reasonable but the functionality is less than desired. When it arrived it did not work at all as you could not fit the bills into the clip because it was too tight and there was no space to work with. The bottom piece needs to be 1/4 to 3/8 of an inch shorter and have a slightly more of a curve to be able to slip the bills on top of this piece. The slightly more expensive units out there have a better design that allows the bills to be slipped in more easily and securely.

Update: After the seller saw my posting they offered to send me another one that might be a "better deal" (at no cost to me). Although I told them it wasn't necessary they went ahead anyway. A new one came today, almost identical to the first one, but the functionality is so much better and does not have any of the negatives the first one did. I added two more stars for the exceptional customer service and the better design of the second one.

The product is very nice looking and has the perfect length and thickness. The only reason I rated it less than perfect is that I actually find it a little difficult to open when putting the clip back one my notes. The clasp is very strong and tight which is superb for keeping money in place as the notes are not going to slip out, but it can make it rather hard to open to put them back after removing them to pay for something. The lip on the clip is a very small profile which is perfect to keep it very slim in my pocket, but comes at the cost of not providing much leverage to open it. If I could give it 4.5 or 4.75 that would be more appropriate, but it's whole stars only. I'm hoping that over time the tension will loosen just a slight bit to make it a little easier to use.

A Money clip is a compromise. You're sacrificing space for economy. Traditionalism for minimalism. So obviously this clip is going to hold less than a wallet. But it does its job and can adjust to hold the essentials, and when you remove some stuff it can be bent back to a smaller size to hold it tightly. It works like a money clip should. The only thing that could be better is that it could be a little bit more springy, I find myself having to adjust it even after removing just one credit card or a couple of $5 bills. But that's to be expected, it's not a premium money clip. And thats reflected in the price, which honestly, makes it worth buying. Especially if you're trying a money clip for the first time.

I bought this as a gift for my boyfriend. He has a bad habit of putting too much stuff in his wallet (papers from work, etc) but this wallet has surpassed both of our expectations.

The magnet is strong enough to hold everything in place without any "slippage" (his terms, not mine!) the double stitching ensures it doesn't rip open at inopportune times (or opportune ones). All in all a great product, and I would order again in a heartbeat should something unfortunate befall this one.

So far I like it - has not erased my CC, even holds my wad of bills and receipts. Magnet is great, which is why i was worried at first.

Upon arrival the Goson Leather Money Clip looked and felt quality. I have been test driving the wallet on a ten day trip that has required me to remove my license and several of the cards I'm carrying. I am carrying my license, three debit/credit cards, a cost card, two insurance cards, a hard plastic gift card, a hard plastic rewards card, and two business cards. I also started the trip with $350 mostly 20's. The wallet and money clip started out quite full. In it's current configuration I can't really put it in my back pocket and sit on anything that is firm as I can definitely feel the wallet to the point it's uncomfortable. I've been carrying the wallet in my front pocket which has been acceptable to me. The money clip held the bills secure enough I wasn't too worried but if the wallet had been flung about I'm not so sure the clip would have held. I will say the clip is more than secure for everyday use (unless you're in the habit of carrying around 30 or more bills). The card slots have proven to be tight and a little challenging to remove cards. I would say part of the situation is due to stiffness from being new leather and maybe a little over stuffing. All in all I'm pleased with the wallet and will continue to use it until I find something I like better. I won't be looking hard but I always keep my eyes open for new and fun things. I recommend this wallet for quality and price.

This has worked out surprisingly well! I was having some issues with my legs and back from sitting on my wallet all of the time. I hardly know this thing is there.

The money clip works great, you can easily keep 5-10 bills in it without the magnetic clip losing strength (has never happened). There are plenty of slots for credit cards and other vital information, I had to pick and choose which cards to carry, but honestly I was carrying too many credit cards, I usually only use 1 - 2 with any regularity. I like the visibility of the drivers license slot, I usually don't have to remove it, but it is a little stiff.

All in all a very good purchase, I would recommend it to anyone who doesn't haul around their entire life in their wallet, because while it holds a lot, it won't hold as much as a wallet.

I switched from a conventional fold wallet over to this a few weeks ago and so far I do like it. It was always a hassle to get the money a cashier hands me back in the traditional wallet... Seems like they are always handing change back that's all balled up and in no order. I am one of those people that likes my bills all facing the same way, stacked sequentially, and no folded over corners. This money clip allows me to re-organize the money much quicker when I'm out and about.

I'm not %100 convinced on the quality here and how long it will last, but the price is cheap enough that if I get a year out of it I don't mind having to replace it.

The surface has scratches and imperfections. I'm quite disappointed I went with this brand, especially given it was intended to be gifted. I'm really shocked at the number of positive reviews. Buyers beware.

Edit: the company sent me a clip without imperfections and I appreciated that service even though it was too late to give it as a gift like it was intended. I bumped up the stars from 1 to 3. It can't hold much but does well with a few cards.

Looks great. I even like their logo. I've never had a money clip, so maybe they all work like this, but here are my cons:

1. Its really stiff. If you just want to slide a bill or two in there, its not all that easy. The clip is really stiff, so you know the cash isn't going to fall out, but if you have a line of people behind you, you'll want to move to the side to put your change away before you grab your coffee and go.

2. Unless you have a fat stack of cash in it, there's only pressure on the bills out at the very end of the clip. (under the logo) So my weak little stack of a $5 and a couple $1's are free to spin in the clip while in my pocket. My entire purpose of getting a clip was to stop paying for things with bills that look like they've just woke up the morning after a marathon. It doesn't really accomplish this though.

For those of you that carry a solid stack of bills on you, I'm 100% confident you'll love this.
For those of you that only carry a couple bills, might not be satisfied.

It's just ok. The spring hadn't worn out for the first couple months. When I first got it the clip tightly held 1 credit card, my ID, and a couple bills. It would tightly hold just one bill; until I was on vacation and had my ID, one credit card, and 7 total bills. This stretched it out too much and it barley holds a credit card and a couple bills now. I was able to clamp it back using a vice grip on it, but now it has an irregular bend and a couple scratches on it.

In short, for the price this is a good money clip. If you only carry one credit card and a couple bills at once it will probably never loose its spring, but pile too much in there and it will undoubtedly be unable to hold less than a couple bills with a credit card.

Our son bought this because he liked how it looked, and he really liked it at first, but, like some other reviewers have said, it unfortunately really is a poorly designed product. After a few days it has become too loose to hold anything smaller than a big wad of cash. So, if he only has a few bills, they fall out immediately and he has resorted to stuffing some papers between the bills just so they stay in. This really defeats the purpose of a money clip.

Update: I contacted the seller about the issues above, and they immediately sent a new one (at no charge) that works much better. It holds the bills more tightly, so maybe it's been redesigned, or else the first one we received was defective. Anyway, I thought it was very nice of them to send us a new one.

I wanted something sleek to replace my large wallet and one of my friends suggested using a money clip instead. Given that this is my first experience with a money clip, I wanted something affordable to try it out first before splurging on anything pricier.

I found the Alaska Bear money clip to be extremely effective in holding my cash, along with my driver's license and a few credit cards.

Unfortunately, after a few weeks of use the clip had lost a lot of its strength and was essentially permanently "expanded" to the size of my typical amount of my cash /cards. If I wanted to carry fewer bills/cards on any particular day, the clip would not hold the decreased load securely and stuff would slip out.

I'm not sure if this is typical of money clips, but based on this experience, I've decided to switch to a slim card holder instead.

It is ok if you don't carry much. For me, I tried to stuff more in here than it could handle and not my cup of tea. It does what it states it does don't get me wrong. The cards do get a little sticky trying to get them out and money didn't feel to secure when in the magnet. For the right person this can work.

I'm just not a money clip guy. This seems great for people who like a money clip, but it wasn't much smaller than a regular wallet, or more convenient.

I like this wallet, I really do. It holds 3 cards in the outer sleeves and a couple more in the two interior sleeves. They aren't 100% accessible because the sleeves are tight but I'm fairly confident that this will change with wear as the wallet softens up. After a couple of weeks of use I can already see it. The main drawback for me and the reason this wallet will be given away is that I tend to carry a lot of cash. It wouldn't be uncommon for me to have say $500 in 20s on me and there is no way this thing will hold that much. I would honestly be lucky to get half that much but as soon as one of those is broke I have the wallet in one pocket and a wad of bills in the other.

Very tight. Almost impossible to fit one credit card into each slot at the same time. I had to cut out the center section so there wasn't too much pressure from letting me put my ID in the window slot.

I was looking for a light money clip wallet. For me smaller, lighter is best. I like everything about this except the moneyclip is magnetic, I had not noticed that in the description. The magnetic types are only good for about 10 bills or less. If the clip was a nice spring steel or carbonfiber construction I could have given a higher rating.

I wanted to trim down my wallet, so I bought this. For the first 2 weeks I had it, it was so tight that the plastic on my cards started to wear off. After those two weeks, it became so loose, stuff would just fall out.
The only plus is that it looks pretty cool.
My rating scale:
1 Star - The amazon page was a blatant lie to trick people into purchasing it.
2 Star - The page was correct, but the product was not worth the money, or it was rather poorly made.
3 Star - The product is technically good, and meets expectations
4 Star - Feels / Looks good, mostly fits the purpose I bought it for.
5 Star - The product fulfilled the exact reason I purchased it, it does exactly what I want.

UPDATE: Since I had ordered the clip and expressed my disappointment, I was immediately contacted by a customer service rep. Their response and attempts to make things right have been remarkable. They sent me a replacement, and it works slightly better; however, it's still not adequate for daily use--it's just too hard to insert cash into to clip. I added a star due to the great customer service, but unfortunately, the product still lacks practicality.
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I've been using a paper clip to keep my cash together. I thought I'd look for something more classy and functional, so I settled on the Alaska Bear Classic Silver Cash Money Clip. Unfortunately, the clip was too stiff--to the point that I was unable to insert a few bills into it. Consequently, I decided to force it open a little in order to loosen it up--now it's too loose. Now, I have a useless piece of metal that may find it's way into the garbage soon. I'm going back to the paper clip--easy to put money in, easy to take money out. It's just not as stylish.

I bought this money clip for when I go out and don't want a bulky wallet in my back pocket. It looked good when it arrived and felt like it was made well but unfortunately, it was much too tight. If you plan on holding 1 or 2 cards and a couple bills it's okay, otherwise you need something else. It might stretch out over time but it's just much too difficult to insert or remove cards/bills when you first use it. It fell from my hands at the club trying to remove my ID card and I wasn't able to find it. I could see that happening often, so I don't think I could justify ordering another one even though the price is great.

I found the joy and freedom of escaping the use of a regular wallet when my friend upgraded his money clip and gave me his old one. I enjoyed keeping it in my front pocket and sitting down without sitting on my wallet or wearing out jeans over time. Unfortunately I eventually lost that clip and so tried to find the highest rated on on Amazon to replace it. As many have stated this clip looks nice but when you stick about 20 bills plus a few cards in it (5), it no longer snaps back to how it was. I am writing this review because the 4.5 star rating seems a little high to me and I must agree with the 51 other 1-3 star folks to not waste your money. For $9.99 its not even worth the return. Invest in a higher quality clip that has a hinge - this will ensure the clip stays tight around your valuables.

Edit: I just wanted to update that I received a very nice email by the manufacturers of this clip apologizing for the issue and inviting to send me another clip for free. Though I much appreciate their email I have to respectfully stick to my review as it reflects my real feedback using this clip. The clip is beautiful and did come in a nice velvet case and since the manufacturers are so responsive I will upgrade this to a two-star rating with the caveat to not go above a few cards and bills. I find realistically though that some cashier will hand you back way too many ones or you will have to carry a few extra cards temporary for some reason. In this case you will overstretch the clip leading you to potentially lose your valuables.

I invested in a clip with a hinge around the same exact price (<$10) here on Amazon and am quite happy with it. I do want to thank the manufactures for the nice email and have added to the title of this review that they have great customer service.

looks good, feels good, and is not too large.
its a little tight when new, but its easy to open it up a tiny bit and it still holds things very tightly.

*NEXT-DAY UPDATE*
the very same day i give it five stars, it failed on me. after going to the supermarket and taking two bills (out of the five i had in it alongside one credit card), it has already lost enough tension to hold anything securely. my recommendation is to avoid money clips made from anything but spring steel.

*UPDATE 2*
seller contacted me to offer a replacement or just make things right. its a small and cheap item and i really dont want another so i declined. however i thought it should be noted that the seller takes their customers very seriously, which is commendable and leaves a good impression even though the product is not what i hoped it would be.

The wallet started coming unsewn after less than a week.

The material is ok, but the construction is stiff making it very awkward taking cards out. Going back to my worn old one. Bummer.

The card holder side of this money clip is pretty nice, lots of pockets, fits a good array of cards and feels pretty sturdy. The leather, black, feels ok... mid grade. But, the magnetic money clip aspect is insufficient, its loose, wobbly and readily comes undone when sliding it into your pocket. Balance... one over the other... the lack of an acceptable money clip weighs too heavily and without this its just a smaller wallet... without space for cash. I'm going to keep looking.

The magnet detaches from the cardboard insert and pulls at the leather... the magnet usually falls to the bottom of the flap once you open it. It's probably better to find one with an actual clip instead of magnets... I've had this for a few months... Only buy if you like getting wallets twice a year.

The leather is a decent quality, but the stitching leave much to be desired. long threads sewn into existing stiches and some threads missing from needle holes. Bought two different types and this one is not as good as the other of this style.

PROS: This wallet holds money well. The magnet is certainly strong and the license pocket is very handy. It will securely hold three credit cards in the pockets.CONS: The two additional pockets (referred to as "side slots" in the description) are functionally useless. You can get a card in there, but the fit is so snug that it won't come out. I have various membership cards and insurance cards I really need to carry, but they just won't fit. An extra quarter inch added to the length and width of this product would have easily fixed the problem.OVERALL: I wouldn't recommend this wallet unless you literally need to carry no more than three cards, one photo ID and some cash. Anything more will absolutely exceed the storage capacity of this wallet, regardless of the product description.

I put money into it and it did not keep its form and it no longer holds money or cards well.

Don't waste your money. I bought this money clip for my husband. He used this 4 or 5 times holding 1 credit card, drivers license and some cash. It has stretched out to the point he can no longer use it.

YOu can barely put your cards and money in it. Once I forcefully open it, it became mad loose. Come on a rubber band work better than this piece of metal.

Absolute garbage. I've owned money clips that spring back into shape and I've owned clips like this one. Once it's spread forget it, that's the new minimum that you can carry. If you're like me and sometimes you have eight bills while other times you have three then this clip will be worthless to you.

It does look like the picture. The velvet bag was nice I guess. But in terms of actually doing it's job, this fails 100%.

Didn't care for it. Not sure how others said "holds 10 credit cards and a bunch of money"......sharp edges- M-clip is much better (but is also much more $$$$)

Been using this wallet for a couple months and finally switched to an old pocket wallet I had not thrown out. You struggle to get the credit cards out of the slots. They seem to stick to the inside material.

I purchased this wallet in light brown and the various parts of the wallet were different colors...different shades of brown. The card slots were extremely tight. The wallet will be on its way back to Amazon ASAP. I'm very disappointed with the quality of this item even though it was very inexpensive.

Started great, but after a month of use I started noticing that the folded parts of the leather where coming apart, it's like the glue was not holding the leather together, I wouldn't recommend this product to anyone.

Loved it when I first got it, was everything I was looking for. After two weeks of use, the threads are starting to pull apart at the magnetic clip. Buyer beware of quality issues

Buyer beware! While this wallet is fairly functional it has an incredibly horrible smell. The 1st wallet they sent was so bad smelling anyone in the room was aware how bad it was. To the sellers credit they sent a replacement that is much better but still quite stinky. Is a musty/solvent type smell. Really a shame cause otherwise the wallet looks and works good. Will buy future wallets from a traditional store and throw this away.