The Coleman® 30 Qt Performance Cooler has everything you would want in a cooler. The insulation keeps food and beverage extra cold, the hinged lid includes two molded cup holders for quick access to your beverage, and the new, stylish outer casing will impress all your friends and co-workers. When it’s time for storage, the dry bin folds flat and can be easily and securely stored on top of the lid.
For those who plan to carry or move their cooler with any regularity, weight should be an important consideration. Even when empty, hard-sided options weigh anywhere from pounds for low-capacity models up to 50+ pounds for premium designs with 75+ quarts of storage. And despite including carry handles, they’re simply too hefty to travel with for long distances. If portability is a priority, we recommend looking at options with wheels, such as RovR’s RollR 45 or Igloo’s Trailmate Journey. For $65, the 50-quart Coleman Xtreme is another standout in the value category, and this time with wheels. In the same family as our top budget pick, this basic cooler certainly is a far cry from the RovR RollR, Igloo Trailmate, and Pelican 80QT Elite above, but the functionality is decent for the price.
This is a great asking price and perfect for someone on an extremely tight budget. And it also makes it very easy to overlook some of the inherent flaws that may exist with these ice chests. But, when compared to the much more expensive ice chests out there, there will be some noticeable differences in build quality and features. That’s enough to hold plenty of ice, drinks, and food for a family of three. Anything smaller, and you end up carrying a lot of bag and not carrying much of anything else.
One charm of the RTIC 65 is its reasonable price, which allows us to be far less careful with this equipment than we are with something as expensive or desirable as a Yeti. We gauged the ease of grabbing the handles without looking and noted whether they required extra steps to slide them out into place or push them back down out of the way. We evaluated each drain (if there was one) to see how thorough a job it does and how simple it is to use. And for wheeled models, of course, we considered how that pair of spinning discs affects the chest’s usage when you’re not actively pulling it around. Ease of use is a critical factor in your overall happiness with any given product. We gauged how easy each cooler was to open and close — whether or not the lid fully shut after closing, latch maneuverability, ease of loading, capacity, and if it included any convenient features like dry bins.
These coolers are solid, bear-proof, and boast of the ability to keep food cold for 5-10 days. This baseline Coleman Chest product doesn’t have a lot of visual stimulation. There are a few different colors to choose from, which is nice, and the larger coolers have well-placed built-in cupholders which add a bit of spice to the overall look (but not much).
At the other end of the spectrum, budget-oriented models like the Coleman Xtreme and Igloo ECOCOOL forgo latches completely and rely on a good fit between the lid and cooler body. This results in reduced insulating performance and means you need to keep a close eye on the lid to make sure it doesn’t pop loose or fall off in transport. Rotomolded coolers like YETI’s Tundra above are made out of a single piece of continuous plastic, which is great for durability but means they typically lack built-in features and mounting locations.
Many of the top hard-sided coolers are listed as bear-resistant, which is a worthwhile consideration should you be camping in bear country. However, not all coolers listed as bear-resistant carry this certification—you can see a full list of certified coolers here. If you coleman sundome frequent the backcountry or will be traveling where bear-proof gear is required, make sure your cooler is on the list. ROAM is primarily a rooftop tent manufacturer and well regarded among serious outdoor-goers like overlanders and those who like to get off the grid.
Thankfully, the market is packed with high-quality coolers that excel at everything from short day trips to week-long adventures. Below we break down our favorite hard-sided designs of 2023, including budget-friendly Coleman models, ultra-premium YETIs, and popular coleman sundome offerings from brands like RTIC, ORCA, Pelican, and more. For more background information, see our cooler comparison table and buying advice below the picks. The most important metric for most of us is how well an ice chest keeps food cold and fresh.
Uniquely, it includes a release valve to alleviate the pressure created by the lid’s seal. Though the Dometic CFX3 doesn’t have an energy-saving mode like many other powered coolers, it does have different levels of battery conservation that ensure it won’t prevent you from starting your car in the morning. And even while cooling, it draws just 50.7 watts, which is on the low end of powered coolers we tested.