The 8 Best Coolers of 2023, Tested and Reviewed

Best Overall

YETI Tundra 65 Cooler

4.8

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Yeti is probably the most famous name in cooler-dom, and it's for good reason. The company's Tundra line of hard-sided coolers are incredibly durable, well-designed, and well-built. They are able to keep all the food and drinks cold for an entire weekend camping trip while also serving as a chair for someone to sit on around the fire. And all models are indeed certified bear-proof by the Interagency Grizzly Bear Committee—as long as they're padlocked closed. Tundra coolers come in a wide range of sizes, from the day-at-the-beach 35 model to the bathtub-sized 350, but we think that the 65 offers the best balance of size and cost.

Cost is the big downside: Yeti is also probably the most expensive name in cooler-dom. This cooler is a big investment that'll last a long time, but it might only be worth it if you're going to use a cooler a lot. The Tundra 65 is also fairly heavy, especially when filled up, but the heavy-duty polyester handles let two people share the load and move it around more easily.

Price at time of publish: $375

Overall Dimensions: 30.6 x 17.3 x 16 inches | Carrying Capacity: About 55 quarts, 52 pounds of ice, or 42 cans with a 2:1 ice-to-can ratio | Material: Polyurethane foam insulation, UV-resistant polyethylene exterior

Best Budget

Igloo Retro Picnic Basket Cooler

4.2

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With an old-school picnic basket shape in neon colors straight out of the '90s, this cooler looks super fun. It might not be sized to feed a group for a full camping trip, but it is perfect for a day at the beach or a music festival. And for a small, cheap cooler, it performed amazingly well in our tests: a cooler full of ice and 11 cans stayed at 33 degrees for a full 24 hours.

That insulation performance is extra surprising considering how light the cooler is. It's just made of hard plastic, which cracked when dropped during our test. That didn't render the cooler useless, but a few more dings and cracks would; it's not a great choice for heavy use.

Price at time of publish: $55

Overall Dimensions: 19.8 x 12.9 x 13.1 inches | Carrying Capacity: 25 quarts, 23 pounds of ice, or 11 cans with a 2:1 ice-to-can ratio | Material: Plastic exterior

Best Wheeled

YETI Tundra Haul Portable Wheeled Cooler

4.6

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Yeti makes fantastic coolers. They're durable, well-constructed, and insulate their contents amazingly well. They are, however, priced accordingly. Like the Tundra 65, our overall winner, the Tundra Haul was able to keep nearly two dozen cans ice-cold for a full 24 hours without any trouble, but it's got a folding handle and set of wheels for easier transport. The one-piece plastic "Neverflat" tires are designed to be impact- and puncture-resistant and can handle rocky trails, grassy parks, potholed tailgate parking lots, and bumpy docks with ease. (Yeti states that sand won't damage the wheels but admits that they might not roll well on the beach.)

This cooler is made with the same insulation, lid design, and cold-lock gasket as the rest of the Yeti Tundra line, and performed equally well in our Lab tests. It’s virtually indestructible—absolutely strong enough to use as a chair with no damage—and the handle is a durable welded-aluminum arm with comfortable grips that tucks flat into indentations in the side. The curved design tracks left or right for easy steering. Besides the sky-high price tag, the only real downside our testers found is that it doesn't have any carrying handles: It's easy to wheel into place, but lifting a full cooler onto a table or tailgate is a bit of a pain,

Price at time of publish: $450

Overall Dimensions: 28.3 x 18.6 x 19.5 inches | Carrying Capacity: About 58 quarts, 55 pounds of ice, or 45 cans with a 2:1 ice-to-can ratio | Material: Polyurethane foam insulation, UV-resistant polyethylene exterior

Best Soft

RTIC Insulated Soft Cooler Bag

4.8

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The RTIC Insulated Soft Cooler Bag looks like a Yeti cooler, but comes at a lower price. We tested the 30-can version in our Lab (there are also options for 12, 20, and 40 cans), but to make more room for ice, we scaled down to 20 cans instead. Considering the contents, this cooler is fairly large and does get heavy, so it isn't the easiest to tote around. We just wouldn't suggest taking it on long excursions, as it comes with just two handle carrying straps and one shoulder strap. That said, there is a 20- and 30-can backpack version with a padded and ventilated back panel, shoulder straps, and waist straps that we also tested and rated highly.

As far as insulation goes, the RTIC features 2-inch closed-cell foam with a puncture- and tear-resistant liner to keep drinks nice and cold. After filling it with soda cans and ice, we left it to sit in our 70-degree Lab. After 24 hours, the temperature had only risen 11 degrees from our original temperature reading the day prior (compared to about 7 degrees for the similar Yeti we tested). About 20 percent of the ice remained, as well. And while you likely won't be getting rough and rowdy with this cooler, we did toss it off a tabletop to test its durability. Not only did it survive the fall with flying colors, but it also didn't leak a single drop.

Like most zippered coolers with excellent insulation and a leakproof design, the zipper on this cooler can be a little difficult to open and close at first, though it does come with lubricant. The super-tight seal and heavy-duty nylon shell even allow you to take this into water, such as lakes, rivers, and pools—every RTIC Soft Pack Cooler is designed to float. It's a wonderful option for boating, camping, beach days, backyard barbecues, and more.

Price at time of publish: $120

Overall Dimensions: 12 x 10 x 8 inches | Carrying Capacity: About 20 quarts, 18 pounds of ice, or 30 cans with no ice | Empty Weight: 4 pounds | Material: Nylon

Best Backpack

RTIC Backpack Soft Cooler

4.8

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Taking your things with you on the go? RTIC has a backpack for that. The company’s soft-sided cooler backpack can hold 30 cans and a bag of ice. Designed to keep your perishables cold for days, it features an easy-access zipper on the front, allowing you to grab a drink or snack without having to stop and dig around. Additionally, it floats, so you can take it along with you on pool and lake days.

In our Lab, we found that the zipper was hard to open (this is because of its top-notch insulation and leakproof design), but the included lubricant made the process slightly smoother. The zipper has a durable, T-shaped plastic piece instead of a traditional metal slider, which makes it easier for you to get a good grip and pull the teeth open and shut.

Although this bag can hold 30 cans and ice, we used 20 cans and ice. After filling and leaving it in the Lab for 24 hours, we were pleasantly surprised to find that just 50 percent of the ice had melted and the temperature had only dropped 11 degrees. Despite its large size, it's also really comfortable to carry, as there is a lot of padding for your shoulders and back on both the straps and the actual cooler. There's also ventilation on the back panel to ward off moisture and a waist strap to help with weight distribution. You won't feel like you have a giant backpack on filled with ice and cans despite, well, having a giant backpack on filled with ice and cans.

There are multiple places where you can attach a carabiner, and the stretchy straps at the front offer additional real estate for storing soft items, such as a small tent, towel, rain jacket, or compact sleeping bag. If you’re someone who loves the outdoors, then this cooler backpack is pretty much right up your alley. You can take it with you from the mountains to the lake—hands-free, at that.

Price at time of publish: $300

Overall Dimensions: 20.25 x 15 x 10 inches | Carrying Capacity: 30 cans and a bag of ice | Material: 100 percent waterproof fabric shell

Best Portable

Engel HD30 32 Quart Heavy-Duty Soft Sided Cooler Bag

4.3

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For a large and easy-to-transport cooler, look no further than this Engel 32-quart bag. It's equipped with not only an over-the-shoulder strap, but top and side handles as well for added convenience. Plus, our Lab tests proved that this bag is capable of holding up to 60 cans, which is great for large gatherings.

Made with foam-like insulation in the interior, this cooler also has a drainage plug and bottle opener. We also appreciate the waterproof material and zipper, which ensures no leakage. One thing to note from testing is that this cooler can get rather heavy when filled up completely. Although the spacious size of the bag is ideal for holding a mini bar fit for a party, it also means the weight can get uncomfortable when carrying for long periods of time.

Price at time of publish: $240

Overall Dimensions: 20.5 x 9.5 x 17 inches | Carrying Capacity: 30 quarts | Material: Thermoplastic Polyurethane

Best for Quick Meals

Polar Bear Coolers Original Nylon Soft Cooler

4.6

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A cooler's insulation can just as easily keep hot food hot as it can cold food cold. This highly portable soft bag is ideal for bringing a meal to a potluck or anybody in need of hot sustenance, whether it be a new parent or sick relative. The cooler can also keep food and drinks cold for a day hike, be used if you want to prep ingredients ahead and cook later elsewhere, or it can just keep your beer refreshingly cold for a day of fishing.

Polar Bear's soft cooler is well-constructed, using the same kind of nylon and stitching as you'd find in fancy soft-sided luggage, and it's got both a pair of handles and an adjustable shoulder strap to make carrying easy. It's also one of the rare coolers that actually held the number of cans advertised—ice included. In our tests, the bag was able to keep cans cold (44 degrees) for 24 hours, though not quite under the USDA's recommended food-safe temperature of 40 degrees. It also leaks through the zipper if turned upside down or sideways, so you have to make sure it stays upright.

The Polar Bear brand makes this cooler in a bunch of different colors and sizes—including a backpack model—so you can also customize your pick to your particular needs.

Price at time of publish: $80

Overall Dimensions: 14 x 7 x 12 inches | Carrying Capacity: 12 cans with ice | Material: Nylon, high-density foam insulation