Guided by experts, we spend hours looking into the factors that matter, to bring you these selections. The ice retention of this cooler makes it top-tier for road trips or camping. A small increase in humidity could bring a few stray showers into the region later today with a few more isolated showers and storms on Thursday.
All of these features make the Ozark Trail Cooler brand eye candy. For that reason, you have to be concerned about the durability and the build quality of the cooler you are going to buy. We also see that booth the Ozark Trail and YETI feature anti-skid rubber feet on most of their top-of-the-line coolers. Due to that, you can place these coolers on any type of surface without any issues.
Again, the right size for you depends on how you pack your cooler and how long you need to keep things cold (more ice takes up more volume). Over the years, we’ve tested the Hopper backpack in a variety of climates. While the bag can occasionally keep things cold for more than a day, this depends on how it’s packed and where it’s stored. On average, I’m comfortable assuming that the Hopper will keep whatever I’ve packed cold for a solid day regardless of the situation. The wheels are a single-construction plastic and not hollow or feeble-feeling as on so many other coolers. These dry bag coolers did great in our submersion tests, and they float, making these a great option to take along on the kayak.
It also has a small area to insert your hand for lifting, but it’s less comfortable to carry that way. Some other models are easy to use because of their excellent design and features. The Clevermade Pacifica Collapsible Bag 30 reigns supreme in terms of convenience—largely because of how easily you can collapse and store it. The soft sides, which snap into place when you open it, can fold into the strap at the ozark cooler base of the cooler when you’re done.
These are perfect for sticking your cell phone, keys, wallet, or anything else that you don’t want to get potentially cold and/or wet in the insulated area. As is typical of most other cooler brands, the smaller coolers will utilize an overhead carrying handle while the larger coolers will stick to traditional side rope handles. We will go into more detail about the specific features later in this review. In addition to this, Ozark Trail also has some more mainstream designs for those who are simply on a tight budget and looking for a product to pack their lunch or picnic in. It won’t go for days, but this backpack cooler is more than capable of keeping your picnic cool until it’s time to roll out the picnic blanket. This highly rugged cooler is designed to withstand scrapes and jabs, ensuring it remains in top condition.
This allows hot drinks to stay hot and cold drinks to stay cold, and it’s “MagSlider Lid” helps prevent heat or cold from escaping but won’t entirely prevent spillage. It’s claims to be BPA-free and has a “no sweat” design, which keeps fingers dry. The Yeti has the most streamlined design of the three coolers, staying true to the original Yeti look and feel. The overall product weight of this cooler is 37lbs empty which is inline with the Pelican, but 7lbs heavier than the Ozark Trail cooler. The Tundra Haul features rubber clasps, which I really like, and hard plastic wheels. Pelican is a newer entry in to the world of rotomolded coolers and have taken their own spin on design and function.
But if you are on a tighter budget, the Ozark Trail Cooler might also cut it as it is a very good cooler – but the ice may not resist as much as in the case of YETI. Yeti introduced a magnetic closure in 2022, which offered a huge improvement on the former zipper closure but also introduced its own complications. The bag is now significantly easier to open but also more difficult to keep open. Yeti seems to have added some bridging support to help hold the bag open, but those magnets simply want to be together. The Canyon Coolers Outfitter ozark trail canopy 55 Quart Cooler is all but indestructible for longer camping and rafting trips if you don’t mind giving up a bit of interior space for thicker insulation.
Wirecutter is the product recommendation service from The New York Times. Our journalists combine independent research with (occasionally) over-the-top testing so you can make quick and confident buying decisions. Whether it’s finding great products or discovering helpful advice, we’ll help you get it right (the first time). The Yeti Tundra Haul Wheeled Cooler pairs the indestructible nature of a roto-molded cooler ozark cooler with top-of-the-line handles and wheels for moving around with ease. This is because, despite looking like a roto-molded cooler, the Ultra-Light series is injection-molded, which uses less plastic and results in a lighter cooler. Though robust and watertight, the Engel HD zipper is also much easier to use than most, and it comes with zipper lubricant, helping it remain explicative-free.
While Rtic coolers aren’t the cheapest coolers on the market, a 20-quart model will run you about $159, and the 65-quart comes in a little under $300. They’re certainly cheaper than their Yeti counterparts, and they’ll still get the job done with flair. With its hard-bodied style and blocky black logo, RTIC is clearly making a run at Yeti’s business model. Honestly, a lot of the time the decision really does come down to Rtic cooler vs. Yeti cooler.