The 5 best coolers for camping and long drives: Consumer Reports

Coolers keep food and drinks safely cold on camping trips, beach days, and long drives. The wrong model lets ice melt within hours, leaving food unsafe and drinks warm before a trip even ends.

Consumer Reports tested coolers in a 116-degree chamber to see which ones kept ice frozen longest, so shoppers can pick a cooler built for the heat.

Credit: RTIC

The RTIC Outdoors 52 Quart Ultra-Light Cooler kept soda below 40 degrees for more than five days inside a 116-degree test chamber. Consumer Reports named it the top pick of the six coolers tested, citing the long ice retention and $206.99 price as reasons it beat pricier rivals. CR measured the empty cooler at 21 pounds, heavier than most rivals, and found that dragging it fully packed with ice took real effort despite its rubber feet. Long rope handles let two people share the load, and a second set built into the lid makes it easier to carry alone.

Credit: Yeti

At $325, the Yeti Tundra 45 Hard Cooler costs more than every other cooler in the test. Consumer Reports found it matched the RTIC as the only model that still held ice after 72 hours in a 118-degree chamber, with its soda can never rising above 49 degrees. CR measured its interior at just 38 quarts, well short of the 45 quarts advertised on the label. At 24.6 pounds, it holds the only spot among the coolers CR tested on the Interagency Grizzly Bear Committee's list of bear-resistant products, and it carries better solo thanks to a second set of handles built into its sides.

Credit: Igloo

Even after its ice had fully melted around the 72-hour mark, the Igloo Latitude 52 Quart Cooler kept soda at a chilly 45 degrees. At $50.99, it costs a fraction of the pricier RTIC and Yeti, and Consumer Reports named it the budget pick of the six. At 11.7 pounds, it was lighter than every cooler CR tested except the Coleman Classic, and internal temperatures still climbed to 76 degrees once the chamber's heat intensified. The lid has no locks and opens easily, but there are no drainage holes, so emptying melted ice means tipping the whole cooler over.

Credit: Pelican

Consumer Reports found that the Pelican 50QT Elite Cooler kept its contents frozen for four days and held steady even as chamber temperatures hit 116 degrees, though it didn't perform as well as the RTIC or Yeti. Priced at $310.95, it comes with a lifetime warranty, but CR measured its interior at about 46 quarts, modest for such a bulky exterior. At 32.2 pounds, it outweighed every other cooler CR tested, and testers said it was difficult to lift and move even when empty. Two side handles make it easier to carry despite the weight, and a lid that locks with an audible click keeps it secure during rough handling.

Credit: Coleman

With 80 cans of capacity, the Coleman Classic Series 52 Quart Hard Cooler has more room than any other cooler Consumer Reports tested. Even so, all its ice had melted before testers raised the chamber's temperature into the triple digits. At $56.13, it costs less than nearly every cooler in the test, and at just 8.6 pounds empty, it was easy to drag across the floor once filled with ice. The side handles fold down for storage, but the lid closed abruptly on testers' hands several times during use.