The best camping chairs we tested
Best camping chair: Kelty Deluxe Lounge Chair
Best budget camping chair: Coleman Cooler Quad Chair
The best camping chair can keep you comfortable around the fire pit, around the camping table while you’re eating dinner, on the sidelines of your kid’s soccer game and even in your backyard. Along with a camping tent and maybe even a cot, chairs are a crucial item on anyone’s camping checklist.
But some camp chairs are flimsy, unstable and so uncomfortable you can’t even enjoy your time outdoors. To find camp chairs you’ll love sitting in, we tested 17 of the most popular chairs ourselves. Here are the only two we recommend.
If you care about comfort, this is the camp chair to get. It’s astonishingly comfortable, has the best cup holders we tested and can even recline if you want to take a midafternoon nap.
The Coleman Cooler Quad Chair is a great all-around pick for people who want a simple camp chair without breaking the bank. It wasn’t comfortable or portable, but it performed solidly in all our tests.
Best camping chair: Kelty Deluxe Lounge Chair
The Kelty Deluxe Lounge Chair’s biggest attribute is its comfort. If you’re planning on sitting in a chair for hours on end and don’t mind toting around its bulk, this is the chair for you.
For $90, the Kelty is nearly as comfortable as the most comfortable chair we tested, the Nemo Stargaze Reclining Camp Chair, which cost $250, and we even thought it was cozier than the Yeti Trailhead, which cost $300. For the price, you’re just not going to find a comfier chair on the market.
View this interactive content on CNN.comThe Kelty is so comfortable thanks to its quilted, padded seat and back. Other chairs we tested had some padding, but nothing felt as luxurious as the Kelty. It’s also an oversized chair, so you have plenty of room to lean back and relax, even without using the chair’s reclining function. If you want to sneak in an afternoon nap at camp though, this chair does recline far enough to get some shut-eye.
Beyond its comfort, the Kelty comes jam-packed with other features that make it truly stand out. One feature it had that was lacking from nearly every other chair was a good cup holder. Others had cheap, plastic or mesh cup holders that could hold water bottles or cans but rarely both at the same time. The Kelty, on the other hand, comes equipped with a genius, adjustable cup holder that can fit a bulky Hydro Flask or a beer can without fear of spilling. Plus, the cup holders have a little insulation to keep your drink cold.
On top of fantastic cup holders, the Kelty has a carry wrap bag to easily pack and transport the chair. It wraps around the chair and clips together in seconds, which we found easier than trying to wrestle chairs into the traditional thin and restrictive bags. But the coolest thing about the wrap bag is that it can also act as a sit pad for your dog, or a sort of door mat to your chair where you can take your shoes off without getting your feet dirty.
While the Kelty is the ultimate in comfort, it might not be for everyone. Since it is so large and comfortable, it doesn’t pack down as small as normal camp chairs or the lightweight and portable ones we tested. So if you don’t have a lot of real estate in your car, you might want to opt for a different option. We also wish this chair had a hanging pocket where you could conveniently stash a book or smartphone while you relax.
The $90 price tag is certainly high for a camp chair, but if you want something you can comfortably nap in, there isn’t a better option. However, if you want a more straightforward and traditional camp chair for half the price, check out our budget pick.
Best budget camping chair: Coleman Cooler Quad Chair
For those who don’t need the most comfortable chair and just need a seat for a few hours, the Coleman Cooler Quad Chair is what we recommend. It’s packable and comfortable, and its $45 price tag makes it hard to beat.
There were a couple of other mid-tier chairs in the race for our budget pick (namely the Kijaro Dual-Lock Camp Chair and the REI Co-op Skyward Chair), but the Coleman came out on top because it’s truly the Goldilocks of camp chairs. It’s not outstanding but can adequately do everything you want and need in a camp chair.
After sitting in all the chairs to gauge their comfort, I was surprised this one ranked right in the middle. For just $45, it offers a decently plush and relaxing experience, thanks to its fully cushioned seat and back. The fabric of the chair isn’t super taut, and it feels more like you’re sinking into a well-worn couch than some of the other camp chairs we tested.
The rest of the Coleman’s features were just good enough to edge it above the competition. It has one cup holder that can only fit a can and doesn’t feel as well-made as its Kelty counterpart (it’s simply mesh and a plastic ring), but this chair does come with a storage pouch that hangs off the right side where you can easily stash a book, and the left armrest even has a built-in, four-can cooler. This makes it a great option for tailgating or long afternoons around the campfire since you won’t have to get up to get another drink.
The Coleman is also more packable than most other chairs we tested. It isn’t as small and lightweight as the Helinox Chair Two or Cliq ClassiQ Chair, but it’s the size of a normal camp chair and quite thin, so it’s easy enough to slide into the back of your car when you’re packing.
This chair isn’t perfect by any means, but it punches above its weight class. It’s more comfortable and cheaper than you’d expect while still being small and light enough to easily pack around. Do we wish it had a better cup holder? Yes. But if you don’t need to fit a large water bottle and don’t want to splurge on something more luxurious, you can’t go wrong with the Coleman Cooler Quad Camp Chair.
How we tested
To find the best camp chairs, we got our hands on every chair included in this story and ran it through the same gauntlet of tests. We sat in each one to judge comfort, rocked in it on unstable ground and made sure its cup holders could actually fit water bottles and cans without spilling. Here’s the breakdown of every single test we ran.
Performance
- Comfort: We sat in each chair to judge how comfortable it really was. After sitting in each one, we ranked them from most comfortable to least comfortable, taking note of attributes like cushioning, armrests, headrests, general feel and more.
- Ease of setup and breakdown: We timed ourselves setting up and breaking down every single chair.
- Portability and storage: We packed up each chair and organized them from smallest to largest, and judged how easy they’d be to pack up on a camping trip or for soccer practice.
- Stability: We sat on each chair on an uneven, rocky slope and shifted our weight around to see if the chairs wanted to tip over from side to side or front to back.
Design
- Features: We counted and judged each chair’s features, including cup holders, pockets, adjustability, reclining and rocking ability, and more.
- Weight: We took note of each chair’s listed weight and weighed each ourselves.
- Materials: We examined each chair’s materials, looking for any elements that appeared to be cheap or areas that were prone to breaking.
- Weight limit: We took note of each chair’s listed weight limit.
- Warranty: We researched each chair’s warranty and return policy.
Other camping chairs we tested
The Kijaro Chair was our runner-up for the best budget pick. It’s quite comfortable and has a good cup holder and pocket setup, but we think it’s a bit too big and bulky for most.
We enjoyed the Kijaro, but it’s a bit longer and harder to pack than the Coleman, and when it’s set up, it takes up a lot more room. Its seat is made of a more taut material, so if you don’t want to feel like you’re sinking into a chair, this could be a good pick.
A close competitor for our budget pick, this REI chair was just a bit too expensive compared to the Coleman.
Another front-runner for the budget pick, this chair was similar to the Coleman in its comfortability, but we didn’t like its cup holders and it cost $15 more than the Coleman. However, if you can get it during one of REI’s many sales, it’s worth snagging.
This was the most comfortable chair we tested, but its price took it out of the running.
We loved the Stargaze Reclining Chair, as its rocking motion and hammock-like design provide unparalleled comfort at the campground. It’s reasonably packable, but it takes a few more steps to set up and, at $250, has a price that’s tough to justify.
Out of all the GCI chairs we tested, this is the one we’d pick. It folds down for decent packability and has a higher back than the Freestyle to rest your head. It isn’t as comfortable as the Kelty, but it's still a great chair.
We really enjoyed the Stowaway Rocker and think it’s the perfect GCI chair. It folds as small as the Freestyle, with the height of the Comfort Pro. It also has ultra-cushioned armrests, which were a big bonus. It wasn’t quite as comfy as the Kelty, and like all other GCI chairs, it isn’t the best on uneven ground, which is why it didn’t win out.
Its rocking function is nice, but this chair’s lack of stability and general comfort knocked it down.
GCI’s chairs are famous for using shock absorbers in their back legs to create a rocking motion that helps you relax at the campsite. While the rocking was nice, this chair’s small seat and uneasiness on bumpy ground meant that it didn’t earn one of our top spots.
A bit too bulky, this rocking chair is more comfortable than the Freestyle but not comfortable enough to be our top pick.
This chair was comfy but bulkier than the Stowaway and has the same problems with stability as other GCI chairs.
The Yeti chair was one of the most comfortable we tested, bested only by the two Keltys and the Nemo Stargaze. However, it was the most expensive chair we tested and it only has one cup holder. For the money, we would want more fancy features and luxuries that just aren’t present.
With the same amazing comfort as the Deluxe Lounge Chair but with no reclining feature, this double-wide chair is perfect for couples or individuals with dogs.
This chair is quite famous in the camping world, and after testing it out, it’s easy to see why. This chair was incredibly comfortable, easy to set up and had the best cup holders we tested. The double-wide size isn’t necessary for everyone, but if you want a chair for two people (or one person and a dog) this is the ultimate pick.
An extra-large comfy chair, the Alps couldn’t quite keep up with the Kelty Deluxe Lounge.
The highlight of this chair is its astounding 800-pound weight limit and its enormous size. When packed up, only the Yeti Trailhead was bigger. This means the King Kong is big and comfortable, but we thought the padding wasn’t as nice as the Kelty’s and the huge size makes it a pain to transport.
This REI chair wasn’t as comfortable and doesn’t have any features besides a cup holder.
The Wonderland Chair is probably the best looking of the bunch, but it wasn’t as comfortable as we’d hoped. Its taut fabric on the seat just couldn’t compete with the ultra-padded feel of the Kelty, and without extra features beyond a cup holder, it fell down the ranks.
This small chair might be great for some since it sets up instantly and is really comfortable. It doesn’t have armrests or a cup holder, but it’s a nice, compact chair.
The Camp Low is smaller and sits lower than a normal camp chair, but it doesn’t have the multi-step setup like other lightweight chairs. It quickly unfolds, has a padded seat and back and is quite comfortable to sit in. It doesn’t have a cup holder or armrests, but it does have a pocket on the back. Since it isn’t as portable as other lightweight options but not as comfortable as larger chairs, it didn’t score high enough to snag a top spot, but it could be a solid option for some.
As with most other lightweight chairs, the Chair Two wasn’t comfortable or stable enough to win our tests. However, if you’re looking for a portable chair, this was our favorite one.
Out of the ultra-portable and lightweight chairs we tested, this was our favorite. Most of these chairs require a few steps to set up, and the Chair Two was no exception. Putting the poles together and attaching the fabric only takes about one minute, and it packs up so small you could even throw it in a backpack. However, as with all small chairs, it wasn’t super stable or nearly as comfortable as larger options. If you are looking for a portable chair that has a great balance of portability, comfort and affordability (compared to other lightweight chairs), the Chair Two is a solid pick.
A portable chair that’s faster to set up, this could be a great portable pick for those who don’t want to mess with poles.
The Cliq chair sets up and breaks down faster than the other lightweight chairs we tested but isn’t quite as comfortable. When sitting and moving around, I could feel the metal legs through the fabric, which wasn’t a huge deal but still knocked it down a couple of points. It’s nicely portable, and if you don’t want to deal with setting up poles but still want a portable seat, you might want to go with the Cliq over the Chair Two.
A bit bigger and more comfortable than the Chair Two, this Helinox option is another great pick, but its price is too high for our liking.
A slightly bigger, more comfortable and sturdier version of the Chair Two, the Sunset Chair is decently cozy and packs up into an incredibly portable package. Its price of $179 is much higher than the other lightweight chairs we tested though, and it couldn’t compete with larger chairs in terms of comfort and features.
This chair takes too long to set up and isn’t comfortable to sit in. We’d recommend the other lightweight chairs if you want something portable and our top picks if you’re looking for comfort.
The setup of this chair took me about 90 seconds once I figured it out and practiced all the steps. This was by far the longest setup time of any chair we tested, and it also required the most physical effort. The plastic of the PopLounge can also be quite rough, and while I was setting it up the first time, I actually scraped up my hand in the process. After spending so much time setting it up, I really wish it were nicer to sit in, but it was the least comfortable chair I tested. The PopLounge folds nearly flat, similar in size to the GCI Freestyle Rocker, but still much larger than other lightweight chairs.