For the ultimate in portability, soft-sided backpack-style coolers are the way to go. The designs borrow heavily from hiking daypacks, sharing features like shoulder straps, padded backpanels, and exterior pockets for added gear storage. Additionally, backpack coolers are fairly expensive considering their modest storage capacity and all-around performance (the Day Escape is pretty average in this category at $200). But if the approach to your favorite picnic spot or fishing hole involves walking more than a half mile or so, it may be worth the investment. For more on the topic, check out our article on the best backpack coolers.
These insulated small sized cooler bags come in a variety of styles and trendy colors. Many soft coolers do not have tiedown points, which would be a good feature for river or motorcycle trips. According to the ice retention test, this cooler can preserve ice for 25 hours. We brought this cooler on a car camping trip to Colorado for five days and tested it out on the lake, in the car, and on the trail. We used this cooler for our snacks and drinks, and it did well to keep our things cold for a couple of days at a time.
We tested all of the accessories, and most enjoyed pulling clean, super-cold ice out of the Icer to put directly into our lemonade while boogying to music all day outside. The igloo soft cooler SnackR containers were also great for pouring in fresh, chilled salsa and carrying sliced cheese. They were easy to slide in and stack on top of items inside the cooler.
A soft sided cooler that accommodates 12 cans of your favorite drinks, ideal for picnics, family outings or tailgating. Packing the cooler is simple and easy, just unzip by using the dual zippers located at the top. The main compartment is spacious, the interior is designed with an enhanced insulation and antimicrobial liner. On the front is a zippered pocket for holding your smartphone, keys or other essentials. The side has a mesh water bottle pocket and storage loops for napkins, magazines and so on. It’s complete with an adjustable shoulder strap for easily transporting from one outdoor event to the next.
While adventuring throughout the Southwest, Groos took these coolers on a multitude of activities ranging from day trips to the lake to go fishing and swimming to multiday road trips. The exterior is made of a 600-denier polyester shell that’s waterproof. The zipper is completely watertight with welded seams, so leaking isn’t on the menu. We noticed the zipper is hard to pull one-handed, and we typically need to counter-pull the side handles to open or close it.
We were impressed with how slender this large bag feels, due to the tapered design and sleek crown to this tote. The exterior is buttery smooth, easy to wipe down, and is just as durable as all the other touchpoints from top to bottom. Overall, despite being large, this Yeti tote is simply comfortable to carry.
In use, we’ve found these to be incredibly useful and helpful for keeping track of our belongings whether we’re spending a day at a local state park or enjoying an afternoon at the beach. We also appreciate when these pockets are water-resistant, which provides a little extra assurance against splashes or precipitation. A few models that include functional stash pockets include the RTIC Soft Pack Cooler, Orca Walker Tote, and Arctic Zone Titan Deep Freeze. The opening style and closure system of a soft-sided cooler may not seem all that important, but we can tell you firsthand that it will have a sizable impact on both convenience and overall performance. The Yeti Hopper M30, for instance, has a rigid magnet-equipped opening that requires considerable effort to keep open while loading and unloading food and drinks. Upon closer inspection, it’s easy to see why this cooler does well.
Pesky odors can be treated with a diluted mixture of bleach and water. Make sure to rinse thoroughly before leaving the cooler out to air dry with the lid open, which will minimize the chance of mold or mildew buildup. Once it’s dry, store your cooler in a dry place with the zipper closed. Pockets and OrganizationSoft coolers come in a range of shapes and designs, but many include at least one exterior pocket for stashing small valuables like a phone, wallet, or keys.
No matter your budget or needs, our exhaustive testing will help you identify the perfect cooler for you. External Attachment PointsMany soft coolers, including Yeti’s Hopper M30 and REI Co-op’s Cool Haul 24, have daisy chain webbing along the outside for securing extra gear. In use, we’ve found this area useful for keeping valuables like keys close at hand (we use a carabiner to attach them). And we particularly like the stretchy bungee system on the Arctic Zone Titan Deep Freeze, which makes it easy to secure a lightweight jacket or small towel on top.