The 4-pound, steel-framed REI chair has an attached carry strap, rather than a carry bag (which the other chairs have). After a couple of camping trips, we concluded that a strap is more convenient than a bag—it’s quicker and easier for a kid to grab the chair and go, without parental help. The Chair One is rated to hold up to 320 pounds—more than any other lightweight chair we tested aside from the Moon Lence. It can hold a lot of supplies, and it’s easy to carry and set up. The King Kong chair has two cupholders and intuitively placed storage pouches under each armrest; unlike the Coleman chair, though, this one doesn’t have a cooler pouch.
Renetto licenses its patent to a company called Kelsyus, which makes cheaper versions of the chair. However, they don’t have all of the same features. There are also chairs that are hybrids between categories, such as the Nemo Stargaze Reclining Camp Chair, which comes highly rated and recommended. We’re planning to look at all of these chairs. Since 2016, our testers (with different body types and physical needs) have subjected camping chairs to multiple camping trips. We chose the Coleman Cooler Quad Chair as the model with the right combination of comfort, durability, usability, and price for most campers.
In summer 2023, she bought a newer Coleman Cooler Quad Chair to compare to her 2016 model, and she found them to be more or less the same. If you’re looking for highly specialized or ultra-lightweight chairs for backpacking, our recommendations are probably not for you. We also don’t have suggestions for couch-style or loveseat chairs (we’d like to look at those someday, though). Kalee Thompson is the senior editor heading up Wirecutter’s kid coverage. When she wrote the first version of this guide, Kalee lived in Southern California, where she tested chairs on three group camping trips.
Each comes with a convenient carrying bag that you can sling over your shoulder. Made from an easy-to-clean polyester fabric and metal ozark trail chair frame. Many testers found other chairs more comfortable and easier to put together than the Nemo Moonlite Reclining Camp Chair.
Discover the ultimate portable chair for your outdoor adventures—whether you’re camping, at the beach, or on the sidelines of your kids’ game. The CLIQ ClassiQ folds to the size of a water bottle, sets up in seconds, and supports up to 300 lbs. Lightweight, durable, and designed for your comfort, easily stores in your car or “go-bag.” It’s your ideal travel companion for effortless relaxation anywhere. It has the highest weight capacity and largest seat of any chair we tested.
Despite the Renetto chair’s weight and bulk, our testers found it simple to set up and adjust. It’s extra-supportive for people with joint issues. Testers with knee and hip issues reported that when they were getting in and out of this chair, its armrests felt more stable than those of any other model. So they felt comfortable leaning onto the frame for extra support.
But if you want to kick back and stay comfy, the right camping chair can make all the difference. Our ClassiQ Chair has been thoroughly tested. It has been rated to support weights up to 300 lbs. All CLIQ chairs are engineered to take a beating and keep on ticking with high-performance canopy materials that don’t stain and are guaranteed to last a lifetime.
Sturdy arm rests and sits a little higher from the ground, making it a great choice for taller people. Senior editor Kalee Thompson, who wrote a previous version of this guide, has been regularly using the Coleman chair she originally tested in 2016. Aside from the color fading and the cooler pouch deteriorating, her chair has held up to years of backyard hangs and camping trips.