A reliable backpacking tent can make all the difference on your next overnight adventure. Tents are more complex than they may first appear, so it's a great place to start to orient yourself to a few key considerations before diving into our reviews.
What's the Difference Between a Backpacking Tent and Other Tent Types?
A quick internet search might reveal an overwhelming number of tent types, and it can be dizzying to figure out what makes one model a backpacking tent, specifically. In general, it all comes down to size and weight. A bulky car‑camping tent can be several times larger than a true backpacking tent, making it hard (or sometimes impossible) to stuff into a backpack. A proper backpacking tent should be less than 3 feet long when packed in its stuff sack and weigh under 10 pounds.
How and Where Will You Carry Your Tent?
If you're just getting started and planning one or two weekend trips a year, you likely don't need a top-notch tent. While they're not built with the lightest materials, more wallet-friendly models tend to be more durable than premium tents. Even if a tent is a bit heavier, you can easily split up the bulk between a friend or two to make it much easier to pack.
For more ambitious backpacking trips – especially those measured in weeks rather than days – you need to balance the weight of your gear with the weight of food. You can split up the weight of a heavier tent among your hiking partners, but dedicated backpackers should consider investing in a lighter-weight, more packable tent. However, thinner fabrics and skinnier tent poles tend to be less durable, so you have to treat them with care.
Sleeping Capacity: Advertised Vs. Actual
A 2-person tent will technically accommodate two sleeping bags side by side, but it often feels cramped. This may work well for a solo camper, but a 2-person tent can feel uncomfortably tight for two adults, especially if you're not used to sharing tight quarters. The same is often true when you try to fit three people in a three-person tent.
As a general rule, we recommend solo hikers bump up to 2-person tents, and our experience is that two people are more comfortable in a three-person tent. The same essentially applies if you're planning to sleep with your pet dog in the tent.
Check out the floor dimensions of the tents you're considering. Modern sleeping pads are typically 20 inches wide, while 'Wide' versions are often 25 inches across. Compare the tent floor width with the sleeping pads you own or plan to buy to make sure they fit without overlapping.
Vestibules are like exterior mudrooms where you can store boots, packs, and any wet gear you don't want to bring inside the tent. Often, 2-person tents still have fairly sizable vestibules, which increase livable space. Vestibules on 3-person tents, however, are often the same size as those on 2-person tents, so don't expect a big bump in gear storage by sizing up for interior space.
The Balance of Comfort and Weight
Lighter isn't necessarily better, as many tents cut down on size and livable space in order to shave ounces. Sleeping capacity is the major factor in overall weight – the bigger the tent, the more it weighs (generally). Every additional feature and creature comfort adds weight, and it all comes down to one question: Do you want a lighter tent, or do you want to be more comfortable?
Two doors make it easier to get in and out of a tent without climbing over your tentmates; one door is less convenient but saves weight. A full-coverage rainfly maximizes weather protection; a partial fly cuts weight and improves ventilation. More mesh in the tent body reduces condensation inside the tent but makes it more prone to tears. A thicker tent floor is more durable, but you can often purchase a “footprint,” or ground sheet, to better protect a lighter-weight tent.
Types of Tents
Outside of specialty ultralight tents, there are two primary designs you'll find in our review: freestanding and semi-freestanding tents:
Freestanding Tents
Freestanding models are the classic tent design that stands on its own, thanks to a pole system that forms the skeleton. This type of tent requires stakes only to anchor it in place and, if needed, to form a vestibule. They're typically dome- or rectangular-shaped and are often very easy to set up.
Semi-Freestanding Tents
Semi-freestanding models still have a pole structure but require stakes and guy lines to stand up. Put plainly: if you remove the stakes and detach the guy lines, the tent falls over. While this design saves weight, it is often more difficult to set up.
Conclusion
A lightweight tent is great, but not if it comes at the expense of livability. This is the great balancing act of backpacking tents, and you'll have to decide which features matter most to you. If we can offer one piece of departing advice: you'll always have more fun on a backpacking trip if you sleep comfortably, and backpacking is often more fun with friends. If you're worried about weight, bring a friend along and divvy up the parts of your tent to share the load.
