The 9 Best Soft Coolers for On-the-go Refreshments, Tested and Reviewed

Best Overall

RTIC Insulated Soft Cooler Bag

$99 at Amazon $115 at Target $99 at Walmart

The best option we tested was undoubtedly the RTIC Soft Pack Cooler. We tried the 20-can size and were able to fit 15 cans inside, plus ice. After two and a half hours in the hot sun, the drinks were crisp and cold, and the ice had barely melted. What's more, it proved to be completely leakproof — when we shook it upside down, no water dripped out whatsoever.

When filling it with perishable food, we were able to fit quite a lot inside, along with enough ice packs to keep everything cold. We're big fans of the retro appearance and structured design too.

This cooler was comfortable to carry with the padded shoulder strap. But when filled with drinks and ice, it can be cumbersome and more difficult to haul across sand — backpack-style straps would probably make it easier. All things considered, it's an excellent portable ice chest for picnics, boating, road trips, or hanging out at the beach, as long as you don't have to carry it too far. And the price is reasonable for such a high-quality, likely long-lasting cooler. It has all the qualities you'd want in a gift for outdoorsmen.

The Details: 12, 20, 30, or 40 cans | 2.4–5.5 pounds | Leakproof

Best Lightweight

Hydro Flask Carry Out Soft Cooler

$90 at Amazon $50 at Dick's View on Hydroflask.com

We were also big fans of the Hydro Flask Carry Out Cooler. We tried the 12-liter size and filled it with six cans, three sandwiches, string cheese, and a bag of ice. Then we packed it again with drinks only, fitting 12 cans plus ice. After several hours at the beach on an 80-degree day, only about a third of the ice had melted, and everything inside was still perfectly cold. Not only that, but it proved to be leakproof, showing no signs of drips when we flipped it upside down with melted ice inside.

There's also a 20-liter version of the Carry Out, but even that one is on the smaller side. So it's best for lunches, picnics, hanging out at the dock, and shorter day trips. Still, we liked the compact, lightweight size. This soft cooler was a breeze to carry, thanks to the grab handles and padded shoulder strap.

The Details: 12 or 20 liters | 1.8–2.5 pounds | Leakproof

Best Value

Arctic Zone Titan Deep Freeze Cooler

$43 at Amazon $30 at Target $33 at Walmart

If you want the most bang for your buck, the Titan Deep Freeze might be your best bet. We tried the 16-can size (which means it can fit up to 16 cans without ice) and were able to fit 13 cans plus enough ice to keep them chilled. After a 10-hour car ride, all our drinks were still fridge-cold. Though wine bottles are likely too tall, you could also fill it with a picnic lunch, sandwiches, or snacks and juice pouches for a kids' sports game. There are spacious side pockets where you can stash your keys, phone, sunscreen, or a book as well, plus an external securing bungee.

This soft-sided cooler isn't hard to carry per se. It has a lightly padded shoulder strap, but backpack-style straps would make lugging it around much easier. The Deep Freeze seems like it's built to last, so you can expect to use it for years without needing to replace it. All things considered, we think the price range is more than reasonable.

The Details: 9, 12, 16, 24, 30, or 48 cans | 1.7–4 pounds

Most Durable

Yeti Hopper Flip

$250 at Amazon $250 at REI $250 at L.L.Bean

The Yeti Hopper Flip has seriously impressive temperature retention. We took it to the beach on a sunny day that hit the upper 80s, and all the ice was still intact when the sun went down. Though it's relatively compact, the interior is surprisingly spacious. There's just one big main compartment, but it has the brand's HitchPoint Grid, allowing you to attach other things to the outside.

This soft-sided cooler is also the most durable option we tried. After packing it in a checked suitcase, swimming with it in the ocean (it floats, by the way), and throwing it on rocks, the quality wasn't compromised whatsoever. What's more, the impenetrable design passed our leakproof test with flying colors. Like most Yeti coolers, the Hopper Flip has a steep price tag. But it's backed by a three-year warranty and will likely last much longer.

The Details: 8, 12, or 18 cans | 2.6–4.5 pounds | Leakproof

Most Versatile

Iron Flask Soft Cooler

$170 at Amazon View on Ironflask.com

We were able to fit 24 cans in this soft-sided cooler and enough ice to keep them cold all day. After four hours on a hot, sunny afternoon, the ice had hardly melted, and the drinks were still nice and cold. It's also leakproof, letting no water drip through the zipper or moisture penetrate the sides. Since the heavy-duty zipper is extra-tight and water-sealed, it's sometimes hard to unzip, but it comes with lubricant for this exact reason.

With cup holders and a built-in bottle opener, this versatile cooler is great for picnics at the park, day trips to the beach, boating, hanging out on the dock, soccer games, or small grocery hauls — we can confirm it'll keep ice cream cold long enough to walk it home in 90-degree weather. While we like the large size, the bulky design can be somewhat awkward to carry in that you might accidentally knock into someone if you bring it inside a store. It's not necessarily difficult or uncomfortable, though, thanks to the cushioned shoulder strap.

The Details: 12 liters | 4.6 pounds | Leakproof

Best Tote

Hydro Flask Day Escape Cooler Tote

$175 at Amazon $180 at Nordstrom $180 at Backcountry.com

If you prefer a tote-style carrier, we highly recommend the Hydro Flask Day Escape Cooler. We tested the 26-liter one, which is big enough to hold 42 cans. The wide base helps it stay upright without support — and it allowed us to fit a veggie tray horizontally at the bottom. After filling it with drinks, food, and ice, we took it on a sunny boat trip and were pleased to see the ice hadn't melted at all a few hours after packing it.

This lightweight cooler was easy to carry with the padded messenger-style strap. You can also use the grab handles if you'd rather not sling it over your shoulder. It's super durable, too, standing up to wear and tear while preventing water from seeping out. The only thing to note is that the water-sealed zipper sometimes gets finicky, but we figured out how to reposition it and got it to continue working.

The Details: 18, 20, or 26 liters | 2.4–3 pounds | Leakproof

Best Mini

Out of the Woods Dolphin Mini Cooler

$29 at Amazon View on Outofthewoods.com

The Dolphin Mini makes a great lunch box. At roughly 9.5 x 8 x 7 inches and just over a half-pound, it's conveniently compact and lightweight. We packed it with a one-person meal, including food, a drink, and ice. After a few hours on an 85-degree day, we were shocked to see the insulated lining prevented almost all the ice from melting while keeping the drink fridge-cold. If you're just using it for drinks, you can fit about 10 cans.

This soft cooler has a grab handle and an adjustable shoulder strap that won't dig into your skin. It's also handily collapsible, so you can pack it in a suitcase or stuff it in a backpack and easily store it when it's not in use. After throwing it on the ground during our tests, there were no scuff marks or visible damage. Though the Dolphin Mini is billed as leakproof, water seeped through the zippers once the ice had melted. But if you skip the ice and just fill it with food and a drink, this won't be an issue.

The Details: 10 cans | 0.6 pounds | Leakproof

Best Backpack

Carhartt 2-in-1 Insulated Cooler Backpack

$65 at Amazon $90 at Zappos $90 at Dick's

Carhartt's take on the soft cooler is this dual-compartment backpack. The lower section is insulated for keeping drinks and perishable items cold, the upper portion is meant to hold anything else you want to bring along, and there's a front zipper pocket for small items — perfect for stashing a couple of stain remover wipes. You could technically fit 24 cans if you put them in both compartments and didn't add any ice. But we got about 10 cans in the insulated section, with enough ice to keep them cold.

For the most part, this backpack did a good job preventing leaks, though a small amount of water seeped through once the ice melted. If you want to put electronics or dry clothes in the main compartment without worrying about them getting wet, you might want to skip the ice and just put pre-chilled drinks or refrigerated snacks in the bottom.

The Details: 24 cans | 1.5 pounds | Leakproof

Best With Wheels

dbest Products Ultra Compact Cooler

$52 at Amazon View on Sharperimage.com $55 at QVC

This soft-sided cooler is ideal for moving around, considering it weighs less than three pounds and comes with a set of sturdy wheels that make the bag easy to maneuver. It has a telescopic handle that felt sturdy throughout our testing and was comfortable to hold when pulling the cooler. The cooler itself is fully insulated and leak-proof, with a four-gallon capacity that can fit up to 36 cans and some ice. The lightweight, soft-sided nature of this bag makes it prone to collapsing when empty or only slightly full, but we found that the bag was stable and difficult to knock over when packed to capacity.

We found that drinks remained cold for 24 hours, although about half the ice had melted by that point. We noticed that as the ice started to melt, the rate at which it continued to melt increased, so we would recommend this for day trips as opposed to overnight adventures. Other features we liked about this cooler include external pockets and its ability to pack flat for easy storage. Both the inside and the outside of the cooler can be wiped clean, although the outside is a little trickier to keep spotless because of the cloth material. Overall, we found this to be a great bag for anyone on the move who doesn't want to lug a bag over their shoulder.

The Details: 36 cans | 3 pounds | Leakproof