Best Hard Cooler 2023? 28 Cooler ICE CHALLENGE Tells All!

Yeti vs Rtic vs Orca vs Igloo vs Pelican vs MORE! I filled 28 ice chests with 1200 pounds of ice and left them in my backyard for 10 days until none of them had any ice left. I was totally surprised by the results! Is YETI as great as it's cracked up to be? Watch and find out which coolers hold ice the longest in this epic ice retention challenge!

In this video, you'll discover some of the best camping coolers for how long they stay cold and hold ice. Looking for a cooler for fishing, hunting, beach days or tailgates? This cooler comparison test is for you too!

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CHAPTERS
00:00 How We Tested
03:37 24 Hours Later
04:56 5 Days Later
07:53 6 Days Later
08:44 1 Week Later
12:42 8 Days Later
16:20 9 Days Later
18:14 10 Days Later
19:30 Final Results

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[herrp]

Totally impressed with the level of cost and effort this guy put into this test. Amazing. Just the editing alone is very much appreciated. Thanks!

[philipjdry]

The cost to buy all these coolers, least we can do is like and subscribe

[russellwood]

Wow that was quite informative and definitely a few surprises. Thanks very much. A tip for people using coolers take bottles of water freeze them solid and put them in instead of ice. It will keep order drinks and food cool for longer and you can also drink the bottles of water . You will find using bottles of water will increase the length of time of your cooler anywhere between 25 to 50%. My top cooler tip.

[thomash]

Those that are whining and complaining about cooler color, cooler capacity, cooler ice volume, shade, sun, thermometer used, blah blah blah .... do your own test, and post your video on youtube so we can all pick apart your "imperfect" methods. Please do it. Good Anyway .... i own the Igloo BMX i think its called. It's that grey one with the blue rubber tie downs. It works perfect for my needs. I was surprised it lasted only 5 days in your test. Thanks for the effort. Looking forward to a future test.

[IamMrWWW]

A good idea for comparison videos like this is a price to performance chart. Its nice to see which competitors are overcharging and underperforming

[QKFTW]

Bought the Coleman Marine Xtreme for a trip to Florida ~4 years ago. It has been a fantastic cooler for ~$50 bucks. Holds ice for days in the summer heat

[jamesregovich]

I have 2 Rtic coolers, a 65 and 45. The 65 I’ve had for just over 3 years and it has been outside the entire time. In the height of summer, I get a good 7 days to keep drinks cold. Very happy with it. It is the perfect way to get more room in the fridge.

[Shamustodd]

Thanks for this comparison. I have a couple of Lifetime coolers that I bought at wally world about 5 years ago for 99 each. For a hundred bucks I've never been disappointed. All the meats go in completely frozen and we've still had semi frozen meat after a week of high 80's. One thing I found that helps id pack the meat as you plan to eat it - first day on top last day on bottom. We use the second one for drinks, condiments, etc. Flapping the lid constant we only get about 3-4 days out of it before doing an Ice run but I usually need more beer and bait by then anyway!

[Twitched]

Great video, only critique would be I would have loved to have seen a chart at the end with all the points and the price of each cooler.

[mattcolver]

I just assumed YETI would outperform everyone. When they 1st came out they were far and above the best coolers.
Thankfully their performance got their competition to start improving their coolers.

[barryc]

Story idea: Does an ice maker, used in combination with an efficient cooler, use less electricity than an equal size 12v refrigerator? 12v refrigerators very costly and require expensive power systems to support the continuous draw. It's possible that a cooler ice maker combo may be more efficient by cost comparison. As well as having ice on hand for drinks is a bonus. It would be an interesting experiment. Keep up the good work. Cheers!

[allenschaefer]

Until I saw your ice challenge I was torn between buying the Coho 55 and the Lifetime 55, which were at a similar price point. In your video, I was impressed with how the blow molded Lifetime kept up with the some of the top rotomolded coolers such as Yeti and RTIC, while outperforming the Coho 55. Needless to say I chose the Lifetime. Thanks!

[NativeDay]

I've owned my 55QT Orion Cooler for 3 years now and I couldn't be happier. It does struggle a little in super hot conditions, I tested in triple digits and the ice lasted 5 days in the heat but overall it's bulletproof. Definitely recommend Orion! Great job on the video!

[augoldminer]

i built my own cooler for burning man. i used 2 layers of 2 inch R-tech foam board from home depot cut and glued them.

Then i coated the homemade cooler with flex seal and installed a homemade drain. my homemade cooler was twice the size of the coolers you have, and i would use five 5 pound blocks of block ice and last over 8 days. Price was a lot cheaper than the store bought ones

[Sausageman]

I have a yeti tundra and it retains ice and cold temps pretty good. Went camping 2 weeks ago and still had nice cold drinks in it when I emptied it out. I really think it depends on where they are as in sun/shade. I was a good mix of both. And it’s basically gonna come down to what someone likes. I’m not saying yeti is the best or any other brand is the best. Get what you like and run with it. Great comparison.

[stevebradley]

For me it’s the RTIC 65. It keeps ice for 7 days and of all the rotomolded coolers this is the cheapest at $197. Plus it comes in the tan color which matches my ATV.

[FinallyMe]

My son worked on the Lifetime cooler line here in the USA. They pay well with great benefits. Because they are much cheaper than Yeti, and are local to me, I picked one up. Great cooler.
Great review. A lot of work, but great results.

[devildogMC]

Love my Canyon cooler. The fact that its an even shaped cooler with no weird angles or handles makes it easy to pack or store is a +. Their amazing warranty was the defining factor for me.

[williamfuller]

I know your intent was to conduct this test in "Real World" conditions but your also need to ensure each cooler has equal exposure to direct sunlight instead of some in the sunlight and others in the shade. Heating up the outside in direct sunlight has profound effect on ice retention.

[justsoicanfingcomment]

I hope you can do a test where they are all in the sunlight all day.
When you're out on a boat with little to no shade or you're out in the field where there is no shade, it can have a huge impact on a coolers performance.
Especialy on a blacktop.