The Best Camping Chairs: Tested

When it comes to car camping chairs, comfort and functionality trump weight savings any day of the week—and that’s where the Stargaze Reclining Camp Chair from NEMO shines. Hitting the sweet spot between hammock and traditional camp seat, the Nemo Stargaze Reclining Camp Chair allows for comfy lounging while eliminating pressure points. The padded headrest supports a user’s neck when leaning back, so you can view your next Perseids meteor shower without pain.  

Unlike rocking chairs, which inherently feel unstable on dirt or sand, the chair’s low center of gravity and aircraft-grade aluminum suspension frame keep it from tipping over, even in “lumpy meadow grass and wood chips,” noted one tester. Additionally, users found the chair easy to assemble and break down. “The setup was very intuitive and straightforward,” noted our Pennsylvania-based tester. 

Though it’s not as lightweight and packable as, say, the REI Flexlite Air Chair, at less than 8 pounds the Stargaze is a manageable heft for short trips to and from the car. And its slim carrying case comes equipped with an adjustable sling strap, should you need to haul the chair around a concert or festival. It also scored high marks for packability, even with its fun extras like two integrated drink holders. It's not our testers’ top choice for hauling into a backcountry site, but it's easy to nestle it into a packed trunk or truck bed. Buy here.

Not everyone loves to share. But for those who do, the Kelty Low Loveseat provides a cozy space to snuggle. The low double chair is a seriously luxurious spot to sink into after a long day on the trails, with enough room for two people to huddle close to the fire (and space for a furry friend in between). "I thought I wouldn't like the low design, but I actually felt like it was more comfortable than a taller chair since I could really stretch my legs out in front of me," said one Wyoming-based tester. The low height also makes the Loveseat outdoor-concert friendly, an added bonus for live music lovers.

Double chairs inherently have some heft to them, and the Low Loveseat is no exception. Haul the 15-pound package in the included roll tote, but don't plan to take it all much farther than the parking lot unless you're looking for a challenge. Bonus feature: One tester discovered that the padded roll tote can double as a mat for your feet when changing out of wet and muddy clothes at camp.

The Loveseat's durable steel frame stands its ground in high winds and keeps the chair feeling rock solid. Its 600-denier polyester seat fabric withstood weeks of red dirt, mucky paws, rainstorms and rolling around in the back of a pickup truck without so much as a scratch. And two insulated, adjustable drink holders mean there's really no need to get up once you've plopped down. Buy here.

The ultraclassic Crazy Creek Hex 2.0 Original Chair won't provide the same luxury as a full-size camp chair, but it weighs next to nothing and provides a comfort insurance policy for wherever you end up. It rolls up snugly to just 4 inches in diameter, with an attached roll-up strap that cinches the chair down and a built-in hanging loop to clip it to any part of your backpack. "There's just no reason not to bring it," one tester concluded after a three-day hike in the Utah desert. "Skimp on other camp luxuries, but not this one."

Deploying the Hex 2.0 is easy: Unroll and unfold it, then plop down before pulling or loosening the side straps until the chair cradles you. (Your feet and butt are the points of contact with the ground.) Constructed with 8 mm EVA closed-cell foam—the material used to insulate sleeping pads—the Hex 2.0 packs a warm punch despite its svelte design. It will keep you cozy while you nestle around a fall campfire, or can provide an extra layer of comfort and insulation to a car-camping chair. When overnight lows dropped into the 30s, one tester in Moab found the Hex 2.0 to be a warm addition to a standard folding camp chair that could keep her butt warm while she played charades well into the night.

A high-denier-coated and water-resistant ripstop nylon fabric encases the Hex 2.0, combining elements to create a seemingly indestructible design that testers reported getting roughed up on rocks and dirt without any signs of wear. The Hex 2.0 will never be as comfortable as a seat with legs, but if you're the sort of fast-and-light backpacker who pooh-poohs hard-to-carry luxuries, this may be the one to convert you to a life (slightly) off the ground. Buy here.

"Sitting in this low-seater [reminds me of] eating a PB&J on the beach as a 10-year-old," one tester wrote about this classic bifolding chair. But unlike the plasticky lawn chairs of one's youth, the REI Co-op Outward Low is a vision fit for Instagram, with updated materials couched in a retro style.

At the campground, the Outward Low scored high marks for comfort, thanks to the biggest dimensions of any other single-occupancy chair in our round-robin test (it's about 2 feet wide and 10 inches off the ground). "I thought I wouldn't like how low it is, but the design lets you extend your legs more comfortably than in taller chairs," one tester said after sitting for four hours around a campfire in Idaho.

The Outward Low has a super-sturdy ripstop nylon seat that provides plenty of support during long sessions with your feet up. On a chilly evening in the Tetons, one tester also noticed that the seat's double layer of fabric feels significantly warmer than traditional single-paneled camp chairs. Other features that prove the Outward Low's credentials include backpack straps that allow for hands-free carrying and wooden armrests for ergonomic comfort. (No cup holders, though.) With its bifold design, the lawn chair flattens easily for storage. Buy here.

The soothing rhythm of a rocking chair is enough to make everything feel right in the world. But "portable" and "rocking chair" don't usually go together, which is why testers were especially excited to bliss out in the GCI Outdoor ComPack Rocker chair for riverside campouts and trailhead tailgates. The GCI Outdoor Torsion Rocking Technology™ places the rocking mechanism at the base of the frame, not in the feet, which allows for a consistent rock as well as a little more stability while setting it up on bumpy terrain. "I love that it lets you rock gently but the legs still feel stable on an uneven riverbed," said one tester after a weeklong trip to Moab, Utah. "Plus, it doesn't take up a ton of space, so I can keep it in the back of my truck pretty much all season long." Car camping is where this 7.5-pound chair excels (testers deemed it heavy enough to leave at home on backpacking trips), but the zippered pouch with both a top handle and a shoulder strap made it easy to haul the ComPack Rocker down a short trail to a scenic creekside picnic. Setup is quick: Snap together the steel and aluminum frame, then stretch the polyester seat over the chair and voilà! You're ready to recline. Buy here.

If you take lounging seriously, there's no better seat than the aptly named GCI Outdoor Zero Gravity Chair. What it loses points for in bulk it makes up for in sheer comfort—it's a chair that lets you trade the burden of the earth's gravitational forces for a weightlessness that rivals many indoor loungers. "The only problem with this chair is that my friends keep trying to take it from me whenever I get up," said one Wyoming tester while fiercely guarding his space during a sunny spring tailgate. "The only solution is to get one for everyone." The foldable lounger adjusts from upright all the way to "zero gravity" mode, an almost-horizontal position that you can lock into place with the pull tabs under the handles. Size and packability are a drawback to this luxurious recliner, so save it for car camping, picnicking or tailgating with friends. Buy here.