We Tested Soft Coolers to Find Ones with Excellent Cold Retention and Portability

Temperature Readings During Our Cold Retention Test
	Temp after 16 hrs.	Temp after 24 hrs.	Temp after 40 hrs.
YETI Flip 18	32°F	32°F	45°F
AO Coolers Original Soft Cooler	32°F	34°F	54°F
RTIC Soft Cooler	32°F	56°F	N/A
RovR Products TravelR 30 Soft Cooler	32°F	32°F	48°F
Hydro Flask 20 L Day Escape Soft Cooler Pack	32°F	34°F	46°F
Hydro Flask 26L Day Escape Soft Cooler Tote	32°F	34°F	55°F
CleverMade Collapsible Cooler Bag	32°F	68°F	N/A
Engel HD30 Heavy-Duty Soft Sided Cooler Tote Bag	32°F	32°F	51°F
OtterBox Trooper Cooler	32°F	32°F	48°F

While most of the coolers didn’t disclose exactly what kind of insulation they used, YETI, RovR, and Engel said they used “closed-cell,” “close cell,” or “closed foam” insulation. Closed-cell insulation is more rigid and densely packed, preventing air and moisture from entering. As America’s Test Kitchen explains in their review of soft coolers, “Closed-cell insulation is made by forcing gas into foam, creating isolated cells that impede the passage of heat.”

On the other hand, there’s open-cell insulation. This type of insulation has, well, more open cells, allowing air (and therefore heat) to pass between them more easily. 

It’s worth noting that insulation type only went so far: thicker insulation outright performed better. This meant that the best-performing coolers were also some of the heaviest. Two of our top performers from YETI and RovR were about four-and-a-half pounds. In our cold retention test, they had plenty of ice in them after 24 hours. And even though all their ice melted, their contents were still at 45°F and 48°F after 40 hours. Comparatively, the cooler with the thinnest insulation and that weighed just two pounds (from CleverMade) was ice-free and its water clocked in at 68°F after just 24 hours.

Filling, Emptying, and Unzipping and Zipping the Soft Coolers

Two of our favorite coolers (from YETI and RovR) had flip-top lids made them easy to fill, drain, and clean. Other coolers (we still liked ‘em!) like the ones from AO Coolers and Engel were shaped more like very puffy duffle bags or totes. It felt like our hands were being engulfed by insulation every time we added or removed a can. They were also harder to drain water from. 

Most of the heavy-duty coolers featured equally rugged zippers, which were anxiously hard to open on the first go until we got inside the coolers and found tubes of zipper lubricant. Once you applied this lubricant, the zippers were much easier to work, but never nearly as painless to zip/unzip as a standard zipper. The two Hydro Flask coolers we tested had flexible, toothless, polyester-like zippers that operated nicely and smoothly. Be wary of overpacking these two, though: this will cause this zipper style to separate (though it also easily comes back together).

We Appreciated a Variety of Carrying Options

We preferred coolers with multiple carrying options: side handles, top handles, crossbody straps. That way, we could shift things depending on how heavy the cooler was or how far we were walking. The best soft coolers had all-over padded, secure handles. 

By far, the most portable, comfortable-to-carry-long-distance soft cooler was the Hydro Flask backpack. But this makes sense: instead of one side, the cooler’s weight was evenly distributed across two shoulders and the back. 

Durability Wasn’t an Issue…For Most Coolers

All of the coolers we tested were relatively durable. When we pushed them out of a car’s trunk repeatedly, most of them emerged unscathed. The Otterbox, with its hard plastic rim, got dinged up. Some coolers (like the CleverMade) that had less insulation, especially on the lid/top of the cooler, had cans of seltzer that up and burst upon impact.

Admittedly, though, dropping a cooler with 12 cans of seltzer, sans ice, out of a car five times is very, uh, niche.

The Criteria: What to Look for in a Soft Cooler

A soft cooler should offer excellent cold retention, be easy to fill and empty, be durable, and be simple enough to zip/unzip. It should also offer multiple ways to carry it and have a padded, adjustable crossbody strap (unless, of course, it’s a backpack). 

What we liked: With a flip-top lid that made it exceptionally easy to fill and drain water, the YETI Hopper also sported the best cold retention of the bunch. We liked its numerous carrying options (two side handles, a top handle, and a crossbody strap—all nicely padded) and found it easy enough to carry some distance. It’s small (it fit 18 cans plus eight pounds of ice during our capacity test), but a nice size for picnics, beach days, or just keeping in your car for heat-sensitive groceries. 

What we didn’t like: The zipper isn’t the easiest to handle, but gets better with the included zipper lubricant (we appreciated that the lubricant came in an easy-to-apply lip balm-like tube rather than the squeeze tube of the other brands). Of course, it’s expensive. It also lacks a pocket, which we do think would be nice for storing, say, a bottle opener.

Price at time of publish: $300.

Key Specs

• Materials: Dryhide shell; cold cell foam 
• Weight: 4 pounds, 9 ounces
• Stated capacity: 20 cans
• Actual capacity (with 8 pounds of ice packs): 18 cans

What we liked: The RovR cooler featured the most padded, insulation-packed lid, which aided in its cold retention and provided nice cushioning for cans during our drop tests. We liked the flip-top lid that made it easier to fill and clean, and its wide, nicely padded crossbody strap. We also appreciated how long its side handles were, which made it easier to lift. 

What we didn’t like: That said, we could’ve done with more padding on the side handles, and we wished it had a top handle. Like the YETI, it lacks an exterior pocket and is expensive. 

Price at time of publish: $275. 

Key Specs

• Materials: Thermoplastic Urethane (TPU); high-density foam; nylon
• Weight: 4 pounds, 7 ounces
• Stated capacity: 28 liters
• Actual capacity (with 8 pounds of ice packs): 30 cans

What we liked: With built-in things like a bottle opener, a front pocket, and vacuum valve to remove air and maximize cold retention, we liked the Engel. At the 40-hour mark, it was only a few degrees warmer than the RovR. It had multiple padded straps, too. 

What we didn’t like: The tote-style made it harder to fill and empty water from. All of the insulation makes it pretty bulky, but it didn’t sport the biggest actual can capacity of the bunch. 

Price at time of publish: $200.

Key Specs

• Materials: Outer shell composed of durable 840 denier fibers; TPU; closed foam insulation
• Weight: 4 pounds, 5.6 ounces
• Stated capacity: 48 cans
• Actual capacity (with 8 pounds of ice packs): 24 cans

What we liked: If an ultra-portable, lightweight backpack cooler’s what you’re searching for, we really liked this one from Hydro Flask. It had padded, adjustable straps, an actual capacity on par with the YETI, and a toothless zipper that made for very smooth zipping. It did well in our cold retention tests, too. 

What we didn’t like: Because it lacked padding at its zipper, a can did burst in our drop tests. 

Price at time of publish: $200.

Key Specs

• Materials: Polyester shell; “food-grade liner”
• Weight: 2 pounds, 10 ounces
• Stated capacity: 36 cans
• Actual capacity (with 8 pounds of ice packs): 18 cans

What we liked: Our budget-friendly (sub-$100) recommendation looks like a duffle bag with a whole lot more interior padding. It was fine to carry and performed solidly during our cold retention and durability tests. Its standard zipper was also easy to open and close and it featured a zippered front pocket.

What we didn’t like: It didn’t have the best cold insulation and its densely-packed interior made it harder to fill and clean.

Price at time of publish: $95.

Key Specs

• Materials: Canvas, vinyl, plastic
• Weight: 2 pounds, 9 ounces
• Stated capacity: 36 cans
• Actual capacity (with 8 pounds of ice packs): 32

The Competition

• Hydro Flask 26L Day Escape Soft Cooler Tote: We really liked this cooler and think it’s another good tote-style option. It just lagged behind our winners a bit in the cold retention test. 
• RTIC Soft Cooler: Made with open-cell insulation, we were disappointed by this cooler’s cold retention.
• CleverMade Collapsible Cooler Bag: There wasn’t much to like about this soft cooler. Its sides easily collapsed (even when full) and it had the worst cold retention of the bunch. 
• OtterBox Trooper Cooler: While the cold retention of this cooler was fine, it fit a surprisingly small amount of cans given its overall size. It was also the only cooler that became damaged during our drop tests. 

FAQs

What is a soft-sided cooler? 

A soft-sided or soft cooler is composed of flexible material that is soft to the touch in comparison to hard-sided coolers. Most often, their exteriors are made from nylon, canvas, polyester, or some sort of plastic. They have smaller capacities than standard coolers, have more carrying straps, and are lighter—designed for quicker jaunts. They also have less cold retention in comparison to standard coolers, but this is fine: they’re not meant to house a week’s (or even a weekend’s) worth of food and drinks.

How do you clean a soft cooler? 

Many of the soft coolers we tested didn’t specify cleaning instructions. Our overall top pick, from YETI, says to wipe the interior and exterior with a soft cloth and mild dish soap and water. It’s also important to air dry the cooler before zipping it closed—to prevent mold/mildew from building up. 

Can soft coolers hold ice? 

Yes, soft coolers can hold ice. While they don’t have the same cold retention or capacity as our favorite standard coolers, the best soft coolers hold ice for at least 24 hours.