Best Wheeled Cooler for Refreshment On the Go

Photo by Alex Ford / CC BY 2.0

Overall Winner: Best Wheeled Cooler

Igloo Glide Pro 110

Out of all the options on our list, none of them can compare to the all-around performance of the Igloo Glide Pro 110. This claim is not to suggest that this wheeled cooler has the best specs across the board, but it meets or exceeds the average and offers a better all-around experience.

For example, this heavy duty wheeled cooler blows the competition out of the water with regards to storage capacity with a whopping 110 qt– nearly twice as large as the next closest competitor. However, this cooler with wheels reinforces this massive storage capacity with an extended base of 39 ½”, making it easy to store even the largest items without issue. While this enormous size might seem a bit daunting, this elite wheeled cooler is also one of the more portable models on our list thanks to excellent wheel design and long, durable telescopic handle.

In terms of insulation, it may not employ the popular sealed gasket of more expensive options but still gets the job done with a combination of polyurethane foam for the body and Ultratherm insulation for the interior.

Add zinc-plated hinges for extra durability and an integrated fish scale, and this model works for pretty much any situation.

Bottom Line: Igloo’s offering is the only model on our list that does not have a true flaw and simply needs to be adequately prepared.

Introduction

Whether going to the beach, to the lake to fish, or a family camping trip, it is important to make sure that you bring enough snacks and drinks for the day. While you can always plan your food and drinks choices, particularly, it is still nice to have a cold beverage or snack on hand when you want it.

This is where a cooler comes into play, but having to carry a large cooler is not only tricky but completely unnecessary. With a frame or set of wheels, you can roll your cooler pretty much everywhere– assuming the manufacturer builds a quality product.

That is why we put together a list of the seven best wheeled cooler reviews of 2020, highlighting what each one does best. We also provide a helpful buyer’s guide, so you get the right wheeled cooler for your next day spent outdoors.

Features to Consider

Storage Capacity

While this is one of the more critical factors, it depends more on how you intend to use your coolers more than anything else. If you need an ice chest with wheels for a family camping trip, then you will want to make sure to get one with a larger storage capacity.

On the other hand, if you expect to use your coolers more for day or weekend trips, you can often get by with a smaller storage capacity. It is also important to remember that a coolers large storage capacity can be a double-edged sword.

The larger a cooler’s storage capacity and the more you fill it, the heavier it will be and harder to lug around–something especially important if you plan to hike to a more remote campsite.

Insulation & Ice Retention

This is likely the essential quality to consider regardless of how you plan to use any coolers. Otherwise, you would not be getting one in the first place. That said, exactly how good you need the cooler’s insulation to perform still depends on how long you expect or want your food and drinks to be kept cold.

Most decent wheeled coolers provide enough insulation so that they can keep things cool and retain ice for a few to five days. However, higher-end coolers include top-tier insulation and additional sealing features, which allow them to retain cool temperatures and ice retention past five days, and some up to even 10 days.

On top of that, some coolers include multiple layers of insulation: one to keep the cold in and another to reflect ambient heat out.

Ease of Portability

Ease tends to refer to how coolers perform in a casual setting, while the portability is how easy it is to move the coolers from place to place. For ease, features like the ability to open the lid and keep it open without holding it, empty melted ice water without struggling, and locking the lid without difficulty are the primary factors.

For portability, the inclusion of wheels does not automatically mean that an ice chest is easy to move around. A good axle design combined with a long, durable handle goes a long way in improving the portability– as does a telescopic handle. The wheel size can also play an important role, with coolers with larger wheels able to navigate rough terrain with greater ease than smaller coolers.

Also, consider you may need to carry the cooler by hand at some point, so solid side handles are important too.

Size & Weight

The size and weight of the cooler matter more if you need to carry your coolers by hand, especially if you want to use it while camping at a more remote site. That said, the quality of the cooler almost parallels the inverse quality of its insulation, where the best insulating coolers also happen to be the heaviest.

On top of that, the storage size of the cooler will ultimately increase the total weight, depending on what you fill the cooler with. For size, look for a cooler that is longer than it is tall if you want to bring along food as odd item dimensions work better when layered.

If you just need a cooler for drinks, a taller, square cooler size works just as well when stacking one on top of the other.

Durability

Most coolers are reasonably durable when it comes to their body, which tends to be made out of thick polyethylene and polyurethane plastics. However, the various moving components like lock, latches, hinges, and telescopic handles may not say the same.

Still, most wheeled coolers use plastic components for these parts, so make sure that the parts are thick. If you can, look for metal components when available as they are stronger and more durable than plastic ones.

For overall durability, the use of foam construction or rotomolded manufacturing can increase a cooler’s resistance to drastic temperature changes– something ice-filled coolers tend to experience.

Best Wheeled Cooler: The Results

Igloo Ice Cube Roller Cooler

Wheeled Cooler – Budget Pick

Igloo is one of the most well-known brands in the cooler market, but that does not mean they use that name to inflate the cost of their products. Case in point: the Igloo Ice Cube cooler offers one of the best values that we encountered with solid specs even compared to higher-end brands.

A great example of this value is the total storage space of the Igloo Ice Cube cooler, which sits at a spacious 60 qt and ranks third on our list. On top of that, this ice chest comes with a convenient roller handle as well as four different cup holders, so it can comfortably be used as a makeshift table during your next camping trip.

That said, it is worth noting that the Igloo Ice Cube cooler’s storage size tends to be better for stacking items rather than for layering them horizontally. This is due to the Ice Cube’s namesake where the dimensions form more of a square than a rectangle, causing the cooler to sit taller than wider.

Thankfully, this design combined with the telescopic handle is part of the reason that the Igloo Ice Cube cooler is more mobile than many of its competitors. On top of that, this is also one of the few wheeled coolers you can easily carry with one person, depending on how heavily laden it is.

Bottom Line: The Igloo Ice Cube roller cooler offers a solid product at one of the best values with a large interior and design well-suited for travel.

Coleman 62 Quart Xtreme 5-Day Wheeled Cooler

All-Around Value Wheeled Cooler

While the Coleman 62 Quart Xtreme may not offer the best outright value that we encountered, it does provide the best all-around value. When you consider that this cooler provides the second-largest storage size at 62 qt, most everything else is the icing on top.

Of course, this cooler distinguishes itself in other ways, namely with one of the more stable builds we found with a lid capable of supporting up to 250 pounds while also offering 4 cup holders. As if that were not enough, the Coleman 62 Quart Xtreme does not suffer any of the stacking issues other inexpensive wheeled coolers may have with a 31 ½” length.

On the other hand, this cooler does not travel quite as well as others we reviewed due primarily to side handles that is not the most durable or reliable. It also does not help that the ThermOzone insulation is merely adequate unless you make it a point to stuff it with ice.

Still, the portability of this cooler benefits from a lightweight design that comes in at 15 ½ pounds– one of the lightest options we reviewed.

Bottom Line: The Coleman 62 Quart Xtreme is another entry that finds a good balance between storage space and value while also supporting up to 250 pounds on its lid.

YETI Tundra Haul Portable Wheeled Cooler

Heavy Duty Wheeled Cooler

While some brands might be more well-known, few are as respected as Yeti when it comes to overall build quality. This trend holds for the YETI Tundra Haul cooler, which stands out as the most durable entry that also insulated better than the competition.

One of the main reasons that the Tundra Haul is more durable than most comes from the use of rotomolded polyethylene, which carries less risk of warping, cracking, or breaking. From an insulation perspective, this cooler employs Yeti’s Permafrost system, which injects commercial-grade polyurethane foam into the walls.

Even better, this is one of a couple of wheeled coolers on our list to come with a ColdLock gasket that functions much like the seal of a household refrigerator. It is worth noting that this wheeled cooler has a somewhat smaller storage capacity than most at only 50.3 qt, but its interior design does not skimp on any of the corners like with other brands.

Of course, these high-end features make this cooler a lower value than most of the products we encountered, and this is one of the heaviest options too. Thankfully, the Tundra Haul makes it a point to be easy to use with hinges and latches that move freely and stay open when you leave them that way.

Bottom Line: The YETI Tundra Haul may not jump off of the screen with eye-popping specs, but its craftsmanship and quality remain unmatched on our list.

Igloo Glide Pro 110 Roller (EA)

Best Wheeled Cooler

While Igloo may do a great job of making budget-level wheeled coolers, the company gained its notoriety for offering something for everyone. This philosophy shows itself in the Igloo Glide Pro cooler thanks to the largest storage space that we came across at 110 qt.

Even better, that spacious interior stretches longer than any of the other options we reviewed to 39 ¾”, making it easy to fit any sized item inside. While it may not use rotomolded polyethylene, the polyurethane foam is more than strong enough for even rough terrain.

That polyurethane foam provides solid insulation too, but this wheeled cooler reinforces this further with Igloo’s Ultratherm insulation. However, you need to fill this large cooler with ice when using it, or else you might not see the best insulation results when compared to sealed premium coolers.

It is also worth remembering that the product’s spacious interior reduces its value a bit compared to more budget-friendly entries. Still, the ice chest’s telescoping handle is the best and strongest on our list, while the zinc-plated hinges last longer than the more commonly plastic ones do.

On top of that, this cooler employs a drain design that allows you to tip it up easily and empty any water without having to fight with the lid and body to get the last remaining drops out.

Bottom Line: So long as you make sure to fill the Igloo Glide Pro cooler with plenty of ice, the 110 qt storage capacity and excellent telescoping handle make this a good choice for large camping parties.

Pelican Elite Coolers with Wheels

Best Ice Retention

The Pelican Elite aims to take on other high-end cooler brands and comes pretty close in many respects but stands out primarily with its extra features not commonly seen on wheeled coolers. A great example of this is the wheeled cooler’s latch, which embeds a bottle opener at the bottom edge.

While not the only wheeled cooler on our list to do so, the inclusion of a fish scale lid makes it an ideal choice for you and a couple of friends to use it on a fishing trip. Keeping in line with the higher-end competition, this elite wheeled cooler also uses rotomolded polyethylene to help prevent warping, cracking, or other types of damage.

That said, this model also keeps its value in line with other high-end competition, reducing its overall value for budget-friendly markets. On top of that, this wheeled cooler has the second-smallest storage capacity on our list at only 45 qt, though it still provides decent horizontal layering.

To compensate, this cooler provides excellent insulation through the combination of polyurethane insulation and a freezer-grade gasket. While one of the heavier wheeled coolers we reviewed at 37 pounds, this cooler with wheels packs and travels well too thanks to the integrated tie-downs and non-slip rubber feet for stability.

Bottom Line: The Pelican Elite offers a solid range of features that you usually do not find on premium coolers, as well as some of the best insulating properties we came across.

Coleman Rolling Cooler

Lightest Wheeled Cooler

The Coleman 50 Quart Xtreme is the second Coleman cooler on our list and offers much of the same that its predecessor does, which means this cooler comes in at a solid value. Arguably one of the best qualities of this cooler is its lightweight design, which weighs in at only 13 pounds and is the lightest hardshell wheeled cooler we reviewed.

Even better, this cooler blurs the line a bit between a rectangular and square-shaped model, allowing you to stack its contents vertically as easily as it can layer them horizontally. This also allows the Coleman 50 Quart Xtreme to move a bit easier than some of the competition, able to be pulled or carried without issue.

On the other hand, the Coleman 50 Quart Xtreme is a bit on the small side when it comes to storage capacity, which may matter more with its hybrid shape design. Also, this Coleman cooler suffers from the same iffy telescoping handle the other one does, reducing its portability and durability a bit.

Thankfully, this cooler boasts the same excellent build quality and lid design that incorporates four cup holders and support up to 250 pounds.

Bottom Line: If you need a versatile wheeled cooler that can move better than most and comes in at a good value, the Coleman 50 Quart Xtreme has you covered.

Columbia Crater Peak

Best Collapsible Wheeled Cooler

The Columbia Crater Peak is the only option on our list that uses a softshell exterior for the cooler portion of its design. This means that you can collapse the cooler’s body when not in use, making it much easier to pack than any other option on our list.

Once you remove and collapse the cooler’s softshell body, the all-terrain cart can also be used to carry or hold other items. This design further provides portable versatility as you can simply carry the softshell exterior without using the cart at all.

This also technically makes the Columbia Crater Peak roller cooler the lightest model we reviewed, tipping the scales at a measly 5 pounds. Even better, this cooler understands some of the inherent risks with a softshell cooler and applies its Microban silver-based antimicrobial treatment.

While the Columbia Crater Peak is a reasonable value, it is also the smallest roller cooler we reviewed with both the smallest storage capacity and smallest maximum dimensions as well. It is also worth keeping in mind that the softshell body is not anywhere near as durable as the polyethylene and polyurethane bodies of standard coolers.

On the other hand, this roller cooler insulates surprisingly well given its softshell exterior thanks to dual insulation layers. The interior employs a middle layer made out of SuperFoam insulation while the base layer a Thermal-Reflect radiant barrier.

Bottom Line: The Columbia Crater Peak may not be your traditional roller cooler, but its softshell body and independent rough terrain cart make it an intriguing option for smaller parties.

Last update on 2024-04-19 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API