But the price difference is significant—and after six months of near-constant outdoor use, the Walmart chair was still in decent shape. You can stow this featherlight, compressible chair in a backpack or even a work bag. ozark trail hammock chair Wirecutter is the product recommendation service from The New York Times. Our journalists combine independent research with (occasionally) over-the-top testing so you can make quick and confident buying decisions.
There’s a cupholder on the right arm and a built-in cooler on the left that can hold a six-pack of drinks (or more, if you dare). There’s even a bottle opener attached to the inside of the cooler to cover all the bases for chillin’ and grillin’ outside. On the back is an elastic slot and Velcro bands to secure an overhead umbrella, and underneath the seat is a strap that collapses the chair for easy transport. Camping trips, beach days, picnics in the park, outdoor movies and theater performances, a fresh-air get-together with friends—there are countless occasions when you might use a camp chair. Between barbecues, crawfish boils, and annual family reunions, the great outdoors sort of feels like my second home. I’ve learned that a comfortable folding chair is a must-have for easy, breezy summer hangs, and with so many to pick from, it can be hard to find the right one…unless social media comes wielding a lightning strike of inspiration.
It will fit a Capri Sun pouch or a narrow, rectangular juice box, but that’s about it. A close-to-the-ground chair is often the ideal choice for outdoor concerts, movies, theater performances, and other events where you will be concerned about blocking other people’s view. The strap that supports the back (and doubles as a carry strap) allows adjustments to control your angle of recline, from upright to a stargazing-appropriate angle. Unlike other portable chairs, the Everywhere Chair is designed to sit on uneven slopes; this can be handy when space is limited at a fireworks show or an outdoor theater performance. Our panel of testers at the Wheeler Gorge Campground deemed the Everywhere Chair to be the most comfortable of the three low-to-the-ground chairs we tested. A low-to-the-ground chair can be ideal for outdoor movies, concerts, theater performances, and other events where you want to avoid blocking other people’s view.
We did select our favorite upright chair for car camping and tailgating, and then additional low-to-the-ground, ultra-lightweight, and canopy picks, as well as a great chair for kids. We also let two boys, ages 1 and 5, play with them and sit on them in the backyard for six months. After all that, we concluded that the REI Co-op Camp Chair – Kids’ is the best choice for anyone who wants to buy a practical, portable ozark trail hammock chair outdoor chair for a small child. The 4-pound, steel-construction REI chair has an attached carry strap, rather than a carry bag like the other chairs. After a couple of camping trips, we concluded that a strap is more convenient than a bag—quicker and easier for a kid to grab the chair and go, without parental help. The REI chair is rated to hold up to 150 pounds, the same as the L.L.Bean and Walmart chairs.
Portable outdoor chairs are also helpful for anyone who doesn’t have the room or budget for permanent backyard furniture. And they can save your back, make it easier to juggle a picnic plate and a cold beverage, and generally help you to relax comfortably outdoors. At just 21 ounces, the Alite Monarch was the lightest of the three chairs we tested in this category, as well as the most compact, but its two-legged design required your own legs to serve as the third leg of the stool. The Ozark Trail Oversized Mesh Chair from Walmart, although similar to our pick in size, was far less comfortable, with rough-feeling material that was obviously of lower quality. We later found, after six months of frequent use, that the stitching along one arm had come unravelled and that the small straps holding up the back of the armrests had both ripped in half.
After two hours of initial online research, three camping trips, and several months of use in a Los Angeles backyard, we determined that the Helinox Chair One is the best outdoor chair for anyone who requires an especially lightweight, easily portable seat. The canopy quickly and easily transforms into a carrying case—just wrap it around the chair and snap it closed with two plastic buckles, and you can carry the whole thing on your back like an oblong backpack. We brought this chair to a dense Los Angeles neighborhood to watch Fourth of July fireworks.
After six months of sitting mostly outside in the Southern California sun, our gray Coleman chair was noticeably less faded than our Walmart and Renetto chairs, the latter of which had bleached from bright red to pink. Select a chair with a built-in canopy, which will give you a little patch of cool at any campsite or cookout. Are you a car camper or do you plan on socializing in friends’ backyards? We think the REI chair functions better and will last much longer than the similar chair from Walmart.
We recommend buying this type only if you intend to carry your chair long distances, whether you’re backpacking or trekking across Central Park. If you do need a fits-in-a-knapsack chair, we recommend the Helinox Chair One. We found this model to be slightly more comfortable and easier to pack than other, similar chairs. The Renetto Original Canopy Chair, a cleverly designed specialty seat, is ideal for anyone who wants sun protection and doesn’t mind a heavier, bulkier chair. Despite the Renetto’s weight, our testers found it easy to carry and simple to set up and adjust. We discovered that even though most testers had not previously considered a shade-equipped camp chair, once they used one they appreciated the comfort and convenience of built-in sun blocking.
The Renetto chair usually comes in between 8 and 10 colors and is rated to hold up to 350 pounds. Walk around any campground or tailgate party, and you’ll notice the popularity of this variety of accordion-style seat. You can pick one up at just about any big-box store (sometimes for as little as $10), order one with your favorite sports team’s logo, or pay a premium for a similar model from Cabela’s or REI.
This low-profile chair is easy to carry, and it adjusts for uneven ground. The Chair One is rated to hold up to 320 pounds, versus 250 pounds for the Flexlite and for the third chair we tested, the Alite Monarch Chair (the latter chair is no longer available, as Alite went out of business in late 2019). The GCI Outdoor chair also has a pocket built into the back that can hold a phone or a book. “This is the Platonic ideal of your camp chair,” one of our campers gushed. We found the Coleman Kickback Breeze Chair to be a simple yet very comfortable seat, though women liked it more than men did (many of them judged it to be too snug). Anecdotally, we found that this chair category in general is more popular among women than among men, who generally prefer a higher, upright seat.