“Awesome chair! It’s compact, light, easy to setup.” All-in-one, push-button design maximizes ease of setup. The cupholders on the L.L.Bean Kids’ Base Camp Chair aren’t as roomy as those on ozark trail backpack our picks, and they’re not as adept at holding stubby water bottles or mugs of hot chocolate. We like this durable, well-constructed chair that has a frame that makes you confident to sit.
Several Wirecutter staffers have owned the Coleman chair for years, using it on camping trips, in backyards, and at sporting events. For the most part, it’s held up well, but one common quibble is that the seat bottom begins to sag after several years of use. Senior editor Kalee Thompson, who wrote a previous version of this guide, has been regularly using the Coleman chair she originally tested in 2016.
Our testers consistently said the King Kong chair was the most heavy-duty-feeling model of all the chairs we tested. Testers preferred the Coleman chair’s thoughtfully placed mesh storage pouch over those of its competitors. This pouch is big enough to stow gear like a phone, book, or tablet.
At a whopping 28”, this chair can accommodate just about anyone. 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. Whether it’s finding great products or discovering helpful advice, we’ll help you get it right (the first time). After years of intermittently using the Renetto chair, one staffer said it has held up great.
While most of the furniture you can buy online today comes unassembled, that’s rarely the case for things like camp chairs. If you order one of these, it will arrive ready to go right out of the box. Just unpack it, unfold it, and sit down—that’s all there is to it.
When she wrote the first version of this guide, Kalee lived in Southern California, where she tested chairs on three group camping trips. Comes with the same compact bag with a shoulder strap for carrying. The XXL Director chair by Ozark Trail is not adjustable. However, it is marginally above average in terms of comfort compared to other camp chairs. It would be overselling it to call this a handsome chair. That term rarely applies to camp chairs anyway, but it’s actually not bad-looking.
We’ve incorporated their feedback into this review. Normally, we’d caution against buying a chair with a seat that’s significantly wider than you need. In the case of a recliner or lounge chair, it matters because if the seat is too wide, you won’t be able to make effective use of more than one of the armrests.