When it comes to camp bedding, the sleeping bag reigns supreme. It makes sense — a sleeping bag’s mummy-style construction renders it adept at providing and maintaining warmth, even in sub-zero temperatures. But technical sleeping bags were designed with high alpine pursuits and extended backcountry jaunts in mind, and while they now come in a variety of shapes and temperature ratings, sleeping bags tend to be techy.
Enter the camping blanket. Often made using the same functional materials as sleeping bags — materials like water-repellent down insulation and ripstop nylon shells — camping blankets fulfill a similar function. They provide warmth away from the comforts of home, but beyond that, they offer more flexibility, and they do it with more style.
What to Look for in a Camping Blanket
When you're choosing a camping blanket, you'll want to consider a few factors: size, materials, price and intended activity.
Size: If you're planning a family camp trip and can already imagine the kids fighting over who gets to use the blanket first, you may want to opt for multiple smaller blankets made with nylon shells that can withstand the abuse of camping and inevitable spills and stains from kids. If you're heading out on a solo trip or with your partner, a standard-sized 60-inch x 80-inch blanket will do just fine. (For reference, the popular Rumpl Original Puffy Blanket is 52-inch x 75-inch for a single-person blanket, and 84-inch x 80-inch for a double.)
Camp blankets differ from ground covers in a couple of key ways — ground covers are larger, and aren't built for comfort; they're built to keep moisture off the bottom of your tent and protect it from sharp objects on the ground. Ideally, a ground cover should be slightly larger than the footprint of your tent, so that no moisture gets trapped between the two.
Materials: Standard camping blanket materials range from polyester to virgin wool. Insulated options will be filled either with goose or duck down, or synthetic insulation like Primaloft. Some blankets also use fleece or sherpa materials, but these tend to wear down quicker than their hard-working polyester and wool counterparts.
Price: If your budget is tight, go for a blanket that won't break the bank — but expect it to wear in a few seasons. If you can afford to splurge on a long-lasting material like wool, invest in a quality camp blanket that you can expect to last for years. There are certainly blankets that will defy this broad interpretation of price, but for the most part, it holds firm.
Intended activity: If you're planning a trip for you and your partner and the weather is going to be chilly, nothing sets the mood like a classic wool option (and it doesn't hurt that wool is naturally water-repellent as well). If you're going to be in wet conditions, a blanket with a waterproof treatment may be the call.
As you're shopping, take these factors into consideration.
Why You Should Buy a Camping Blanket
Without the restriction of a zipper, camping blankets are ideal for casual camping. And in true contemporary outdoor lifestyle fashion, technical camping blankets easily transition from the tent to the living room sofa, to the cabin, to the van without much fuss. They aren’t specialized for a single environment like a zero-degree down sleeping bag might be; they’re versatile and practical, which is ideal for outdoors folk and weekend warriors alike.
Our definitive guide to the best camping blankets available provides information on the 10 top camping blankets available and details their core features such as materials, size, weight, price and more.
How We Tested
The best camping blankets can do it all: they can travel long distances without needing regular washes, thanks to antimicrobial fabrics and coatings; they can pack down to a fraction of their size for easy packing and transport; and they can cover you, your significant other, and any kids and pets along for the adventure.
For the last year (and for some blankets like the Filson Mackinaw, years) we tested our camping blankets in the mountains, deserts (yes, it gets cold in the desert) and beaches of North America. While testing, we kept a few factors in mind: weight, materials, waterproofing and intended use. After testing a variety of shapes and styles, we landed on the following as the best camping blankets.
Best Overall Camp Blanket: Kammok Bobcat 45°F
- Weight: 20 ounces
- Materials: Ripstop nylon, Downtek duck down
- Waterproofing: PU + DWR
Kammok may be best known for its hang-anywhere hammocks, but the Austin, Texas-based outdoor brand hit a homer in expanding into camp bedding. The down-filled Bobcat is a lightweight, zipperless cover that's fit to fill in for any sleeping bag in warmer weather. Hidden in the side of the blanket's hems are tiny pockets that conceal button snaps and loops that allow you to connect one side to the other. That feature, paired with cinching top and bottom hems, enables the Bobcat to close up almost entirely and become a stand-in for a sleeping bag. Pro tip: use these features to create an enclosed foot box and sling it over the bottom of a sleeping pad so you, and the Bobcat, won't slide off in the night. (For a slightly warmer blanket with all the same features, check out Kammok's $260 Firebelly.)
Best Budget Camp Blanket: Rumpl Original Puffy Blanket
- Weight: 2.1 pounds (1 person), 3.7 pounds (2 person)
- Materials: 100% recycled 30D ripstop polyester fabric
- Waterproofing: DWR
No company has bolstered the outdoor lifestyle trend of the technical blanket more than — and quite as successfully as — Rumpl has. It constructs its Original Puffy Blanket with many of the same materials found in premium backpacking sleeping bags too, including a water-repellent 30-denier ripstop polyester face fabric and warm synthetic insulation. The blanket packs down small enough to fit inside a backpack and comes in a variety of playful patterns and prints, making it suitable for cabins and cars too. It's also available in a larger, two-person size.
Best Minimal Blanket: Matador Pocket Blanke
- Weight: 3.5 ounces
- Materials: Nylon
- Waterproofing: Yes
When Matador set out to make a blanket, it focused first on packability. And it succeeded there because when it's folded up into its little stuff sack, the Pocket Blanket is about the size of a deck of cards. That's only possible because it's made of nylon instead of wool or down insulation like the other camping blankets on this list, which means it isn't a sub for your sleeping bag. It is, however, an excellent barrier between your bum and the ground, and it's light enough to keep in your backpack or car for any last-minute picnics or outdoor naps.
Best Trail Quilt: Kammok Arctos 20°F
- Weight: 26 ounces
- Materials: Aura UL 10D ripstop nylon (recycled, bluesign approved)
- Waterproofing: DWR waterproofing + Cire
Kammok has mastered the art of making a blanket more than a blanket — the brand designates them as trail quilts actually — so it's no surprise that its newest is its most feature-packed yet. The Arctos is stuffed with enough 850-fill down to provide warmth down to 20 degrees Fahrenheit while maintaining an ultralight classification (it weighs in at 26.25 ounces). It has all the same features of the Bobcat, too, including the ability to turn into a poncho. However, an important distinction is that its lower portion zippers together, so it's even more sleeping bag-like when you want it to be. If you want the ultimate camping blanket trail quilt, this is it.
Best for Tailgates and Outdoor Concerts: Yeti Lowlands Blanket
- Weight: 5.8 pounds
- Materials: Top Layer: 65% Polyester / 35% Rayon; Bottom Layer: 100% Polyester
- Waterproofing: DWR
Have you ever sat down on a picnic blanket only to feel, like a slow-rising dread, the moisture of the ground you thought was dry soak into your pants? In a word, it’s uncomfortable. But it’s no surprise that Yeti, which makes all of its products impervious, made its Lowlands camping blanket waterproof on its bottom to prevent such unfortunate circumstances. The top is soft and lightly insulated, though, so the Lowlands is still plenty comfy. Plus, it’s pet-friendly and, should you spill food on it (or if a rude “friend” forgets to remove his or her shoes before sitting), it’s machine washable.
Best for Couples: Big Agnes Camp Robber Bedroll
- Weight: 2.15 pounds
- Materials: Polyester taffeta shell, 650-fill-power DownTek down insulation
- Waterproofing: DWR
Ahh, the double blanket. Much like its cousin the double sleeping bag, the double blanket promotes closeness, heat retention, and a more homey camping experience. This option from Big Agnes is made using 650-fill DownTek down insulation, which is water-repellant and PFC-free. The built-in pad coupler accommodates two 20-inch pads, so you won't be messing with your pad placement all night. The quilted construction, paired with the detachable comforter, means you'll be comfortable in cool temps as well as warm. And since it's all one system with attachment points, no one can hog the blanket all night. Win, win.
Best for Instagram: Pendleton National Park Blanket Collection
- Weight: 6 pounds
- Materials: Pure virgin wool
- Waterproofing: Wool is naturally water-repellent
For nearly a century, Pendleton has paid homage to United States National Parks with wool dyed in stripe, block and chevron. Its National Park Collection blankets, made of 100 percent pure virgin wool and made in the USA, have become rightfully iconic. These blankets are thick, heavy and warm — perfect for those more concerned with appearances than keeping to the latest tech. While the collection has grown, the Glacier National Park Blanket is still the most recognizable.
Best for Car Camping: Filson Mackinaw Wool Blanket
- Weight: 6 pounds
- Materials: 100% virgin wool sourced from the USA
- Waterproofing: Wool is naturally water-repellent
Camping next to a car is one thing, but bedding down inside of it is something else altogether. Depending on how dedicated you are to #vanlife, a night in the car might mean sleeping on a platform in a truck bed or laying down the seats and making do in a wagon. In either case, cars offer ample shelter but little warmth. Many of these blankets will do in a car, but since you have the extra space, it can be worth it to go big. Filson’s heavy Mackinaw Blanket is 100 percent USA-sourced virgin Mackinaw wool, so it’ll provide plenty of warmth, even when damp. Like most Filson products it’s super durable, in this case thanks to a serged hem that won’t fray over time, which is handy because the Mackinaw Blanket will last for years.
Best for the Beach: Nomadix Festival Blanket
- Weight: 2.01 pounds
- Materials: 100% Polyester (60% recycled)
- Waterproofing: Water-resistant base
While you technically could use many of the blankets on this list to hang at the beach, you shouldn’t. Sand is more invasive than dirt and dust, it gets on anything and once it does, it will stay there until the end of time. If you’re a dedicated beach-goer, it’s smart to have a dedicated beach blanket. Nomadix has nailed beach style with its line of printed blankets that feature a soft chamois-style top and a hardier water-repellent bottom. As its name implies, Nomadix imagined this for festivals, but its sand-proof properties make it ideal for the seaside too.
Best Flame Resistant Blanket: Rumpl Nanoloft Flame Blanket
- Weight: 2.01 pounds
- Materials: 100% Polyester (60% recycled)
- Waterproofing: Water-resistant base
Sitting by the campfire wrapped up in a blanket is relaxing, until you start to notice all the embers floating through the air, and realize you're wrapped in a cushy, but very flammable material. Rumpl put fireside woes to rest with its Nanoloft Flame Blanket: made with a proprietary, fire-resistant exterior topside material, Rumpl's new blanket resists sparks and embers with ease.
Efficient to the last, the Nanoloft Flame Blanket is filled with synthetic, packable Nanoloft insulation, and even comes with a Cape Clip for hands-free wearing. However, right now the blanket is only available in travel size, so if you were planning on cozying up with a group, you'll need to buy a few to cover everyone.
