Who makes the best camping stoves?

Coleman is one of the most popular manufacturers of camping stoves and has a variety of designs, sizes, and weights to suit all sorts of camping trips.

Is a camping stove worth it?

Camping stoves are a worthy investment for anyone who needs to cook food in the wild. They are easy to ignite, regardless of your conditions, and will cook your food evenly.

Is butane safer than propane?

Both butane and propane used in camping stoves are non-toxic and burn clean. Propane burns more efficiently than butane, but the difference is negligible when it comes to camping stoves, given the low temperatures.

Can you use a camping stove indoors?

Yes, a camping stove that uses propane or butane is safe to use indoors, provided you have adequate ventilation. In addition, camping stoves make for a great backup should there be any power or storm issues back home.

The 10 Best Camping Stoves in 2023 [Wood & Gas]

A camping stove will provide you with all the heat you need to safely prepare hot food on the go. Easy to ignite, highly portable, and simple to cook on, a camping stove lets you enjoy cooking in the great outdoors.

Whether you choose the eco-efficient simplicity of a wood burner or go for the adjustable features of a gas stove, your camping cooker will quickly become an integral part of your camping gear.

Table of contents

Things To Consider With Camping Stoves
The 5 Best Wood Camping Stoves
The 5 Best Gas Camping Stoves
Final Thoughts

Table of Contents

Things To Consider With Camping Stoves
The 5 Best Wood Camping Stoves
The 5 Best Gas Camping Stoves
Final Thoughts

Things To Consider With Camping Stoves

The right camping stove will make your outdoor life so much easier. The type of stove you choose for your next adventure will depend on many things, including your own personal preference. Before you buy, consider the following:

Types

There are many different types of camping stoves to choose from. What sets them apart from each other is the fuel they use to heat your food. The most popular and practical options are wood-burning stoves or gas-fueled options, but here’s a quick run-down on all the options available to you:

Wood-burning Stoves — Easy to use, eco-friendly, and an excellent choice for more remote camping trips, a wood-burning stove is literally fueled by branches, twigs, and even leaves, making it an excellent choice for backcountry adventures. While the cooking time may be slower on a wood burner, they offer a truly natural outdoor experience and that authentic wood-fired flavor.
Gas-fueled Stoves — Quick and easy to use, these stoves are powered by a single canister of propane or, in some cases, butane, and offer reliable and adjustable heating. With impressive cooking times, gas stoves can be small and simple or can feature several burners, automatic ignition, and almost as many features as your stove back at home. On the downside, you will need to carry a gas canister around with you.
Liquid-fueled Stoves — A good choice if you need to cook for a few people at a time, these stoves are often fueled using kerosene and are cheaper to buy than gas stoves. Effective and efficient, they are better suited to RV camping or more permanent bases, as they are heavy to carry, and it’s not that nice to carry fuel around with you.
Alcohol-burning Stoves — These compact little cookers have always been popular with more extreme adventurers who will be cooking for 1. Light to carry and cheap to buy, they run on methanol-based products. Basic but effective, they will give enough heat to boil a pan of water for hot drinks and food.
Solid-fuel Stoves — Super lightweight and very simple, these little cooking stoves are easy to use and very cost-effective. Fueled by premade fuel tabs, they offer fuss-free cooking, but they are also very slow and only really suitable for travelers with plenty of time on their hands.

Size and Weight

From single burners for solo travelers to dual or triple options for family trips, the size of stove you need will be determined by how many you need to cook for.

Some stoves are super compact and weigh only a pound or so, while others will be heavier if they offer more functions and burners.

The usual rules apply when it comes to weight. If you are trekking over long distances, you won’t want to be weighed down by a bulky stove and cumbersome canisters, whereas camping trips in the car will make the weight of your stove less of an issue for you.

Hot Tip: Choose the smallest design you think you can get away with, as the bigger your burner is, the heavier it will be to carry.

Burners

Camping stove Burner — Some gas stoves are just a single burner, while others will offer more. Image Credit: Amar Hussain

Some gas stoves are just a single burner, while others will offer more. Some may also feature adjustable heat settings, allowing you to cook efficiently across 2 or more burners. However many burners you choose to use, be sure that you make sure your pans will fit properly on them before you buy.

Hot Tip: Check out our list of the best camping essentials to bring on your next trip, as well as our guides to the best camping kitchens, the best portable camping grills, and the best camping cooking sets.

The 5 Best Wood Camping Stoves

1. All-weather Wood Stove

SOLEADER Portable Wood Burning Camp Stoves - Stainless Steel Compact Gasifier Stove - Twig Stove For Camping, Hiking, Picnic, BBQ,...

This stove is perfect for multiple occasions. You can use it for cooking, but it can also create a fire easily without the fuss a normal campfire might cause you.

SOLEADER Portable Wood Burning Camp Stove

Made from stainless steel, this awesome little camping stove has been built to withstand even the harshest of conditions.

Weighing just over a pound, it is easy to carry around with you, and with the ability to be powered by wood, twigs, branches, or even leaves, you won’t need to worry about keeping bulky canisters in your backpack.

The wide, open-mouth design makes it easy to add more wood to keep the fire going, and the non-slip arms can support pots and pans for cooking.

What We Like

The simple design is super lightweight

What We Don’t Like

It’s quite a small camping stove

2. Collapsible and Super Easy To Carry

DISCOUNT: 13%

UPGRADE PICK: Camping Rocket Stove

This portable stove is small, but it's strong. It's great for cooking meat and fish thoroughly. It's also able to give off enough heat to keep you warm while outside.

StarBlue Camping Rocket Stove

Superstrong and highly durable, this mini camping stove is made from rust-resistant stainless steel that has been built to last.

Collapsible for easy transportation, it comes with its very own carry bag, and the functional design makes this an excellent choice for camping trips.

With a large fuel chamber that can be filled with wood, branches, twigs, and leaves, it provides a wide and stable base for your cooking pot, and the sturdy design ensures that it is suitable for use in a wide variety of conditions.

What We Like

Looks and feels like it has been built to last

What We Don’t Like

It is quite small

3. Clean Wood Camping Stove

SEADESKY Camping Stove Portable Wood Stove

This stove model is designed to be useful for camping and survival training without being bulky. The metal is thick and durable, but it also folds to be easily carried.

SEADESKY Camping Stove

This little stove collapses down to a very compact size and comes with its own carry bag for easy transportation.

Offering incredible resistance to heat, it has been built to last through many outdoor adventures, and the clever double-wall design does away with black smoke and foul odors while cooking.

Fueled by nature, you can fire it up using twigs, sticks, leaves, pine cones, and other natural burners, and the heavy-duty stainless steel construction provides a safe and stable cooking platform in virtually all conditions.

What We Like

It burns clean

What We Don’t Like

It would be better if it came with a handle

4. Super Lightweight and Easy To Assemble

Camping Stove, Backpacking Stove, Portable Stove Wood Burning Stove Stainless Steel Stove with Grill Grid, Wire Saw Anti-scald...

With lightweight components that nest within each other, this is a great stove if you want to barbecue on the go. It can practically fit in your hand, and it's light enough to carry.

LAVONSLICHY Camping Stove

This wide-mouth camping stove weighs around a pound and offers a sizable cooking area. With adjustable settings, you can find the exact heat level you are looking for, and the user-friendly design is efficient, portable, and easy to carry around with you.

Made from high-quality materials, it can be assembled and packed away in seconds, without the need for tools, and the eco-friendly design means it can run on wood, twigs, leaves, and any other natural materials you have close at hand.

This camping stove comes with cut-resistant gloves and a wire cutter to help source your fuel from the great outdoors.

What We Like

Easy to assemble

What We Don’t Like

The metal panels can get a little hot

5. The Best Wood Stove for Use in Your Tent

DISCOUNT: 10%

XCMAN Camping Tent Wood Stove with 6 Section Chimney Pipes,Three-View Windows Portable Wood Stove For Camping Tent,Ice Fishing...

This stove is acceptable for indoor use, so you can set it up in your tent. It's great for cooking and keeping yourself warm while you camp during the winter.

XCMAN Camping Tent Wood Stove

Made from 304 stainless steel, this portable cooking stove is an excellent choice for use inside small spaces such as tents, yurts, and teepees.

Built to withstand many years of use, the heavy-duty construction has been designed to remain resistant to rust and corrosion. The folding, 2-leg construction folds flat under the stove for easy transportation, and the side shelves can also be used as a carry handle.

The firebox offers plenty of heat and warmth, and the chimney pipe funnels smoke away from you for cleaner heating.

What We Like

Gives your tent a homely feel

What We Don’t Like

It is a little expensive

The 5 Best Gas Camping Stoves

1. The Most Compact Gas Camping Stove

RANDDER Propane Stove Portable Camping Gas Stove 10,000 BTU Bottletop Single Adjustable Burner with 1 lb Tank Base Carrying Case...

You can adjust this stove's burner to create the flame that best suits your needs. It also has a sturdy base that won't tip over easily, especially while on a flat surface.

RANDDER Portable Gas Stove

This super-compact travel stove is small enough to be carried in your backpack while still offering reliable and even heating.

With the built-in pressure control, you can enjoy consistent performance, even in extreme conditions, ensuring more efficient cooking even with less fuel. The foldable legs provide a stable base for safe cooking, and the adjustable burner fits a pan/kettle for easy cooking or hot drinks.

Offering hours of heating on high on a single 16.4-ounce propane cylinder, the burner base separates from the propane bottle for compact storage, and the lightweight design makes this perfect for even the most extreme outdoor adventures.

What We Like

Compact, lightweight, and highly efficient

What We Don’t Like

This burner doesn’t include a propane bottle

2. Powerful Gas Camping Stove for Family Adventures

DISCOUNT: 9%

UPGRADE PICK: Coleman Gas Camping Stove

With 2 burners, you can cook easily with this camping stove. Since it runs on propane, you don't have to worry about finding wood or damp conditions causing you trouble.

Coleman Gas Camping Stove

Offering up to 20,000 total BTUs, this awesome little gas camping stove fits a 12-inch and 10-inch pan at the same time, making it perfect for family camping trips.

With 2 adjustable burners, you can enjoy precise temperature control, and the wind-blocking panels shield the burners from extreme weather.

Offering a run time of up to 1 hour on 1 single 16.4-ounce propane cylinder, this camping stove is lightweight and portable and can be folded completely flat for easy storage and transportation.

What We Like

It can even be used at home in the event of a power outage or storm

What We Don’t Like

The adjustable valves are a little fiddly

3. Fast-heating Gas Stove

DISCOUNT: 40%

Horynar Single Burner Propane Stove with Propane Adapter Hose 13000 BTU Single Propane Burner Smart Switch Protection for...

A great tabletop stove. You can easily use a pot or pan for cooking. It's also easy to adjust the flame and the heat for any type of camping cooking.

Horynar Single Burner Propane Stove

The Horynar Single Burner Propane Stove connects to larger propane canisters, for when you’re cooking for a large group or are traveling on a longer adventure.

The 1-burner cooking tool accommodates cookware 6 inches or larger, and the fully-adjustable heat goes from simmer to full boil with up to 13,000 BTUs of power.

The ignition and temperature switch is easy to use (but with child safety features,) and the 360-degree oxygen supply ensures an even and steady burn. Compatible with propane, this camping stove comes with a propane converter regulator for safe and easy use.

What We Like

Connecting to a larger tank will ensure you’ll never run out of fuel

What We Don’t Like

Won’t hold pots smaller than 6 inches

4. Dual Fuel Design With Converter

Camplux Dual Fuel Propane & Butane Stove

You can easily take this camping stove with you while you travel since it comes with a carrying case. You can readily find the LPG liquid you need to use it.

Camplux Dual Fuel Camping Stove

This portable gas stove offers consistent and reliable heating and comes with a ton of features. With a built-in pressure sensor, this model can cut off the gas if the pressure increases too much, and the piezoelectric ignition makes this as easy to use as your stove back at home.

The dual-fuel burner operates on a single 8-ounce butane canister or a 16.4-ounce propane canister, and the high-quality construction will ensure that this stove will last for many adventures to come.

What We Like

Brilliant for camping with the family

What We Don’t Like

It is quite heavy

5. Excellent Power in a Compact Design

Coleman Fold N Go Stove — Image Credit: Coleman

Coleman Fold N Go InstaStart 2-Burner Propane Stove

With its supercool looks and easy-to-use design, this awesome little camping stove folds up nicely and is compact for easy transportation and storage.

Featuring 2 burners that are just the right size for 10-inch pans, it produces an impressive 20,000 total BTUs of cooking power. With pressure-control technology, it will deliver consistent heat, even in extreme conditions, and both burners can run for over an hour on just a single 16.4-ounce propane cylinder.

Matchless InstaStart ignition lights the stove with just the push of a button, and with a built-in handle, you can literally carry your camping stove around with you.

What We Like

The fold-up feature

What We Don’t Like

The grates are quite high

Final Thoughts

Whatever type and size of stove you choose to buy, it should be practical and reliable enough to heat your food properly on the move.

From gas-fueled burners with fancy features and adjustable temperatures to wood burners that are eco-friendly and highly efficient, there is a camping stove to suit every type of outdoor adventure.