6 Best Camping Stoves in 2023

No matter your experience camping or hiking, there’s one thing for certain– you don’t have to eat raw, dried, uncooked food while sleeping in the great outdoors, nor do you need to be an expert at campfire cooking. Camping stoves are an easy way to elevate your camping experience and give everyone the satisfaction of a home-cooked meal while sleeping under the stars.

We’ve rounded up our top camping stoves below and broken them down by heating ability, size and weight, ease of use, price, and the amount of cooking they can host for your next adventure. The difference between a freestanding stove and a tabletop stove can be great– and the technicalities of automatic starting stoves or prime/pump starting stoves can make a huge difference from camper to camper.

Our camping stoves below include an option for the budget-conscious camper, ‘need an upgrade’ camper, the camping cook for the entire extended family, the ‘I’ll be as remote as the penguins’ camper, and the ‘I want options for my campsite,’ camper.

Let’s dive into our top camping stove recommendations.

Camping Stove Buyer’s Guide

Gone are the days of freeze-dried meat and fruit. Say hello to the beauty of camping stove cooking and the smell of hot, fresh coffee wherever you are! Most stoves just need a canister of propane and the stove itself and you’re off to the races.

So, whether you’re backpacking and need something compact, have a minimalistic set-up for two in the woods, or you’re hauling the kitchen sink, we’ve got the rundown on what to consider when buying a camping stove for your portable cooking needs.

Functionality and Size

The primary question you need to ask when you’re shopping for a camp stove is: how will you use it? Consider your cooking goals when determining which type to purchase.

Do you need the most portable option because you are heating up a ready-to-eat meal (MRE) on an overnight, hiking trip? Or are you bringing fresh produce to whip into a hot dinner at the end of the day and want the best available option for your outdoor cooking? How many people are you feeding when you use this camping stove? Are you camping in colder climate?

BACKPACKING

The most portable and compact type of stoves are backpacking stoves, created specifically for lightweight durability and a tight fit.

Backpacking camping stoves are single-burner set ups that often include a pan or pot of some sort, a stand for the fuel (most often propane canisters), and a gripping burner that transports the heat to the pot. These stoves boast quick, simple cooking capabilities for coffee, tea, and ready-to-eat-meals.

What you want to look for in these small set-ups is: ease of storage, stability of the fuel as it is the foundation of the burner and your cooking materials, and any compatibility of the system (i.e. Can you put the propane in the pan and fold down the other materials to limit storage space?).

CAMPING

An outdoor camping stove can vary in size depending on the amount of people you’re cooking for. The two main types of stoves used for camping are tabletop and stand-alone.

A tabletop stove is just that– a portable stove with typically one or two burners that is used while set up on a table or slab/rock. A stand-alone camping stove has its own legs for set up and is independent of additional furniture.

Generally speaking, a tabletop stove is suitable for 2-5 adults or a single family. Most models have two burners and use cylinders of propane for the heat source; some have a burner with a grate for grilling. Some models are conducive to liquid fuel (often white gas) use as well.

The whole grill system is typically very compact and easy to add to your supplies for a camping trip. The propane canisters are often light, compact, and safe and easy to pack.

A stand-alone camp stove can vary in burner size and typically boasts more cooking space with the capacity for more fuel. These stoves are commonly used to cook multiple types of food at a time for a committed cook, large family, or groups of campers.

Stand-alone stoves often use traditional propane tanks or mid-sized tanks called growlers; some utilize liquid fuel.

Fuel Requirements and Power

Backpacking and tabletop camping stoves often use smaller cylinders of propane, ranging from 3.5oz to 16oz, but some can accommodate liquid fuel, or white gas, as well.

Tabletop camping stoves attach 16oz propane cylinders to a pressure regulator that tips up or snakes around the stove, delivering the vaporized fuel through the hose.

Backpacking stoves often utilize a 3.5oz propane cylinder attached directly underneath the burner; the cylinder is used as the base of a backpacking stove set up.

On average, a 16oz propane cylinder can cook continuously for one hour– a 3.5oz fuel pack would last about 20 minutes if used consecutively.

Note the specs and British Thermal Unit (BTU) output on the stoves when shopping– stove models vary in the efficiency in which they use the fuel boasting impressive speeds of heating water or food so your fuel can last longer.

Generally speaking, the more BTU’s per stove, the more efficient the product can heat your food or water with the fuel you have.

If utilizing liquid fuel, consider the type and the preparations needed. There are many types of liquid gas (white gas, kerosene, petrol, etc.), all of which need to be pumped and primed in a canister before use. According to this breakdown of fuel output, liquid fuel can be a little less efficient in heating water and food and be more easily affected by wind, but it is often more readily available when camping and hiking in more rural, less connected areas.

Usability and Necessary Accessories

Once you’ve settled on the type of stove you’re going to buy, the final deciding factors will revolve around ignition, user-friendliness, storage and durability, and performance in inclement weather.

Learn how the stove ignites and what is necessary for you as the user. Are you OK with needing a lighter or match on hand or would you prefer the ease of a push button ignition when ready-ing your camping stove?

If you’re using liquid fuel, understand the process of priming the fuel in the canister and the storage restrictions needed to keep you safe when traveling. We recommend reading reviews on the reliability of a push button ignition and understand the value of any accessories to accompany your lighter or matches, as well as safety precautions for liquid fuel sources.

Evaluate wind protection designs on the camping stove like metal flaps or covers that block wind from extinguishing flames under the burners. There’s nothing quite as upsetting as having to reignite a constantly extinguishing flame in the middle of meal prep.

Secondly, read reviews and take time to consider the ease of set-up for the stove. Does the tabletop stove open in a breeze or do you need to assemble every aspect of its pieces before use? Are the legs on a standalone table extendable without help or do you always need your partner around for you to set up the stove?

Lastly, evaluate the durability. Is the exterior shell of the tabletop stove likely to withhold bumps and bruises? Does the pot, stand, and fuel system of a backpacking stove compact into one another for easy packing? Do the legs of a stand-alone stove fold in easily and adjust to various ground heights without trouble?

All of these considerations should arm you with the knowledge you need to pick the best camping stove for your next adventure. Refer back to our guide as you shop and add comments below to give us your perspective on the information that was most helpful for you!