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16 best camping stoves and portable gas cookers for your outdoor adventures

From cooking meat to boiling water for a cuppa, our expert put the best camping stoves to the test

Jon Axworthy
Thursday 04 April 2024 13:24 BST
We kept an eye on boiling and cooking times while testing these on wild and windy Dartmoor
We kept an eye on boiling and cooking times while testing these on wild and windy Dartmoor (iStock/The Independent)

The prospect of a freeze-dried beef casserole may not get your taste buds tingling but when you’ve been out on the trails all day, hiking or biking, and you’ve really built up an appetite, a pot of bubbling goodness on a camping stove can taste as good as a restaurant meal.

Of course, when you’re living the outdoor life, your dinner reservations can vary wildly – from the relative luxury of a camper van to a portaledge halfway up a rock face – so, what you cook is also going to vary.

That’s why we’ve looked into a wide range of camping stoves, from camp-site cookers to expedition-worthy micro stoves, that will accommodate a variety of cooking outcomes, from simply getting something warming in your belly in the quickest time possible to stoves that can take pots and pans, for more substantial fare.

With each camping stove, we were looking for efficient burners that were easy to turn up and down, giving us total control over our cooking.

We were also looking for good portability and build quality, because, whether your camping stove is being transported in a car, a rucksack or a bike pannier, you don’t want to find that your dinner plans have been thwarted by damage en route.

Ease of setup, stability and cooking performance also factored in when it came to finding the best camping stoves. So, get out there and ramp up your al fresco cookery this year.

How we tested the best camping stoves

A selection of the camping stoves we tested
A selection of the camping stoves we tested (Jon Axworthy)

We took a range of camping stoves to wild and windy Dartmoor, to see how well they could cope with the conditions. Once there, we timed how long each stove took to boil water; sizzled bacon and eggs; bubbled up a sausage casserole, and, of course, we got a brew on. For each cooking session, we noted how quickly and easily the stoves served up the grub.

The best camping stoves for 2024 are:

  • Best camping stove overall – Primus essential trail kit: £65, Primusequipment.co.uk
  • Best budget camping stove – Vango folding gas stove: £39.94, Amazon.co.uk
  • Best for transporting – MSR pocketrocket deluxe: £80.99, Ultralightoutdoorgear.co.uk
  • Best for cooking multiple items – Coleman unleaded two-burner: £189.95, Amazon.co.uk
  • Best for cooking for large families or groups – Vango camp chef explorer 14 two-burner: £225, Johnlewis.com

Primus essential trail kit

Primuse-stove-indybest
  • Best: Camping stove overall
  • Flame power: 2,500W
  • Burners: One
  • Weight: 382g
  • Fuel: Gas
  • Auto ignition: Yes
  • Why we love it
    • Great design
    • Versatile

We really liked the clever modular design of this stove, with the 1l pot holding the canister and stove and keeping the whole kit very stable, while the lid can be used to keep heat in when boiling water or meals, or turned over and used as a frying pan, complete with ceramic coating, so your scrambled eggs won’t stick.

The flame control was really precise, with an easy-to-use control and the serrated pot supports do a good job of blocking a breeze. We had a litre of water bubbling away in less than four minutes, thanks to the very powerful 2,500W burner, and, once you’re done with dinner and the washing up’s done, there’s a neat little mesh storage bag for easy transportation.

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Vango folding gas stove

Vango-indybest
  • Best: Budget camping stove
  • Flame power: 2,600W
  • Burners: One
  • Weight: 250g
  • Fuel: Gas
  • Auto ignition: Yes
  • Why we love it
    • Compact
    • Powerful

For a compact stove, this produced a nice wide flame, which made it very easy to cook more food, quicker, using a wide pan or pot, which is held in place well by the serrated edges of the supports.

We had a litre of water boiling in around six minutes, although, we tested on quite a windy day, so, in calmer conditions, it might have been even quicker. The gas pipe was nice and flexible, so, it made attaching the canister very straightforward – the stove lit first time and offered plenty of control for simmering or boiling.

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Biolite campstove 2+

Bio-lite-indybest
  • Best: Camping stove for fuel options
  • Flame power: N/A
  • Burners: N/A
  • Weight: 935g
  • Fuel: Biomass
  • Auto ignition: No
  • Why we love it
    • Can be used to charge your devices
    • Light and portable

This is a stove with a difference. Firstly, it’s serviced with small pieces of wood and twigs, so you need never worry about running out of fuel (or carrying canisters), as long as you have a steady supply of dry sticks around. Secondly, it uses thermoelectrics to create electricity from the fire, which can then be used to charge any devices that are running low, via a USB port. Alternatively, the energy can be stored in the on-board battery, for when it’s needed.

This camping stove certainly gets full marks for ingenuity but there are also bags of practicality, with an included flexi LED light that can be plugged into the USB port to light up your cookery.

The fire itself is simple to start and keep stoked, and can be controlled by adjusting the speed of the internal fan. When it was raging, we managed to boil our litre of water in around six minutes, with the LED display giving constant feedback on the strength of the fire, so you know when to add more fuel. Weighing less than a kilo, complete with foldaway legs, it’s a brilliantly portable heat source, too.

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Campingaz party grill 400 CV

best camping stoves tried and tested portable gas cookers
  • Best: Camping stove for festivals
  • Flame power: 2,000W
  • Burners: One
  • Weight: 4.9kg
  • Fuel: Gas canister
  • Auto ignition: No
  • Why we love it
    • Versatile
    • Reliable

The party grill 400 design is ingenious, with a lid that doubles as a cooking wok and unclips to reveal a stove top, grill, griddle and plancha. The legs simply screw on to the base, to raise it above ground.

It uses the brand’s own CV Plus gas cartridges, which secure easily to the valve underneath the base, while the Piezo integrated ignition was suitably reliable, even in windy conditions.

Flame control was sufficient to be able to cook pretty much anything, from bacon and eggs on the plancha to a sausage sizzle on the grill.

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Primus onja stove duo

best camping stoves tried and tested portable gas cookers
  • Best: Camping stove for design
  • Flame power: 2,800W
  • Burners: Two
  • Weight: 3.25kg
  • Fuel: Gas canister
  • Auto ignition: No
  • Why we love it
    • Functional
    • Great for cooking different things at once

Oozing Swedish style, the form of this two-burner stove is incredibly eye-catching, with its mix of oak, brass, leather and stainless steel. Its good looks are backed up with bags of functionality and portability, with an over-the-shoulder carry strap, and a base that levers effortlessly out to provide a stable platform for the two powerful burners. These each require a canister and can get you boiling in around two minutes (a little longer if you’re trying to deal with the wind, too).

The duo prefix means this model can receive both threaded and non-threaded valves, so, you’ve got a little more choice in terms of which canister you use. Whichever you go for, they secure easily and remain hidden by the fabric base, while the oak lid that protects the burners during transport has a dual purpose and can be used as a chopping board.

Ignition was straightforward, with a separate lighter, while the flame control was excellent, with the burners able to be controlled separately, so, you can cook multiple meals for hungry mouths.

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JetBoil minimo

best camping stoves tried and tested portable gas cookers
  • Best: Camping stove for backpackers
  • Flame power: 1,750W
  • Burner: One
  • Weight: 414g
  • Fuel: Gas
  • Auto ignition: Yes
  • Why we love it
    • Prevents any spills
    • Lightweight

If you often stop on a ledge for a cuppa, you’re going to want to have the lightweight MiniMo to hand, as it fuses portability with practicality.

Integrated canister stoves such as this one were simply invented to rapidly boil water but they are now also able to simmer – and the minimo’s simmering capabilities are simply superb.

The pot has a wide base, which means it’s a good option for anyone who enjoys (or, at least, tolerates) a good dehydrated meal, and the pot shape and size make it easy to devour the contents with a normal spoon.

The igniter was reliable and we found that heat was dispersed nicely by the flux ring – our meals were evenly heated, and the insulation on the pot was excellent, so, we didn’t have to wolf down the food before it went cold.

Stability can be an issue with these stoves but the burner-to-pot interface was secure and the stubby design means you don’t have to worry too much about spillage while cooking.

If you want a brew to accompany your meal, just turn up the heat and you’ll have a hot drink in no time – in fact, we had a rolling boil in around two minutes. The minimo has a small packing footprint, too – you can fit an 8oz canister inside the minimo pot itself, to save on rucksack space.

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Primus lite plus feed zone

best camping stoves tried and tested portable gas cookers
  • Best: Bikepacking camping stove
  • Flame power: 1,500W
  • Burners: One
  • Weight: 402g
  • Fuel: Gas
  • Auto ignition: Yes
  • Why we love it
    • Small but mighty
    • Versatile

It may be small but the feed zone is big on functionality, especially as the burner (with 100g canister attached) will fit into the aluminium pot and if you also pack the microfiber drying cloth (supplied), everything will be suitably protected against rattling rides along trails.

The burner pot coupling was easy and secure and the pot has a nice pouring spout, which avoids spillages.

The 1,500W flame is lit by a reliable piezo igniter and is powerful enough to boil half a litre of water in around three minutes, depending on the wind strength.

However, you aren’t restricted to simmering and boiling in the pot, as there are removable metal pegs that stabilise the system, by screwing into the stove’s base, so you can use the burner with a pan if you want something more substantial.

You can also unbuckle the handle and turn it into a hanging stove if you’re limited in space or struggling to find flat ground on which to cook.

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MSR pocketrocket deluxe

best camping stoves tried and tested portable gas cookers
  • Best: Camping stove for transporting
  • Flame power: 1,500W
  • Burners: One
  • Weight: 83g
  • Fuel: Gas
  • Auto ignition: Yes
  • Why we love it
    • Great for use in tough weather
    • Super stable

The aptly named pocketrocket could probably fit in a cargo pocket but we like to pop it in a camping mug. When screwed into a gas canister, it will deliver boiling water in around three to four minutes, depending on the conditions.

Robust and lightning fast to set up and attach to the canister, there’s lots of adjustability, so, you can go from low to high output and back again without any fumbling or faff.

The starter worked really well and there is a windshield incorporated into the burner, which was really efficient, even when we were struggling with gusty conditions.

The extra 10g of weight you get with the deluxe comes from the igniter and broader burner head, so, you get a wider flame and a more even simmer when dishing up a one-pot wonder. We also liked the serrated edges of the pot supports, which add to the overall stability of the stove.

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Vango camp chef explorer 14 two-burner

best camping stoves tried and tested portable gas cookers
  • Best: For cooking for families or large groups
  • Flame power: 8,792W
  • Burners: Two
  • Weight: 15.6kg
  • Fuel: Propane or butane gas
  • Auto ignition: No
  • Why we love it
    • Easy to set up
    • Boils super quickly
  • Take note
    • Takes up a lot of space
    • Not great for windy days

Easy to set up, this is an excellent option if you’ve got plenty of room in the car or van and don’t want to be restricted in what you serve up once you’ve pitched up.

From the cast aluminium burners to the steel frame, the double burner feels bomb-proof in its construction, and we had no problem attaching the metre-long gas hose to the canister, which can run on either propane or butane.

With water boiling in less than three minutes, the explorer could also reduce to a simmer very nicely, which is great, because you can put pots and pans of any size on the burners.

The only slight problem is that, although there is an effective windshield on three sides, there is a lot of air circulating around and underneath the burners, which means that on really windy days, the burners can be affected. However, as this is a burner for car camping rather than a rocky outcrop halfway up a mountain, it’s more likely you’ll have it set up somewhere a little less exposed. In terms of the setup, you don’t have to use it with its legs, so you can just set it up on a camping table to ensure total stability when cooking.

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Coleman unleaded two-burner

best camping stoves tried and tested portable gas cookers
  • Best: For cooking multiple items
  • Flame power: 4,100W
  • Burners: Two
  • Weight: 4.5kg
  • Fuel: Liquid fuel and unleaded petrol
  • Auto ignition: No
  • Why we love it
    • Powerful
    • Great for meal versatility
    • Great for all weather
  • Take note
    • No integrated lighters

Hidden inside this stove’s green gun-metal shell are two powerful burners that will have you boiling in just a shade less than five minutes. Not that you’re restricted to plates of pasta, as the Coleman has a sturdy grid covering the two burners, so, it will easily hold frying pans or other cooking pots, enabling you to flex your countryside culinary muscles.

The stove performed brilliantly in windy conditions, with the shields doing a very good job of protecting the flames, which we were in total control of throughout.

There’s a funnel included, so you can accurately top up the stove with your fuel, which will give you between five and six hours of cooking time, should you need to cook for the entire campsite.

Don’t forget your matches or lighter, though, as there’s no integrated lighter.

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Vango sizzle double

best camping stoves tried and tested portable gas cookers
  • Best: Electric stove
  • Flame power: 800W
  • Burners: Two
  • Weight: 2.78kg
  • Fuel: Electricity
  • Auto ignition: No
  • Why we love it
    • Quick boiling time
    • Plenty of cooking area
    • Easy to clean

Stoves don’t have to be fire-powered – if you know you’re going somewhere with an electricity supply or you have a portable power station, you can plug in this 800W induction hob and have boiling water in around two to three minutes.

The double gives you a big cooking area, so, there’s plenty of room for stainless steel pans and kettles, while the hobs are really responsive, with LED controls offering plenty of control over what you’re cooking.

Easy to clean, and taking up minimal room, this is a great option for flame-free fodder.

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JetBoil flash

best camping stoves tried and tested portable gas cookers
  • Best: Camping stove for quick boiling
  • Flame power: 2,600W
  • Burners: One
  • Weight: 3.71kg
  • Fuel: Gas
  • Auto ignition: Yes
  • Why we love it
    • Logo changes colour when contents start to boil

As the name suggests, this stove is all about getting you to boiling point as quickly as possible, with the 1l FluxRing cooking pot fitting easily and securely to the burner itself and allowing the heat to spread evenly on the underside of the pot.

It took just under three minutes to get 1l of water boiling. The fact the JetBoil symbol on the mug changes colour when the contents have started boiling was a nice touch because it means you can get your brew going and busy yourself with getting the tent up while keeping an eye on the mug.

The piezo lighter was reliable, so, if you really want something hot and wet in the shortest possible time, there really isn’t a better system out there.

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Primus firestick

primus indybest.png
  • Best: Value camping stove
  • Flame power: 2,500W
  • Burners: One
  • Weight: 1.05kg
  • Fuel: Gas
  • Auto ignition: No
  • Why we love it
    • Looks great
    • Effective wind breaker

Design is everything when it comes to compact camping equipment, and you can’t fault the firestick for its ease of use. Simply take the stove and its accompanying lighter out of the woollen storage pouch (more on this in a minute), pop off the cap and the pot supports spring into life. It’s easily attached to the canister and the control valve was one of the best on test, enabling us to go quickly from a boil to a simmer without inadvertently turning the whole thing off, which is one of the most frustrating things about some of the stoves we tested that didn’t make the final edit.

The recessed burner head and the pot supports to act as a very effective wind break, so you won’t have to use your body to coil around the stove to stop the wind from getting to the flame. We had our litre bubbling away nicely in less than four minutes (less than five minutes when the wind was strong). Once you’re at temperature, you can use the woollen pouch as a pot holder, too.

We’ve seen some online grumbles that the pot supports don’t do the best job of stabilising your mug or pot, but we found the serrated edges fitted our mug perfectly and we were never in danger of spilling, so, it might be worth ensuring your utensil is suitably tailored to the firestick’s dimensions.

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Trangia 27-1 stove alloy pans

Trangia-indybest
  • Best: Camping stove for windy days
  • Flame power: Unspecified
  • Burners : One
  • Weight: 690g
  • Fuel: Methylated spirit
  • Auto ignition: No
  • Why we love it
    • Lightweight
    • Good for bigger meals
  • Take note
    • Larger footprint

The Trangia cooking system has been around for a while now, but that doesn’t mean it’s any less effective at rustling up something very tasty. It’s fuelled by methylated spirit, so, all you have to do is fill up the burner, light it and get cooking.

The wind guards protect the flame well, enabling you to cook your meal without having to keep relighting. It’s not the most efficient flame, and boiling water will take time, but the range of pots and pans means you can cook an expansive meal. The whole aluminium cook set is very light but, even though the set is modular and held together with a strap, it will take up a fair bit of room in your rucksack – if you’re short on space, this set probably isn’t for you.

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Campingaz camping chef

Campingaz-indybest
  • Best: Camping stove for breakfast
  • Flame power: 1,500W
  • Burners: Three
  • Weight: 4kg
  • Fuel: Gas
  • Auto ignition: Yet
  • Why we love it
    • Full English-friendly

The double gas burner means this stove can cope with a range of cooked breakfast requests when everyone starts to emerge from their tents in the morning. The 1,500W burners are very responsive, so, you can get the bacon and the kettle on and have everything ready before you can say “fry up”.

The real bonus about this stove, though, is the very clever downward grill that will also cook two slices of toast at a time. Once you’re finished cooking, you just detach the gas bottle and the stove folds away very neatly into a briefcase-style steel carrier that’s very robust and will protect the stove while it’s in transit.

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Robens lumberjack wood stove

Robens-indybest
  • Best: Wood-burning stove
  • Flame power: N/A
  • Burners: N/A
  • Weight: 329g
  • Fuel: Wood
  • Auto ignition: No
  • Why we love it
    • Great design
    • Good fire
  • Take note
    • Slower cooking time

We really liked this wood-burning stove, which breaks down into four parts. Assembly takes seconds, too. It also relieves you of the need to carry a canister of fuel – all you have to do is collect dry kindling, branches and twigs from around your campsite, light them up and get cooking.

The ingenious design means the wood has plenty of protection from the wind and, just in case it’s been raining in the day and your camp is surrounded by wet wood, the lumberjack also burns solid fuel tablets.

Once you’ve finished cooking, you can repurpose the lumberjack as a mini-fire pit for the rest of your evening.

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The verdict: Camping stoves

We’ve chosen the Primus essential trail kit as the best camping stove overall, as it’s a really clever little cooking kit, with a nicely compact footprint that’s modular enough to give you a range of options to satisfy the hungriest hiker. We also absolutely loved the Biolite campstove 2+ because it runs on biomass, so, you really get that bushcraft vibe by hunting around for dry wood to fuel the incredibly efficient fire system. Meanwhile, if you’re looking to travel light but still want hot, fast food at your fingertips, we’d recommend the JetBoil minimo, which simmered like a pro and boiled quickly.

Want extra comfort while sleeping in the great outdoors? We’ve rounded up the best camping mats

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