Well, Yeti has spent a decade convincing the world you need to drop ~$400 on a cooler to keep a six-pack cold. I’ve been testing coolers on Lake Superior for 15 years, and I’ve owned my Yeti Roadie for three seasons now, plus I’ve borrowed a friend’s RTIC for the last two summers to settle this exact argument.
The short version: RTIC is 80% of the cooler at 40% of the price, but Yeti still does a couple of things that matter if you abuse your gear the way I do.
I’ll get into the nitty-gritty below, but I want to be clear about my bias right up front. I’m the guy who has watched a cheap cooler turn ~$80 of walleye into a warm, sad smell by noon. I test the way I guide: 3 days, real sun, real food. I start Thursday and I end Sunday. If a cooler claims “up to 5 days,” I’m putting it in a 70-degree room and watching the ice melt.
Igloo BMX Cooler | Insulated Hard Shell Ice Chest
90% of the ice retention at half the price. Bear-proof latches. Survived my hitch basket.
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YETI Roadie 15 Hard Cooler with DoubleDuty Shoulder Strap
Overview: This small but mighty version of the classic Roadie Family still packs all your favourite essentials, cans, and wine bottles, but in our most portable design yet. It's the perfect fit for an
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RTIC 52 QT Ultra-Light Hard Cooler
Best wheels in the business. Rolls over boat ramp gravel like a dream.
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RTIC Everyday Cooler, Soft Sided Portable Insulated Cooling for Lunch, Beach, Drink, Beverage, Travel, Camping, Picnic, for Men and Women
Soft-sided, leak-proof bottom, fits 12 cans standing.
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DYLEN Car Cup Holder Expander with Adjustable Base, Fits 16–46oz Bottles
Keeps my coffee and my koozie in reach on the boat trailer ride.
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3 Pack 20 oz Tumbler Lid, Magnetic Slider Replacement Lids for YETI 20 oz Tumbler, 10/24 oz Mug and 10 oz Lowball, Spill Proof Cup Lids Covers Compatible for Ozark Trail, Old Style Rtic, BPA Free
Overview: This small but mighty version of the classic Roadie Family still packs all your favourite essentials, cans, and wine bottles, but in our most portable design yet. It's the perfect fit for an
Visit on Amazon →How I tested these
I don’t have a climate-controlled lab. I have a cluttered shed with a workbench I inherited from my dad, a 65-pound lab mix named Ivy who thinks every cooler is a bed, and a fishing guide schedule that puts me on the water three to four days a week.
For this shootout, I ran the Yeti Roadie 15 and the RTIC BMX side by side for three days in July. Same two bags of ice, same 85-degree dock, same opening frequency.
I also strapped the RTIC to a hitch basket for a 600-mile round trip to a golf tournament, and I’ve rolled the Trailmate across more boat ramps than I can count.
The gasket is the first place manufacturers cheat. I’ve cut open enough coolers to know. The Yeti Roadie has a gasket that seats flush and stays cold to the touch. The RTIC BMX gasket is a fraction of a millimeter thinner, but it seals clean.
After 72 hours, the RTIC had maybe two inches of water in the bottom and the Yeti had one and a half.
That’s a real difference, but it’s not a ~$150 difference.
RTIC BMX Cooler
The first thing I noticed about the RTIC BMX is that the lid is heavy. Not annoyingly heavy, but heavy enough that it will slam down if you let go. I’ve cursed this more times than I can count when I’m trying to grab a drink with one hand and hold a plate with the other. It’s a real flaw, and I’m leading with it because you should know what you’re buying.
But here’s the thing. I strapped this cooler to a hitch basket for a golf trip in August, 90 degrees on the highway, and after three days the ice was still holding. Not frozen, but cold enough that the seltzers were drinkable and the sandwich tray was safe. The latches are beefy, the kind that flex under pressure but don’t snap. I’ve seen latches break on a bumpy boat ride, and these didn’t budge.
I’m a little bit of an over-thinker, so I measured the interior before I bought my ice packs. The BMX fits ten tall cans standing, or twelve normal cans laid down, plus an ice pack on top. That’s the same math as the Yeti Roadie, and that’s the point. You’re getting the same volume for half the price.
My CORE (more expensive) kept things cooler, but the RTIC held its own at a fraction of the price. If you’re in the ~$150 to ~$250 range, this is the one. The lid issue is real, but it’s not a dealbreaker. It’s a stretch to call it a dealbreaker.
Yeti Roadie 15
I’ve owned the Roadie 15 for three seasons, and the thing that keeps me coming back is the lid hinge. It stays open exactly where you put it. No flopping hard, no holding it up with your forehead while you dig for a sandwich. That’s the soul of a cooler, and Yeti nailed it.
The DoubleDuty shoulder strap is also genius. I’ve hauled this thing from the truck to the dock, from the dock to the kayak, and it doesn’t dig into your shoulder the way most straps do. It’s a small thing, but it’s a daily thing.
The criticism is the price. At ~$300, this cooler has to be four times better than the RTIC, and it isn’t. The ice retention is slightly better, maybe 6 to 8 hours longer in my testing, but that’s not nothing. If you’re running a charter and your client’s catch is on the line, those extra hours matter. If you’re tailgating, they don’t.
I also bought the Car Cup Holder Expander so I can keep a tumbler in the truck without it tipping over on the boat trailer ride. That’s a ~$15 fix, and it pairs well with the Roadie. And when I lost the original lid to my Yeti tumbler, I grabbed the 3-pack of magnetic slider replacement lids.
They fit tight, no leaks, and I don’t have to buy a whole new tumbler. That’s the kind of ecosystem Yeti has built, and it’s worth something.
Yeti Trailmate
I’ve only borrowed the Trailmate, and I’ll be honest, I didn’t want to give it back. The wheels are the best in the business. I rolled it across a boat ramp covered in gravel, over a muddy craft fair parking lot, and down a sidewalk with a curb cut that would have stopped most coolers dead. The handle doesn’t stick, and the telescoping mechanism is smooth.
But it’s ~$450. That’s not a cooler, that’s a piece of luggage. I’ve watched a ~$60 Coleman do 80% of this job. The Trailmate is for someone who wants the absolute best and doesn’t care about the math. I’m not that guy, and you probably aren’t either.
The ice retention is identical to the Roadie, which makes sense since it’s the same insulation. So you’re paying ~$150 extra for wheels and a handle. If you’ve got a bad back or you’re hauling gear across a beach, maybe that’s worth it. For the rest of us, skip it.
RTIC Everyday Cooler
This is the soft-sided option, and I’ll admit I was skeptical. I’ve seen soft coolers leak, and I’ve seen them fail on a hot day. But the RTIC Everyday held up. I used it for a day trip on the lake, and frozen water bottles were still mostly frozen 8 hours later. The leak-proof bottom is a lifesaver, no more soggy trunk.
The complaint is that it’s not a hard cooler. Ivy sat on it and I heard the zipper strain. It survived, but I wouldn’t trust it with a client’s catch on a 90-degree day. That’s the ultimate test, and it fails that one.
But for lunch, for a beach day, for a kayak trip where you need something light, this is a great value. It’s a little pricey for a soft cooler, but it’s a good value. The top compartment is perfect for sandwiches, and the laced top holds towels or a jacket.
The price war verdict
Forget the ~$300 coolers. My CORE (more expensive) kept things cooler, but the RTIC BMX did 90% of the job at half the price. The Yeti Roadie is better, but not ~$150 better. If you’re a weekend warrior, get the RTIC.
If you’re a guide who needs every last hour of ice retention, get the Yeti. I don’t track prices day to day, so I won’t pretend to know next week’s sales, but I know what these are worth.
I’ve spent 15 years on Lake Superior, and I’ve watched cheap coolers fail. The RTIC isn’t cheap, it’s smart. It’s the cooler I’d buy with my own money, and I did.