I tested the YETI Roadie cooler, and the rumors are true — it’s practically perfect

The Yeti Roadie Cool Box is definitely one of the best coolers around today. Unfortunately, its whopping $200 (smallest size, 15 quarts) to $450 (largest size, 60 quarts) also makes it one of the most expensive coolers around today.

Pricing aside, the Roadie range of coolers is excellent. I tested the 32-quart style, which is right in the middle of the size range. On top of keeping ice cold for days, it’s also incredibly hardy, with super-smooth latches and a retractable handle. My favorite part of the cooler was, by far, the wheels. Even when I was dragging the (full) cooler along uneven cobblestones, I could barely feel the wobbly terrain.

Spoiler alert: the Yeti Roadie cooler is my favorite cooler thus far. But if you want the full story, read on to find out all the details in this Yeti Roadie Cool Box review.

Yeti Roadie Cooler review: Cheat sheet

• Who is it for? A rugged, hard-wearing cool box for rugged, hard-wearing people
• What does it do well? It’s virtually indestructible and keeps cold for days
• What does it cost? From $200, but the one I tested is $350 / £350 (32)
• What are its weaknesses? The price is outrageous when other coolers are under $100 for over double the capacity

Yeti Roadie Cooler review: Specs

Yeti Roadie Cooler review: Price & availability

The Yeti Roadie Cooler (32) is a whopping $350 from Amazon U.S. and £350 from Amazon U.K.. Yeti also makes the Roadie in 15, 24, 48, and 60 sizes. The Roadie 15 cooler is $200 from Amazon U.S. and £175 from Amazon U.K.. The middle size, Roadie 24, is $250 from Amazon U.S. and £200 from Amazon U.K.. The Roadie 48 is $400 from Amazon U.S. and £400 from Amazon U.K.. Finally, the largest size, Roadie 60, is $450 from Amazon U.S. and £450 from Amazon U.K..

I tested the 32 version, however the functionality between sizes isn’t massively different. There are some minor design changes, which I’ll get into in the ‘Design’ section below.

$350 makes the Yeti Roadie Cooler the most expensive cooler I’ve tested thus far. Comparatively, the Engel 19-quart Cooler is just $89, and the iconic Coleman Classic is $84 for a gigantic 70 quart capacity.

Yeti Roadie Cooler review: Design & portability

As with all Yeti gear, the Roadie cooler range is a sight to behold. Everything about the Roadie is well-made, innovative, and trendy. The Roadie comes in a range of colors: I tested the limited-edition ‘Firefly yellow’, but there’s also ‘Navy’, ‘Sky blue’, ‘Charcoal’, ‘Wild vine red’, ‘Key lime’ (my personal favorite), ‘Big wave blue’, ‘Rescue red’, and ‘White’.

The cooler itself is insulated with injected polyurethane foam and a tight gasket, however it’s not leakproof. Yeti advises that you look into the Hopper Flip range of cooler bags (from $200) if you desire a leakproof cooler.

There are a few minor differences between Roadie sizes: the 15 and 24 have a carry strap, whereas the 32 and up have a handle and wheels. Even though the wheels are great (and make the cooler very portable), I do think it’s a missed trick not having any carry handles on either side of the cooler box. This would mean you can take the cooler up stairs or steep terrain more easily, assuming you have two strong people in your group. I really struggled getting this up and down the stairs in my apartment building.

The retractable handle (Yeti calls this ‘Periscope handle’) is easy to control thanks to the release button on the underside of the grip. Once I had set it to my desired size, it didn’t shrink or lengthen during transportation.

That transportation was over pretty uneven terrain — cobblestones, stairs, ramps. I was amazed at how steady the cooler box stayed, even over bumpy cobblestones. The stabilization in the plastic wheels is second-to-none. I have no doubts that the Roadie would be smooth even over bumpy grasslands or sand.

Yeti Roadie Cooler review: Performance

If you need a top-of-the-line cooler with blindingly long cool times, then I will direct you to the Yeti Tundra line of hard coolers. These coolers can keep items cold for up to a week with proper prep and usage (basically pre-cooling and then don’t open it loads).

Still, the Yeti Roadie is supposed to keep cold for around 2-3 days. It can stretch up to 5 days with proper preparing and usage, but I think that’s an unrealistic test, as if you use the Roadie for camping trips, parties, or beach trips, you’ll likely be opening it regularly and might not have time to pre-cool it.

To reflect real-world usage, I put 13 pounds of ice and 20 cans inside the Yeti Roadie at 11am on Monday. I opened the cooler about every 2 hours and removed a can every 4 hours.

On Thursday at 11am (so 72 hours after filling the cooler, while removing cans and opening the cooler regularly), it was still cold and some ice was still solid. I would have absolutely no reservations about taking this on weekends away or even 3+ day camping trips. I’ll update this review when the cooler finally reaches room temperature, but it’s not happened yet.

Yeti Roadie Cooler review: Maintenance

Cleaning the Yeti Roadie is very straightforward, as it’s effectively just a plastic box. There’s a drain plug at the rear in the center of the handlebars, which made cleaning even easier. A drain tap is pretty commonplace on coolers: the Engel Cooler, Coleman Classic, and Igloo Marine Ultra all have drain taps too.

Thankfully, Yeti sells a bucketload of accessories on its website. Ranging from cooler dividers, to reusable ice packs, to cup holders, all the way to… a plastic bull head. (Only compatible with Yeti Tundra coolers I mentioned earlier, unfortunately, or fortunately, depending on your preference.)

Yeti offers a 5-year warranty. This is the same as Engel’s warranty and a massive 4 years longer than Igloo’s comparatively weak 1-year warranty.

Yeti Roadie Cooler review: Verdict

Although it’s expensive, the Yeti Roadie Cooler is the best cooler I’ve tested so far. It kept not just cold, but ice-cold for over 72 hours. Not only is it efficient at its sole purpose (chilling), it’s also very attractive and easy to move.

The cooler is also just well-crafted: the wheels somehow stabilize the cooler even on rugged terrain, and the latches are very slick and smooth. There was no pulling or overexertion from me, even when I stuffed the cooler to its max fill. If I could just have one cooler forever, it’d be the Yeti Roadie.