Its one-pull setup requires more muscle than we anticipated, but overall it is hassle-free and takes only seconds to erect. At 5.4 pounds, it’s the lightest canopy in our lineup, making it very portable. We like the built-in sidewall pockets, attached floor, and roll-away side drapes. However, we feel the tarp-style floor stays a little hot in the sun, and it tends to collect dirt, sand, and water. The Easy Up is a self-contained product with no assembly required, making it easy to set up, take down, and store in your garage, coat closet, or car trunk.
As its name suggests, the Eureka Tagalong Shelter is ideal for tagging along on any adventure where shade is needed. Its drawstring stuff sack offers a long strap that can be placed over one shoulder or across the chest, giving you hands-free mobility. This shelter employs high-grade, collapsible aluminum poles for its frame and comes complete with built-in guy lines and sandbags to help keep it sturdy. The polyester canopy effectively dampens the sun’s rays and is double-stitched and weather taped to keep out the rain. Our most portable models are the Sun Ninja, Neso 1, and Eureka Tagalong Shelter. All of these models are thinner, fold-down styles that weigh far less than the larger canopies on our list.
The price tag may also be too high for some shoppers, but we feel the quality increase is worth it if you can swing it. For retail purchases returned without a receipt, the refund will be issued as a store merchandise
credit at the lowest price within the last 90 days. Proper ID will be required in the form of a valid, coleman lantern state-
issued driver’s license or state ID card. We reserve the right to limit, or refuse returns without a receipt. The Pacific Breeze Easy Up and the Qipi Beach Cabana came in just behind the top scorers. This is primarily due to their larger packed sizes, which makes them slightly more difficult to carry and store.
However, once on the ground, their roller bags make it extremely easy to pull them over concrete, dirt, and grass. The Caravan V-Series scores a bit lower and also isn’t as beefy as more expensive models, but feels roomy and is easy to move around thanks to a lower weight. All three of these cathedral-style models offer three height settings. This metric considers each shelter’s floor space and height, as well as any design element that may limit or enhance accessibility and maneuverability.
The Qipi, in particular, has a much longer packed size and, at nearly 10 pounds, it’s heavier than the others mentioned above. The Easy Up is actually the lightest in our coleman lantern list of top scorers, but it has a longer packed size, which affected its overall score. Great adventures are made in the shade—especially when there’s plenty of it.
The OASIS 13 x 13 Canopy sets up easily using a one-push center hub with OnePeak technology. The robust steel frame withstands winds up to 35 mph when the canopy is fully staked and the vented roof releases trapped heat so you stay cool even when it’s hot out. Add extra weather protection to your sun shelter with the Coleman Sunwall for a 10′ x 10′ Canopy Sun Shelter Tent. The Eureka Tagalong is lightweight with stellar components, so if you want to be a bit more mobile with your canopy, this is one of our favorites.
We erected each model and measured the height and floor space to compare to other tents. Typical cathedral tents offered a 10×10 floor space, whereas many of the more niche tents had varying sizes. Another key aspect of functionality is the extra convenience features provided by various models. For example, hanging loops, storage compartments, and built-in pockets make canopy use easier and more organized. To uncover the best canopy tent, we use comprehensive test metrics and cover all manner of use cases and essential details.