YETI vs RTIC: Who will win the ice challenge?

[@Lawnfella]

You’re gonna have to have both coolers the same color to be accurate

[@brocktibbs1531]

Im working on a new video now with a white Rtic and a white Yeti since so many people took issue with the color variation.

[@stusrt]

I have the RTIC ultra-light 32 and a Yeti 45. Yeti seems a little better, but factor in the price, and RTIC wins by a mile. Still love them both.

[@lizzieb6311]

Thank you for your review! It prompted me to “test drive” my new RTIC 52 qt ultra light in blue with light blue top. My reason for purchasing is to get me thru no-power events that happen every time hurricane winds take down my power in central Florida for 3-6 days each event. I set it up in my garage because that’s where I’ll be keeping it realistically during the outage. I filled it up on Thursday afternoon with 22 lbs ice and my Igloo with the same to compare. It’s now Sunday and I’ve still got about 2/3 of the ice in the RTIC whereas the igloo was fully melted by Friday morning. Only about 16 hours for the Igloo. My garage is insulated but is at the south end of my house and is about 92 degrees during the hottest part of the day cooling down to about 82 at night. No, the RTIC is not in direct sunlight, but it is hot 🥵 out there in the afternoon. Being that I’m on 3 full days with more than 1/2 my ice left in the RTIC I’m pretty well pleased with my purchase as it will likely get me thru any power outages I have. I got it on sale and also purchased 2 of the baskets to put meat/deli in and the center divider that is also a freezeable ice pack…for everything, including tax, I paid 222.00 - shipping was free. I had originally ordered a Pelican with same accessories that came in at 429.00 which included a $30 discount, but it kept being delayed so I cancelled the order. Glad I did! While it is cumbersome without wheels, for me it will remain stationary on a pedestal in the garage. I also like that I can attach my garden hose to one of the drains so I don’t have to haul it out of the garage to dump the water…I can hook it up,and let it drain into the yard with little effort.

[@JpSki84]

The Rtic uses up to 1.5" thick closed cell foam compared to Yeti' polyurethane foam of up to 3" thick. Rtic is a quarter of the price and much lighter than the Yeti and still outperformed the much more acclaimed "Yeti" by a fair margin. I know where my money is going. I personally thought the Yeti was going to win as well, so my banking account thanks you for conducting this test before I settled on a Yeti over the Rtic!

[@brocktibbs1531]

Glad this helped provide some perspective. Thanks for watching!

[@keithfillinger3182]

I just ordered the 52 quart Rtic wheeled cooler. It was $249 from their site. They also threw in a 15 can soft cooler, and I believe it was a 20 ounce insulated mug for free. I also opted to get the freezable divider and a removable rack as part of a discounted package (about $20 extra). If you have not already bought one, I would check their website.

[@spencerdockter336]

This video just isn’t even close to being a fair comparison. Use a white yeti and this test would have been much different. You can see from the video that the yeti was consistently 30 to a 40 degrees warmer than the rtic because of the colorb

[@TonyMiguel-ko7cz]

@@spencerdockter336whining loser😂

[@paulcarlin5181]

@@spencerdockter336 True, a dark Rtic color would have been best. I doubt white is a top seller for any cooler brand.

[@dannyfrog]

I have an RTIC 65 that I keep in the back of my truck, locked up of course. It's white but even in the brutal Texas summers it still goes through ice significantly faster than you would expect. But still holds it longer than a regular thin walled Igloo.

[@glovepro1256]

Inside your truck the colour doesn’t matter much because there’s less direct sunlight. The colour of your truck would make a bigger difference.

[@dannyfrog]

@GlovePro12 the lid is in direct sunlight most of the time just like in the video. I should have been clear, it stays in the bed of my truck

[@glovepro1256]

@@dannyfrog oh okay. I thought you were cooking the shit out of your cooler in the truck

[@lensposeidon]

I would think that a cooler in a moving/working truck would make it melt faster vs the ice in the same cooler being stationary. Also probably accessing the cooler normally throughout the day vs this test that had minimal access.

[@stusrt]

FYI - RTIC does sell the 52 ultra light on wheels. I am considering it.

[@brocktibbs1531]

Yeah I made this video before Rtic released the wheeled option. At the time it was just a rumor. I’m trying to get my hands on a wheeled Rtic one now to review it.

[@keithfillinger3182]

​@brocktibbs1531 I just got an Rtic 52 qt Ultralight Wheeled Cooler after watching some reviews from a KZbin channel called Outdoor Empire. He had one video specifically dedicated to testing that cooler for durability and talking about its features. In the other video, he tested 33 coolers head to head in the shade for ice retention. In his ice retention video, he had the regular and wheeled Rtic 52 Ultralight Coolers. The regular version held ice a few days longer. I checked on Rtic's website. The wheeled version has up to 2.5" of insulation while the standard version has up to 3" of insulation. I guess that explained the performance difference.

[@common-sense-is-dead]

I'm not saying the Yeti is a better cooler but to make this test equal they both should have been the same color. White reflects the sun heat in a way darker colors like dark blue don't.

[@badkid73]

The Rtic is injection molded which means it’s most likely polypropylene. Although manufacturers tout the benefits of rotomolding, the polyethylene shell in Roto molded coolers is flexible with a lower melting point than injection molded polypropylene coolers. I suspect RTIC will have far fewer warped lids on the super light series coolers than with the older heavier rotomolded ones. I’ll take injection molded every time. Lighter. Lids rarely warp.

[@paulcarlin5181]

Thought I read that the new Roadies are not rotomolded but injection molded.

[@outtrigger]

great video, very thorough

[@brocktibbs1531]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@allycook9526]

Thanks for the review! Bear proof 👏🏽

[@apa7611]

Labor Day weekend got some pretty good sales for the RTIC coolers just got me 20qt one to along with the 32qt rtic cooler damn good coolers!

[@ianschulze1461]

We built a pretty cool little apparatus with wheels that the attic fits in

[@brocktibbs1531]

Nice! I just use a beach wagon for mine

[@thibou1000]

Can you tell me how you did the ice pack ? Love the review

[@brocktibbs1531]

It’s a heavy salt water solution in a pvc pipe. And I painted them after the glue dried. You gotta freeze them in a deep freezer because my normal kitchen fridge wouldn’t freeze them

[@KruiserIV]

Wish you used both white coolera

[@jacobpetersen5662]

white cooler stays MUCH cooler than dark blue. You're dead on with that.

[@onenation7784]

Color doesake a different But it doesn't justify the price difference

[@miked6208]

Rtic wheeled for 300 is a no brainer. Why pay an additional 150 for the wheeled tundra.

[@guwop2234]

whats the point of measuing the surface temp of the cooler sitting out in the sun? Feel like you shouldve read the temp on the water bottles / inside the cooler

[@brocktibbs1531]

I measured the outside temp more because I was curious if the darker color would hold/absorb more heat thus affecting the internal temp and ice melting speed. Next review I will measure more inside cooler temps.

[@junior103190]

I have a couple yeti things but I got myself and rtic 65 because price wise seems great. even tho yeti gives me 20 percent off I think if the rtic performs well in Coachella imma switch over to Rtic coolers

[@brocktibbs1531]

Thanks for watching!

[@Doc.Holiday]

Nothing says, “I have more money than brains” like Yeti…

[@paulcarlin5181]

Well I did buy an RTIC soft cooler that it's stitching came apart from the inside after years of very light use (less than 5 times a year).

[@Doc.Holiday]

@@paulcarlin5181 I’ll bet they would replace it? I’ve a hard sided RTIC for two years now that gets year around every day hard use and it is performing 100%.

[@Typicaljess]

⚠️ Yeti will outperform Rtic. Soon as I saw the dark yeti cooler I knew it wouldn't do as good as it could. Surface temp 133° vs 91° should have been the dead giveaway. Sorry for everyone who bought an Rtic because of this video. Or a dark Yeti lol.

[@randymelissabutton2159]

On Amazon there is a version with wheels, they must have listened to you!!! $299 for the Rtic and $450 for the Yeti. I guess this is a no brainer....

[@brocktibbs1531]

Yeah, I am trying to get my hands on a Rtic wheeled cooler so I can do a review on it.

[@AZ81RS]

They are on sale right now so you can get the Yeti for $360. $60 bucks more and you get the name and the the 5 year warranty

[@keithfillinger3182]

​@AZ81RS I know your comment is kind of old. I just ordered an Rtic 52 quart wheeled cooler for $249 directly from their site. They threw in a 15 can soft cooler, and I believe it was a 20 ounce insulated mug for free. I also bought a removable basket and freezable cooler divider for about another $20 combined as part of a discounted package. My point is that both go on sale, and they are both good coolers. If a Yeti cooler makes you happy, go for it. I am not hard on my stuff, and I survived with a cheap Coleman cooler for years. The Rtic will be a massive upgrade over my previous cooler. Cheers!

[@isaac6302]

Good video review!

[@christopherdean8428]

They have one with wheels

[@travismayes23]

they do have wheels. I've seen them

[@marcusgonz6806]

They need to test it in phx 113 daily😢

[@royzaino]

One is also roto molded Yeti and the other is not RTIC

[@jesusbarajas8067]

They're both rotomolded

[@teresasandquist462]

Actually the Rtic one is from their ultra light line which are injected, not rotomolded.

[@paulcarlin5181]

@@teresasandquist462 The new Yeti Roadies are not Roto. Rtic makes a wheeled Roto, the Rtic 45 Ultra Tough Cooler.

[@larrywhetzel7044]

Don't make sense pulling a drink out let them set four or five days you don't know how to check them

[@essamyassin8749]

Wheeled is coming sooooon!

[@brantleyhonaker5482]

Loved your review. Very informative. Extremely helpful

[@brocktibbs1531]

Thank you! Just trying to show how they hold up with how my family usually uses them.

[@Masonhockey11]

Yeti is better

[@cliffordmontana4562]

Yetis are made in China and grossly overpriced. They are literally the last brand of nice cooler I’d buy. Giant ripoff.

[@RYCJK]

Nice! Many thanks from Germany

[@brocktibbs1531]

Thanks for watching!!

[@RYCJK]

I have to say thank you! Nice coolers!

[@ThomasJeffersonWolfcall-kn3bx]

"The darker color might make a difference" Ya think?

[@paulcarlin5181]

It will be interesting to see how folks treat the new Yeti in brown when its released tomorrow. I am sure folks will complain that it doesn't hold ice well.

[@Roadwarier9871]

Color of coolers doesn't really matter you may get ice retention for a few hours longer that's about it...Rotomolded coolers have been around a while now If your a YETI fan boy well theirs other brands out there that are just as good or if not better than A YETI you pay high dollar because of their strategic MARKETING..YETI hell yeah the best...WRONG...

[@badkid73]

It matters if you use your cooler as a seat and dont want to burn your butt or legs.

[@adamgurule1458]

Chale

[@Walkercolt1]

These "comparison tests" are meaningless. I can (and DO) fill my $35 20 quart no-name, the DAY BEFORE with $2 of bulk ice ( 16-18 pounds broken ) and SALT and chill it down to 27*-28*F, THEN rinse it with ice water and put my food and ice in. In the 104*F 14 hours Okra-Homer shade, I can keep ICE for FOUR DAYS opening it three-five times daily and robbing ice for soft drinks. On the FIFTH DAY the water and FOOD will still be below 35*F (safe for homemade mayonnaise)! Will your $260 cooler do that well??? BTW, there is NO SUCH THING as "bear-proof" this side of a 400 pound steel safe! In Yellowstone, I saw a SMALL (300 lb.) Black bear rip the door off a $120,000 SUV like a pull tab.