27 Best Camping Stoves for Wild Camping in 2024

Have a reliable camping stove when you’re out in the wild is vital for making sure that you can get a good, hot meal inside you. I decided to find the best camping stoves for wild camping available in 2024.

In a hurry? Here are my favourites:

Different Types of Camping Stove

Gas Stoves

Gas stoves are a fast, efficient and lightweight choice for those going wild camping.

The main advantage of a gas stove is that they are very easy to get going when out in the wild. There is no need to gather fuel or go through too much prep before starting.

These types of stoves run off propane or butane, which come in screw-on cartridges. Most of these stoves are not compatible with blue gas canisters, such as CampinGaz fuel.

The downside with these stoves is you need to know how much camping gas you will need for your trip before you go. If you run out halfway through boiling water, there is little you can do about it (unless your interpretation of wild camping is very near an outdoor shop!).

Ideal Use: Short wild camping trips where you need to pack light.

Solid Fuel Stoves

Solid fuel stoves use materials that can usually be scavenged when out wild camping, such as twigs, sticks and pinecones. Some also run on briquettes, such as those used in BBQs.

The main advantage here is that your fuel source is all around you, so you don’t need to play too far ahead when thinking about how much fuel you are likely to use. By using solid fuel, they also double up as a controlled, small campfire if required.

The disadvantage with these stoves is that you need to be actually able to find the fuel for them. If you are on top of the moors, for example, there might not be so many sticks to find. Also, if the conditions are particularly wet, the fuel may not burn quite as well, which can lead to excessing smoking from the fire or the fire not lighting at all.

Ideal Use: Wild camping for 1-2 people who don’t mind the exta bulk

Unpressurised Liquid Stoves (Alcohol)

Unpressurised liquid stoves use methanol as fuel. You simply top the burning chamber up with the liquid and then light it.

As suggested above, the best thing about these stoves is that they are very easy to use and set up.

The downside is that they are almost too simple. What I mean by this is that you can’t control the temperature, meaning you will either burn your food, or you won’t be able to get your water to a boil.

Ideal Use: Warmer weather wild camping trips

Multifuel Stoves

Multi-fuel stoves do exactly what the name suggests. They can be used with a variety of fuels including white gas, unleaded petrol, diesel, LPG gas and even jet fuel! Exactly which fuels to use will depend on the stove you choose, so check the details before buying your fuel.

The main advantage of these stoves is that they work in pretty much any weather and can even be used at high altitudes, so they are a very popular and efficient choice of camping stove for those going backpacking on expeditions and mountaineering.

These stoves are more complicated to use compared to others. They require maintenance to keep working efficiently, unlike gas stoves and tend to be bulkier as well as heavier.

Ideal Use: Expedition camping at altitude

What to Consider When Buying a Camping Stove

Weight

When packing for wild camping, you will need to be mindful of how heavy your kit is.

Some people, see it as a challenge to pack as light as possible when they head out wild camping. If that is you, there are stoves that weigh less than 100 grams, although you will need to bring gas, pots and cups to actually consume what you cook.

All in one system will weigh more than the smaller gas stoves, but you will save weight and often space by buying a full cooking system including pots and pans.

Pack Size

With wild camping, you are generally trying to get away from it all, including your car and home comforts. Everything will need to fit into your rucksack and therefore pack size is going to be important here.

Some stoves will be very small and might actually fit inside of cooking pots you take with you. Some of the cooking systems are designed to be as space-saving as possible.

Remember, your rucksack size will ultimately influence how large a stove you can take with you. If you are yet to purchase your rucksack, check out my guide to the best rucksacks for wild camping.

Altitude

Altitude can affect your stove due to the lower air pressure. Lower air pressure lowers the boiling point of water, meaning that your food will need to be cooked for a longer time as the temperature won’t get as high. This means that you will need to use more fuel than if you are cooking at sea level.

As a general rule, you can adjust cooking times using the following method:

• For food that would normally cook for less than 20 minutes at sea level, add 1 minute per 1,000 feet above sea level. For example, if you are at 4,000 feet, a 12-minute meal will take 16 minutes.
• For food that would normally cook for more than 20 minutes at sea level, add 2 minutes per 1,000 feet above sea level. For example, if you are at 4,000 feet, a 12-minute meal will take 20 minutes.

Weather & Climate

When wild camping, wind, rain and temperature will impact the performance of your stove.

The wind will affect the flame of your stove and will reduce the heat output against your cooking pot. This will increase the cooking time of your food and increase the amount of fuel you use. You can mitigate this by using a windshield with your stove where possible, or buy a stove with a built-in windshield.

For rain, you will need to make sure your stove is protected against downpours. Significant precipitation could reduce the burn of your stove and increase cooking times. You can reduce this by putting a tarp over your cooking area or using your stove in another sheltered area (just not inside your tent!).

Temperature can reduce the effectiveness of your stove. As Pre-pressurised liquified gas becomes colder, the internal pressure inside the canister begins to drip. This can then reduce the flow to the burner head, leading to an inadequate flame, which in turn leads to longer cooking times and increased boil times. All of this means more fuel used.

Fuel Availability

Fuel availability is a key consideration when deciding what stove to buy.

For most stoves, you will need to plan ahead and take the fuel you need. Knowing how much gas you need is important to know what you need to bring with you. If you don’t bring enough, you will go hungry.

For solid fuel burners, you don’t have to worry as much about the fuel you take with you. What you do need to plan for is being able to find adequate fuel whilst you are camping. If you need wood or pinecones for cooking, you might struggle at the top of a mountain or on the moors.

Stove Performance

Knowing the performance of your stove will help you plan what food to take, how long it will take to cook and how much fuel you will need.

For gas stoves, knowing the grams per hour of gas will help you understand how much you will need to pack. The higher the grams of gas, the more you will need to bring with you.

The other factor to consider here is the time it takes to boil 1 litre of water.

You should look to strike a balance here when it comes to these factors. Obviously, the best of both worlds is a quick boil time with low gas usage, however, this is not always that easy to find.

Best Camping Stoves for Wild Camping

Best Gas Camping Stoves

OEX Kuju Micro Stove Set – Best Gas Camping Stove

The OEX Kuju Micro Stove Set strikes a great balance between gas grams per hour and 1 litre boil time.

Taking just 3 minutes and 25 seconds to boil 1 litre of water and using just 161 grams of gas per hour, you get the best gas usage to heat output ratio compared to others on the list.

You don’t get a gas cartridge with this set, but you do get a cooking pot as well as two plastic cups.

Vango Compact Gas Stove – Low Cost Gas Camping Stove

The Vango Compact Gas Stove is a low cost option if you’re looking to a gas stove.

Boiling 1 litre of water in 4 minutes and using 213 gram of gas per hour, this burner is fairly average compared to others. But at just £17, this is a very low cost.

The compromise here is that you don’t get any extras with it, so you will need to buy pots, cups and gas canisters as well. This might end up costing you just as much as others that come with this all included.

Best Unopressurised Liquid Camping Stove

Trangia 27-1 UL Cook Set – Best Liquid Camping Stove

The Trangia 27-1 UL Cook Set use alcohol to cook your food. Simply add this into the cooking chamber, light it and away you go.

Weighing 720 grams and with a pack size of 10cm x Ø18.5cm, this cook set should fit nicely into your rucksack, though it will be bigger and heavier than some other sets.

You do get a lot of gear for your money, including an 18cm frying pan and 2 x 1 litre saucepans.

Best Muti-Fuel Camping Stove

MSR WhisperLite International Camping Stove – Best Multi-Fuel Camping Stove

The MSR WhisperLite International Camping Stove can be used with several different fuels, including white gas, paraffin and unleaded fuel.

The boil time and burn time vary depending on the fuel used, but should take between 3 minutes 30 seconds to 4 minutes 30 seconds.

This stove can also be used at altitude, which makes it a great choice for those looking to cook on top of a mountain.

Best Solid Fuel Camping Stove

Biolite Campstove 2+ – Best Solid Fuel Camping Stove

The Biolite Campstove 2+ is a seriously cool bit of camping gear that does more than just cook your food and boil your water.

Using solid fuel, such as sticks, twigs, pinecones, etc, you cook and charge your devices at the same time. The patented combustion technology in the stove converts the heat of the fire into energy. You can then use this energy to charge your phone via a USB socket. It also works as a power bank, meaning you can charge devices on the go and not just when on the move.

As long as you’re camping somewhere with an available fuel source, your wild camping trip is sorted.

Toaks Backpacking Stove – Low Cost Solid Fuel Camping Stove

The Toakes Backpacking Stove is a solid fuel stove with an incredibly simple design. Simple stack the pots together, add some fuel and you’re ready for lighting.

Weighing just 225 grams and packing down to a size no larger than a cup, this is a real space-saving product for those who want to use solid fuel.

The main drawback with this product is that you will need to buy your camping cooking gear separately as they are not provided with this stove.

Other Camping Stoves for Your Consideration

Jetboil Zip

Trek 500 Stable with Piezo

Trek 500 Compact with Piezo

Primus Express Bivouac Stove

Campingaz Twister Piezo

Coleman FyreStorm PCS

Vango Folding Gas Stove

OEX Meru Basecamp Cooking System

Trangia 25-2 GB Stove

Coleman Fyrestorm Stove

Coleman FyrePower Alpine

Shayson Camping Stove

Redcamp Gas Stove

Trangia 25-1 UL Cook Set

Trangia 25-2 UL Cook Set

Ncamp Stove Plus

MSR DragonFly Camping Stove

Quechua MH500 For Hikers

Solo Stove Lite

Solo Stove Titan

Lixada Camping Stove

Related FAQs

Is Propane Safer than Butane?

Propane is a hydrocarbon gas that is used in a variety of applications. It is often considered to be safer than other hydrocarbons like butane. Butane is also a hydrocarbon gas, and it has a number of applications. So, which one is really safer?

There are a few things to consider when answering this question. Both propane and butane are highly flammable, so they can both be dangerous if not used properly. Propane has a lower ignition point than butane, which means it is easier to light on fire. However, butane is more explosive than propane.

So, which one is safer? In general, propane is considered to be safer than butane because of its lower ignition point.

Are Alcohol Camping Stoves Good?

There are a lot of different camping stoves on the market these days, and it can be tough to decide which one is right for you. If you’re looking for a stove that can handle both alcohol and propane, then an alcohol camping stove might be a good option for you.

Alcohol camping stoves are lightweight and portable, and they’re easy to use. They also generate less heat than propane camping stoves, so they’re a good choice if you’re looking for a stove that’s safe to use in a tent. However, alcohol camping stoves can be expensive, and they can take longer to heat up than other types of camping stoves.

Do Alcohol Stoves Work in The Winter?

There is no definitive answer to this question. Some people say that alcohol stoves work just as well in the winter as they do in the summer, while others claim that they don’t work as well in cold weather. The main difference seems to be that alcohol stoves need to be used with a windscreen in cold weather, in order to create and hold a flame. If you’re planning to use an alcohol stove in the winter, it might be a good idea to test it out first, to see if it works well for you.

Summary

I hope you have enjoyed my guide to the best stoves for wild camping. Let me know if this has helped you find your next camping stove, or if you have any other suggestions that I should add to the list.

My favourite is the Biolite Campstove 2+, this is a seriously cool piece of camping gear.