7 Best Camping Fans to Stay Cool This Summer (2023)

When the weather starts getting warm, there’s nothing I love to do more than go camping. I mean, that’s why I started this site in the first place! But if it’s the middle of summer and you’re trying to camp when it’s hot out even in the middle of the night, you need a way to beat the heat. 

That’s where the best camping fans on the market come in, making a big difference in terms of comfort and staying cool.

I’m one of those people that absolutely hates stagnant air. I have a fan running constantly no matter what I’m doing. Whether I’m at my desk getting work done, laying on the couch watching TV, or setting up my tent or campsite, a fan is a must. Not to mention laying down to sleep, especially when it’s hot. I gotta have my fan!

So let’s take a look at the best portable fans on the market so you can find a couple of options that work for you and will help you stay cool this summer while you camp.

What Are the Best Camping Fans?

The best camping fans are going to be lightweight, small enough to carry in your backpack or with the rest of your gear, and will keep you cool during the summer. In 2023, the best fans for camping are:

• Best Overall: JINLICTE Rechargeable Outdoor Tent Fan
• Runner Up: RYOBI ONE+ Hybrid Portable Fan
• Best Budget: Odoland Portable LED Lantern with Ceiling Fan
• Best Solar Powered: Ansee Solar Camping Fan
• Best for Charging Your Phone: Gewanolla Camping Fan with LED Light
• Best Hanging: AMACOOL Portable Camping Fan
• Best for Hiking: YALTOON Neck Fan

Best Overall Camping Fan: JINLICTE Rechargeable Outdoor Tent Fan

Product Overview

Starting off our list as the best overall camping fan is the JINLICTE Rechargeable Outdoor Tent Fan, which I personally use and love. This battery-operated portable camping fan is lightweight, easy to pack with the rest of your camping gear, and lasts up to 36 hours on a single charge. It’s designed to work on a tabletop, sit on the ground, or even hang from the top of your tent, making it ideal for any situation.

This fan puts off a lot of air, and it’s easy to control with the knob right on the front. At the top, there’s a built-in LED light with 3 brightness settings that works for reading, lighting up your tent, or illuminating a good portion of your campsite. It also operates at less than 30dB of noise, making it quiet enough to leave on all night while you sleep.

Bottom Line

Even though this is the camping fan I personally use, don’t just take my word for it. This JINLICTE fan currently has nearly 4,500 ratings on Amazon and has kept a 4.5/5.0-star rating. Lots of camping enthusiasts love this thing!

Runner Up Camping Fan: RYOBI 18V ONE+ Hybrid Portable Fan

Product Overview

If you’ve looked at some of the other roundups on the best camping fans, you’ve probably seen this RYOBI 18V ONE+ fan listed as the best overall option. With the reputation of the brand combined with just how good of a fan it is, I almost put it at the top myself. It’s similar in design and operation to the one above and works great. It might even be the best camping fan available, strictly from a fan perspective. 

But coming in at about 4x more expensive, I just couldn’t put it at the top above the JINLICTE.

While the fan is awesome and puts out plenty of air to keep you comfortable, there is no built-in LED light in this RYOBI, which is one of the best things about a good camping fan. That said, this fan does come with an upgraded version of RYOBI’s 4.0Ah lithium-ion battery that also works with any other RYOBI ONE+ tools in the lineup.

Bottom Line

If you’re an avid RYOBI user and have more ONE+ tools at home, picking up this fan is a no-brainer since it comes with an extra battery for all your tools. The fan is rugged and works great, but the price and lack of a built-in light take it down a notch.

Best Budget Camping Fan: Odoland Portable LED Lantern with Ceiling Fan

Product Overview

Anyone that’s working with a tight budget but still wants a good camping fan should look no further than this affordable camping fan from Odoland. Just like the top-ranked fan above, I personally use this fan to this day as it’s a cheap way to keep your tent cool. These affordable fans are compact and lightweight, making them easy to pack with the rest of your gear. 

It comes with a ring of 18 LED bulbs around the fan’s perimeter to light up the tent or campsite, and two fan speeds to help you stay comfortable. The versatile construction means you can hang it from a hook or the top of your tent, or you can bend the light ring down and use it as a base to sit on the floor or a table. This fan takes two D-cell batteries and lasts up to 37 hours of regular use, or 20 hours with the light on.

Bottom Line

Since it’s not rechargeable and doesn’t plug in, this budget-friendly camping fan isn’t great for extended use unless you bring some extra batteries. But for the price, you won’t find a better, more versatile option!

Best Solar Powered Camping Fan: Ansee Solar Camping Fan

Product Overview

Instead of charging your fan before you leave or making sure you have somewhere to plug it in, you can pick up a solar camping fan like this one from Ansee to harness the power of the sun. Your options are super limited when it comes to solar-powered camping fans, but this Ansee one is small, lightweight, and perfect for setting up at your campsite.

With a built-in solar panel on the back, just set this fan out in the sun when you get to your campsite or while you’re setting up the tent, and fire it up. The solar panel will keep it going while you use it, and once the battery is charged, you can keep using it at night, including the flip-up LED light panel. This small camping fan is perfect for staying cool at night or while you’re hanging out during the day.

Bottom Line

So to avoid having to keep charging it up or swapping batteries, pick up the Ansee solar camping fan. Solar technology is the way to go while camping, with something like the Geneverse HomePower ONE (which I use on every trip) capable of powering your whole campsite.

Best Camping Fan for Charging Your Phone: Gewanolla Camping Fan with LED Light

Product Overview

Even if you’re going camping, you always need a way to keep your devices charged. After all, you might need your smartphone or hiking watch with GPS to go on that hike you’ve been dreaming of. Well, you might as well stay cool with a camping fan while getting everything charged, and that’s where this camping fan from Gewanolla comes in.

The fan has four speed settings so you can choose the perfect airflow, and the LED lights are bright enough to illuminate your campsite at night. But the real kicker with this thing is the 20,000mAh battery capacity that acts as a power bank you can draw energy from. The USB and USB-C input/output ports can be used not only to charge the fan’s rechargeable batteries, but also to plug your devices in.

Bottom Line

Keep your phone, earbuds, smartwatches, and more charged with this fan. You won’t find a more versatile camping fan on the market. This one nearly took the top spot!

Best Hanging Camping Fan: AMACOOL Portable Camping Fan

Product Overview

Whether you’re in the tent or hanging out on a picnic table at your campsite, chances are high that there’s a hook somewhere nearby. Most tents have a hook in the middle at the top, and most campsites will have hooks or somewhere you can hang things from. These are all perfect places to hang a camping fan to help you stay cool, just like this option from AMACOOL.

This no-frills camping fan is small, lightweight, and has a built-in hook that you can flip up to easily hang from anywhere convenient. If you want to put it on the floor or the picnic table, just flip the hook down and you’re all set. Even though this one doesn’t have a built-in LED light, the bigger 8” version of the fan does, and it only costs a little bit more (and clips on to hang instead of using a hook).

Bottom Line

Not only is this a great hanging camping fan, but it’s also another great budget option if you aren’t a fan of the one we looked at above. By hanging it from the top of your tent, it’s like having your own personal ceiling fan to keep you cool.

Best Camping Fan for Hiking: YALTOON Neck Fan

Product Overview

Rounding off our list of the best camping fans, let’s look at an easy way to stay cool while you hike. During a hike, you don’t want to lug a big old fan around. Instead, pick up a rechargeable neck fan like this one from YALTOON that just sits around your neck and points two little fans toward your face to cool you off.

This neck fan is made from a soft, flexible silicon material that you can twist and shape exactly how you want so you can aim the dual fans wherever you want. The fans themselves have 3 speed settings so you’re sure to find one that works for you. With a 5-12 hour battery life, it should last for your entire hike.

Bottom Line

Since hiking is such great exercise, you’re sure to break a sweat doing it. With a pair of small fans around your neck like this, you’ll stay a heck of a lot cooler on your next hike!

What Are Camping Fans?

If you’re looking for the best camping fans on the market, knowing what camping fans are is probably a good place to start! Just like the old saying “a rose by any other name would smell as sweet”, you might be thinking a fan is a fan. 

But think about it, you wouldn’t want to just pick up the desk fan you have in the office or the oscillating fan you have at home and take it camping. Camping fans are made to actually go camping with you and typically have a more rugged construction than basic desk fans.

The best camping fans will also be designed with portability in mind. This usually includes things like being lightweight, small, battery-operated, or heck, even solar-powered. They can usually be set up inside your tent or hung from the top ceiling fan, or simply placed on the picnic table outside for a little bit of airflow. 

Use Tent Fans to Stay Cool This Summer While Camping

At the end of the day, the point of any camping fan is to help you stay cool while you’re camping, hiking, or even just relaxing in your hammock. Trust me, I’ve been camping countless times in the deep south of the US in the middle of summer, and it’s downright miserable. The heat and humidity are so bad, even at night, that it’s nearly enough to ruin the entire trip, especially if you can’t sleep.

This is where camping fans come in.

Simply adding a portable camping fan to your tent or campsite can make everything much better, and it’s an affordable way to ensure you’ll enjoy your next camping trip. If it’s battery-operated, make sure you pack a few extras, and if it needs to be plugged in, pick up a solar power bank to make sure you can stay cool the whole time you’re camping!

Key Takeaways

• Camping fans are one of the easiest ways to beat the heat during the summer and keep you cool while you’re camping.
  
  
• Battery-operated fans (or solar-powered ones) are easy to take with you on the go, meaning you can move them around your campsite, hang them in your tent, or even go on a hike with them.
  
  
• Most camping fans will do more than just move air. They often come with built-in lights to help you see at night, use integrated hooks to hang for your tent ceiling, and even provide an easy way to keep your phone and other devices charged while you’re camping.