Personal day-use coolers have always been a staple of road trip travel. Driving around the Florida coasts as much as I do, mine was getting daily use. Eventually an upgrade was in order and I wanted something with some size and substance. But I was still a bit hesitant to shell out Yeti money for something at the top of the market. I settled on an RTIC Everyday Cooler in the large 28 can size.
Was it a good decision? Can it stack up to the big boys? Let’s take a look.
Where’s the Money? This site may contain affiliate links. Many travel sites include such links to earn a commission at no cost to readers.
The answer is: yes, absolutely. This thing rules. It retails for $49.99 in stores and on the RTIC website and it would be a bargain at twice that price. The RTIC Everyday Cooler performs as well as more expensive models and looks as good or better doing it.
I’ve been living with it for nearly a year now and not only does it serve in every situation, it still looks remarkably good showing no wear and tear at all. The inside still looks fresh and clean and the zippers still pull like new. The outside has proven very durable.
RTIC Everyday Cooler: Sizes and Specs
The RTIC Everyday Cooler comes in 6, 8, 15, and 28 can sizes at varying price points. The 28 can model we’re looking at here is 10.5″ x 13″ and stands a foot tall when expanded. Collapsed, it’s just three inches high making it easy to store almost anywhere at home or in a vehicle. This one weighs in at four pounds empty and can become quite heavy when loaded. Fortunately the included padded shoulder strap can snap right on if you need to carry it any large distance.
That’s a 7 pound bag of ice in the photo and it takes a bit less than half the cooler’s volume. That leaves plenty of room for cans and bottles, one liter sodas, wine bottles, and lunch.
When fully packed out this thing can handle lunch for two or possibly even two plus a small child, as well as a day’s worth of drinks.
Beach and Picnic Use
One of the chief advantages of the 28 can size vs. smaller coolers is that the RTIC Everyday Cooler can fit one or more hoagies without squeezing or damaging them. It’ll easily take two footlong sandwiches along with two bags of chips tucked into the lid’s interior mesh pockets. The exterior mesh pockets are great for carrying candy bars, cookies or other snacks that don’t need to stay cold.
This model is designed to be used with RTIC’s large ice packs which are sold separately. In my case I’ve been using regular ice, mostly from hotel ice machines. I can’t find a rating for how long the inside stays cold but it’s safe to say it can sit on a hot beach or inside a vehicle all day and still keep its contents cold.
The only consideration is that you need to be a bit careful with actual ice. The zipper isn’t water-tight and you can pour water directly out of the closed cooler. But it’s also very stable and doesn’t leak at all provided it stays upright. You’ll also need to keep sandwiches or other dry items in plastic if not using the ice packs.
The cooler is soft-sided but when it’s packed out with a base of ice it feels quite firm on all sides. it doesn’t take a lot of ice to allow it to hold up its cubic shape with a little weight on the bottom. It’s firm enough to use as a side table next to a beach chair and sand falls right off of it. There’s no worry about it dropping sand all over the car on the way home.
Road Trip Use Cases
One of the key reasons I wanted a cooler upgrade was because my old Igloo Playmate would constantly slide around on the carpet and tip over while driving. That’s not a concern with the RTIC Everyday Cooler. The bottom features a lot more friction than hard plastic and the base and center of gravity make it very stable during road maneuvers.
It can tuck between seats on the floorboards and folds away easily when not in use. It’s even durable enough to stack things on top of it in the back of an SUV when loaded, despite being soft sided. The zipper hasn’t spilled any water in my car in nearly a year.
The only downside is that it takes a bit of technique to smoothly pull the zippers around the corners when opening and closing. So it’s not easy to open while driving even after you master this technique. Leaving the lid unzipped is not really feasible.
Hotel Use Cases
A hotel is where the RTIC Everyday Cooler’s styling really shines. It looks as much like a typical piece of luggage as a cooler, especially with the exterior bottle opener removed. It’s great for passing through the lobby with booze, snack foods, takeout, or anything else you want to spirit up to your room without drawing too much attention to yourself.
The 28 can size is a little large for service as an ice bucket, but the soft sides mean you can get it under the hopper of any ice machine. If you find yourself in a room without a working fridge you’ll be glad to have all that capacity as this will easily keep food and beverages cold overnight.
Having both handles and a shoulder strap means it’s easy to carry through a lobby even with a lot of other luggage. The inside dries out easily with a hotel towel if you want to stow it before you go. Otherwise you can load it with ice and drinks before checkout and be well supplied to your next destination.
RTIC Everyday Cooler: Bottom Line
This thing feels like a secret weapon with its unrivaled versatility. It’s small enough to be a (large) lunchbox. At the same time it holds a full case of beer and can serve as the only cooler at a small party. It’s made my 54 qt. Coleman all but obsolete. I’d need to be throwing a full on bash to want anything bigger than this RTIC.
You could even pack it full of clothing and use it as a personal item on a flight, putting it back into cooler service once you’ve unpacked. It’s small enough to live in your vehicle permanently when folded. It’s also effective as a warm case and you can put quite a bit of takeout food into it to stay hot on the way home.
The RTIC Everyday Cooler has been a great piece of travel equipment that’ll have a place among my gear for many years to come. I’m very happy I didn’t waste money on something more expensive when this performs so well at $50.
