Best Backpacking Coffee Makers of 2024 — TESTED, SCORED, & REVIEWED

Authors: Sam Brilleman, Steve Edgerton | Updated: Jun 10, 2024
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  • Testing the best backpacking coffee makers began with some serious over-caffeination. For each device, we brewed 15g of freshly ground coffee with 250g of water. We maintained the same technique for pour over methods and the same brew time for immersion methods. Our lead tester (conveniently, a former barista at one of Canada’s finest specialty cafes) graded each brew for balanced extraction (ie. not bitter or watery), mouthfeel, and flavor.

    But, in the backcountry, good tasting coffee isn’t enough. The best brewers also need to be lightweight, durable, and easy to use and clean. Together, these were the biggest factors we considered in determining the best coffee makers for backpacking.

 

Editors note

Last revised on Jun 10, 2024, to update specs, remove discontinued coffee makers, and add some new models, as well as adding metrics from more hands-on testing and documenting our testing process. We're constantly testing new coffee makers and will continue to update this review.

For many backpackers, coffee is a necessity and not a luxury. So if you are one of those backpackers, then you’ve come to the right place. In this article we look at the best ways to make coffee whilst out on the trail.

By this, we don’t just mean the best instant coffee for backpacking. In fact, far from it. Sure, instant coffee is good enough for some hikers — and if that is you, then all power to you — freeze dried instant coffee is featherweight and ultra-compact, so it’s almost perfect for your backpacking adventures.

The problem? … It kinda tastes like shit. Granted, instant coffee options have improved substantially in recent years, but they still never match the taste and experience of brewing with fresh ground beans. So, for those hikers who set a slightly higher bar for the flavors of their morning cuppa, the journey is harder.

But rest assured. There are alternative coffee makers suitable for backpacking that are lightweight, compact, and convenient. And in most cases they will make a coffee that is, well, passable. The best make a coffee that is objectively delicious. Let’s be honest, you’re not going to be making that café worthy mouth-watering espresso out in the bush. But you can surprisingly close.

Regardless, even passable coffee tastes transcendent while deep in the backcountry. So let’s dive into the best ways to make coffee whilst backpacking.

Best Overall: PRIMULA COFFEE BREW BUDDY

WEIGHT: 9.5/10 | FLAVOR: 8/10 | EASE OF USE: 8/10

  • MEASURED WEIGHT: 1.2 oz / 34.2 grams

    BREWING STYLE: Pour over

    MATERIALS: Nylon

    COLLAPSIBLE: Yes

    PRICE: $

  • ✅ Ultralight

    ✅ Stable

    ✅ Easy to clean

    ❌ Fragile

    ❌ Needs to be removed to avoid over-extraction

  • The Primula Coffee Brew Buddy offers pretty much everything you want in a backpacking coffee maker, with very few downsides.

    At just 1.2 ounces it is not the absolute lightest option in this list, but comes close. It is definitely light enough to be carried by almost any backpacker. It is also packable, since the soft nylon filter is collapsible it means you can slip the thin disk shape almost anywhere in your pack. You do however have to be a bit careful, since the nylon filter is somewhat fragile and could tear if you are too careless when packing it away.

    The nylon filter means no need to carry paper filters — which saves additional weight, and also makes things simpler. Many filterless drip cones and brew baskets are solid and non-collapsible, which makes them more difficult to clear — requiring more water to rinse the entire surface area of the filter. But because the Coffee Brew Buddy’s filter is relatively small and made from a soft nylon material, it is much easier to clean, especially when water is at a premium (which is often the case when camping away from a water source).

    The Brew Buddy certainly doesn’t have the aesthetics of an elegant home pour over setup. Its plastic construction looks and feels somewhat cheap. But the quality of the coffee is impressively high, especially given the brewer’s utilitarian construction and appearance. The mesh filter and combination of pour over/immersion-style brewing produces a full-bodied and balanced cup that we would enjoy anywhere. And it is relatively easy to keep the quality consistent. The only caution is that you need to avoid leaving the filter submerged in the cup for too long — this will cause over-extraction and leave the coffee too bitter. But as long as you are able to keep an eye on it whilst brewing then over-extraction shouldn’t be a problem — just lift the filter out of the cup once it is ready.

    The small size, minimal weight, and simplicity of the Primula Coffee Brew Buddy meant it was always going to be an attractive choice for backpacking. Factoring in a low price point and consistent brew quality as well, this little coffee maker is hard to beat.

Best for Ultralight: GSI OUTDOORS ULTRALIGHT JAVA DRIP

WEIGHT: 10/10 | FLAVOR: 8/10 | EASE OF USE: 7/10

  • MEASURED WEIGHT: 0.5 oz / 13.2 grams (1.1 oz with cup, sold separately)

    BREWING STYLE: Pour over

    MATERIALS: Nylon, Plastic

    COLLAPSIBLE: Yes

    PRICE: $

  • ✅ Seriously ultralight

    ✅ Collapsible

    ❌ Unstable and a bit fiddly to use

  • The GSI Outdoors Ultralight Java Drip is a rather fiddly and unstable — but seriously ultralight — coffee maker.

    It is a reusable nylon drip cone attached to some funny little plastic legs. The three legs are designed to clip onto the edge of your cup or mug, and they suspend the drip cone above the cup. This helps to avoid over-steeping of the coffee, in theory ensuring a better tasting brew.

    However the legs are a bit fiddly to use and they can be slightly unstable. This just means you have to ensure you pour the water over the drip cone carefully on a flat and level surface — often in short supply in the backcountry.. They also work best on cups that don’t have a thick lip or brim, otherwise the legs can struggle to clip on securely. GSI do sell a cup separately that is designed to pair with the coffee maker, so that might be a good option if you don’t already own a backpacking mug that you like.

    So what is the upside?

    Well, if you have sufficient patience to put up with the somewhat fiddly and unstable nature of this coffee maker, then the weight savings are pretty much unbeatable. Like the Primula Coffee Brew Buddy, the reusable nylon filter is surprisingly easy to clean and means you don’t have to worry about remembering paper filters. Unlike paper filters, it doesn’t filter out the coffee oils, resulting in a rich, full-bodied brew similar to what you’d expect from a French Press. We did find the drawdown time through the filter to be rather quick, and would recommend grinding beans slightly finer than you might with a paper filter pour over setup to avoid under extraction.

    Without the cup (sold separately) the Ultralight Java Drip weighs just 0.5 ounces, making it essentially a negligible part of your base weight. So if those weight specs sound attractive to you, then the Ultralight Java Drip might be just the backpacking coffee maker you were looking for.

Best Brew Basket: MSR MUGMATE

WEIGHT: 9.5/10 | FLAVOR: 7.5/10 | EASE OF USE: 6.5/10

  • MEASURED WEIGHT: 1.1 oz / 28.4 grams (0.7 oz without the lid)

    BREWING STYLE: Immersion

    MATERIALS: Nylon, stainless steel mesh

    COLLAPSIBLE: No

    PRICE: $$

  • ✅ Ultralight

    ✅ Durable

    ✅ Stable

    ✅ Also suitable for tea

    ❌ Not collapsible

    ❌ Can easily under or over-extract

  • The MSR MugMate has been a favorite choice among backpackers for years — and it is obvious why. It is lightweight, durable and simple to use.

    It is similar to the Primula Coffee Brew Buddy in that it is a reusable filter (or “brewing basket”) that sits nested inside your mug. This makes it stable and easy to pour over, but also means that you need to remove it at the right time to prevent over-steeping the coffee. In our tests, we found we were more likely to under-steep our brew. The fine stainless steel mesh brew basket slows the brew time. To get a tasty, balanced cup, the MugMate does best with a 3 or 4-minute steep time, compared to 1.5 to 2 minutes for the Primula Coffee Brew Buddy.

    It is a little lighter than the Primula offering — especially if you leave behind the somewhat unnecessary and detachable lid. However, the filter is made from a stainless steel mesh, meaning it is not collapsible like the Primula option. The rigid design also makes the MugMate a little tougher to thoroughly clean. It does however sit quite neatly inside most mugs, making that a viable storage option. If the non-collapsibility is a non-issue for you, then the MSR MugMate is a really solid choice.

    An added benefit of the non-collapsible steel mesh basket is that it is pretty durable — more durable than the soft nylon basket found on the Primula Coffee Brew Buddy, which is more prone to tearing or damage.

    The filter basket sits relatively deep in most mugs — meaning it is ideal for brewing tea as well. So if you need a single piece of apparatus to double as both a tea and coffee maker, then the MSR MugMate is almost certainly it. And even if it’s just coffee you are after, the MSR MugMate is a solid choice.

Best Paper Filter Drip Cone: SOTO HELIX

WEIGHT: 8.5/10 | FLAVOR: 9/10 | EASE OF USE: 9.5/10

  • MEASURED WEIGHT: 1.8 oz / 51.2 grams

    BREWING STYLE: Pour over

    MATERIALS: Stainless steel

    COLLAPSIBLE: Yes

    PRICE: $$

  • ✅ Lightweight

    ✅ Collapsible

    ✅ Durable

    ❌ More expensive than other pour over brewers

  • The Soto Helix Coffee Maker is lightweight, durable, collapsible, and makes some damn fine coffee.

    It is not quite the lightest pour over brewer, but weighing only 1.8 ounces is quite a feat for this stainless steel device with a nifty foldable design. The Helix is compatible with #2 paper cone filters and includes a small stack to get you started. With a flat wire base, the brewer sits securely on any mug, thermos, or small pot.

    While paper filters add another item to your packing list and create more waste to pack out, they definitely have some advantages over integrated reusable filter brewers. First, cleanup is way easier: just pinch the filter and toss it and the spent grounds into your trash bag. No wiping down and rinsing off a nylon filter required.

    Second, although single use paper filters are a little wasteful, the metal build of the Helix is super durable and will surely outlast the plastic frames and reusable filters on other pour over systems. Paper filter also produces a super clean and delicious cup of coffee. The coffee we brewed with the Helix was bright and flavorful, easily ranking as our favorite. There are slightly lighter options and slightly cheaper options, but the Helix is the most delicious option. It’s our top backcountry brewer for true coffee aficionados who still value a lightweight setup.

Best for Two Cups: GSI OUTDOORS COLLAPSIBLE JAVA DRIP

WEIGHT: 6.5/10 | FLAVOR: 7.5/10 | EASE OF USE: 9/10

  • MEASURED WEIGHT: 4.6 oz / 130.5 grams

    BREWING STYLE: Pour over

    MATERIALS: Silicone, polypropylene

    COLLAPSIBLE: No

    PRICE: $$

  • ✅ Large cone for 2+ cups

    ✅ Collapsible

    ✅ Lid doubles as drip tray

    ❌ Not well suited for 1 cup brews

    ❌ Plastic construction

  • The GSI Outdoors Collapsible Java Drip is a compact, yet high volume drip cone — a perfect combination for couples or anyone whose morning cup is really more like two or three cups.

    This cone works with any brand of #4 filters. It is made from silicone and collapses into a packable round disc when not in use. At 4.6 oz, it is the heaviest brewer featured here. But the extra ounces make sense if you’re brewing for two.

    Like the Soto Helix, the Java Drip’s paper filters make for an easy, mess-free cleanup and a clean and bright-tasting cup of coffee. We did find the brewer’s performance to be lacking when preparing only one cup, where it delivered a slightly watery coffee. The large cone likely draws heat away from the coffee slurry when it is underfilled, leading to under-extraction. Results improve if you brew a full two or three cups.

    The GSI Outdoors Collapsible Java Drip will likely not appeal to solo ultralighters, but its combination of convenience and 2-4 cup capacity make it the best backcountry brewer for couples, small groups, or HCI’s (highly caffeinated individuals).

Best Instant Coffee: ALPINE START ORIGINAL BLEND

WEIGHT: 10/10 | FLAVOR: 6.5/10 | EASE OF USE: 10/10

  • WEIGHT: N/A

    BREWING STYLE: Instant

    PRICE: $$

  • ✅ Ultralight

    ✅ Ultra-packable

    ✅ Super simple

    ❌ It is still instant coffee after all

  • Ok, instant coffee isn’t really a “coffee maker” at all. But it is an option suitable for backpacking and so we thought this article wasn’t complete without some reference to it.

    Of course, for the most part instant coffee has a reputation of being pretty rubbish. This is owing to a variety of factors which include things like poor quality beans, a manufacturing process that damages flavors, and the potential addition of creepy additives.

    But Alpine Start is one of the companies trying to change that (well… them and several other specialty coffee companies).

    They use quality Arabica beans from Colombia, a medium roast, and gently dehydrate the brewed coffee to help preserve the flavors. Plus, it is free of the nasty additives that some less desirable instant coffees contain. And if you are interested in going dairy free, or enjoy the flavor and sweetness of a dirty chai, they have ready-made options for that. Their medium roast Original Blend is on the bold and roasty side, but it does not have the acrid bitterness that defines cheaper instant coffees.

    Alpine Start isn’t the cheapest of instants, but it isn’t particularly expensive either — and after all, cheap instant coffee is what has given instant coffee on the whole such a bad name in the first place. Indeed, many specialty roasters are now making impressively good instant coffees, but they often cost as much as $4-5 per serving!

    We found that Alpine Start offers the best combination of taste, value, and availability among the better instant coffees now out there. You can now get their original blend in a bulk bag, which cuts down the cost per cup pretty significantly compared to the individual servings.

    So, if you’re set on the simplicity of instant, you should at least treat yourself — and Alpine Start coffee is one of the best ways you can do that!

OUR TESTING IN PHOTOS

 
 

COMPARISON TABLE — SPECS, DATA & RATINGS

1
ProductWeight (oz)Weight (g)CollapsibleBrew StyleMaterialsPriceRating: WeightRating: FlavorRating: Ease of Use
2
Primula Coffee Brew Buddy1.234.2YesPour OverNylon$9.588
3
GSI Outdoors Ultralight Java Drip0.513.2YesPour OverNylon, Plastic$1087
4
MSR MugMate1.128.4NoPour OverNylon, Stainless Steel Mesh$$9.57.56.5
5
Soto Helix1.851.2YesPour OverStainless Steel$$8.599.5
6
GSI Outdoors Collapsible Java Drip4.6130.5NoPour OverSilicone, polypropylene$$6.57.59
7
Alpine Start Original BlendNANANAPour OverNA$$106.510

METHODS FOR MAKING COFFEE WHEN BACKPACKING

Drip Cones with Paper Filters

Drip cones are placed over your cup or mug, with a disposable paper filter nested inside them. You place the coffee grinds into the paper filter and pour boiling water over the top. The taste of the coffee is usually pretty good using this method — because the drip cone sits above the cup, there is no risk of over-steeping the coffee (i.e. leaving it to brew for too long thereby causing it to go bitter).

Another upside is that since they use disposable filters, drip cones generally require less cleaning than some other options. Of course the downside of disposable paper filters is that you will generate more trash and have to pack out the used filters. You will also have to carry enough  paper filters for your hike, and find replacement filters at resupply points if you are doing a longer thru-hike. But for shorter backpacking trips, a drip cone can be a relatively simple option that provides a quality cup of coffee.

Drip cones are generally made from solid plastic. They can also be made from metal or ceramic, but those materials are heavier and therefore less suited to backpacking. Since the solid plastic is usually non-collapsible, it means a drip cone can sometimes be an awkward shape to pack away into your backpack.

Drip Cones with Reusable Filters

A downside of drip cones is that they commonly use paper filters. This can be ok for a shorter trip, but for a longer backpacking trip this has the downside of needing to carry a larger number of filters and producing additional trash. For thru-hiking it also means that you will need to find replacement filters at resupply points.

Fortunately there are some variations of drip cones that are “filterless” (or use a reusable filter). The cone itself can be made from a solid material such as stainless steel, or a soft material such as nylon.

 

The GSI Outdoors Ultralight Java Drip is a little fiddly and fragile, but it is a seriously ultralight option if you plan to go with a drip cone and want to avoid paper filters.

 

Brewing Baskets

A brewing basket is a pour over, reusable, filter basket that sits nested inside your mug whilst brewing.

It is similar in both style and flavor to a drip cone with a reusable filter. The difference is that the brewing basket filter remains nested within the mug, whilst a traditional drip cone is positioned above the mug. This has some advantages. For example, it can be more stable. It also means it can be used for brewing tea, rather than coffee alone.

The main downside of a brewing basket filter is that it needs to be monitored more carefully than a drip cone. If the filter basket is left submerged for too long then the coffee will become bitter and over-extracted. However, as long as you know how long to leave your coffee brewing for and you are around to remove the basket when required, the quality of the coffee should be similar to a drip cone.

 

Brew baskets like the MugMate include a reusable filter and are also ideal for loose leaf tea, but their immersion-style brewing requires some trial and error and close monitoring to avoid an under or over-extracted brew.

 

Instant Coffee

Instant coffee doesn’t need much introduction. Most people know what it is and either like it or hate it (let’s be honest, no-one really loves it).

For the most part instant coffee has less flavor and less caffeine than ground coffee. This is because flavors are lost along the way during the freeze drying or spray drying process. Also, instant coffee is often made from low quality Robusta coffee beans that have an excessively bitter flavor to start with. Ground coffee on the other hand is generally made from Arabica beans which have a softer, sweeter flavor. Having said that, some more expensive instant coffees will use 100% Arabica beans and stay away from creepy additives during the manufacturing process.

Of course instant coffee is favored for its simplicity. It is the lightest option, by far. It is also amazingly simple and mess free. No need to carry filters or a coffee maker, nor any used coffee grounds to pack out. The brewing process is also much faster — simply boil some water and pour it over the instant coffee powder. For these reasons some backpackers may always choose to reach for instant when heading out on a hike.

 

For instant coffee, Alpine Start is a pretty decent tasting option – and if you want to branch out they have a range of options that go beyond the ‘original’ blend.

 

Cowboy Coffee

Believe it or not, intrepid explorers were still drinking coffee in the woods long before the advent of REI and entire shopping aisles of camp coffee gear. They did so with a time tested, if occasionally gritty, brew method that some minimalists and ultralight purists still employ today: cowboy coffee.

Cowboy coffee forgoes the need for any specialized brewing device altogether: simply boil water in a pot, cut the heat, and toss in your coffee grounds. Let it brew for three or four minutes as you would a French press, stir and wait a few more minutes for the grounds to settle. Then gently pour your coffee into a mug, careful not to disturb the grounds.

Although cowboy coffee is delightfully simple and represents a sort of rugged elegance that is hard not to admire, that is soon forgotten when you inevitably sip on a cup chock full of coffee grounds. We think a dedicated backpacking coffee brewer is worth the extra couple of ounces, but it helps to know how to brew up a coffee cowboy style if you’re ever in a pinch.

COMMON QUESTIONS

How do you make coffee while backpacking? To preserve something that resembles a decent cup of coffee, we’re big fans of ultralight backpacking filter cones. The best ones only weigh an ounce or two and can produce some surprisingly good coffee. Single serve packets of instant coffee are even easier and serve their purpose if caffeine is all you’re really after.

Is a backpacking coffee brewer worth the hassle? Some hikers ditch coffee for caffeine pills or, if they’re real sickos, mix instant coffee into cold water for a no kettle-needed dose of java. But we think a coffee brewer is one of those small luxuries that simply makes backpacking so much more enjoyable, and is more than worth the small hassle.

Do you have to pack out coffee grounds while backpacking? Yep, the backcountry is not your home garden, where plants benefit from a dousing of nitrogen-rich coffee grounds. It takes longer to decompose and serve as an attractant for forest critters. Pack it out as you would all other food waste.

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