Outdoors · RTIC · 2015
RTIC 45 Hard Cooler
Rotomolded ice retention within a day of the benchmark, at a fraction of the outlay.
Overall
8.5
out of 10
Axis scores
Outdoors is scored on these 4 axes. The total is their plain average — nothing is weighted.
Average of 4 axes
8.5/10
- Performance
- 8.8
- Value
- 8.8
- Durability
- 8.6
- Design
- 7.8
- Performance — How well it does the core job
- Value — What the same money buys elsewhere
- Durability — Failure and fade reports past the one-year mark
- Design — Build quality and how it sits in a room
Specs
- Construction
- Rotomolded, pressure-injected foam
- Capacity
- 45 quart class
- Certification
- Bear-resistant on some models
As published by the manufacturer. We didn't measure these ourselves.
Is it for you
Buy it if
- You want rotomolded performance without the premium name
- Weekend trips where a day of ice retention either way is academic
- The cooler lives in a truck bed and takes abuse
Skip it if
- Latches and hinges have to feel as good as the box
- Resale value is part of your calculation
The construction is the same recipe as the category leader — rotomolded shell, thick pressure-injected foam, gasketed lid — and the ice retention lands within about a day of it. For most trips that difference never becomes real.
Where the cost came out is the hardware. Latches, hinges, and feet are the components owners report first, and they are the reason the price gap exists at all.
Last updated . The scoring method is on how we rank.