When you’re enjoying the summer heat down at the water, there’s nothing quite like a frosty beverage to make the day perfect. Whether you’re rafting, kayaking, boating, out on your SUP, or simply hanging out in the pool, these floating coolers offer easy accessibility to all your favorite drinks and snacks!
We’ve organized our top list with the most durable models for kayak and river raft trips up top, and the purely pool-worthy options below those.
When you want to get serious about your floating cooler, as in you’re a rafting or kayak trip outfitter, you need a big bag like the IceMule Pro. With a whopping 33 liter capacity, this floatable bag can carry up to 24 cans as well as ice. Built for performance, this bag is well worth the price. Front side bungees are a great place to store extra necessities or to attach an IceMule Pro Pack a smaller dry container perfect for snacks, sunblock, and more.
The traditional roll-top design makes it easy to load and unload, and despite its size, it’s also easy to carry, thanks to the padded backpack-style straps on the back. This bag is built to be bombproof, so float it alongside your kayak or raft even in those class III and class IV rapids. The Muleskin interior and exterior add strength and durability while the PolarLayer insulation keeps drinks cold for up to 24 hours.
Get this awesome professional floating bag in three sizes from 23 to 40 liters. It comes in four colors as well as camo print.
The CreekKooler Floating Cooler looks so much like a mini-creek boat, but the beauty of its design is that it’s stable enough to take on a raft or kayak trip, unlike most inflatable coolers. If you’re paddling a smaller kayak, this 30 quart cooler is the ideal companion that will easily glide along to carry all your drinks and snacks.
With two full inches of injected insulation in the hull and deck, the CreekKooler boasts the kind of ice retention some regular coolers can’t – up to 48 hours! The 30 quart capacity means you can stow up to 30 12 ounce cans of beer (er, we mean soda and water) as well as 20 pounds of ice. It also features four molded drink holders on top. The water tight hatch cover has a locking lid and o-ring design which allows you to use this as dry storage as well as drink storage. It’s also attached by a rope so it can’t get lost.
Two convenient pull handles are easy to lash to your kayak or raft, and they also make it easy to drag the cooler along the ground on the way to your launch point. CreekKooler makes a special tow line for their cooler. Don’t need something quite as beefy? Consider the CreekKooler PuP, a 15 quart version of their big boy.
According to the experts at YETI, this Tundra 35 cooler floats in water, whether it’s full or empty, so if you’re looking for the ultimate multitasker, the YETI Tundra has to be it. Lauded for their long lasting durability as well as their wicked insulation that keeps things cold for days, YETI coolers are arguably the most desired of all the rotomolded coolers on the market. Even the experts at America’s Test Kitchen rank the YETI Tundra as the best cooler on the market.
Rotomolding means durability and this cooler is virtually indestructible inside and out. A PermaFrost™ polyurethane foam insulation layer means your ice stays icy and your drinks and food stay cold for the long haul. A freezer-quality gasket on the lid locks out heat and locks in cold. Molded tie-down slots on the sides allow you to easily anchor it to your raft or kayak.
Really the only downside of the YETI is the weight, because it’s definitely going to be heavier than all the other floating coolers we’ve reviewed, but if your key considerations are shelf life and durability, Yeti coolers really can’t be beat.
Another player in the line of tow-behind kayak cooler bags, the PERMIAN portable cooler bag gives you 15 liters of cold capacity wrapped up in a roll-top PVC dry bag. Designed to keep your food and beverages cold for up to 24 hours, this buoyant bag can hold up to ten cans plus ice, or four bottles of wine. Sounds party worthy to us!
Heavy-duty and 100% waterproof, it can be used as a dry bag too, and when not in use it’s easy to roll up and store. The crossbody style shoulder strap makes it easy and comfortable to carry.
The S.S. GoodLife soft floating cooler might look a bit like a cute toy but it means business behind your boat or in the pool. The soft foam construction is super insulating to keep all your frosty beverages cool for hours. The foam is covered with a durable glossy vinyl coating to ensure it lasts and lasts. It holds up to 18 drinks plus ice, and the snug fit lid is attached with a rope so it won’t get lost.
The top features two molded drink holders plus a grommet in the back and a loop in the front for easy tie-off because you don’t want your cooler floating off without you, do you? You’ll also love that this cooler is easy to hose out in case something happens to get spilled inside. You can also get this cooler in brilliant green should you prefer.
For kayakers and paddleboarders who need a reliable cooler that can just float alongside their craft, the IceMule floating dry bag cooler uses technology you’re likely used to so it’ll seem like an old friend with benefits. This dry bag is lined with proprietary PolarLayer insulation that can hold solid ice for up to 24 hours. With a 20 liter capacity, it will hold up to 18 cans of your favorite cold drinks as well as ice.
This bag features welded seams and a rolltop design that makes your goodies easy to access. The IM air valve allows the bag to float while being 100% waterproof. You’ll also love that it comes with a ventilated back and comfortable cross strap so you can carry it hands-free and still carry other gear to your watercraft. This awesome floating dry bag comes in six colors and in four sizes from the mini 9-liter size to the large 20-liter version.
The Muleskin interior and exterior are tough as nails, so you’ll feel confident, even when you’re traversing water with lots of sticks and strainers or pulling up on a rocky shoreline. IceMule also makes a floating backpack cooler with more traditional straps that’s super cool.
Who says you can’t have a floating cooler that does double duty as a personal floating lounge chair too? This First Class floating lounger from WOW is an awesome way to keep your drinks cool without having to tow along an extra cooler. It features a comfy inflatable chair that even has a footrest for complete relaxation, but it’s the arms that hold the sneaky secrets – a zippered cooler on each that holds cans and bottles. There are also drink holders on each chair arm.
Coolers can also be used as storage for your sunscreen and more, so consider one for beverages and one for snacks and essentials. The extra high back means this is truly a comfortable flotation device, and the double duty of a cooler too is the perfect option for those warm weather days.
When you’re ready to party hearty, you need a floating cooler that can deliver plenty of beverages for a crowd. The 72-can Intex Megachill is the kind of bad boy you want on a big raft trip or long beach day. Not only does it have serious can capacity by itself, but it’s also beefy enough to act as a floating base for your favorite hard side cooler up to 48 quarts in size.
Used on its own, this pool cooler has an inflatable lid to keep iced beverages protected from direct sun. It has six cup holders and four heavy-duty carrying handles to make transporting it full easy for two people. It also has a clever “connect and float” system so you can hook your cooler to your friends’ coolers at a larger gathering.
16 gauge PVC vinyl ensures that this cooler float can stand up to heavy use. If you’ve ordered a new Intex pool for the backyard this summer, it’s the perfect accessory for your backyard oasis.
When it comes to pure fun in the summer sun, this floating cooler from Brantics is an easy choice. It has everything you’ll need to stay hydrated in the heat. Just fill it up, zip the top, and ask a friend to help you carry it from the car to the pool, beach, or river. Dual handles make it easy. It’s made of sturdy high-quality vinyl and so it will hold up well during the season of play.
The cooler has three separate air chambers, so even if one happens to get a puncture, you won’t lose your load. With four molded drink holders, everyone can keep their beverages up and out of the water but ready for easy access. The middle drink bucket holds a 12-pack of frosty goodness as well as a ten pound bag of ice, so you’ll have plenty of icy goodness to go around.
The inflatable cooler section even has an inflatable lid to keep drinks and snacks well insulated. The handles make convenient tie-offs if you want to pull it along behind your raft or kayak on a lazy river trip, although you might not want to use it in places with actual whitewater.
Looking for a pool party-worthy floating cooler? It’s all sunshine and rainbows with this inflatable cloud and rainbow cooler that comes complete with five beverage holders plus a center serving chest for ice and additional snacks and drinks. Made of thick and durable premium raft-grade non-phthalate material, this inflatable is definitely more of a pool or calm lake option versus one to take in the ocean or river.
At about 2.5 feet in length, this handy cooler can accommodate drinks, snacks, and ice easily so you can just relax and enjoy. One thing to note, this would also be an ideal party cooler out of the water as well because you can still use the center bowl for ice and drinks. In fact, we’ve seen lots of people use that center area to float all kinds of things from their chihuahuas to fruit platters!
If you prefer something with a little lower profile on the water, this inflatable pool cooler is a good option with two sides for ice and drinks.
If you love to party on the water that means you’ll need music and this floating WOW Sound inflatable cooler is built to perfectly house the WOW Sound waterproof Bluetooth speaker. This 30 quart floating cooler has a 30 can capacity and comes with four molded built-in beverage holders to make drinking and floating simple.
A heavy-gauge PVC exterior guarantees durability, and the double padded bottom adds extra insulation to keep your beverages nice and icy cold. The zippered cooler top ensures your drinks stay in place, even if your pool cooler gets flipped during rough play. Two heavy duty handles make it easy to carry, and if you don’t happen to have that WOW Sound speaker, you can use its space for another can holder.
An ideal accessory for your next pool party, the Intex Mega Chill Inflatable Floating Cooler is a fun way to keep beverages and snacks cool and close at hand. The inflatable cooler section features a cover to keep drinks in the shade, and it sits atop an inflatable base to add even more insulation, especially if your pool is warm.
It features 5 cup holders all the way around the base, so it’s a quick swim to grab a slurp and go back to relaxing. There are even two integrated, recessed snack trays for setting up a little assortment of on-the-water-eats!
Perhaps best of all, the 35-inch diameter Mega Chill is also a great companion for the lake and even the river due to its durable design and 45 can total capacity. The built-in Connect ‘n Float system furthermore enables you to easily hook up this cooler to River Run tubes, Mega Chill Coolers, and other Intex items.
If you’re looking for a similar inflatable but one that’s covered in fun graphics and colors, the ICEE Floating cooler will remind you of the beachside snow cone stand you loved as a kid. It has similar amenities as our featured cooler.
The Airhead Aqua Oasis is the perfect chill pill for the beach or backyard pool. The leak-proof, zip-top nylon cooler is elevated from the water adding a layer of air insulation thanks to the vinyl base flotation piece. This cooler has six standard can holders, each of which is numbered so that sippers can keep track of which can or bottle happens to be theirs.
The cooler itself holds up to 24 cans of your fave beverages and keeps them icy for up to six hours. A sundry holder in the side is a great place to stow sunblock and sunglasses. It also features a plastic tether holder so you can keep it hooked to your flotation device as well.
If you spend a lot of your summer in the water, a floating cooler will ensure you stay hydrated and keep your food and fave beverages frosty throughout the day. We'll help you choose the right one for your whitewater adventures as well as your pool parties.
