The Best 4-Season Tents of 2024

For half of what our top pick asks, this tent really impressed us in terms of what it could handle. We tested the Arete most extensively in the shoulder seasons of the North Cascades, where precipitation ranges from liquid to solid on a daily basis. The four-pole structure of this tent sets up similarly to other shelters like the Trango or NEMO Chogori, but the fourth pole only reaches mid-panel, making it a bit less storm-worthy.

The tradeoff, however, is in ventilation, which the Arete does quite well. Humidity can range widely when you can’t bet on cold temperatures, and the broad ceiling panel of the Arete unzips when you need to bleed off some moisture-heavy air. The genius of this is that the entire panel can also be closed when you want to hold in more warmth, making this a really versatile design.

There are a few shortcuts taken to hit the budget price here, and they show up in the simple pole clips used, plastic hubs on the poles, and smaller vestibule. You also won’t get snow-specific features such as the skirts seen on the Trango tents, and while the fly on the Arete is well supported with interior Velcro tabs, it doesn’t quite extend down far enough to stop all gusts from reaching inside. Smart site selection can help remedy this.

There are a number of other “all-season” tents on the market, such as the NEMO Kunai, Big Agnes Copper Spur HV2 Expedition, and MSR Access 2, and while each excels a bit more in different niches, none can touch the Arete ASL when it comes to price. This is the tent we reach for on mid-season volcano ascents with steady weather forecasts, and it’s a stellar budget option.

Unlike many double-wall shelters, the HotBox can be set up with the fly already attached, making close-quarters pitching on hacked-out bivy spots feasible. The ‘WebTruss’ pole structure, too, is self-supporting and, in our testing, proved to be a robust design that stood up to multiple Himilayan tempests.

And while livability isn’t the priority in tents like this, the HotBox has it in spades. Eight internal pockets decorate the interior of the shelter, and twin drawstring ports provide access to the side vestibule areas — which are more of gear storage zones but massively useful for tucking away kit in. The 26.8 sq. ft. internal space is about on par with the Black Diamond Firstlight (and even a little roomier than the Mountain Hardwear AC 2), and for trips where we’re glued onto the wall, this is sufficient space.

In scenarios where we know that all of the precipitation we might encounter is going to be frozen (and the on-route time isn’t too long), we still reach for our single-skin shelters, but more often than not, we find a reason to pivot to the HotBox. For a handful more ounces, the added livability and thoughtful functionality it brings add a measure of civility to our alpine endeavors.

Setting up with either your trekking poles or a separately available carbon fiber unit, the 769-gram shelter (read: 5x lighter than the Mountain Hardwear Trango 2) can provide cover for up to four climbers and packs down as small as a loaf of bread. The impetus is on you to shore up the shelter with things like snow walls, but when using all of the available guy-out points, we’ve seen mids like this weather storms on Denali.

The 85 sq. ft. of floor space may seem downright huge, but keep in mind that the angle of the walls will negate some of this space in your final setup. Still, digging down into the snow allows you to build out the shelter to your specs, whether that’s a couple of sleeping platforms and a kitchen area, or a stately pleasure dome to invite the whole crew into. Hyperlite also offers a number of different inner options (mesh no floor, half- and full inserts) but you’ll have to fork over the dough for them, with even the half inner demanding $299.

For some, the high-tech material (and brow-raising price tag) might take the UltaMid out of the running, but an equally burly pyramid shelter can be had in the Black Diamond Mega Snow ($450) and, to a lesser degree, the MSR Front Range Tarp ($380). Both of these mids use a more familiar polyester or ripstop nylon in their canopies. They are going to be heavier, but they will also pack down a bit smaller than the DCF UltaMid.

On long expeditions, overall weight typically takes priority over bulk, and as such, the UltaMid 4 remains our go-to for long stints on the ice.

While this tent is best thought of as a “treeline” 4-season tent, Senior Editor Nick Belcaster took the Access 2 to the land of very few trees for an alpine hike of the Laugavegur Trail in Iceland. “In short, this tent prevailed on the Laugavegur,” he reported. “Winds ripped across the island and buffetted the highlands all day and night, but the Access 2 stood tough.”

During his 3-day romp, Belcaster found the Access 2 to excel where other 4-season tents would have been dragged down, namely in weight and packability. Bundled up just as small as your leading backpacking tents, the Access 2 unfurls into a proper wall between you and the weather. The fly is slung low and is well guylined to provide good protection from spindrift (be it snow — or volcanic pumice), and the added mid-line pole that runs over the doors really sturdies up the entire shelter.

As it’s made for deep winter use, the walls and ceiling are fairly steeply slanted, which provides for good snow sluffing, but was a little tight quarters for true 4-season conditions. Thankfully, the twin vestibules jut out a good bit, and once you’ve dug some snow wells your gear has a perfect place to idle. This space-shifting is one of the concessions the Access makes to hit its low weight and bulk numbers, but for the conditions it’s made for, it makes perfect sense.

The carbon fiber poles will have to be treated with care (during his tenure as a mountaineering shop manager, Belcaster has seen more than a few guides limp home broken carbon poles), but taking your time with them is a low bar to hurdle in the name of tent longevity. 

Similar tents of the same feather include the REI Co-op Arete ASL 2 and the Copper Spur HV2 Expedition, but we found the Access to edge out all of them for the title of best shoulder-season champ. We are already hatching plans to use the Access 2 during deep splitboard traverses in Washington’s Cascades this winter, and will update our review once this tent has done its time in the chill chest.

Why? Well, for one, this tent is burly. We tested this shelter on the top of Berthoud Pass in Colorado during a spring storm, and thanks to the high-tension design and sound engineering, the structure hardly budged under gusts and shed heavy snow well. The fly of the Storm Star uses the same Dimension-Polyant fabric featured in the structure of the Mountain Hardwear AC 2, and it’s obvious why: This tough, non-stretch textile doesn’t budge when gusts tug at it and makes a perfect attachment point for the pole structure to fasten to.

Moving below decks, the durable floor and tub are constructed with 40-denier ripstop nylon and extend a full foot up the side of the shelter for extra protection. The shape of the interior itself is asymmetric to provide extra width at the tent’s head, and with a waterproof rating of 3,000 mm for the rainfly and 5,000 mm for the floor, water has little chance of sneaking in. We also like the interior webbing loops to help hang soggy gear.

Compared to the Stone Glacier Skyscraper, the extended third vestibule pole of this tent greatly strengthens the design, and we noticed considerably less bowing when the wind was coming across the shelters at a full broadside. Also, because the poles are fastened externally on the Storm Star, you can leave the tent body attached to the fly during setup, meaning no more wet tent interior while you’re hustling to get your shelter built. While the Skyscraper does have it licked in a few metrics (slightly larger floorplan, cheaper), we’d happily trade it all for when things get truly medieval outside.

Our only guff with this tent? For one, the two interior zippered vents that open up to the outside aren’t guarded by bug netting, which simply won’t fly when confronted with an Alaskan spring. Also, at 29.5 square feet of internal space for a two-person (the Trango 2 has 40 square feet), you’ll certainly be keeping the majority of your kit in the vestibules. Still, the Storm Star has a near-permanent spot in our hunting load-outs and is a true 4-season tent for almost any excursion.

There are only a handful of tents on the market that use this construction (the Samaya 2.5 also does), and we most recently tested the Assault 2 by putting it in the hands of Eli Spitulnik, a mountain guide in Washington State, who used it during a week-long Denali Prep program where he trained climbers on what to expect on the High One. In typical fashion, it snowed near-constantly, and despite the huge pressure of nearly being buried, no moisture made it in.

The bivy-style single-wall tent is set up in the typical fashion with a set of poles crossed on the interior of the shelter. A short brow pole helps to bump out the headspace and covers two of the four vented windows — though it is pretty tough to get into place. The included vestibule is a left turn from most bivy tents and sets up with its own pole. This space is far enough for two climbers, and Spitulnik was able to fit his entire expedition duffel, and dig out a well for pulling on boots.

At north of 5 pounds, the Assault 2 can’t quite be lumped in with the true bivy-style tents like the SlingFin HotBox or the Mountain Hardwear AC 2, but it’s also a good bit more snug than other basecamp tents, putting this shelter in a unique place. We see it as a perfect option for folks who are doing long sea-to-summit type expeditions, where needs change constantly and protection is paramount.

But let’s start with that membrane. Samaya’s 3-layer polyurethane ‘Nanovent’ variant is a novel answer to the classic trying not to get soaked question, and is an air-permeable single skin that is laid up with a 7D exterior nylon and mated to a Dyneema Composite Fabric floor. This build puts it more so in the “supercar” than the “sedan” side of 4-season tents, and in our testing, it worked admirably.

Moving on to the overall structure, the dome-style design is basecamp-proven, and sets up with three DAC FeatherLite poles in a hexagon shape that sports 34.4 square feet of space. In practice we found this to be the perfect amount of space for two climbers and their kit inside, or for three close friends in less-desirable conditions.

During testing in the Washington Cascades this summer, Senior Editor Nick Belcaster used the Samaya 2.5 to summit some remote glaciated peaks, and found the small packed size to be a huge boon in keeping his pack as small as possible. “Some other tents might be smaller, but none provide as much breathability, which is typically where a lot of other bivy-style tents wilt.”

Obviously, all of this space-age tech comes with a space-age price, and at $1,200, it’s easily one of the most high-dollar rigs in our line-up today. But considering that oftentimes airfare alone to get into the remote ranges where this tent shines will cost you that, and the caliber of alpinist it’s aimed at, it makes a good bit more sense.

Sure, a tent of this magnitude won’t make sense for most climbers (we recommend the Mountain Hardwear Trango 2 as a much better generalist), but if you’re going far and need to go light, the Samaya 2.5 is a 4-season tent to hang your alpine aspirations on.

The backbone of this shelter is the unique WebTruss system, which takes the strength of a sleeve-pole design and removes it from attaching directly to the tent body. This means that the architecture is freestanding, and can then be clipped into the tent without becoming an alpine sail during a blow. In practice, we tend to think that the KUIU Storm Star is a bit more storm-worthy (as the third pole reaches the ground), but the Skyscraper still is no slouch.

The lightweight 20-denier ripstop nylon floor of the Skyscraper still felt tenacious, and the modular design makes the arrangement versatile. Overnighters can set up the full body and rainfly or save weight by using the fly and lightweight footprint. For checking out the now-cast, a single through-vent at the end of the tent opens up totally to the exterior for a quick survey, then cinches closed when it’s time to button up. We found this portal to not only be key in scoping out the latest, but it was also a huge boost in ventilation when condensation turned up.

Astute observers will notice that this tent is nigh-identical to the SlingFin Crossbow 2, and they’d be correct: Stone Glacier licenses the design and offers the impressive build at $75 less than the real deal, with the only major difference being a slightly thinner and polyurethane-coated fly. So in the end, it really all boils down to color, and for those who are using the Skyscraper for alpine hunting, the blue and dark gray hues may keep your profile just a bit lower.

Almost everything about getting outside in harsher conditions is more expensive, so we’re liable to take any break we can get. At $645, there’s no getting away with saying that the Skyscraper 2P is outright cheap, but comparatively, the tent hits a number of the high points without going north of the $800 mark. In the end, we tend to reach for the KUIU Storm Star more often for alpine hunts, but if you want a bit more room (and a bit less weight), this Stone Glacier tent is a great alternative.

For one, the AC 2 makes use of a proper waterproof canopy (speccing out at a waterproof rating of 10,000 mm), whereas the NanoShield fabric of the Firstlight is only water-resistant and not seam-sealed. In ground-truthing, we found the material of the AC 2 to stand tall against the autumn tempests that roil the Pacific Northwest, while the Firstlight could not, leading to our guide pals to grace the later tent with a rather sorry nickname: the FirstWet.

While it’s true that tents of this stripe are best used in altitudes where any precip you might encounter will be frozen, practice has shown us that folks will use them just about anywhere, and having proper waterproofing adds a good amount of versatility. Moving on to the structure, the AC 2 erects with an X-patterned arch system of non-stretch Dimension-Polyant fabric, which serves as a strong backbone to suspend the tent on. We found this much easier to set up over the internal pole system of the Firstlight, and was a good bit sturdier. Another point to the AC 2.

Ventilation is the Achilles heel of any bivy-style tent, and while the AC 2 gained an extra peak vent over its predecessor, the Direkt 2, it still struggles in high moisture-content conditions to really move air around the tent. The second mesh screen door is a big help here (given it’s not actively raining), but in most other situations, you’d better hope it’s cold enough to frost, or deal with it. This is the main reason that we recommend the Slingfin HotBox as a bivy shelter over the AC 2 for most folks.

Granted, there are a few areas we’ll concede to the Firstlight, including a slightly larger floorplan (82” x 48” to the 81” x 45” of the AC 2), as well as a good bit cheaper price. The weight of the AC 2 is also approximately 10 ounces more, and for real ounce-counters, this might make a real difference when everything on-route is being accounted for.

Finally, while there are hyper-bivy tents that make use of Dyneema and carbon fiber poles, they demand you fork over two grand for the luxury, and we found the price tag on the AC 2 to be at least palatable for your typical expedition climber. When the route is steep — and the temps will stay low — the AC 2 is a great option.

While organizing gear and changing layers, it was easy to sit upright or move around and get dressed in a flat-footed crouched position without feeling cramped or head-bumping the roof. We also appreciated the large storage area for gear in one of the vestibules, which features additional loops to hang items.

To exit or enter each vestibule, there’s a side door, so half of the space remains shielded from the weather. Each door’s zipper is double-enforced with Velcro, which is a nice touch but tough to maneuver one-handed. We also liked that the fly featured four vents with snow flaps, which provide ventilation and help reduce condensation while keeping out spindrift.

Likewise, the upper portion of each door features a mesh or fully open window for cross-ventilation. The color-coded pole clips made the tent setup quick. The bathtub floor is waterproof and durable. And the rainfly is a 68-denier ripstop polyester fabric treated for waterproofness.

A cursory glance at this tent and the MSR Access 2 might lead you to think that they were fairly similar, but in pretty much every way, the Remote 2 is tougher. Where the Access uses a single forked pole over the canopy of the tent, the Remote uses the more traditional two crossed poles, in addition to the vestibule poles that both tents share.

In addition, the fabrics on the Remote are bulked up across the board, with a 68-denier fly protecting the tent versus the 20D ripstop nylon of the Access. When Mother Nature really comes knocking, we’d reach for the Remote.

We haven’t experienced harsh winds or heavy snowfall in the Remote 2 yet, but the construction is protective, warm, and strong. Our choice of the Mountain Hardwear Trango 2 over this tent boils down pure floor space, and while the Remote is a few pounds the junior of the Trango, when we’re going all in on 4-season comfort, every inch counts.

The tent itself is supported by a set of four DAC NSL poles (in a similar configuration to the Mountain Hardwear Trango 2) that cross over one another in multiple areas to bolster strength. These attach to the tent body with both twist clips and wide-gated hooks, which makes for easy set-up even when wearing gloves. The fly itself requires one additional pole to set up, but gaining the large 13-square-foot landing area makes it all worth it. In deep snow conditions, we dug down into this area to make a perfect footwell for putting on boots and storing gear.

Similar to the design of the Stone Glacier Skyscraper, the Battle Mountain also makes use of internal guylines that can be cinched down to add further rigidity to the structure, in addition to the Velcro tabs on the underside of the fly that affixes it to the pole structure. These small additions really help shore up the Battle Mountain against harsh winds and snow loads.

At 44 square feet of internal space, the Battle Mountain 3 feels a bit snug for 3 climbers and their kit, but two climbers will find it downright palatial. For less weight, you can get more floor area in the Mountain Hardwear Trango 2 — a shelter only designed for 2 people! Because they’re the same price, we tend to lean on the Trango more than the Big Agnes, but as a viable option from a legacy brand, the Battle Mountain makes the grade.

Read Review: Big Agnes Battle Mountain 3 Tent Review: Passing Alpine Blizzard Tests With Flying Colors

In a similar vein to the Big Agnes Battle Mountain 3, this is another 3/4-season tent from a brand with deep roots in backpacking shelters that have taken what they know there and applied it to the rough and tumble Kunai, a shelter that doesn’t shy away from a poor forecast. For summer and fall backpacking trips into the alpine, this build is light, strong, and a top pick. For a long mountaineering expedition, it’s a friendly weight for carrying up a mountain, but wouldn’t be our first pick for a 2-foot dump or hunkering down in an ongoing blizzard.

Laid out in a familiar manner, the Kunai uses a four-pole set up to bolster the ends of the shelter but stops shy of extending that fourth pole down to the middle of the tent body. This saves a bit of weight, but it does create a slightly less sturdy shelter overall. The Kunai also employs more mesh in the inner design over other tents, opting for two long windows along the sides of the inner. You can’t actually see out of these apertures, but they are great for optimizing venting when condensation might rear its head.

Turning to the interior of the shelter, we were impressed with the six passive vents around the fly, and along the walls, there are seven mesh pockets of varying sizes to help organize accessories. The canopy is a 20-denier nylon ripstop fabric, and the floor is even tougher, with a 30-denier rating. The single door will be a bit of a drag for the full complement of three climbers, but the vestibule does make a good staging area.

Perfect for extending your hiking seasons (or predictable weather on popular mountaineering routes), the Kunai 3 is an adaptable shelter that is lighter on the back but still puts up a good fight. It’s a good bit more out of pocket than our best budget pick, the REI Co-op Arete ASL 2, but if you’re willing to trade more dollars for less weight, it’s a viable option.