Best Budget Camping Tents Under £150 (2026 Buying Guide)
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You don’t need to spend £300 on a tent for weekend car camping or the occasional backpacking trip. Below £150, there’s a real gap between tents that are genuinely fine and tents that will let water in the first time it rains. Here’s how to tell the difference, and which ones we’d actually buy.
What actually matters at this price point
- A rainfly that covers the whole tent, not just the top third. Cheap tents skimp here first.
- Denier (fabric thickness) of 68D or higher on the floor — thinner floors puncture on gravel and tree roots.
- Freestanding design — it holds its shape without stakes, which matters if you ever camp on rock, sand, or a tent platform.
- Realistic capacity — a “4-person” tent at this price usually fits 2 adults and gear comfortably. Buy one size up from your actual headcount.
Our picks
Overall pick: Coleman Sundome (2/3/4/6-Person)
Coleman’s Sundome has been a default recommendation for over a decade for a reason: a full rainfly, a simple dome pole structure that goes up in about 10 minutes, and a price that stays reasonable at every size. It’s not ultralight and it’s not fancy, but it’s dependable, widely available, and easy to get replacement parts for if a pole ever cracks.
Budget pick: Amazon Basics Camping Tent
A genuinely no-frills 3-season dome tent with a full rainfly. It won’t win any durability awards over years of heavy use, but for occasional trips it does the job at a lower price than the name brands, and it’s freestanding.
Best for 2 backpackers: Night Cat Backpacking Tent
Smaller footprint, aluminum poles (lighter and stronger than the fiberglass poles on most tents this cheap), and a double-layer waterproof design aimed at hiking rather than car camping. Worth the small premium over the absolute cheapest 2-person tents if you’re actually carrying it any distance.
Lightest packed size: Clostnature Waterproof Camping Tent
190T polyester with a PU2000 waterproof rating, and one of the more compact packed sizes in this list. A sensible option if trunk or pack space is the constraint rather than price.
Upgrade pick (just over £150 in some sizes): Kelty Late Start
Kelty is a genuine backpacking brand rather than a big-box generalist, and the Late Start reflects that — quick-connect “Quickcorners”, aluminum poles throughout, and noticeably better fabric than anything else on this list. If you’ll use a tent more than a few nights a year, this is where we’d put the extra money.
Quick comparison
| Tent | Best for | Poles | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Coleman Sundome | All-around / families | Fiberglass | Full rainfly, easy setup |
| Amazon Basics | Tightest budget | Fiberglass | Basic but functional |
| Night Cat | Backpacking duos | Aluminum | Lighter, double-layer |
| Clostnature | Minimizing pack size | Fiberglass | PU2000 waterproofing |
| Kelty Late Start | Frequent use | Aluminum | Best materials on this list |
FAQ
Do I need a footprint (ground tarp)? Not strictly, but a £10-15 footprint under any of these will meaningfully extend the life of the floor and is cheaper than a puncture repair.
Will these handle real rain? The Coleman, Night Cat, and Clostnature options all have full rainflies rated for sustained rain. Pitch the rainfly taut and you’ll be fine in anything short of a storm.
What size should I actually buy? Add one person to your real headcount. A “2-person” tent fits two adults with almost no gear room; a “3-person” fits two adults comfortably with packs inside.