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This Is the Electric Cooler That Finally Won Me Over

With a built-in battery and 36 hours of cooling power, the Anker Everfrost makes soggy sandwiches and ice runs a thing of the past

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The first was patented in 1953. It was a big, insulated box that looked a lot like a Yeti, but without the handles. Early versions of the cooler were called a “Leisure Chest” (great name) and promised cold groceries out in the wild, as long as you loaded them down with ice.

In the 75 years since, cooler design hasn’t changed all that much. Ice retention has certainly improved, but even with the best, most insulated coolers, you’ll still need to restock it with ice over the course of a weekend camping trip. Then you have to try to keep your food out of the melting ice so it doesn’t get soggy. And when you get home, you have to dump the water, wipe down the cooler, and leave it open to dry out so it doesn’t get moldy. It’s all a hassle, and yet I’ve been loyal to the old technology for decades, even when others insisted that an electric cooler was the superior option.

Anker Solix Everfrost Electric Cooler

Why I Avoided Electric Coolers—Until Now

These days, there are plenty of plug-in, portable coolers that don’t need ice. Dometic makes several popular versions, and portable power heavyweights like Goal Zero and EcoFlow have also recently entered the game.

But I’ve been hesitant to make the switch because the vast majority of these electric coolers have to be paired with a power source to operate. They don’t have built-in battery storage, so they need to stay plugged into something—a battery bank, your vehicle’s battery, or solar panels. Hauling yet another device that needs to be powered while camping has always seemed ridiculous to me, so I just kept restocking ice and eating soggy sandwiches.

Enter the Anker Everfrost Electric Cooler

The Anker Everfrost has changed my mind thanks to its best-in-class, built-in power bank, which allows you to charge this electric cooler at home, then enjoy cold groceries on-the-go for almost two full days without having to top off the power. The Everfrost boasts the largest battery of any portable electric cooler—299 watts—and Anker claims the battery can power the fridge at 39 degrees for up to 42 hours.

The Everfrost comes in three different sizes: 33 liters, 43 liters, and 53 liters. It’s tempting to go with the largest model, which has two separate compartments and a dual zone feature that allows you to use one side as a freezer. But the bigger the cooler, the less built-in battery power you get. The 53-liter cooler only promises 27 hours of 39-degree temps, while the 33-liter model boasts up to 42 hours of battery life at that temperature. I opted for this smallest version, which proved to be plenty spacious for weekend-long camping trips while offering the best battery life.

Field Testing the Anker Everfrost

I’ve spent the last two months testing the Anker Everfrost, relying on the cooler for car camping adventures, road trips, and even a pontoon boat excursion. While the cooler came a little short on Anker’s 42-hour battery life promise (more on that below), the Everfrost proved to be the ideal electric alternative to my “acoustic” cooler habit.

Battery Life in Extreme Heat

I’ve been putting the cooler through the wringer in some harsh testing grounds: the Southern Appalachians during a record-breaking heat wave. The Everfrost has been my companion on road trips to Georgia in triple-digit temps,camping trips in sweltering South Carolina, and multiple shorter adventures around the mountains of North Carolina.

Anker’s battery capacity projections are based on 77-degree ambient temperatures, but during my testing, the temps rarely dipped below the mid-80s. I didn’t get the full 42 hours of battery life at 39 degrees, but I came pretty close: the Anker Everfrost averaged around 36 to 38 hours of run time in some of the hottest conditions any sane person would subject themselves to.

A solid 36 hours of cold beer—no matter how hot it is outside—is a godsend for overnight trips or afternoon tailgating sessions. When I need extra power for a longer weekend trip, I top the cooler off using either my truck or a Goal Zero Yeti 500. Just a couple of hours of recharge time brings the battery back to about 80 percent and extends its use for another 24 hours. You can also power it with a solar panel, though it was tough to find a sunny spot in the campgrounds I frequent in the Southern Appalachians.

(Photo: Graham Averill)

Quick Cooling and Smart Design

There’s more to love about the Everfrost than just its battery life. It’s quick to cool and quick to charge: Plug it in, and within 30 minutes it’s down to temperature; in just four hours, it charges to 100 percent. The space is efficient too: You can fit 38 cans in the 33-liter cooler, which is twice as much beer as you can fit into a similar-sized Yeti, because you have to reserve half of that cooler’s space for ice.

The design is full of user-friendly details, like wheels and a handle that doubles as a side table and cutting board. There’s a built-in bottle opener, and the battery can be used as a power bank for your electrical devices too. An LCD display tells you the temperature and how much battery life you have left. There’s a Bluetooth app as well, though I’m not sure why I would need to constantly monitor or adjust the temperature on the electric cooler.

One of my favorite aspects of the Anker Everfrost electric cooler is that I can load it the night before my trip and leave it plugged in until it’s time to go. Everything stays cold overnight, and there’s no melting ice to deal with, so it streamlines the packing process and helps me get out the door quicker on travel days. Not having to stop for ice on the way to the campsite is an added bonus.

Downsides to Consider

The downside to all this convenience? The Everfrost is heavy. The 33-liter version weighs 49 pounds empty. In comparison, a hard-sided Yeti cooler with the same volume is just 21 pounds.

The built-in wheels make it easy to tote the cooler around the campsite, but its heft makes it cumbersome to load into the back of my truck. It takes up a good bit of space in the truck bed, too: the built-in battery pack and insulation add bulk. If space is limited in your vehicle, a traditional cooler is definitely the more compact option.

Another thing to consider: This cooler is not completely waterproof. The USB port is exposed, so you can’t just set the Everfrost outside at the campsite and forget it like a traditional cooler. You need to make sure it’s covered if afternoon thunderstorms are in the forecast.

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Final Verdict: Anker Everfrost vs. Traditional Coolers

None of those downsides are deal-breakers for me, and after testing the Everfrost for the better part of the summer, I’m sold on the superiority of electric coolers over non-electric coolers. Am I going to ditch traditional coolers completely? No. There are certain situations where putting ice into a small insulated box is the appropriate move, and the Anker Everfrost would be overkill.

But if you’re headed out for an extended adventure, like a weekend camping trip, the Anker Everfrost is a far more convenient way to keep your groceries cold. And the longer the adventure, the more the Everfrost makes sense. If you’re spending a week in the desert or dabbling with van life, packing the Anker Everfrost electric cooler is a no-brainer.