10 Best Beach Tents of 2024

The Pacific Breeze beach tent is one of the top-searched beach tents online for good reason. The tent weighs less than 5 pounds, has a UPF 50+ rating for good sun protection and includes large windows for ventilation. We love that the tent is roomy at 28 square feet while remaining inexpensive. It also comes with both stakes and sandbags to provide extra security against harsh winds at the beach.

In the Textiles Lab, we love that this Coleman beach tent offers so many unique features at an affordable price. The tent is constructed with a front panel that zips open to become an extended floor, but the panel can also be zipped fully closed for total privacy if you need to change in or out of your swimsuit. A dry line is included to hang wet bathing suits and beach towels, and you can store your belongings in the interior pockets. For extra ventilation, the back panel can be unzipped, as well.

GH Institute Executive Director Lexie Sachs is a fan of WolfWise's beach tents and uses them with her kids. She says they're lightweight and easy to carry to the beach. "We love that this tent has built-in sandbags to weigh it down and prevent it from blowing away," she says. There are also mesh windows to provide ventilation on hot days in case you need a breeze, and it has a UPF 50+ rating. Just note that it can be tricky to take disassemble.

If you prefer a more open-concept tent to enjoy all of the views at the beach, this Neso tent acts more like a sun-shade tarp with no side panels. It comes with four sandbags to weigh it down and two supportive poles. The tarp is also lightweight and made of a unique nylon and lycra stretch fiber blend.

One consumer tester mentioned that the tent performed well in the wind overall but experienced some difficulty when the wind shifted direction. Altogether, the tester was impressed by the tent and appreciated how easy it was to assemble and take down.

The Sport-Brella beach umbrella is convertible and can function as a beach tent as well. It can be assembled fully upright like a standard beach umbrella, but the pole can also be tilted down at an angle and anchored into the ground. This pick features side panels than can be folded up or down, and there are zippered mesh windows that can be opened for more ventilation. The canopy fabric covers a wide surface area, but as a tradeoff, it doesn't fold down very compactly and won't fit in smaller cars.

What's unique about the Shibumi shade is it's meant to work with the wind instead of against it. To use it, you do need a breeze of at least 3 mph to keep the shade afloat, but that shouldn't be hard to come by at the beach.

Good Housekeeping Institute contributor Amy Fischer loves the Shibumi shade and says it's nice and sturdy. She added, "This is one of the best beach shades I've tried, and as an added bonus, it looks pretty!" The tent is easy to pack up and transport, as well, weighing in at less than four pounds.

This pick from Helinox has a floor area of 34 square feet and stands at nearly 5 feet tall, which allows space for four people and is much larger than any other beach tents we tested. Although it's large, this tent only weighs five pounds and packs down into a compact carrying case for easy transport.

One consumer tester had some difficulties assembling the tent but found the teardown process to be "a breeze." The tent performed well in terms of sun protection (It has a UPF 50+ rating.), wind resistance and temperature regulation in our consumer tests, as well.

This popup beach tent from Rio Brands gives kids a separate shelter to play with their favorite water toys at the beach. The sides of the tent and the front panel are designed with mesh panels for ventilation, and the front panel can be unzipped and rolled up for even better airflow.

The Skin Cancer Foundation recommends this beach tent for kids because of its strong UVA and UVB protection. One consumer tester noted that the tent was large enough for both of her children to fit inside with extra room and that the kids were excited to have their own space. This tester thought the tent was tricky to assemble but loved that the instructions are sewn into the carrying bag for a quick reminder.

Keep your babies protected from the sun while they play at the beach with this pick. Monobeach's baby beach tent comes complete with a mini pool so that babies can splash around safely without having to face the waves. The tent also features easy pop-up assembly and includes ground stakes to ensure it stays put. Although assembly only takes seconds, folding it back up at the end of the day can be difficult.

Beach tents can be bulky and take up too much space for travel, but not the Miasun Sun Shade. This shade folds neatly into an oversized clutch that can be toted around and easily packed and stored for a beach trip. In the Textiles Lab, we noticed that the cotton canvas material doesn't feature high UPF protection like some other beach tent picks, so be sure to slather up in one of Good Housekeeping Institute's Lab-tested sunscreens to stay safe from the sun's rays.

Sometimes it’s easiest to load up your car and park it on the beach instead of trekking through the hot sand while carrying all of your things. Kelty offers a tent with an attachment system that buckles onto vehicles so you can set up your beach tent right where you park. The attachment system connects to SUVs, vans and cars and allows for hookup off the side or from the trunk of your vehicle. Some reviewers say the tent can be tricky to assemble alone, so it’s best to put it together with a little help.