Tents under $100 · Vs review
ALPS Mountaineering Lynx 1-Person V.S. 2-Person Tent (I Bought & Tested Both!)
Two budget backpacking tents, side by side in my yard, across 9 head-to-head tests.
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The short answer
Take the Lynx 2 unless weight, packed size or the extra $20 to $30 is the problem. Ten inches more headroom, double the floor, double the vestibule.
The Lynx 2 has a 47-inch peak height against 37, 36.5 square feet of floor against 18.9, and 19.2 square feet of vestibule against 8.5 — and it is the one whose rainfly I can pull 11 inches off the tent body instead of 2.5. The Lynx 1 answers on exactly the three things that would change my mind: 4.0 lbs against 6.0, a 19.5 by 7 by 5 inch pack, and about $20 to $30 off the price. Unless weight, packed size or budget is the deciding factor, the 2-Person is the one I'd buy.
Side by side
Where they actually differ
| Measured | Lynx 1 | Lynx 2 |
|---|---|---|
| Set up (1 person) | 4.5–5 minutes | 6.5 minutes |
| Pole clips | 13 | 17 |
| Guylines | 5 | 6 |
| Peak height | 37 inches | 47 inches10 inches more |
| Base dimensions | 88 × 31 inches | 89 × 59 inches |
| Base area | 18.9 sq ft | 36.5 sq ftNearly double |
| What fits inside | An extra-wide pad, 25–30 inches | 2 regular pads, or an 80 × 56 inch airbed |
| Thickest mattress I'd use | 3–4 inches | 6 inches |
| Vestibules | 1 | 2One at each length |
| Vestibule width (longest) | 28 inches | 31 inches |
| Vestibule area | 8.5 sq ft | 19.2 sq ft9.6 sq ft each |
| Doors | 1 | 2 |
| Door size | 36 × 27 inches | 41 × 39 inches |
| Gear loft | 12 × 6 inches | 21 × 12 inches |
| Rainfly pulled off the body at the widths | 2.5 inchesNo stake loop | 11 inchesWith my own guylines |
| Mesh | About 40% | About 30%, maybe less |
| Cross ventilation | No — one door | Yes — 2 doors |
| Weight (everything in the box) | 4.0 lbs | 6.0 lbs50% more |
| Packed size | 19.5 × 7 × 5 inches | 22 × 8 × 7.5 inchesNearly double the volume, 10–15% longer |
| Price | About $20–30 less | About $20–30 more |
✓ = the better result, from my own testing. Shared: both bought myself · both pitch on 2 orange poles crossing over, into corner grommets and pole clips, with the rainfly on quick-attach buckles · both have 2 pre-attached pockets and 1 lantern loop · neither takes a full 80 by 60 inch queen.
Which applies to you?
Get this one if…
Get the Lynx 1 if…
- Weight is the deciding factor — 4.0 lbs against 6.0.
- Packed size is the deciding factor — 19.5 by 7 by 5 inches against 22 by 8 by 7.5.
- Budget is the deciding factor — it is about $20 to $30 less.
- Just know what you give up: 10 inches of headroom, so a pad of 3 to 4 inches is the ceiling, plus half the floor, half the vestibule and one door.
Get the Lynx 2 if…
- You don't usually camp alone: 36.5 square feet takes 2 pads, or an almost-queen airbed.
- You want the headroom. 47 inches against 37 is a huge difference — I fit a 6-inch mattress and could crouch inside to deflate it.
- You want the storage outside the tent: 19.2 square feet of vestibule against 8.5, across 2 of them.
- You want 2 doors at 41 by 39 inches, for getting in and out and for cross ventilation in summer.
- You want to guy the rainfly out all round — 11 inches off the tent body at the widths, against 2.5.
Set Up
| Measured | Lynx 1 | Lynx 2 |
|---|---|---|
| Set up (1 person) | 4.5–5 minutes | 6.5 minutes |
| Poles | 2 | 2 |
| Pole clips | 13 | 17 |
| Guylines | 5 | 6 |
| Rainfly vents to set | 0 extra | 2 extra at the bottom |
Same tent to pitch, both of them: 2 orange poles crossing over each other, into the grommets at the corners and then the pole clips on the body, and the rainfly goes on with quick-attach buckles.
The 2-Person just has more of everything to do — a bigger rainfly, 4 more pole clips, a second vestibule and 2 extra rainfly vents at the bottom. That comes out as 6.5 minutes against 4.5 to 5.
Peak Height
| Measured | Lynx 1 | Lynx 2 |
|---|---|---|
| Peak height | 37 inches | 47 inches10 inches more |
| Thickest mattress I'd use | 3–4 inches | 6 inches |
| Can I crouch inside? | No | Yes — enough to deflate a pad |
Ten inches, and that is a huge difference on a tent this size. The Lynx 2 was so roomy that a 4-inch pad left plenty of headroom and even a 6-inch mattress left lots — when I was deflating both pads I could crouch inside with no trouble at all.
In the Lynx 1 I would keep the pad to 3 or 4 inches. If you are 6 feet or taller, go thinner still — something like my 1.5-inch Sea to Summit pad — so it doesn't eat into your livable space.
Base Area & What Fits
| Measured | Lynx 1 | Lynx 2 |
|---|---|---|
| Base dimensions | 88 × 31 inches | 89 × 59 inches |
| Base area | 18.9 sq ft | 36.5 sq ftNearly double |
| What fits | An extra-wide pad, 25–30 inches | 2 regular pads, or an 80 × 56 inch airbed |
| A true queen (80 × 60 in) | No | No |
Same length within an inch — 88 against 89 — and then the width goes from 31 inches to 59, which is slightly less than double. In square feet that is 18.9 against 36.5.
The Lynx 1 takes an extra-wide pad of 25 inches, or 30 at a push. The Lynx 2 takes 2 regular pads with plenty of space left, and it took my ALPS Vertex Airbed, which measures 80 by 56 inches, perfectly. A full queen at 80 by 60 won't squeeze in — the width isn't there.
Vestibules & Doors
| Measured | Lynx 1 | Lynx 2 |
|---|---|---|
| Vestibules | 1 | 2One at each length |
| Vestibule width (longest) | 28 inches | 31 inches |
| Vestibule area | 8.5 sq ft | 19.2 sq ft9.6 sq ft each |
| Doors | 1Same side as the vestibule | 2One at each length |
| Door size | 36 × 27 inches | 41 × 39 inches |
One vestibule on the Lynx 1, 28 inches at its widest, 8.5 square feet. Two on the Lynx 2, 31 inches each, 9.6 square feet each — a whole square foot more per side, and 19.2 square feet once you count both.
The doors go the same way. The Lynx 1 has one, on the vestibule side, at 36 by 27 inches, which is not big. The Lynx 2 has two identical ones, one at each length, at 41 by 39 inches.
That, plus the peak height, is why getting in and out of the Lynx 2 is so much easier — and I am not tall.
Storage
| Measured | Lynx 1 | Lynx 2 |
|---|---|---|
| Pre-attached pockets | 2, 9 × 6 inches | 2, 9 × 7 inches |
| Extra pocket / gear loft | Removable, 12 × 6 inches | 21 × 12 inches |
| Lantern loops | 1 | 1 |
I expected the Lynx 2 to have double the storage. It doesn't. Both have 2 pre-attached pockets inside — 9 by 6 inches on the Lynx 1, 9 by 7 on the Lynx 2 — and both have exactly one lantern loop at the top.
The one real difference is the loft. The Lynx 1's removable side pocket is 12 by 6 inches; the Lynx 2's gear loft is 21 by 12. That is a decent step up, so it counts for something — but the storage is basically the same tent twice.
Rainfly
| Measured | Lynx 1 | Lynx 2 |
|---|---|---|
| Stake loop at the widths | None | I attached my own guylines |
| Rainfly pulled off the body at the widths | 2.5 inches | 11 inches |
| Pulled away at the back | Yes — guyline there | Yes |
What I look for in a rainfly is whether it can be pulled away from the tent body on all 4 sides. The Lynx 1 can't do it at the 2 short widths — there is no stake loop to guy it out, so the fly sits at most 2.5 inches off the body. The vestibule pulls away at the front and there is a guyline at the back, so it is those 2 sides only.
On the Lynx 2 I attached my own guylines and guyed the widths out, which gave me a small vent at each one, about 11 inches off the tent body. That is much better for rainy-day ventilation and for keeping condensation down.
Mesh & Summer Ventilation
| Measured | Lynx 1 | Lynx 2 |
|---|---|---|
| Mesh | About 40%Back and sides about half mesh | About 30%, maybe lessOnly the sides |
| Doors | 1 | 2 |
| Cross ventilation | No | Yes — leave both doors open |
| In summer | A lot stuffier | Manageable |
Here is the odd part: there is actually more mesh on the 1-Person. Its front is mostly fabric, but the back and sides are about half mesh, so I would put it around 40%. On the 2-Person, the 2 doors mean the front and back are almost all fabric and only the sides have much mesh — I would guess 30% or less.
In practice the 2-Person still wins, because of those doors. In summer, if the bugs aren't bad, you can leave both open and get real cross ventilation through the tent. The 1-Person has no way to do that, so it is a lot stuffier in the heat.
Weight & Packed Size
| Measured | Lynx 1 | Lynx 2 |
|---|---|---|
| Weight (everything in the box) | 4.0 lbs | 6.0 lbs50% more |
| Packed size | 19.5 × 7 × 5 inches | 22 × 8 × 7.5 inchesNearly double the volume, 10–15% longer |
Exactly 4.0 lbs against exactly 6.0, for everything that came in the box — stakes, guylines, all of it. I didn't swap anything out. Packed, the Lynx 2 is nearly double the volume on paper, but it really doesn't look it: only about 10 to 15% longer.
Price
| Measured | Lynx 1 | Lynx 2 |
|---|---|---|
| Price | About $20–30 less | About $20–30 more |
I bought both of these a while ago and can't remember exactly what I paid, but checking Amazon now, the 2-Person runs about $20 to $30 more than the 1-Person. Teton's budget pair splits the same way, and my Mountain Ultra 1 vs 2 comparison lands on the same rule.
My recommendation
Both Lynx tents are great, especially for the price point they sit at. My rule with these two: the ALPS Mountaineering Lynx 2 unless weight, packed size or budget is the deciding factor. I don't usually camp alone, so the option to fit 2 pads or an almost-queen airbed matters; the 10 inches of extra headroom adds a lot of comfort and lets me use a 6-inch mattress; and there is an extra vestibule, bigger vestibules, an extra door and bigger doors, which brings cross ventilation with them.
The one that really sold me is the rainfly: on the Lynx 2 I can guy it out all the way round the tent, 11 inches off the body at the widths instead of 2.5. I love car camping, so taking on 50% more weight and 15% more length is no issue to me, and at about $30 more I would spring for it every time. Yes, it takes about 2 minutes longer to pitch. For that much more comfort, that is worth it.
That said, if weight, packed size or the $20 to $30 is what decides it — camping alone and carrying it on the trail — the Lynx 1 is still a fantastic pick and still great bang for your buck.
Bonus: I bought and tested 6 of the best tents under $100 against each other — set-up timings, rain tests, base areas, the lot. Every figure on this page comes out of that run.
Every figure on this page comes from my own measurements of the tents I bought and tested in my own yard — not from a spec sheet.
