The 12 Best Rechargeable LED Lanterns (Bought & Tested!)

I bought and tested these 12 rechargeable LED lanterns for this review:

1. Black Diamond Apollo

2. Ledlenser ML6

3. BioLite AlpenGlow 500

4. Barebones Railroad

5. Coleman Rugged Rechargeable 400

6. Goal Zero Lighthouse 600

7. Goal Zero Lighthouse Mini

8. Goal Zero Lighthouse Core

9. BioLite Luci Original

10. BioLite Luci Charge 360

11. LuminAID PackLite Titan

12. LuminAID PackLite Max

Here, you’ll find everything you need to know about each of them.

This page contains affiliate links, and that means that I may earn a commission if you buy something, at no extra cost to you. You can find my full disclosure policy here.

Best Rechargeable LED Lantern – Quick Summary

Here’s a quick summary of all the rechargeable LED lanterns that I recommend (of course, after buying and testing):

These 12 lanterns set me back by about $700 (yes, I actually buy each camping lantern with my own savings), and I also spent about 6 months testing all of them out.

If you prefer to watch my YouTube video instead of reading this blog post, I’ll embed it here for you:

If you prefer reading, let’s get into the more detailed recommendations in the rest of this post.

1. Ledlenser ML6 (Overall Best)

Key Info

• Max lumen output: 720 lumens

• Max run time: 269 hours

• Battery capacity: 3,000 mAh

• Charge time: 4 hours (via USB)

• IPX rating: IP66

• Weight: 10.6 ounces

• Packed size: 2.3 x 2.5 x 7.3 inches

Pros and Cons

Summary

My top pick is easily the Ledlenser ML6 Camping Lantern.

If you take a look at my scoring table of all the lanterns, the Ledlenser ML6 not only has the best overall score, coming in at 8.3, it even has every single test in green, and very few lanterns here have that.

What this shows us is that the Ledlenser ML6 is an all-rounder lantern that I really loved.

The Ledlenser ML6 has its fantastic range of brightness settings, from a perfect 0-lumen nightlight, to a whopping 720-lumen boost mode with a bright white light.

It has continuous dimming too, so you can literally pick any light setting that suits you best, unlike other lanterns that have discrete levels of adjustment instead (like the PackLite Titan).

On top of that, it also has a red light mode, a breathe mode, a strobe mode, and an SOS mode.

And that’s JUST the different light modes.

In terms of physical features, the Ledlenser ML6 is incredibly feature-rich, and it’s complete with:

• 2 hooks

• Magnetic base

• Tripod thread

• Battery indicator lights

• Glow-in-the-dark ring

And it’s one of the rare few rechargeable lanterns that actually comes with a removable 18650 lithium-ion battery. (Only this and the Barebones have removable batteries.)

So, you can easily change out the battery over the years, instead of changing out the entire lantern.

Last but definitely not least, the warranty length is simply the most generous compared to every other lantern in this review, here are a few examples:

Camping Lantern	Warranty Length
Ledlenser ML6	7 years
Black Diamond Apollo	3 years
Coleman Rugged 400	3 years
Goal Zero Lighthouse 600	2 years
Barebones Railroad	2 years
LuminAID PackLite Titan	1 year
BioLite AlpenGlow 500	1 year
BioLite Luci Charge 360	1 year

_{^{The warranty lengths of some of the rechargeable lanterns I tested for this review.}}

Because of everything you get, it is a little bit on the expensive side, second only to the Barebones Railroad. But I still think it’s well worth the money.

I also think that the battery life can be more impressive, instead of just 3,000 mAh. That gives my iPhone 12 only a 59% charge, plus 76.5 hours of leftover light on the dimmest setting. That’s not bad, but it’s not the best.

Check out the Ledlenser ML6:

2. BioLite AlpenGlow 500 (Runner-Up Pick + Most Feature-Rich)

Key Info

• Max lumen output: 690 lumens

• Max run time: 203 hours

• Battery capacity: 6,400 mAh

• Charge time: 5 hours (via USB)

• IPX rating: IPX4

• Weight: 14.5 ounces

• Packed size: 3.6 x 3.6 x 5.4 inches

Pros and Cons

Summary

My runner-up pick is easily the BioLite AlpenGlow 500, which lost to the Ledlenser ML6 by a mere 0.1 points.

Here’s what I love about the AlpenGlow. It has the most impressive battery life of any camping lantern in this review, here’s a quick table on the best few:

Camping Lantern	Battery Capacity (mAh)
BioLite AlpenGlow 500	6,400
Goal Zero Lighthouse 600	5,200
Goal Zero Lighthouse Core	4,400
BioLite Luci Charge 360	4,000
LuminAID PackLite Titan	4,000

_{^{The internal capacities of some of the best rechargeable lanterns I tested for this review.}}

The battery capacity of 6,400 mAh gave me almost 2 full charges of my iPhone 12, plus another 6 hours of leftover light on the dimmest brightness mode.

On top of that, my AlpenGlow even has a great range of brightness settings, ranging from a 7-lumen nightlight, to the max output of 690 lumens.

Like the Ledlenser ML6, it also has a continuous dimming, simply by pressing and holding the top button.

And the best pro of the AlpenGlow 500 that beats out every other camping lantern in this review?

You not only have a cool light mode, there’s also a warm light mode, and you can even pick from every single color of the rainbow.

It also comes equipped with:

• Multicolor mode (three different hues at the same time)

• Fireworks mode (6 continuous explosions of light)

• Directional lighting

• Candle flicker

The only mode it doesn’t have though, is a strobe, SOS, or other emergency mode. So, this is definitely more of a fun car camping lantern than some survival lantern you take out in emergencies.

But if you like all the colors though, this BioLite AlpenGlow 500 is still a great camping lantern to have.

Check out the BioLite AlpenGlow 500:

3. LuminAID PackLite Titan (Best Solar Lantern)

Key Info

• Max lumen output: 316 lumens

• Max run time: 250 hours

• Battery capacity: 4,000 mAh

• Charge time: 5 hours (via USB), 4 days (via solar)

• IPX rating: IP67

• Weight: 11.9 ounces

• Packed size: 5.8 x 5.8 x 1.1 inches

Pros and Cons

Summary

I tested 4 different solar lanterns in this review (all with USB-rechargeable and solar charging capacities), and the LuminAID PackLite Titan was easily the best of the lot.

Here’s a table summarizing some of the tests that I put all 4 solar powered lanterns through:

Solar Lantern	Max Lumens	Area (sq. ft.)	Min Lumens	Max Run-Time	Colors
LuminAID PackLite Titan	316	211	1	250 hours	2
BioLite Luci Charge 360	330	113	21	54 hours	1
LuminAID PackLite Max	196	113	21	39 hours	1
BioLite Luci Original	34	15	0	51 hours	1

^{Test results from 4 of the solar lanterns I included in this review.}

The Titan has a max lumens of 316 lumens, not the most on the list (that’s the BioLite Luci Charge 360), but its lighting area is almost double all the other lanterns here.

And because of its 1-lumen minimum output, it ran for a whopping 250 hours, 5 times all the other lanterns.

And it also has 2 colors, which is white and red, while the other solar lanterns in this review have only 1 (white, no red).

On top of that, the PackLite Titan is my only solar lantern that comes with a twist-to-inflate design. Just twist the lantern, and it’ll pop up without needing to breathe into it, and this takes only 2 seconds.

On the other hand, all the other solar lanterns in this review require you to breathe into the lantern to inflate it, and this takes more like 10-15 seconds, which is 5 times as long.

Solar Lantern	Inflation Time	Inflate by Breath
LuminAID PackLite Titan	2-3 seconds	No
LuminAID PackLite Max	10-15 seconds	Yes
BioLite Luci Charge 360	10-15 seconds	Yes
BioLite Luci Original	10-15 seconds	Yes

^{Inflation methods and timings of the 4 solar lanterns in this review.}

And another huge benefit is the bigger solar panel size of the Titan, coming in at 4 by 4 inches. How does this compare to the others’ solar panels?

Solar Lantern	Solar Panel (in)
LuminAID PackLite Titan	4.0 x 4.0
BioLite Luci Charge 360	3.5 x 3.5
LuminAID PackLite Max	3.1 x 3.1
BioLite Luci Original	2.9 x 2.9

^{Solar panel sizes of the 4 solar lanterns in this review.}

How does this affect the Titan’s solar charging capabilities?

I put the Titan, along with the other solar lanterns, out to charge. I had all of them charged on an average day, so not too sunny but not too cloudy at the same time.

After that, I discharged all the solar lanterns, while running them on as similar a lumen output as possible. And here’s the results that I came back with.

Solar Lantern	Lumen Output	Run-Time
LuminAID PackLite Titan	191 lumens	2.5 hours
BioLite Luci Charge 360	172 lumens	2 hours
LuminAID PackLite Max	196 lumens	1.5 hours
BioLite Luci Original	150 lumens	1 hour

^{Solar lantern run times and lumen outputs after 1 day of solar charging.}

Even though the Titan was running at almost the highest output of all the lanterns, 191 lumens, it also lasted the longest, coming in at a whopping 2 and a half hours.

Basically, it has the most efficient solar charging, thanks to the bigger solar panel.

But of course, with all the pros also come a few cons, and the Titan is not only the most expensive solar lantern that I bought, but also the heaviest:

• BioLite Luci Original: 6.1 oz

• LuminAID PackLite Max: 7.7 oz

• BioLite Luci Charge 360: 10.2 oz

• LuminAID PackLite Titan: 11.9 oz

If portability’s your thing, feel free to pick a lighter alternative from the list above, they’re all pretty decent picks.

Check out the LuminAID PackLite Titan:

4. Goal Zero Lighthouse 600 (Brightest Lantern)

Key Info

• Max lumen output: 985 lumens

• Max run time: 355 hours

• Battery capacity: 5,200 mAh

• Charge time: 6.5 hours (via USB)

• IPX rating: None

• Weight: 19.8 ounces

• Packed size: 4.8 x 4.3 x 6.3 inches

Pros and Cons

Summary

If you’re looking for a camping lantern with an insanely bright light, the Goal Zero Lighthouse 600 is the best camping lantern for your camping trips.

It has continuous dimming over a superb range of brightness settings, ranging from 2 lumens, up to a massive, whopping, 985 lumens. This is the brightest light of all the lanterns in this review.

On the max brightness, it has a shine radius of 13.3 feet, which is also a huge lighting area of 556 square feet.

That’s the size of a studio apartment, a 37-person tent, or a small campsite. There’s no other camping lantern in this review that can come close to that.

However, the run-time on this mode is only 2.5 hours, so just take note of that.

If you want to conserve battery, the Lighthouse 600 also has directional lighting, which halves your battery usage.

In fact, on the dimmest setting on half the lantern, it can run for a whopping 355 hours, which is quite impressive.

On top of that, the Lighthouse 600 also has a dynamo hand crank, which no other lantern in this review has. And when you crank it at 120 rounds per minute for 1 minute, you can get 10 minutes of light on low power.

The biggest con of this lantern is its lack of a waterproof rating. When I tested my Goal Zero lanterns in the rain, water seeped in through the USB port and ended up inside the casing of the lantern.

It’s still perfectly functional, but extended periods out in the rain will probably kill it.

Check out the Goal Zero Lighthouse 600:

5. Goal Zero Lighthouse Mini (Budget Pick)

Key Info

• Max lumen output: 530 lumens

• Max run time: 616 hours

• Battery capacity: 3,200 mAh

• Charge time: 5 hours (via USB)

• IPX rating: None

• Weight: 8.0 ounces

• Packed size: 2.9 x 2.9 x 4.0 inches

Pros and Cons

Summary

If you’re looking for a decent performing lantern on a budget, the best pick I have for you is the Goal Zero Lighthouse Mini.

It’s half the price of every lantern above, like the Ledlenser, AlpenGlow, Titan, and Lighthouse 600.

On top of that, it’s one of the more compact camping lanterns in this review (as portable and lightweight as any solar lantern), making it perfect for not just camping but also shorter backpacking trips.

The Lighthouse Mini is also incredibly feature rich. It features a continuous adjustment brightness from 0-lumen nightlight to its 530-lumen brightest setting.

On the 0-lumen nightlight setting, and on half the lantern (it has directional lighting too!), the Mini can run for a whopping 616 hours.

That’s not all. It’s also complete with:

• Adjustable legs

• The legs can act as a hook

• A hook at the top

• A magnetic base

• A tripod thread

However, one feature it doesn’t have is waterproofing, as water will seep through the exposed USB port when left out in the rain.

Apart from affordability and features, the Lighthouse Mini performs only average in all the other tests (like battery life, etc.), so just take note of that.

Nevertheless, this Lighthouse Mini is a fantastic value for money pick.

Check out the Goal Zero Lighthouse Mini:

6. Barebones Railroad (Best Vintage Lantern)

Key Info

• Max lumen output: 382 lumens

• Max run time: 522 hours

• Battery capacity: 4,400 mAh

• Charge time: 7.75 hours (via USB)

• IPX rating: None

• Weight: 30.0 ounces

• Packed size: 6.5 x 6.5 x 9.3 inches

Pros and Cons

Summary

If you’re looking for a vintage-looking or traditional camping lantern, the best one I’ve got for you is the Barebones Railroad Lantern.

The biggest pro about this camping lantern is its beautiful aesthetic. It definitely looks like a Union Pacific lantern, just upgraded a hundred times over.

If this aesthetic is what you’re looking for, this is the best out there.

It also uses a USB-C cable for charging (unlike most other lanterns here that use micro-USB), and comes with a replaceable battery that’s proprietary to Barebones:

However, if you’re not looking for a vintage-type lantern, I’d recommend not going for this because it lacks a bunch of features, like:

• No phone charger capability

• No emergency lights

• Not waterproof

Check out the Barebones Railroad:

To recap, here are all the rechargeable lanterns that I recommend:

1. Best Overall: Ledlenser ML6
2. Most Feature-Rich/Most Light Modes: BioLite AlpenGlow 500
3. Best Solar Lantern: LuminAID PackLite Titan
4. Brightest Lantern: Goal Zero Lighthouse 600
5. Best Budget Pick: Goal Zero Lighthouse Mini
6. Best Vintage Aesthetic: Barebones Railroad

Why You Should Trust Me

I personally buy each of these best camping lanterns with my own money (no free or sponsored gear posts), and test each one of them over months. (This review took 6 months to produce!)

I also run a YouTube channel with over 20,000 subscribers that focuses just on reviewing camping gear. It’s my jam 🙂

The Other Rechargeable Camping Lanterns I Tested

Above are the 6 recommended camping lanterns. Here are 6 more that I bought and tested, but just didn’t make the cut:

• Black Diamond Apollo: I’ve had my Apollo for 5 years now. While it’s a perfectly functional and hardy lantern, and it was a great pick 5 years ago, it’s now been overtaken by other winners (like Ledlenser and BioLite).

• BioLite Luci Charge 360: The Luci 360 is my runner-up solar lantern pick, if the LuminAID Titan is out of your budget. It’s also slightly lighter and more waterproof.

• LuminAID PackLite Max: The Titan beats this in every way, except for weight.

• BioLite Luci Original: The light was too cool and too glaring and it made camping painful. I prefer a matte finish and warm light.

• Goal Zero Lighthouse Core: Not a terrible lantern, but I don’t see why I’d go for this when I have so many better ones above.

• Coleman Rugged Rechargeable 400: Again, not a terrible lantern, but it got demolished by every other lantern above.

If you’re interested in how any of the above lanterns have performed, here are all my detailed reviews and testing data:

How I Tested My Rechargeable Camping Lanterns

I tested each of my best camping lanterns for brightness, run time, features, ease of use, durability, and portability. Here are the results from each of the tests.

A. Brightness Test

For this first brightness test, I looked at these three things:

• Number of lumens

• Brightness adjustment

• Lighting area

I used a lux meter to manually record how many lumens each lantern gave out, regardless of its marketed specifications. I also took note of whether the brightness adjustment was continuous, or in discrete levels:

Camping Lantern	Max Lumens	Min Lumens	Adjustment
Goal Zero 600	985	2	Continuous
Ledlenser ML6	720	0	Continuous
BioLite AlpenGlow 500	690	7	Continuous
Goal Zero Mini	530	0	Continuous
Coleman Rugged	675	178	2 levels
Goal Zero Core	382	0	Continuous
Barebones Railroad	382	0	Continuous
Black Diamond Apollo	362	23	Continuous
LuminAID PackLite Titan	316	1	4 levels
BioLite Luci 360	330	21	3 levels
LuminAID PackLite Max	196	21	4 levels
BioLite Luci Original	34	0	3 levels

After that, I used the same lux meter to measure the shine radius of each of the best camping lanterns. Then, I used the radius to calculate the lighting area and measured it against actual tent sizes:

Camping Lantern	Shine Radius (ft)	Lighting Area (sq. ft.)	Tent Size
Goal Zero 600	13.3	556	37-person
BioLite AlpenGlow 500	10.8	366	24-person
Barebones Railroad	8.6	232	14-person
Coleman Rugged 400	8.6	232	14-person
LuminAID PackLite Titan	8.2	211	13-person
Ledlenser ML6	7.8	191	12-person
Black Diamond Apollo	7.3	167	11-person
Goal Zero Mini	7.0	154	10-person
Goal Zero Core	6.5	133	9-person
LuminAID PackLite Max	6.0	113	8-person
BioLite Luci 360	6.0	113	8-person
BioLite Luci Original	2.2	15	1-person

Obviously, there’s no such thing as a 37-person or even a 24-person tent, but I thought it’ll give you a decent idea of how big a lighting area the first 2 lanterns have.

Based on the everything above, here’s I rated each of the lanterns for this entire brightness test:

Camping Lantern	Brightness Ratings
Goal Zero 600	10.0
BioLite AlpenGlow 500	9.7
Ledlenser ML6	9.0
Barebones Railroad	8.0
Black Diamond Apollo	7.7
Goal Zero Mini	7.7
Goal Zero Core	7.3
LuminAID PackLite Titan	7.0
Coleman Rugged 400	6.3
BioLite Luci 360	6.0
LuminAID PackLite Max	5.7
BioLite Luci Original	3.7

B. Run Time Test

The run-time test is just how long each of these lanterns can last on a single charge.

So, what I did was to give each of these lanterns a full charge, and then set them aside, while timing their run-times with a stopwatch.

I first looked at the maximum run-time that each lantern gave me, so that’s the run-time on the dimmest brightness setting, and here are all my test results:

Camping Lantern	Max Run-Time (hours)
Goal Zero Mini	616
Barebones Railroad	522
Goal Zero 600	355
Ledlenser ML6	269
Goal Zero Core	259
LuminAID PackLite Titan	250
BioLite AlpenGlow 500	203
Black Diamond Apollo	189
BioLite Luci 360	54
BioLite Luci Original	51
LuminAID PackLite Max	39
Coleman Rugged 400	21

Then, I also tested the minimum run-time that each lantern gave me, and that’s the run-time on the maximum brightness settings and here we have all the results:

Camping Lantern	Min Run-Time (hours)
Black Diamond Apollo	20.0
Barebones Railroad	5.25
BioLite AlpenGlow 500	5.25
BioLite Luci Original	5.25
LuminAID PackLite Titan	5.0
LuminAID PackLite Max	4.75
Coleman Rugged 400	4.25
Ledlenser ML6	4.0
BioLite Luci 360	3.75
Goal Zero Core	3.5
Goal Zero Mini	3.5
Goal Zero 600	2.5

And based on both the max run-time and the minimum run-time, here’s how I rated each of the rechargeable lanterns:

Camping Lantern	Run-Time Ratings
Barebones Railroad	9.5
LuminAID PackLite Titan	8.5
Goal Zero Mini	8.0
BioLite AlpenGlow 500	8.0
Black Diamond Apollo	8.0
Ledlenser ML6	7.5
Goal Zero Core	7.0
Goal Zero 600	6.5
BioLite Luci Original	6.5
LuminAID PackLite Max	5.5
BioLite Luci 360	5.0
Coleman Rugged 400	5.0

C. Features Test

For the features test, I looked at these:

• The number of colors

• Whether there’s an emergency mode

• Directional lighting

• Candle flicker mode

• Glow-in-the-dark rings

Here’s everything you need to know in a neat table:

Camping Lantern	No. of Colors	Strobe/SOS	Directional	Candle	Glowing
BioLite AlpenGlow	7+	No	Yes	Yes	No
Ledlenser ML6	2	Yes	No	No	Yes
LuminAID PackLite Titan	2	Yes	No	No	No
Black Diamond Apollo	1	Yes	No	No	No
Goal Zero 600	1	Yes	Yes	No	No
BioLite Luci Original	1	Yes	No	No	No
BioLite Luci 360	1	Yes	No	No	No
LuminAID PackLite Max	1	Yes	No	No	No
Goal Zero Core	1	No	Yes	No	No
Goal Zero Mini	1	No	Yes	No	No
Barebones Railroad	1	No	No	No	No
Coleman Rugged 400	1	No	No	No	No

Based on the above table, here’s how I rated each lantern for features:

Camping Lantern	Features Ratings
BioLite AlpenGlow 500	10
Ledlenser ML6	9
LuminAID PackLite Titan	8
Goal Zero 600	6
Black Diamond Apollo	5
BioLite Luci Original	5
BioLite Luci 360	5
LuminAID PackLite Max	5
Goal Zero Core	4
Goal Zero Mini	4
Barebones Railroad	3
Coleman Rugged 400	3

D. Ease of Use Test

For the ease of use test, I looked at:

• Power sources

• Mobile charging

• Battery level lights

• Handles/hooks

• Magnetic Base

• Legs or tripod thread

Power Sources

For each camping lantern’s power sources, here are the results:

Camping Lantern	USB	Solar	Batteries
Black Diamond Apollo	Yes	No	Yes
BioLite Luci Original	Yes	Yes	No
BioLite Luci 360	Yes	Yes	No
LuminAID PackLite Titan	Yes	Yes	No
LuminAID PackLite Max	Yes	Yes	No
Goal Zero Core	Yes	No	No
Goal Zero Mini	Yes	No	No
Goal Zero 600	Yes	No	No
Ledlenser ML6	Yes	No	No
Barebones Railroad	Yes	No	No
BioLite AlpenGlow 500	Yes	No	No
Coleman Rugged 400	Yes	No	No

I like having 2 or more power sources for a more reliable light source.

Note: All of the camping lanterns here are electric lanterns with rechargeable batteries, there are no gas powered lantern (like propane lanterns) here.

Battery Capacity and Mobile Charging

For the mobile charging segment, I looked at the internal battery capacity, and used a full charge of each camping lantern to charge up my iPhone 12 as a power bank:

Camping Lantern	Capacity (mAh)	iPhone 12	No. of Charges	Leftover Light
BioLite AlpenGlow 500	6,400	141%	1.8	6 hours
Goal Zero 600	5,200	124%	1.6	None
Goal Zero Core	4,400	76%	1.0	40 hours
BioLite Luci 360	4,000	97%	1.2	None
LuminAID PackLite Titan	4,000	82%	1.0	15 hours
Coleman Rugged 400	3,500	79%	1.0	3.5 hours
Goal Zero Mini	3,200	74%	0.9	None
Ledlenser ML6	3,000	59%	0.7	76.5 hours
Black Diamond Apollo	2,600	55%	0.7	None
BioLite Luci Original	2,000	49%	0.6	None
LuminAID PackLite Max	2,000	48%	0.6	4 hours
Barebones Railroad	0	0	0	0

Battery Level Lights, Handles, Hooks, Magnetic Base, Tripod

And here are the remaining ease of use segments in one table:

Camping Lantern	Battery Lights	Handles/ Hooks	Magnetic	Legs	Tripod
Goal Zero Mini	Yes	2	Yes	Yes	Yes
Ledlenser ML6	Yes	2	Yes	No	Yes
BioLite Luci 360	Yes	2	No	No	No
BioLite Luci Original	Yes	2	No	No	No
Goal Zero Core	Yes	1	Yes	No	No
Black Diamond Apollo	Yes	1	No	Yes	No
Goal Zero 600	Yes	1	No	Yes	No
BioLite AlpenGlow 500	Yes	1	No	No	No
LuminAID PackLite Titan	Yes	1	No	No	No
LuminAID PackLite Max	Yes	1	No	No	No
Barebones Railroad	Yes	1	No	No	No
Coleman Rugged 400	No	1	No	No	No

Based on everything above, here’s how I rated each of these lanterns for their ease of use:

Camping Lantern	Ease of Use Ratings
BioLite Luci 360	8.3
LuminAID PackLite Titan	8.0
Goal Zero Mini	7.7
Black Diamond Apollo	7.7
BioLite Luci Original	7.7
BioLite AlpenGlow	7.3
Goal Zero 600	7.3
Ledlenser ML6	7.3
LuminAID PackLite Max	7.3
Goal Zero Core	7.0
Coleman Rugged	6.0
Barebones Railroad	5.7

E. Durability Test

The next test is durability, and I looked at 3 main mini-tests under this durability test:

• IP rating and waterproofing

• Drop-proofing

• Warranty length

Camping Lantern	IP Rating	Drop-Proofing	Warranty Length
BioLite Luci Original	IP67	Overhead	1 year
BioLite Luci 360	IP67	Overhead	1 year
LuminAID PackLite Titan	IP67	Overhead	1 year
LuminAID PackLite Max	IP67	Overhead	1 year
Ledlenser ML6	IP66	Hand	7 years
Black Diamond Apollo	IPX4	Hand	3 years
Coleman Rugged	IPX4	Hand	3 years
BioLite AlpenGlow	IPX4	Hand	1 year
Goal Zero Mini	None	Hand	2 years
Goal Zero 600	None	Hand	2 years
Goal Zero Core	None	Hand	2 years
Barebones Railroad	None	Hand	2 years

And based on all the 3 mini-tests for durability, here’s how I rated each of these lanterns:

Camping Lantern	Durability Ratings
Ledlenser ML6	8.3
BioLite Luci Original	8.0
BioLite Luci 360	8.0
LuminAID PackLite Max	8.0
LuminAID PackLite Titan	7.7
Black Diamond Apollo	7.0
BioLite AlpenGlow	6.3
Coleman Rugged	6.3
Goal Zero Mini	5.7
Goal Zero 600	5.7
Goal Zero Core	5.7
Barebones Railroad	5.3

F. Portability Test

And for portability, I simply looked at weight and packed size:

Camping Lantern	Weight (oz)	Packed Size (in)
BioLite Luci Original	6.1	5.1 x 5.1 x 1.3
LuminAID PackLite Max	7.7	5.9 x 5.9 x 1.0
Goal Zero Mini	8.0	2.9 x 2.9 x 4.0
BioLite Luci 360	10.2	5.9 x 5.9 x 1.5
Black Diamond Apollo	10.2	3.3 x 3.3 x 4.5
Ledlenser ML6	10.6	2.3 x 2.5 x 7.3
LuminAID PackLite Titan	11.9	5.8 x 5.8 x 1.1
Goal Zero Core	12.7	4.3 x 4.3 x 4.8
BioLite AlpenGlow	14.5	3.6 x 3.6 x 5.4
Goal Zero 600	19.8	4.8 x 4.3 x 6.3
Coleman Rugged	21.8	5.0 x 5.5 x 10.5
Barebones Railroad	30.0	6.5 x 6.5 x 9.3

And here’s how I rated all the lanterns based on portability:

Camping Lantern	Portability Ratings
BioLite Luci Original	10.0
LuminAID PackLite Max	9.5
Goal Zero Mini	9.5
LuminAID PackLite Titan	9.0
BioLite Luci 360	8.5
Ledlenser ML6	8.5
Black Diamond Apollo	8.5
Goal Zero Core	7.0
BioLite AlpenGlow	7.0
Goal Zero 600	4.0
Coleman Rugged	3.0
Barebones Railroad	3.0

Those are all the tests that I put my lanterns through. Now, to recap, here are all the rechargeable lanterns that I recommend:

1. Best Overall: Ledlenser ML6
2. Most Feature-Rich/Most Light Modes: BioLite AlpenGlow 500
3. Best Solar Lantern: LuminAID PackLite Titan
4. Brightest Lantern: Goal Zero Lighthouse 600
5. Best Budget Pick: Goal Zero Lighthouse Mini
6. Best Vintage Aesthetic: Barebones Railroad

If you’re still having trouble picking the best camping lantern for your next camping trip, feel free to reach out to me via the comments on my YouTube channel.