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Note These scores are from my testing of the 2-person Mountain Ultra, which is the same tent in a bigger size — it’s the model I ranked against the other tents under $100. Every measurement below is from my own 1-person.

See the 8 tests

1. In the Box
2. Set Up & Take Down
3. Spaciousness
4. Comfort & Features
5. Ventilation
6. Rain & Wind Protection
7. Quality
8. Portability
9. Pros, Cons, Recommendation
10. Bonus – MUST read!

In the Box

• Poles 1
• Stakes 8plus 2 guylines, in their own bag
• Compression straps 2
• Footprint Nonethe instructions say one is included — mine wasn’t

Everything else is what you’d expect: the storage bag, the tent body, the rainfly and the instructions. Teton no longer throws in a free footprint, whatever the paperwork in the box says.

Set Up & Take Down

Hassle-free, and I never once wrestled with it. One pole, six clips to attach the body, then a rainfly with color-coded red and black webbing and quick buckles.

• Set-up time (1 person) 4.5 min
• Take-down + pack-up 5.5 min
• Poles 1
• Pole clips 6

Spaciousness

• Peak height 38.5inat the center only — I sit upright without touching the top
• Side walls Almost verticalalong both lengths, thanks to the short top pole

• Inner length 81infine for me at 5’3, tight if you’re over 6ft
• Inner width 32ina regular pad with room over, and 25–30in pads still fit
• Inner area 18.0 sq ft

Comfort & Features

• Vestibule 17.0 sq ft
• Vestibule width 25inlongest point — my flip flops barely dent it
• Vestibule toggles 2un-stake it and tie the fabric back

• Door 1behind the vestibule
• Door size 44 x 32inbig enough to make getting in and out easy
• Door toggles 2near the top, to hold it open
• Door mesh Micro meshbug protection with the door closed

Teton markets this as an ‘easy-rolling, innovative door’. Better than average, certainly. Extraordinary, not quite.

• Pocket 1near the door, 8 x 8in
• Gear loft 14.5 x 14.5insewn on at 3 sides, so it can’t be removed
• Lantern loop NoneI squeeze my lantern into the gear loft instead

Ventilation

• Rainfly vents 2one at the back, one in the vestibule
• Back vent access Outside onlyVelcro kickstand
• Vestibule vent access From insidejust unzip the vestibule top a little
• Bottom vent 1at the back

• Fly pull-away at the back 9inmeasured from the outside
• Mesh coverage More than three-quarterswith the rainfly off

That much mesh made this the best sleep I’ve had in a budget tent on hot nights, and the stargazing is genuinely unblocked. The trade-off is the off-season: all that mesh won’t hold any heat in, so expect cold nights.

Rain & Wind Protection

• Heavy rain 1 hr
• Light to moderate rain after that 12 hrs
• Total time under water 13 hrs

• Water inside Not a single dropfloor, mesh and rainfly all dry
• Waterproofing prep needed None
• Wind Holds light to moderatefully staked and guyed out

I checked the corners again and again and found nothing. Being able to sleep knowing the tent won’t leak is worth a lot.

Quality

• Floor 150D Polyester Oxford
• Body 150D Polyester Oxford
• Rainfly 66D 3MM Ripstop
• Poles 7001 T6 Aluminum
• Mesh B3 FR Micro Mesh

The floor material especially is a good deal heavier than the average tent under $100, which is a big part of why this one lasts — and why it’s such good value. Zippers aren’t branded but run very smoothly.

Stitching is consistent and double stitched with no loose threads anywhere, and the corner seams are reinforced. Teton’s factory taping is heat-sealed, and I double-checked the corners, the flooring and the underside of the rainfly — all thorough.

Portability

• Packed size 22 x 7 x 6in
• Weight 4.2 lbstotal pack weight
• Carry bag Shoulder strap

It is not a lightweight backpacking tent, and here’s the proof:

Tent	Weight
Teton Mountain Ultra 1	4.2 lbs
MSR NX Solo	2.8 lbs
Big Agnes Copper Spur HV UL 1	2.4 lbs
NEMO Hornet 1	2.3 lbs

You can shed about a pound by swapping out the compression straps, stakes and guylines, but it’s still a car camping tent that happens to travel well on shorter hikes — not an MSR or NEMO rival.

Pros, Cons, Recommendation

So what are the pros and cons, and would I recommend the Teton Mountain Ultra 1?

Affordable

I managed to purchase mine for slightly less than $100 on Amazon.

High quality

Durable materials, lifetime warranty, perfect factory taping.

Waterproof

It survived 13 hours of bad weather, no waterproofing work required.

Fantastic ventilation

Lots of mesh on hot days, lots of vents for rainy days.

Vertical side walls

2 out of 4 side walls are vertical, maximizing livability.

Not for tall folks (6′ and above)

Shorter than average tent length (81 inches).

Widths of tent can’t be staked down

Bigger models (2P–4P) can be staked down though.

Bonus – MUST read!

Every figure above is from my own testing — measured by hand, bought with my own money.