Today, we’re going to talk about Lifetime vs YETI Cooler and the legitimate reasons for preferring one over the other. So, this post is by popular demand, people want to know, should they save time and money with Lifetime Cooler or pay up for YETI Tundra. We’re going to address that question and a few others.
Long story short, the main differences between Lifetime Cooler and YETI Tundra can be summarized like affordability, ice retention and ease of use. YETI Tundra 65 Cooler is better at keeping things cold. On the other hand, Lifetime 55 Cooler is the best bang for the buck and really ease to use. Here is the table that we have put together to help you better understand the main differences between Lifetime Cooler and Yeti:
| Comparison of# | Lifetime 55-Quart Cooler | YETI Tundra 65 Cooler |
|---|---|---|
| Our Selection for | Best Bang for the Buck | Better at Keeping Things Cold |
| Actual Net Capacity | 55 quarts | Net around 52 quarts |
| Outdoor Ice Retention Test @ 98 Degrees High & 58 Degrees Low | Ice Melted – 4 Days (65% of capacity – ice filled) | Ice Melted – 6 Days (65% of capacity – ice filled) |
| Leak Proof | No | No |
| Bear Resistant | Yes | Yes |
| Features | Unique and easy to use Latch Design, Lock Holes & Drain, Drain Plug is attached to cooler, Non-Skid Pads, Tie-down Slots, Molded Handles & Rope Handles | T-Rex Latches, Lock Holes & Drain, Non-Skid Pads, Tie-down Slots, Molded Handles & Rope Handles |
| Warranty | 5-year | 5-years |
| Price | More Budged | More Expensive |
| Latest Price | Check Latest Deals on Amazon | Check Latest Deals on Amazon |
We’re going to talk about the similarities and also the legitimate reasons why one might be preferable to the other. By the way, over the last month and a half we have spent like a thousand dollars just on ice testing of Coolers. So, if you enjoy the post and you want to support our work, you may purchase one of these products through the Amazon Affiliate links in this post which does NOT cost you ANY EXTRA.
The Similarities Between Them
Before talking about the differences between YETI Cooler and Lifetime Cooler, it would be better to start with their similarities.
First thing is same general design. Both Coolers come in multiple different sizes. You’ve got like 28-Quart, 55-Quart, 65-Quart and 77-Quart size options with Lifetime Coolers. On the other hand, YETI offers the 20, 35, 45 and 65 size options for Tundra Coolers.
In fact, these numbers with YETI do NOT give the actual inside volume of the cooler in quart. For example, the YETI Tundra 65 is actually closer to the 52-quart cooler and YETI Tundra 45 is closer to the 35-quart. We have no idea why YETI named these coolers in that way, but they’re smaller than the name implies. This is why we compare the YETI Tundra 65 with the Lifetime 55 Quart, since Tundra 65 is the closest one to the 55-Quart in terms of actual net capacity.
However, in overall, they both have same general design. Both coolers have handles and molded handles. You get lock hole and bare resistant construction with both YETI Tundra and Lifetime Cooler. As far as warranties, you get a 5-year warranty with both YETI and Lifetime Coolers.
But interestingly enough, they aren’t leak-proof. Although, the 28-quart Lifetime Cooler is like 99% leak proof but the bigger one such as 55, 65 and 77-quart options are not certainly leak proof. They leak, if you have flip it on its side. As well as Lifetime Cooler, YETI is not leak proof either. This actually surprised us. Considering leak-proof design, there is another great option which comes with also reasonable price, the RTIC Hard Cooler. We strongly recommend checking out our RTIC vs YETI Cooler article to see how YETI Tundra Cooler and RTIC Hard Cooler performs against each other.
Lifetime vs YETI Cooler: Key Differences
We have listed the key differences between Lifetime and YETI Cooler to help you ease your decision.
Key Differences that Make Lifetime 55 Better than Tundra 65
First of all, YETI is the biggest name at coolers. But, there are couple of things which make Lifetime Cooler more preferrable than the YETI Tundra. The first thing you do want to know is the price. The Lifetime 55-Quart is significantly more affordable than YETI Tundra. If you will go with the Lifetime Cooler, you will save like a 100$ for the comparable sizes of the YETI Coolers. You are actually saving a ton of money with the Lifetime. You can check out the following links to see the latest rates on Amazon.
The other thing is smaller but what we prefer on a cooler. The drain with Lifetime Cooler is connected to the cooler (it is attached). So, you’re not going to lose that little plug. We wish YETI had the same drain plug design on their coolers.
Additionally, we prefer the latches on Lifetime Cooler. The Latch design of Lifetime 55 Quart Cooler is more secure and easy to use compared to the YETI Tundra 65 Cooler. You don’t have to be strong or to put a lot of effort in with latches of Lifetime Cooler. They do a great job of securing the cooler down. We prefer the latches of Lifetime 55-Quart to the T-Rex latches that are on YETI Tundra 65 Cooler. With YETI Tundra, it is a little bit more difficult to get those t-rex latches unlatched.
The last thing is that Lifetime has a bottle opener included, but YETI doesn’t.
Key Differences that Make Tundra 65 Cooler Better than Lifetime 55 Cooler
So, it is time to talk about what are the things that YETI Tundra did Better than the Lifetime Cooler. YETI Tundra is a better cooler than Lifetime. If you just want really good ice retention and good insulation, it’s hard to beat YETI.
Outdoor Ice Retention Test
When it comes to ice retention, YETI Tundra is objectively better than Lifetime. For instance, in our outdoor test in the summer 98-degree weather, coolers were filled to about 65 percent capacity. The YETI Tundra 65 made it almost six full days with ice. However, Lifetime 55-Quart Cooler which is actually a wee bit bigger than a YETI 65, went four days with ice. So, YETI Tundra 65 does a better job insulating.
Also, the larger size option of YETI Tundra come with a like a wire basket. This is actually a wet/dry separator where you don’t have that with Lifetime.
Bottom-line Lifetime vs YETI Cooler:
Our verdict for Lifetime vs YETI Cooler: As we compared the Lifetime 55-Quart Cooler with the YETI Tundra 65 Cooler, here is the main reason to pick Lifetime Cooler. It is highly affordable compared to the YETI. If you just want to save money, Lifetime a pretty dang good cooler. Also, the latch design of the Lifetime Cooler is way easier to use compared to the YETI’s Tundra.
If you just want the better overall cooler considering the insulation and ice retention, you can go with the YETI. Actually, we don’t really need six days of ice retention, it would be just fine with Lifetime’s four days of ice retention. The six days of ice retention with YETI Tundra is kind of overkill.