Always be prepared. When you go venturing into the great outdoors, there’s no telling what might happen. If you’re on a camping trip say, and have gone on a long hike in unfamiliar territory, you could find yourself lost or stranded. And having the best possible survival kit can make all the difference in how that turns out for you.
We’re going to level with you – choosing a really good survival kit can be tricky and there’s a lot to think about and consider. But we’re here to make this decision easier for you. Coming up shortly we’ve got some reviews on our handpicked Top 5 survival kits, and after that there’s a handy buying guide where we’ve tried to include all the most important factors to consider.
Best Survival Kit – Reviews
- [250 in 1 Survival Kit]: Having an emergency kit is an important step to prepare and protect your and household for some unforeseen events. This emergency survival kit is specifically designed and...
- [Basic First Aid Kit]: Designed to stow conspicuously, the included first aid supplies are packed in a extra bright red bag. It includes essential items such as tweezers, scissors and pins, would pad,...
- [Portable Molle System Compatible Bag]: The 2022 Upgraded EMT bag was made of military grade water-resistant 1000D nylon with a size of 8” x 6.5” x 6''. You can attach it to other molle compatible...
- [2022 Upgraded Version]: Nobody can count on friendly weather during an emergency. This kit can help you to deal with the worst. It is the most multifultional survival kit in the market, contains...
- [Must Have Survival Gear]: All of the items have been tested to ensure they can withstand even the toughest emergencies and conditions, such as outdoor adventure, hunting, camping, hiking, travel,...
- Gifts for Men: For those who love the outdoors, this is sure to be a unique gift for fathers, husbands, boyfriends, scouts, cool gadgets, and Christmas stocking stuffers for birthdays, Valentine's...
- 19-in-1 Survival Kit: This all-in-one survival kit contains everything any survivalist or outdoor enthusiast needs. 19-in-1 includes a 5-in-1 parachute cord bracelet, built-in compass, whistle,...
- Easy-Carry & Lightweight: The box measures 8.2 x 5.1 x 2.7 inches, weighs only 1.8 pounds, and has a foam interior that is both waterproof and shockproof. Easy to carry and fits in any car, hiking...
- Safe & Practical: This camping accessory is the perfect companion to be prepared for any emergency. It also helps you stay safe and secure while hiking, camping, hunting, fishing, backpacking, or...
- Friendly Service: This survival kit will better reflect your love for your father/husband/boyfriend. If it doesn't meet your expectations or you have any questions, please contact us, and we will...
- [238 in 1 Survival Kit]: Taimasi emergency survival kit is unique in that it was specifically designed and curated by survival experts. The comprehensive survival system not only includes 22pcs...
- [Practical Survival Gears For Any Emergency]: Providing many popular survival tools and essentials to survive in the wilderness or disasters. An knife and steel wire saw for cutting wood or bone; 4 in...
- [Basic First Aid Kit]: Comes with a first aid kit with bright red bag which includes essential items such as tweezers, scissors and pins, bandages, would pad, bandage triangulaire, cotton buds etc....
- [Lightweight & Convenient]: To keep your kit small and lightweight enough so you can carry it at all times, all the items comes in a camo bag with a size of 8” x 6.5” x 6”. It is made of 600D...
- [Must Have Survival Gear]: Having an emergency kit can get you well-prepared in advance to emergencies during outdoor adventure, hunting, camping, hiking, travel, natural disasters such as earthquake,...
- Compact Design: LoGest’s Prepper Supplies Portable Water Filter Straw measures 7.5” x 1.35” in size and is equipped with a carrying strap, making it life easy to transport from one location to...
- Fresh Water: Reducing the risk of infection by removing E. coli, legionella and salmonella, this water filter survival is designed to deliver fresh, pure drinking water. It’s also designed to reduce...
- Filter Purifier: Each water purifier survival Filter Straw is designed with a hollow fiber membrane to effectively remove 99% of harmful bacteria at 0.01-micron filtration.
- Multipurpose Use: Easy to carry and use, the LoGest Water purification Filter Straw survival gear and equipment can be used when traveling, playing sports, hiking water filter, camping water filter,...
- Long Lifespan: Even though the Water Filter Backpacking Straw is small in size, it boasts a 1500-liter filter capacity so you can enjoy using it for more than a year! Best of all, the package includes...
- [Emergency Survival Gear Kit Gift]: Are you looking for a unique and cool gift for your men? Our emergency survival kit is unique in that it was specifically designed by U.S military veterans....
- [Practical Survival Gears & First Aid Kit]: This emergency kit contains the most popular survival necessities: Multitool axe, f*lding shovel, tactical knife, 3-mode tactical flashlight, saber card,...
- [Suite for Any Emergency Situation]: This Emergency Survival Kit is great for tactical doctors, military personnel, police, firefighters, first aid personnel, hikers, campers, outdoor sports...
- [Compact Lightweight]: The EMT bag size is 8” x 6.5” x 6”, It was made of military-grade 1000D nylon which is durable, portable, and water-resistant, its small size with large capacity, can hold...
- [After Sales Service ]: The best gifts for men, fathers, family, friends. Our outdoor survival gear set is designed to help you deal with any kind of emergency and make your camping trips 100%...
- EMERGENCY KIT FOR DISASTER PREPAREDNESS: Stay prepared for emergency situations everywhere you go. Ready America emergency survival kits sustain 1 person for 3 days (72 hours). Basic essential...
- INCLUDES 33-PIECE FIRST AID KIT: Comes with first aid essentials for minor injuries like bandages and wound cleaning solution. Take care of medical emergencies with easy-to-use supplies. Great for a...
- FOOD, WATER, EMERGENCY BLANKETS: Everything you need in case of an emergency. 1 survival food bar (2400 calories) and water pouches with a 5-year shelf life, survival blankets, disposable dust masks,...
- SAFETY LIGHT STICKS: In case you’re outdoors or in the wilderness with no light, this emergency bag includes a safety light stick. Equipped with survival gear for hunting, boating, workplace,...
- PORTABLE, LIGHTWEIGHT BACKPACK: Keep supplies at the ready with this packed handy backpack ready for emergencies that’s lightweight and easy to carry. Store this day pack wherever it can be easily...
- 【Christmas gift ideas】 High-quality comprehensive emergency survival first aid equipment, best gifts for men, father, family, friends. You can enjoy a more relaxed and safe adventure with our...
- 【A Must Have Survival First Aid Kit】LUXMOM survival kit is unique in that it was specifically designed by survival experts. The comprehensive survival kit not only includes 21pcs multipurpose...
- 【Wide application range】This survival kit is great for firefighters, first aid personnel, hikers, campers, outdoor sports enthusiasts, etc. It is idea for car, ship, bicycles, motorcycles,...
- 【Practical Survival Gears & First Aid Kit】LUXMOM emergency kit contains the most popular survival accessories: Hatchet, 3-mode flashlight, Multifunctional Card, Survival Bracelet, Dual-tube...
- 【Compact Lightweight & Durable】All items are neatly arranged in a 600D nylon bag measuring 9 inches x 6 inches x 5 inches. Easy to carry, small and lightweight, can hold all the 142pcs emergency...
- Compact Emergency Shelter: The Go Time Gear Life Tent is a weatherproof 2-person tent made from tear and puncture-resistant PET mylar with an interior that reflects 90% of your body heat. You'll stay...
- Waterproof and Windproof: Our emergency storm shelter weighs just 8.7oz and packs down fast in a 5.25” x 3.25” stuff sack. Our reusable survival kit allows you to escape the elements and winter...
- Quick Set-Up: Our thermal emergency tube tent sets up fast between trees. Weigh it down with rocks or gear for extra stability. If no trees are available, wrap it around yourself as an emergency...
- 120 Decibel Whistle and 20FT Paracord Included: Engineered for emergencies, our Life Tent includes a 120-decibel whistle to alert rescuers up to 1-mile away. The 550lb nylon core Para-Synch drawstring...
- Go Time Gear Has Your Back: In an uncertain world, our life tent is an essential, reliable piece of equipment for your hiking gear, earthquake kit, survival pack, or even bug out bag. If you're not...
- Exclusive 200PCS Survival Kit - Uniquely customized by U.S military veterans, our survival kit includes emergency survival gears, medical supplies, fishing tools, and a Molle EMT pouch to suit all...
- Top Quality Survival Gears & Approved First Aid Kit - Includes the most popular survival necessities: military knife, saber card, tactical pen, 3-mode tactical, multi-function paracord bracelet, and...
- Molle System Compatible - The EMT bag was made of military-grade 1000D nylon which is durable, portable, and water-resistant, its small size and large capacity, the size is 8” x 6.5” x 6”, it...
- Perfect for Any Emergency Situation - Ideal for tactical medics, military, police, firefighter, EMT, hunter, first responders, hikers, campers, outdoor enthusiasts, and more! Perfect for car, boat,...
- Our all-inclusive outdoor gear set is designed to help you deal with any kind of emergency and make your camping trips 100% fuss-free! We provide 24-Hour Easy-to-Reach Customer Service in order to...
Best Survival Kit – Buyers Guide
Your starting point in deciding what kit to get should be based on what you can anticipate needing. You will need to determine what sort of uses you might have for it and take your decision from there, as this will inform what items you’ll need in the kit, and ultimately then which kit best suits your needs.
When you’re lost or in danger there are some things that become more important than others. You need food, water, shelter from the elements, ways of identifying where you are, and ways of alerting people to your whereabouts. Or if you’re hurt you will be in need of some first aid. If it’s dark, you’ll need a flashlight.
And on that note, let’s move onto our next section.
Items you may want to see included
One of the more central decisions to make is whether you want food and drink included in your survival kit.
When it comes to water, which is hands down an essential, a bottle of water, or several bottles, can at times be heavy to carry around, especially if you have a lot of other gear to carry. To that end you may wish your kit to include a water filtration system or purification tablets.
You may want to get a campfire going, whether to cook food or simply keep warm. Or you could perhaps have an emergency blanket to keep warm.
Or to protect yourself from the weather, you may make good use from an emergency tent, a fold-up emergency blanket, or ponchos.
In terms of first aid items, you might want to consider sterile gauze wound dressings, something to keep the dressings or bandages in place and antiseptic wipes to clean up any wounds.
With regards to alerting others to your presence and whereabouts for a rescue mission, your options include a good old fashioned whistle, or to be more visible, a flashlight would work well, or even a glow stick.
Many outdoor survival kits can also feature a compass, which can be super handy for hiking trips where there’s no GPS gadgets at hand.
Size and Weight
Ultimately the size of your survival depends on what types of emergencies you intend to prepare for.
If your survival kit is intended primarily for outdoor use, then you may also be concerned about the kit’s size and weight. You might want to fit into a backpack and/or carry it long distances on foot. Fortunately many survival kits are put together with this in mind, including several in our Top 5 picks.
If your emergency involves waiting out some sort of danger, while you shelter in an enclosed space, then again the size of your kit can also become a factor to consider, say if you were laying low in a camping tent not knowing if there are potentially dangerous animals in the surrounding area.
It goes without saying, the more people you have with you, the more items you may need in terms of food, water and shelter. But on the other hand, you also have more carrying power for any items you want to take or include. You could have one person carry the food and water and another carrying a first aid kit and an emergency tent.
Cost
Survival kits can vary quite considerably in their price point, but it’s important to note that cheaper doesn’t always mean better. Instead what you should focus on is ensuring that you have every item that you may need. In fact once you’ve found your ideal survival kit, you may also see fit to pay for one or two more things besides. Which brings us onto our next section.
Additional Items you may need that aren’t typically found in a survival kit
Certain modern items can come in very handy when you find yourself stranded outdoors, and you definitely won’t get them all in a standard survival kit.
To alert others to your emergency, a cell phone with a good signal can be a godsend. Similarly, to ascertain exactly where you are, a really good item would be one that features GPS tracking. It doesn’t need to be anything bulky, you can get some great watches that feature GPS tracking, often with other handy features for hikers. You may also be interested in a water filtration bottle.
When it comes to using modern gadgets outdoors, you may also want to think about whether they need a portable power supply, such as batteries. Or solar powered gadgets could be another alternative.
For hikers, we would also recommend taking a fold-up map of the area if possible, particularly if there are no GPS gadgets at hand.