If you own any size truck, you have a plethora of alternatives for building the best truck camping arrangement. There are a lot of cool-looking setups out there these days, ranging from pop-up campers to rooftop tents.
However, one of the most underrated options for sleeping in the best truck bed tents. These pickup truck tents are quite inexpensive and offer numerous advantages over other sorts of truck camping sets.
Rather than taking up to 30 minutes to set up a standard tent (and sleeping on the ground), these tents pop up instantly and are incredibly easy to assemble. Additionally, they allow you to sleep on a high platform free of animals and other curious critters.
The truck bed tent market is a relatively recent development. However, many firms are recognising the popularity of this style of tent. This means you have a plethora of high-quality options.
The majority of truck bed tents reviewed in this buyer’s guide are designed to fit inside open-bed trucks (that is, trucks without a camper shell). All except one of these open-bed style shelters feature fully sewn-in tent flooring that sit between you and the truck bed’s surface.
The advantage of a sewn-in truck bed tent is that neither you nor your gear will get dirty while camping. The negative is that you must remove everything from your truck bed in order to pitch the tent, which can be inconvenient, especially when it is raining or snowing. Therefore, pick wisely!
Seasons
We recommend that you use all of the shelters on our list during the summer, fall, and spring. Having said that, the majority of tents in this collection are double-walled shelters with complete rainfly and arching, multi-poled designs. These shelters are both warm and stable and are likely to withstand a few inches of snow rather well.
Always be mindful of your tent’s and your own limitations. The prudent course of action is to play it safe.
Length
This is crucial because not every truck bed tent is compatible with every truck bed. Indeed, many of the tents featured in our buyer’s guide are designed specifically for truck beds of a certain length or shape. Each product page in our guide includes thorough information on tent and truck bed compatibility.
Almost all of the truck bed tents in our directory have a headroom of at least 5 feet. In a tent, you rarely have to stand up, so 5 feet is sufficient!
Several of the shelters we display here are adjustable in height to accommodate varying truck bed lengths. The shorter the truck bed, the higher the tent climbs; the arching design of the canvas is pushed higher by the shorter length.
Poles
The tent poles in this guide are made of plastic, fibreglass, or aluminium and are connected with elastic cordage. Assemble the poles by sliding the female and male ends together and allowing the elastic to flex and tighten the pole segments together.
To disassemble, gently stretch the elastic on the segments and fold the segments together until you have a compact bundle. Take care not to pull too hard, or the elastic will snap – a problem that is both inconvenient and frequently not covered by manufacturer warranties.
Waterproofing
The majority of truck bed tents are made of polyester or nylon and have mesh panels for breathability. Your tent is not waterproof in this configuration (obviously). That is when the rainfly enters the picture. Additionally, the rainfly will be made of polyester or nylon and will include an additional waterproof coating to keep you warm and dry inside your tent.
Choose a rainfly that provides optimum covering and connects to your shelter easily and swiftly. Nothing is worse than being soaked in the midst of a downpour while battling a rainfly.
Accessories
Several of the truck bed tents in our directory have lantern racks, interior gear compartments, awnings for more space, and carrying cases. We’ve highlighted these items because we believe they stand out from the crowd in terms of use or distinctiveness.
Ease of Installation
A tent has how many straps and buckles? Is the poles and pole sleeves color-coded? How difficult is it to secure the rainfly? All of these factors are critical since nobody wants to waste valuable camping time attempting to set up a tent.
