Tents come in many different shapes and sizes, but the most useful type to have in your gear cupboard, and the one you’ll undoubtedly use most, is a two-person tent. After all, there are few better outdoor experiences than being pitched up under the stars, protected from the elements after a big day in the mountains, and looking forward to another big one come the following day; all while being comfortably ensconced in your very own home from home.
The best two person tents for backpacking should meet a tricky set of demands: they need to provide enough space to be comfortable for two while also protecting you from rain, wind, hail, snow, and anything else the mountains can conceivably throw at you. On top of that, ideally they should also be lightweight, packable, low cost and quick to pitch.
Yes, these tents are inevitably going to be heavier than the tents we featured in our ‘Best Solo Tents For Backpacking’ test, but as these backpacking tents are designed to accommodate two people, you’ll be able to split many of the components between yourself and your partner in an effort to evenly distribute weight. Many of these tents can be split up into four different components; outer (fly), inner, pegs and poles.
Tent Buyer’s Guide | How To Choose The Best Tent For Backpacking
That said, there’s also nothing better than having a two person tent all to yourself for maximum comfort in the hills and mountains (as long as you’ve also got your sleeping bag and sleeping mat set-up squared away). Those of us who are taller than average will infinitely prefer the space offered in these tents, compared to the much smaller footprints typically found in ultra lightweight solo tents.
The Best Two Person Tents For Backpacking
We’ve put a range of two-person tents to the test and the below came out on top. Some of the tents featured are also found within our Outdoor 100 and our Green Gear Guide. In these guides, you’ll be able check out a more in depth review of each shelter, including testers’ verdicts and industry trade secrets.
-
Nemo Dagger OSMO – Best Overall Two Person Tent
-
Sea to Summit Telos TR2 – Our Runner-Up
-
Sierra Designs Meteor 3000 2P – Best Value Two Person Tent
-
Nemo Mayfly OSMO 2P – Best Ultralight Two Person Tent
-
MSR Hubba Hubba NX – Best Two Person Tent for Tall People
-
Big Agnes Copper Spur UL2 XL – Best Roomy Two Person Tent
-
Highlander Respite 2 – Best Budget Two Person Tent
1. NEMO Dagger OSMO (2025)
Best two-person tent overall: This is our top pick following our extensive, on-going tent tests over the last few years
Weight: 1.86kg
Price: £450
What we liked: innovative and sustainably made fabric, excellent space-to-weight
What we didn’t like: nothing
This iteration of the Nemo Dagger OSMO is the 2025 update to one of the U.S. company’s most popular backpacking tents. The main changes? Its vestibule now has 22% more usable space – and, remarkably, with no extra weight penalty. What’s really caught our attention, however, is the OSMO fabric, which is 100% recycled, PFAS-free, and bluesign approved.
The way this is designed gives plenty of space for two people to comfortably lie down side by side on rectangular sized sleeping mats. There’s plenty of room to sit up too, and to stow and organise kit. Masses of space, actually. During our tests, we’ve found it to be a very liveable tent. The two porches on either side are both large enough to stow kit and to cook from and the hubbed pole structure, which involves a top cross pole and main pole that forks at each end, creates a high ceiling and steep-sided walls.
Just like the first edition, this 2025 one is inner-pitched first. You simply plug the ends of the main tent pole into each grommet and do the same for the top crossing pole, then you can hang up the mesh using the series of little hooks/clips. The corners of the flysheet are then clipped onto the corners of the inner – colour-coding makes this an absolute breeze, by the way – then you peg out the porches and the other stake points.
OM tester Will said, “I’ve really enjoyed using this tent, mainly because they’ve absolutely nailed the whole space-to-weight thing. There’s bucket loads of space here but at 1.78kg it’s still pretty light – not the lightest 2P tent by any means but it’s still light. It’s so easy to put up too. The first time I pitched this, I went in blind without reading the instructions. Still, I had a nicely pitched tent with a taut flysheet within about five minutes.”
Full Specifications
Available in two or three person sizes / 100% recycled and PFAS-free OSMO fly fabric / bluesign approved / 0D OSMO Ripstop 2000mm floor fabric / DIAPOLE premium anodized aluminum poles / solution dyed fabrics / colour-coded hubbed pole set / 100% recycled pole bag / light dispersing pockets / landing zone in porch / top strut vents / 224 x 127 x 109 cm outer dimensions / 51 x 16 x 9 cm packed size.
Check out our full Nemo Dagger OSMO review.
Buy the Nemo Dagger OSMP 2P: £450 at Alpinetrek.co.uk
2. Sea to Summit Telos TR2
Runner up: Our test team judged this to be a close second overall
Price: £342
Weight: 1.66kg
What we liked: neat details, innovative design
What we didn’t like: quite expensive
Sea to Summit have come up with a very smart backpacking tent here. Not only have they created a tent that gets all the basics right, but they’ve also added lots of nice little touches that enhance make it a shelter that’s comfortable and enjoyable to be in. The tent’s stuff sacks, for instance, double as little organiser pockets that can be hung up on the walls and the pole bag serves as a light diffuser for a headtorch. Even the corner hooks of the flysheet and the pegs are all nicely designed, with clear thought in every detail here.
In our tests, we found that the Telos TR2 was very spacious with room to sit up, plenty of space for two rectangular mats alongside each other and then two very large porches. Assembling it and packing it away was very straightforward and overall the structure was very reliable. We also loved the fact that the design can be pitched with just the inner or just the fly – that’s something you don’t see too often.
It’s not the cheapest, but there are definitely more expensive tents out there that offer far less than this does.
Full Specifications
Inner pitched first / three-season / hubbed pole structure with top cross pole / two porches / x8 pegs / inner dimensions: 105 x 134/109 x 215cm / 15D 1200mm Sil-PeU flysheet / 20D 2500mm floor.
Read our full Sea to Summit Telos TR2 review.
Buy the Sea to Summit Telos TR2: £342 at Ellis-brigham.com
3. Sierra Designs Meteor 3000 2P
Best value tent: We judged this to be the option option in terms of bang for your buck.
Weight: 2.1kg
Price: £235
What we liked: sturdy, large porches, good liveability
Key attributes: quite heavy
This is the first tent from Sierra Designs that we’ve featured on our website and we’re very, very impressed.
It’s the space-to-weight balance that Sierra Designs have struck that has us sold. You’ve got plenty of space for two people to sleep comfortably alongside each other, loads of headroom and then the two big porches on either side as well. And the total weight is just 2126g – not bad at all.
The Meteor 3,000 is actually a reworking of the popular Meteor 2 which has been on sale in the States for a while. Sierra Designs recognised that hikers in northern Europe want their tents to be super sturdy, reliable and very, very waterproof, so they beefed up the design to make it fit the bill. The 3,000 is actually a reference to the hydrostatic head of the flysheet which is 3,000mm compared to the 1,800mm fly on the Meteor 2.
Kudos to Sierra Designs for their eco efforts here as well. Out of all the tents in this best two-person tents round-up, this one is arugably the most eco-friendly. The materials, for instance, come from recycled sources and no eco-hazardous chemicals are present.
One other small detail we love is the fact that the flysheet can be rolled back across the roof of the tent quickly and easily if you ever want to stargaze or to simply just get extra airflow. Nice touch.
Full Specifications
Three-season / two-person / inner pitched first / height: 104cm, length 213cm / two porches / 10 pegs provided / two DAC Pressfit Aluminium Poles / fly: 68D 190T Poly Taffeta 3000mm PU / floor: 68D 190T Poly Taffeta 3000MM PU / 70% 15D Taffeta: 30% 15D No-See-Um mesh.
Read our full Sierra Designs Meteor 3000 review.
Buy the Sierra Designs Meteor 3000: £235 at Absolute-snow.co.uk
4. Nemo Mayfly OSMO 2P
Best ultralight tent: This gets our pick as the top option for lightweight hikers
Price: £360
Weight: 1.33kg
What we liked: quality materials, excellent space-to-weight
What we didn’t like: colour
This is quite similar in its design to the Sea to Summit Telos TR2 but it’s lower priced and lighter on details.
We tested it out in the mountains of Wales and really liked what we saw. First of all, it was very easy to pitch and the design has a very stable and robust feel to it. We also really liked the fact it uses Nemo’s OSMO fabric which is made from a PFC-free blend of 100% recycled polyester and nylon. Nemo say that it has 4x more water repellency than standard tent fabrics and 3x less stretch and this means it can keep its structure when it gets wet and doesn’t end up sagging. Does it work? From our experience, yes. On one occasion we left the tent pitched in the rain for a day and the flysheet was perfectly taut when we returned in the evening.
This is another tent with an exceptional space-to-weight ratio. You get bucket loads of space with this (including two large porches) but it only weighs 1.33kg. And the price? OK, it’s not cheap but we think it’s quite fairly priced for what you get here. The only thing we didn’t like about this was its colour. It’s pretty luminous, which doesn’t make it ideal for camping stealthily.
Full Specifications
Three-season / two porches / 100% recycled polyester and nylon flysheet / PFAS free / 68D floor ripstop polyester floor / semi-freestanding / inner pitched first / 216 x 109 x 99 cm dimensions.
Read our full Nemo Mayfly OSMO 2P review.
Buy the Bach Relay 3R Split: £360 at Alpinetrek.co.uk
