Measure your hatch first, then buy a soft cooler.

The best cooler for a kayak is the one that fits. Pull out a tape measure and get the exact width and depth of your hatch before you even look at models.

Hard coolers are rarely narrow enough to squeeze into kayak hatches. Soft coolers are the way to go — they’re flexible, lighter, and easier to jam into a tight spot. Something like the Yeti Hopper Flip 12 is about 11.5 inches wide, which fits most standard hatches. Pelican’s Elite series has similar dimensions. But if you have a smaller touring kayak, you might need something even slimmer like the Engel 12-can soft cooler.