Best Portable Speakers for Hiking, Backpacking, Camping, and the Outdoors
As I crested the hill blasting Imagine Dragons, I could tell everyone at the summit was ready to party
April 1st, 2025
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You asked for it. The best way to party on the mountain. The best way to let nature know who is the boss. The best way to show you're the most badass hiker/ climber/ skier / paddler out there. Your own personal entrance music for every step you take in nature.
That's why we reviewed the best portable speakers for hiking, backpacking, rafting, climbing, and thru-hiking. These wireless, portable, lightweight Bluetooth speakers have long battery life and are designed for time outdoors—whether with friends or by yourself when you are too scared to hike without music.
We tested Bluetooth speakers based on their weight and size, waterproofness, how long they spit out music before the battery dies, how loud they get, how far their sound can be heard, and whether the sound quality is clear or scratchy.
After reading this guide, you're going to be rockin' the mountain, dancin' in the desert, or vibin’ in the woods. These best portable speakers are going to change the way you—and everyone around you— experiences the outdoors.
Best Portable Speaker for Camping: Sony X500 MegaBass
Waterproofness: Dude, if you spill your beer on it, it'll be fine
Battery life: Just hook it up to your generator
Other features: Party Connect can amplify the sound 100x!
The best bluetooth speaker for camping is one that gets as loud as possible with as much bass as possible. If the people at the other end of the campground can't hear your music, then how are they going to know you're down to party?
You don't need a speaker with a long battery life when you're camping. Just hook it up to your generator! Sure, the campground's quiet hours say no noise past 10 p.m., but that's just when the party is getting started. It's not like there is anyone there who’s done a 20+ mile day and is exhausted and just wants to sleep in peace…
Make the party even better? Hook up your mic or guitar with the rear input!
Sony X500 MegaBass
This isn't really the speaker we wrote about here but you probably can't tell.
Best feature yet? Add to the fun with up to 100 speakers via Party Connect. Yeah, you read that right! With the Sony X500 MegBass, you can get together 100 friends in a wilderness area and make the party 100 times better. Bounce that bass clear across the pristine mountain lake so people on the other side can hear it, too.
Best Portable Speaker for Climbing 14ers: JBL Flip 7
Waterproofness: Hell yeah
Battery life: Enough for a 14er in flip flops
Other features: Sick camo print
This speaker is sick. It’s the size of a water bottle, so it fits perfectly in my backpack’s side pocket. That means I have an excuse not to carry water. If that’s not your vibe, it also comes with two different attachments for other ways to carry or clip to your pack. When I’m climbing with the JBL Flip 7, I’ve got beers for the summit and 10 hours of battery life, so I’m all set.
Hey, can I have a sip of your water? You can pick the next song!
JBL Flip 7
Best Portable Speaker for Hiking: Anker Soundcore 2 Bluetooth
Waterproof: Shower Karaoke is on point with this one.
Battery life: Lasts for a marathon day on a long trail and then some
Other Features: Cute colors so everyone can see it and hear it from far away
This little speaker is cute, waterproof, and affordable, and has been a staple on my adventures for a few years now. Easy enough to charge and IPX7 waterproof, it lets everyone else know that you are actually in CHARGE as you play your favorite songs in the camp shower.
You are the best DJ and they all need to know it with this speaker the size of a tall soda can. Need a rock ballad to power through the next ten miles? Queue up your favorite powerhouse singer. Dealing with a breakup? Let everyone around you know that you are looking for that rebound as you play heartbreak songs and cry yourself to sleep.
Anker Soundcore 2 Bluetooth
Best Portable Bluetooth Speaker for Backcountry Hot Springs: Ultimate Ears Wonderboom 4
Waterproofness: Hell yeah —T Swift in the hot springs!
Battery life: Longer than you’ll try to sleep
Other features: I threw this thing at a bear!
This speaker is small, portable, and has great sound quality. I just downloaded the new Taylor Swift album, clipped it onto my backpack, and went out to this beautiful natural hot spring I found on Instagram with my fellow Swifties for a listening party.
When we got to the springs, the album was so good, and the hot springs were so idyllic, that I had to start it over from the beginning. So we walked right into those springs with Fortnight blasting. It sounded so good! T Swift aside, this baby has 360-degree surround speakers, and a IP67 waterproof and dustproof rating. It’s drop-proof, too.
Ultimate Ears Wonderboom 4
Best Portable Bluetooth Speaker for Yosemite: JBL Boombox 3
Waterproofness: Oh yeah
Battery life: 24 hours
Other features: You can link two of these together and/or charge your phone!
We just hiked Half Dome with two of these things, and it really amplified the experience! The JBL Boombox puts out 180 watts of pure musical-good-vibes, and when you pair two of them together it really raises the vibration of everyone around you.
JBL Boombox 3
Nothing makes The Cables section on Half Dome better than music as epic as your location.
While waiting in line to go up The Cables section, we played Anxiety by Doechii on repeat, because that song slaps. All of our friends were dancing and having a good time. Yeah, there were people who asked us to turn it down, but you gotta ignore the haters!
We live streamed the whole thing and this speaker’s phone charging capabilities kept the music flowing and video rolling.
Best Portable Speaker for the Backcountry EDM Show: Soundboks Go
Waterproofness: IP65
Battery Life: 10 hours at full volume (2-hour recharge) and swappable
Other features: a 10” woofer and 1” tweeter, 72-watt amplifiers, and a top decibel of 121. That’s loud!
Need a speaker to complement your backpacking DJ setup? Check out the beefy Soundboks Go for a rugged backcountry speaker BRAAAP BRAAAP BRAAAAAAP! The exterior of the speaker has a fabric daisy chain strap allowing you to clip one or two of these speakers to your pack. When you get to your backcountry campsite, simply hang it from a tree branch or crush your tent or a toadstool with its heft.
Soundboks Go
With the right speaker, any boring campsite can be turned into an EDM festival.
What’s the fidelity? Let us spell it out L.O.U.D.—after all, the speaker goes up to 11! With features including the ability to network up to five speakers together via the app and swappable and USB-C rechargeable batteries, you can keep the party going all night, echoing off the valley walls for all the wildland critters and other campers—or ‘til the party drugs run out.
We strapped this bad boi to the back of a pedicab and drowned out the cries of customers who wanted us to turn the beats down—whatever! That is until someone stole this $699 (oh yeah!) from the back. We could have deactivated it after the theft if we had registered it, but alas we did not. If you party like we do, don’t forget the warranty!
Best Portable speaker for scaring bears away: Sonos Move 2
Waterproofness: Yeah, but keep it away during kegstands
Battery life: Money. Sonos sells a battery kit when it starts to bomb.
Bonus: Dope travel bag means it won't take up pack space
Most of us have heard by now that the best way to avoid a bear conflict is to make noise. What better way than with really loud music? Because, you know, bears associate music with humans.
With not 1, not 2, but THREE class-D digital amplifiers, you can rock your head off AND warn bears you're coming at the same time (I recommend a little Rage Against the Machine). Win. Win.
The Move 2 has an IP56 waterproof rating, so a little rain won't stop you either. Just remember to turn it up louder so the bears can hear it over the thunder and lightning.
Sonos Move 2
Sure, it's expensive. But you know what else is expensive? Getting mauled by a bear.
Best Bluetooth Speaker for Rafting: Ultimate Ears Megaboom 3
Waterproofness: We sent that gnarly rapid listening to my favorite song
Battery Life: 20 hours
Other features: 360-degree sound
Dude, you wanna take the speaker with you to the groover? This speaker projects sound in every direction and is totally waterproof. It’s super trippy when it’s bouncing off the canyon walls. I love drinking a cold beer and rocking tunes, so this speaker comes with me on every river trip.
We just got permits for the San Juan. It’s super remote and goes past a lot of historic places that most people will never see. Do you wanna go? I’ve got 500 hours of music downloaded on my phone and we can listen as it bounces up and down the canyon for everyone to hear.
Ultimate Ears Megaboom 3
Best Small Bluetooth Speaker: ECOXGEAR EcoPebble Lite/Lite 2
Waterproofness: IPX7 dopeness
Speaker: 5-watt
Battery Life: 7+ hours (2 hours to fully recharge)
Other features: speakerphone, aux cord, and Bluetooth functionality
This small but mighty speaker is perfect when weight is a factor and you want to travel fast and light, but still blast tunes. This tiny EXOGEAR is 100% waterproof…but not only that, it floats! This and its personal, pocket size make it perfect for SUPing, swimming, or use at the beach or a lake.
The EcoPebble also has a mounting and attachment point, an elastic cord for hanging or securing to a pack loop, and a 7-hour lithium battery runtime. It has aux or Bluetooth connectivity, volume buttons, and works great for several days of hiking, camping, paddling, or anything else.
ECOXGEAR EcoPebble Lite/Lite 2
Treeline Review editor Mary Murphy SUP-ing with her portable speakers.
Sure, you could buy a bigger speaker for car camping—but why do that when this little one can do it all! If you need more volume, you can pair up to two of these together (30-foot range, again, perfect for campsites).
If you’re still not convinced, check out the newer EcoPebble Lite 2 model, which adds a rad integrated LED light to pump up the party wherever you’re playing outside.
Tips for using bluetooth speakers outdoors
When hiking in a serene forest, make sure to blast your speaker at full volume. Wildlife love music and other hikers will appreciate the entertainment. Life is pretty boring out there for bears, deer, and squirrels. Sure, they've lived without music for millions of years. But what they really want is your music to liven things up. (Deer secretly love dubstep: just watch them run to the beat when you fire it up!)
Play the same one song on repeat as you hike. What better way to memorize all the lyrics and show off your excellent music taste?
The best Bluetooth speakers can be paired together, so you and your friends can spread out along the trail and still hear the music clearly.
The best place for cell reception is at the top of mountains. So when you get up there, you can take song requests from everyone taking a break on the summit.
If you’re going to really remote places, be sure to download plenty of music ahead of time so you can change up the vibe whenever you want.
When other people ask you to turn off your speaker, just turn it up louder and pretend you can't hear them (even if they ask nicely).
Why We Tested / The real scoop
Birds and butterflies love portable speakers in the wilderness.
We get it. We love listening to music and podcasts when we're outdoors, too. But that is why we carry Bluetooth Headphones not speakers.
As advocates for everyone getting outside, we are strong supporters of Leave No Trace Principles. These are the ethics of the outdoors for campers, hikers, backpackers, skiers, thru-hikers (yeah, even you), paddlers, runners, climbers (yeah, you too), mountain bikers, and anyone who spends time outside.
Be Respectful of Wildlife is Leave No Trace Principal No. 6.
When we're out here, nature's sounds should prevail. Music can be disturbing to wildlife, making it harder for them to get it on, check on their babies, migrate, or just get the water and food they need to survive.
Speakers can also make it harder for you to hear wildlife like bears and snakes that are usually pretty courteous about giving you warning noises.
PLUS, Being Considerate of Others is Leave No Trace Principle No. 7. And believe me, playing the wrong song around a hangry hiker is NOT a good idea, for your own personal safety.
You can read more from the National Park Service about Why Sounds Matter for wildlife, wilderness, other visitors, and more.
The Park Service also explains the Effects of Noise on Wilderness and the domino chain effect that happens with noise. In fact, the Park Service has entire management plans designed to create quiet soundscapes.
Bluetooth speakers are great for the urban backyard or indoor house party. But save the speakers for times when you are not outdoors. Let people judge you by how hard you send, how friendly you are, or on your love for the outdoors…not on your taste in music.
About this piece
This is an April Fool's Day article. Did we get you!? Here are several ways you can tell:
First, Treeline Review always advocates for following Leave No Trace Principles.
Second, our mission is creating outdoors articles for everyone, which means, unlike a lot of other outdoor publications out there, we choose to use non-bro-y terms and clear, beginner-friendly language that makes everyone feel welcome outside.
Thirdly, we’ll always advocate for and share recommendations and reviews for essential gear that will help you get outside…”bluetooth speakers” sadly does not fall under that category.
About the Authors
This April Fool’s Day article was a complete joke, but we still want to give credit where credit’s due.
Thanks to our founders Liz and Naomi, our Operations manager Sara Kruglinski, and contributing writers Sam Schild, Chris Meehan, and Mary Murphy for helping bring this article to life…life of the party that is!
You can read more about Treeline’s staff and writers on our About page.
