Cordova Cooler Review
Last Updated by Brandon F. on October 7, 2022
Cordova Coolers have an interesting beginning: they were founded based on a bet from Scott Campbell Jr., a fisherman that can be seen on the popular show Deadliest Catch. Scott made a bet with some of his fishing buddies that he could make a cooler that could fit in the opening of a boat and also be able to keep beverages cool all day. The result was the start of Cordova Coolers.
While ownership has changed, the dream remains alive. This Idaho-based company manufactures a variety of hard-sided coolers, soft-sided coolers, and drinkware.
Where Cordova aims to be different from the plethora of other premium cooler companies is in their design approach: they utilize some specialized features including their thinner walls to make coolers that have larger storage volume for a given size while still retaining the ice life and ease of use that people have come to expect.
In this review, we will be testing out several different Cordova hard-sided coolers. We will also briefly go over some of Cordova’s other products. But first, check out the table below for some of our favorite Cordova Coolers.
Cordova Cooler Lineup
While the main focus of this review will be on the Cordova Hard-sided coolers, it is important to recognize the other products that Cordova brings to the table as well. Below we will briefly introduce the various Cordova products and break down what size options you have to work with.
Cordova Hard-Sided Coolers
Cordova currently sells 5 sizes of their hard-sided coolers: the Cordova Tailgater 25, Cordova 35, Cordova 50, Cordova 100, and Cordova 125. It is worth noting that the numbers in the product name don’t directly correlate to actual storage quarts. We are used to seeing slight differences between names and storage in quarts from other brands so it isn’t a huge issue. The specific storage quart for each model is as follows:
Cordova Tailgater 25: 32 Quarts/24 Cans
Cordova 35: 28 Quarts/28 Cans
Cordova 50: 45 Quarts/42 Cans
Cordova 100: 86 Quarts/85 Cans
Cordova 125: 126 Quarts/120 Cans
Interestingly, the smallest Tailgater 25 Cooler is actually slightly larger than the Cordova 35. The overall shape and curves on it are also a bit different (much thinner walls). But outside of this, the other Cordova Cooler sizes all utilize a very similar design approach and feature lineup.
Overall, Cordova does a good job of finding cooler sizes that meet just about everybody’s requirements. They have small, medium, large, and giant coolers. Really the only thing noticeably missing is a tiny personal cooler but that is easy to overlook.
Cordova Soft-Sided Coolers
Cordova also has a small lineup of soft coolers. Specifically, they currently offer a soft-sided cooler as well as a cooler backpack. In terms of storage capacity, you can expect the soft-sided cooler to hold around 16 cans and the cooler backpack bumps this up to around 36 cans. We hope to get our hands on some of these in the future so that we can write a more thorough review of them. (10/7 Update: Cordova was nice enough to send us their soft coolers for testing. You can read our review of them here.)
Cordova Drinkware
Also worth noting (but not being reviewed in this article) are the various Cordova drinkware items. You will find tumblers that include 10oz, 20oz, and 32oz models. In addition to this, Cordova also has some specialized water jugs that utilize similar manufacturing features as their hard-sided coolers. Dubbed the Hydro Jug, these come in 3.5 and 5-gallon models.
Overall, we like the broad approach that Cordova is taking in offering hard-sided coolers, soft-sided coolers, and drinkware. This is in line with many other premium cooler brands that don’t focus on just one type of product. And if Cordova hopes to compete with the likes of RTIC and Yeti, this is important.
Cordova Cooler Features
Cordova’s original inspiration was in making a cooler that can not only handle plenty of ice but also be shaped in a way that allows it to easily be stored in a boat. These two features sort of go against each other since long ice life typically means large storage volumes and thick walls.
The way that Cordova advertises that they work around this conundrum is by using a denser foam. This denser foam means that it can take advantage of thinner walls. The result is a cooler with similar outside dimensions but a larger storage capacity. This is great for storing more items while taking up the same amount of spot in your garage or boat.
But how accurate is this?
Overall, we didn’t see as big of a difference in wall thickness as we initially hoped for. Obviously, it will vary depending on which specific cooler brand and model you are looking at, but when we compared various Cordova Coolers to other brands with similar advertised can storage capacity, the dimensions were pretty similar.
For instance, the Cordova 50 is advertised as being able to store around 42 cans. This makes it a good comparison to the similarly-sized Tundra 65 (that also will hold 42 cans according to Yeti).
The outside dimensions of the Cordova measure approximately 29” x 18” x 17” compared to Yeti’s 30.625” x 17.25” x 16”. So while the Cordova is a little thinner, it is also deeper and taller. The inside diameter of the Cordova 50 measures 20” x 12” x 12” compared to the Yeti 65’s 23.25” x 10.625” x 11.125”. Again, the Cordova enjoys slimmer width but also has deeper and taller inside walls.
If anything, what this shows is that certain cooler brands’ names for their specific models don’t really align well with storage capacity. A Yeti 65 would make more sense being called a Yeti 50 given its size. But the most important thing to take away is that Cordova Coolers employ very similar wall thicknesses.
The exception to this is with the Cordova Tailgater 25. This cooler has noticeably thinner walls than its larger siblings. The result, as expected, is increased storage volume but at the cost of ice life (check out the chart below to see what we are talking about).
Now that we have that out of the way, let’s go over some more great features.
All Cordova Coolers are rotomolded and constructed right here in the USA. This is the industry standard for high-quality coolers and the fact that they are made right in Idaho means that you know you are getting a quality, American-made part. And Cordova stands behind their products thanks to its impressive lifetime warranty and IGBC (Interagency Grizzly Bear Committee) certification. You do pay a bit extra for these impressive features but for many people, it is more than worth it.
For assisting with ice life, you will find the typical thick rubber gasket design that most other premium ice chests implement. Cordova calls this their “Quad-core rubber gasket”. This is certainly a fancy name but we don’t see much of a difference between their design and most of the other premium coolers that we have tested. But that isn’t taking away from it: the design works!
You will also find the typical rubber T-latch design that many other brands use to hold the lid shut, but with a very cool twist. Cordova has actually flipped them upside down so that they are top-mounted. The reason behind this is that it makes it possible to open the cooler without having to open your truck tailgate or lift the cooler up to access the latches. This makes this cooler great for areas with limited space. We love this idea and are surprised other cooler companies haven’t thought of it!
Another notable difference between these coolers and most of their competition lies in the handles. Rather than have rubber-gripped rope handles, you will find impressive CNC machined handles. This design helps to minimize the chance of you accidentally pinching your hands (a common issue with many rope handle designs) and the rigidity helps to stabilize the cooler while carrying it. Plus, they look great! The handles also have built-in bottle openers near the base. And for those that prefer to carry with a traditional built-in handle, you will find molded handle cavities directly underneath the machined handles.
Instead of built-in cup holders, Cordova Coolers will come with a built-in raised tray. This makes it a great place to hold your food, drinks, or tackle box so that it won’t fall off the side while moving. This is another area that shows Cordova’s boating roots. Some people may prefer to just have cup holders and other people will like this design more: it is up to personal preference (but quite frankly, we like the change of pace).
And we all know how painful having a cooler lid fall on our fingers/hands can be. And when you are talking about a larger cooler with thick lids, it can be outright dangerous. Cordova has that issue solved thanks to its patented lid lock system. It will keep the lid upon without you having to manually hold it or rest it on something and it can still be easily closed once you are ready for it to be. Quite frankly, we wish that this type of feature would be mandatory in any larger cooler.
Other great (but more common) features include the high-flow drain port, anti-slip feet, and mounting points for ropes. But even these are specialized. The drain plug is made of Delrin plastic (a much stronger material) and the anti-slip feet have been dubbed Anti-slip Goat’s Feet.
As you can clearly see, there are a lot of really innovative features to get excited about here. These days, finding ways to stand out in the extremely competitive premium cooler market is a must and Cordova seems to be on the right track.
Cordova Cooler Ice Life
Now time for one of the most important metrics: ice life. All of the clever features in the world don’t make much of a difference if a cooler can’t hold ice. And Cordova said early on that their goal was to make a product that can hold ice with the best of them.
From the features listed above, you can see that all of the ingredients for long ice life are present: relatively thick rotomolded walls with foam insulation, a strong latch system, rubber gaskets, and quality construction. But how does that translate to ice life?
We didn’t find a lot of specifics on Cordova’s website. However, in other locations, we saw “10 days of ice retention” being mentioned. This is a huge number so we obviously had to test it ourselves.
To test this, we filled up the cooler with ice, left it out in the Texas heat, and occasionally opened it. This gives you a more real-life result compared to leaving it indoors and never opening it. It is also worth mentioning that Cordova recommends a 2:1 ice ratio on its website. In our experience, most people don’t typically use this much ice in the real world so we cut this down a bit. That being said, if you are somebody who always underfills their cooler with cans and overfills with ice, expect your particular ice life to be on the higher end of our results (or potentially even higher!).
You can check out our findings in the chart below:
We are overall impressed with the ice life here. It is about what we expected given the combination of ice retention features discussed above. And due to Cordova’s non-inflated naming system, a Cordova model of a particular number size will likely outperform an equivalent number size from other brands. For instance, expect a Cordova 50 to have ice life more similar to a Yeti Tundra 65 as opposed to a Tundra 45.
That being said, we didn’t see the alleged 10 days of ice retention that we have seen thrown around. We don’t know the source of this number but want to stress that you aren’t going to get 10 days of ice life in most cases (particularly in the smaller models). If you were to fill the Cordova 125 up to the top with ice, leave it indoors, and never open it? Then sure. You might see 10 days. But that isn’t how most people use their coolers.
In our testing, we saw that ice life should be expected to be between 150ish and 190ish hours in the largest model. This translates to over a week of ice. This is still impressive no matter which way you cut it.
As you move down to smaller models, the ice life, as expected, goes down. This ends with the Tailgater 25 which, in most scenarios, will have 2 days or less of ice life. This is a noticeable jump down from the larger models. The Tailgater 25 utilizes much thinner walls and, quite frankly, can almost be looked at as a totally different cooler. This ice life is still plenty good on it for most weekend activities but a step below what its bigger siblings can manage.
Cordova Cooler Aesthetics
Having an attractive cooler may be a big necessity for some people and the last thing on other people’s minds. Either way, it is worth discussing.
All Cordova Hard-sided Coolers come in 5 color choices: Aqua, Gray, Orange, Sand, and White. This is about average in terms of color options compared to other brands. It is also worth noting that all colors will come with a white lid outside of the sand option that comes with a color-matching sand lid.
What we really like about Cordova coolers isn’t in their color choices but in the overall design of the cooler. You will find really attractive front, side, and rear faces that have jagged edges that resemble a mountain range. This is a refreshing change from the same flush faces that we are used to seeing on most other coolers.
In addition to this, the impressive CNC handles and the “upside down” latches further help to make this brand really stand out when placed next to most other premium coolers available today. Quite frankly, this is one of the most attractive coolers that we have ever seen.
It is worth noting that there isn’t a custom shop that we could find at the moment. That means that if you are after a specialty color or having custom decals or lettering put on your Cordova Cooler that you may be out of luck. We hope that this company considers adding that in the future so that they can further tap into what we consider an extremely good-looking ice chest.
Cordova Cooler Price
On paper, Cordova has everything that you are used to seeing in an expensive cooler: Made in the USA, premium parts, impressive warranty, and tons of features. And true to form, they are quite expensive.
Stating that a higher-end cooler is going to fetch a high price tag is likely no surprise to you at this point in time. If you have been shopping around for a very long, you know that you have to pay to play in this caliber of cooler. The important thing is how to the prices here compare to other coolers with similar performance?
Cordova appears to fall about in the middle of the premium cooler price range. In other words, certain brands such as Yeti will fetch a slightly higher asking price for a given size while other models such as certain RTIC and nICE Cooler models will be more affordable.
We are more than satisfied with this price point. These ice chests have a lot going for them along with some features and looks that you won’t find anywhere else. And the lifetime warranty is the icing on top. We can’t call these a “budget” cooler by any stretch. But a good value? Absolutely.
Cordova Cooler vs. Yeti
Yeti has been the industry standard of high-end coolers for years now. But many up-and-coming brands such as Cordova hope to end that. So how does Cordova compare to Yeti?
Both brands have a rather broad product lineup. Both offer hard-sided coolers, soft-sided coolers, and drinkware. But in terms of sheer product numbers, Yeti has Cordova beat easily. Their selection of sizes, configurations, and accessories is seemingly endless compared to Cordova’s small but broad lineup.
In terms of ice life, each performs quite well. For a given storage volume, ice life is shockingly similar. But upon closer inspection, this isn’t that big of a surprise. Both Yeti and Cordova have very similar wall thicknesses and features to maximum ice retention.
As for features, we are going to have to give Cordova a slight edge. While Yeti may have more accessories to choose from, the features that come already installed on Cordova Coolers are more impressive.
Build quality is very close but the lifetime warranty on Cordova coolers is a clear winner over Yeti’s 5-year warranty on their Tundra Series. But on either model, you will enjoy premium materials and Made in USA construction.
We also have to side with Cordova when it comes to looks. There are fewer color choices and customization options but styling is one of our favorite in the industry.
Finally, when it comes to cost, neither is cheap. But Cordova does hit the pocketbook a little less than Yeti.
Considering all of these things, we are going to have to go with Cordova in the comparison. But both models bring a lot to the table and would be fine choices if you have the budget that allows for it.
Cordova Cooler Review
Pros: Good ice life, Lifetime warranty, Many clever features, Awesome styling
Cons: Not a ton of sizes, Limited colors, High price tag
Features: High-density foam, Quad-core rubber gasket, Reverse rubber T-latch, CNC machined handles, Raised lid tray, High-flow drain plug, Anti-slip goat’s feet, Lid locking system
Cordova was inspired by boating but their diverse lineup of coolers will fit right at home in any setting. They utilize many of the traditional features that we look for in high-end coolers and also throw in some features that we have never seen before. The result is a really cool product that has one of the best warranties that we have ever seen to back it up. The asking price is high but worth it. We really have nothing negative to say about this product.
Insulation Ability – 
Ice life is about what we would expect given the ice-retaining features that are present. With these, Cordova Coolers will be among the top tier in the industry for a given size. It is worth noting that the name designation will differ from many other brands. You will find that the storage volume and ice life of a given Cordova Cooler (for instance, the Cordova 50) will be much closer to the 65-Series models offered by other coolers. This has more to do with certain brands not aligning the names of their coolers with their true storage volume than anything else.
Depending on the specific model you go with and the conditions that you put it in, you can anticipate anywhere from a couple of days of ice life up to over a week. We feel that you will be hard-pressed to see the supposed 10 days of ice life that some people claim but these numbers are far from being disappointing.
Mobility and Durability – 
There are some really innovative features in place that make Cordova Ice Chests not only extremely tough but also quite user-friendly. We really like the reverse T-latch design. This method implements the same proven T-latches that we have seen in many other brands but flips them upside down. This allows you to easily access and open the cooler lid when space is limited.
In addition, the CNC machined handles make transporting a full cooler a breeze. And the lid lock system helps to protect our hands and fingers from what can be a pretty heavy lid. Other helpful features include the built-in raised tray, high-flow drain plug, and anti-skid feet.
But these coolers aren’t just great from a convenience standpoint. They are also extremely tough. You will find the construction and materials used top-notch. And the lifetime warranty, IGBC Certification, and Made in the USA stamp further support that claim. These are tough products that are designed to last for many years of wear and tear.
Visual Appeal –
We absolutely love the look of these products. The attractive mountain range that is embedded on the faces really makes these stand out from most other coolers at this price tier. This, combined with the attractive metal handles and funky latch design, results in an ice chest that really pops. There are enough color options to make most people happy as well. The only thing missing is a custom shop but this is only a minor complaint.
Cost – 
As you likely guessed, Cordova products aren’t cheap. They are comfortably in the premium price tier. But you get so much for your money here that it makes the high asking price much easier to swallow. Besides: you will enjoy a lifetime warranty so if anything goes wrong with your cooler then you can rest assured knowing that the company will back it and try its best to repair or replace it. So you can consider this more of an investment than a purchase.
Overall Rating –
We must say that we walked away from our Cordova Cooler Review quite impressed. For being a relatively small company, Cordova has found some great ways to stick out from the crowd with its small lineup of hard-sided coolers. The ice life is up to spec and the toughness cannot be ignored but the real shining points here are the innovative features, attractive styling, and lifetime warranty. If you are sick and tired of blending in with the sea of Yetis and RTICs at the lake, consider trying out a Cordova. You might just find yourself a new favorite cooler.
