Camp Stove Fuel Types Ranked by Wind Performance

A stove that boils fast in the garage can fail on a ridge in fifteen knot wind. Fuel choice changes everything, and most people pick based on price instead of where they actually cook.

Here is how the main fuels hold up when the breeze picks up.

• Canister gas burns steady in wind but loses pressure as the canister chills
• Liquid white gas runs hot and reliable, with the weight penalty of the bottle
• Alcohol is the quietest but takes twice as long and hates any wind
• Wood burns free and heavy-smoke, best for car camping only

Pair whatever you carry with a proper windscreen. A folded sheet of foil cuts boil time in half and weighs almost nothing.