Canister vs Alcohol Stove: 56 g Lighter for 3 Days, Not 7

An alcohol stove is the lighter choice for solo trips of up to 5 days in mild weather where fire rules allow it. A canister stove is better for a full week, for cold or wind, and for the dry-season American West. Over 3 days the alcohol kit starts 56 g lighter; by day 7 that lead is gone.

Both figures come from stove weights in the HikeLoad gear database combined with published fuel data, and the full calculation is laid out below so you can swap in your own kit. The short version: a bare alcohol burner is the lightest stove on the list, but once it has a pot stand it saves nothing over gas. The saving that lasts is the 100 g of steel you don't carry.

How much do canister and alcohol stoves weigh?

The lightest canister burner in our database weighs 28 g and the lightest alcohol burner 16 g, but those two numbers don't describe the same thing. A canister burner is ready to cook on. Most alcohol burners need a pot support and a windscreen before they boil anything, so check what a listed weight includes.

Burner against burner, the 16 g Kojin undercuts the 28 g BRS-3000T by 12 g, or 43%. Compare ready-to-cook stoves and it flips: the 86 g Evernew set is 58 g heavier than the BRS-3000T and 13 g (18%) heavier than the PocketRocket 2. So alcohol wins on the bare burner and loses on the complete stove. Where it wins every time is the container: an empty 110 g gas canister is about 100 g of steel, and a 250 ml plastic fuel bottle is about 25 g.

If you have already settled on gas and are choosing a burner, the MSR PocketRocket 2 vs Soto Windmaster comparison and our Soto WindMaster vs Amicus breakdown cover that decision.

How much fuel does each stove burn per litre?

Gas needs about 14 g per litre of boiled water and alcohol about 24 g. The gas figure is MSR's own: the PocketRocket 2 spec sheet lists 2 litres boiled per ounce (28 g) of IsoPro. That makes alcohol roughly 70% heavier per litre of hot water, because it carries less energy per gram.

The alcohol figure is softer. Adventure Alan's review of the Kojin, tested inside a Trail Designs cone, reports about 14 to 15 ml to boil a pint (473 ml) at 20 °C and sea level, which works out to about 30 ml, or 24 g, per litre. That is a best case. We have no measured figure for an open burner on a simple stand, so as our own planning estimate we assume it can take double: around 60 ml per litre. Your windscreen decides which end of that range you get.

The trip calculation below uses these assumptions:

• One hiker, 1 litre boiled per day (two 500 ml boils: dinner and a hot breakfast or drink).
• 14 g of gas or 30 ml (24 g) of alcohol per litre.
• MSR IsoPro canisters at the full weights on MSR's IsoPro product page: 210 g for the 110 g size, 371 g for the 227 g size.
• A 25 g allowance for the alcohol bottle. Put yours on a scale.

Total carried weight: 3-day vs 7-day trip

On a 3-day trip the alcohol kit starts 56 to 101 g lighter than a canister kit. On a 7-day trip the difference shrinks to between 39 g in the canister's favour and 6 g in alcohol's. Start weight is what you shoulder at the trailhead; end weight is what you carry out.

Three days: alcohol wins by 24 to 36%

Three litres of hot water take 90 ml (71 g) of alcohol or 42 g of gas. The Evernew Ti DX set leaves the trailhead at 182 g against 238 g for the BRS-3000T with a small canister: 56 g lighter, or 24%. Against the PocketRocket 2 kit at 283 g the gap is 101 g, or 36%. The alcohol kit also finishes lighter. Its fuel is burned and gone, while the canister hiker walks out with 100 g of steel and 68 g of unused gas.

Seven days: the lead disappears

Seven litres take 210 ml (166 g) of alcohol, so the kit starts at 277 g. The BRS-3000T still runs on one small canister and starts at 238 g, which is 39 g or 14% lighter. The MSR PocketRocket 2 kit at 283 g is 6 g heavier than alcohol, a tie by any practical standard. The crossover sits at 5.4 days against the BRS-3000T and 7.3 days against the PocketRocket 2.

Two caveats pull in opposite directions. A week on a 110 g canister burns 98 g and leaves 12 g, less than one day of reserve, and MSR's figure is a still-air number. For a cool, windy week we'd take the 227 g canister, and that kit starts at 444 g: 167 g more than alcohol. On the other side, at our worst-case estimate of 60 ml per litre an alcohol setup starts a 3-day trip at 253 g, which is already 15 g heavier than the BRS-3000T kit.

One more thing the table hides: fuel is a consumable, so only the stove and its empty container count toward base weight. That is 111 g for the Evernew set with its bottle and 128 g for the BRS-3000T with an empty small canister. Run both through the backpacking base weight calculator and you will see a 17 g difference. If you are hunting for real savings, the bigger wins are elsewhere, as our guide on how to lower your base weight shows.

How much faster does a canister stove boil water?

A canister stove boils water a little over three times faster. MSR's PocketRocket 2 spec sheet lists 3.5 minutes per litre. Adventure Alan's Kojin review measured just over 5 minutes to boil a pint (473 ml) in a cone and lists 5.5 to 6 minutes as the usual range, which scales to about 12 minutes per litre. At two 500 ml boils a day that is 3.5 minutes of waiting against 12, which adds up to about an extra hour over a 7-day trip.

Speed matters more as the group grows. Two people boiling 2 litres a day need 84 g of gas over 3 days, which still fits a small canister at a 238 g start, or 180 ml of alcohol and a 253 g start. For two, the canister is lighter even on a weekend.

Cold narrows the gap from the other side. Isobutane boils at -12 °C (11 °F) at sea level, according to MSR's fuel guide. Below that it stays liquid, and a canister loses pressure well before it gets that cold, so an unregulated burner slows down on frosty mornings and as the canister empties. A regulated stove such as the 67 g Soto Windmaster or the 83 g MSR PocketRocket Deluxe holds its output longer. Alcohol still lights below freezing, but it is slower again and needs priming patience.

Where are alcohol stoves banned, and where is each fuel hard to find?

As of 2026 there is no single national stove rule in the United States. Each forest, park and district writes its own fire order, and the dividing line is usually a shut-off valve. In Washington, the 2025 campfire ban for Olympic National Park and Olympic National Forest set that test: stoves “must be equipped with an on-off switch or valve capable of immediately extinguishing the flame.” An alcohol burner has no valve, so it is out.

Not every land manager reads it that way. Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks stated in their Stage 2 fire restriction notice that gas, propane and alcohol stoves “with and without a shutoff valve” stayed permitted. The practical rule: read the current order for every unit you cross. On a route that passes through many of them, such as the PCT from San Diego to Cascade Locks, a valved canister stove satisfies the strictest wording you will meet.

Neither fuel flies. The FAA's PackSafe guidance on fuels forbids all camp stove fuel in carry-on and checked bags, so you buy on arrival. That is where the two fuels differ most:

• Threaded gas canisters are an outdoor-shop product. Village supermarkets in France and Spain often stock only Campingaz click-on or pierceable cartridges, which do not fit a threaded burner.
• Alcohol is a household product. Look for alcool à brûler in French supermarkets, Brennspiritus in Germany, spiritus in the Netherlands, rødsprit in Norway and T-röd in Sweden.
• In the US, yellow-bottle HEET is sold at gas stations and auto parts stores, which matters in trail towns with no outfitter.

Who should choose a canister stove?

Choose gas when any of these describe your trip:

• Six or more days between resupplies, or two people sharing one stove on any trip length.
• Summer and autumn in the western US, where a fire order can change after you have left home.
• Camps near or below freezing, or exposed sites above the treeline, where a regulated burner earns its extra grams.
• Meals that need a simmer, not just boiling water.

The downsides are real. You carry 100 g of empty steel on every trip, you cannot see how much gas is left without weighing or floating the canister, and half-used canisters pile up at home because nobody wants to start a week with one. Abroad, the wrong valve type can leave you with a stove and nothing to screw it onto.

Who should choose an alcohol stove?

Choose alcohol when these fit:

• Solo trips of 1 to 5 days with boil-only meals. For ideas, see our 3-day backpacking trips in the US.
• European routes where a supermarket is the only resupply for days.
• Flying in late, after the outdoor shops have closed.
• You want a stove with no moving parts, no jets to clog and no noise.

The downsides: boiling takes more than three times as long, the flame is close to invisible in daylight, a knocked-over burner spills burning fuel, and you cannot switch it off. Fuel use also depends on wind protection. By our estimate it can double from 30 to 60 ml per litre, which is enough to erase the weight advantage completely. The 720 g Trangia 27-1 UL solves the wind and stability problems with a full windshield and two pans, but that is a comfort cookset for two, not a gram-saving choice.

Our default: alcohol for solo trips of up to 5 days with boil-only meals, a canister stove for anything longer, colder or shared. Three things can move that line: days between resupplies, how many people share the stove, and the fire order where you camp. Fuel belongs to the same daily consumable load as food, so plan them together with the backpacking food weight calculator and our guide to how much food to pack for a multi-day hike.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is an alcohol stove lighter than a canister stove?

For short solo trips, yes. An 86 g alcohol stove set with a 25 g bottle and 90 ml of fuel weighs 182 g for 3 days, against 238 g for a 28 g canister burner with a full 110 g canister. Alcohol needs about 24 g of fuel per litre boiled versus 14 g of gas, so the advantage is gone after 5 to 7 days.

How much alcohol fuel do I need per day of backpacking?

Plan on 30 ml of denatured alcohol per litre of water boiled with an efficient burner and a good windscreen. For an open burner in wind we budget up to 60 ml per litre, which is our own estimate, not a measured figure. A solo hiker boiling 1 litre a day needs 30 to 60 ml daily, which is 24 to 47 g. For a 3-day trip that means 90 to 180 ml.

How long does a 110 g gas canister last?

At MSR's rated efficiency of 14 g of gas per litre, a 110 g canister boils about 7.8 litres of water. For one hiker boiling 1 litre a day that is 7 days in calm, mild conditions with almost no reserve. In wind or cold, plan on 5 days, or carry the 227 g size, which MSR's PocketRocket 2 spec sheet rates at 16 litres.

Are alcohol stoves allowed during a fire ban?

It depends on the land manager. Many US national forest fire orders allow only stoves with a shut-off valve, which excludes alcohol burners. Some national parks, including Sequoia and Kings Canyon in past Stage 2 restrictions, have explicitly permitted alcohol stoves. Check the current fire order for each forest or park before the trip.

Can you fly with a camping stove and fuel?

You can fly with the stove but not with the fuel. The FAA forbids all camp stove fuels, including gas canisters, liquid alcohol and fuel tablets, in both carry-on and checked baggage. A stove with no residual fuel or vapour is allowed, though individual airlines can refuse used stoves. Buy fuel at your destination.