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Beach days are an amazing part of summer — everyone from Bella Hadid to Britney Spears would agree. But to truly enjoy a day on the sand, you need a lot of stuff. Sunscreen, chairs, umbrellas, books, drinks, snacks — it can all be way too much to carry! Luckily, that’s why beach wagons were invented. A good, sturdy beach wagon will transport everything you need from your car to your seaside spot, wheel easily over sand and rocky terrain, and fold up for convenient storage in your car when you’re not using it. There are a lot of beach wagons out there, but to help you choose the one that will make your beach day the absolute best, PEOPLE tested nearly 20 wagons, and one came out on top: the Beau Jardin Folding Wagon.
Here are the other winners of the best beach wagons that PEOPLE Tested.
No assembly required, so it’s easy to use right from the day you get it
Easy to fold and store
High weight capacity at 300 pounds
Our testers didn't find anything wrong with this beach wagon
If you’re looking for something easy to use, look no further than this beach wagon. The simple setup — it comes assembled and you just have to unfold it and go — makes it ideal for pretty much anyone. This wagon got top marks across the board, actually: it was easy to open and close, pulled well across the parking lot and sand, felt sturdy, held all our stuff, and doesn’t seem exorbitantly expensive for what you get. In fact, this is a rare beach wagon that didn’t get dinged any points during testing.
The three cupholders and deep storage basket were great for toting all our essentials. It rolled well even when chock-full of stuff, and was basically just “the perfect beach wagon,” according to our tester.
While we didn’t have any complaints about this wagon (minus the price, although it does seem worth it), the standout feature really is how compact and easy to fold it is. So it would work for anyone, but it would work especially well for people in a time crunch — you don’t lose even a second in the folding/unfolding process, which is major when trying to make the most of your time off!
Price at time of publish: $169.99
Weight: 28.9 lbs. | Dimensions: 34.3 x 20 x 26.4 inches | Weight limit for cargo: 300 lbs. | Assembly required: No
Doesn't take up a lot of room in the trunk
The tires don’t handle sand well, so this is more like an all-purpose wagon
OK, let’s start with the big con: this is a wagon, not a beach wagon. The tires are very small, and they didn’t roll through the sand well. This is a really major concern, but if you’re looking to save a few bucks you may be willing to deal with it. That said, if you’re looking for more of a grocery cart, we really did like this wagon! The tires handled much better on hard surfaces like pavement. The material is high-quality and durable, especially for the price, and the wagon is super easy to set up — no assembly required, and opens and closes easily.
So what would we use it for? Carrying loads to and from your car, like groceries, sporting equipment, and other big shopping hauls would be great. It doesn’t take up a lot of room in the trunk, which is another big plus. It’s also super lightweight — less than half of what our overall winner weighs — which adds to its versatility.
No budget pick is ever perfect, but if you’re looking for more of an all-purpose wagon (or you’re just super strong and don’t mind pulling tiny wheels over sand), this is still a good option.
Price at time of publish: $64.99
Weight: 12.1 lbs. | Dimensions: 29.50 x 17.90 x 18.50 inches | Weight limit for cargo: 150 lbs. | Assembly required: No
Feels super high quality with durable materials
Easy to open and close
The wheels are big, which makes it heavier and harder to store
This wagon is awesome. It holds a cooler, toys, a beach bag, and extras, and rolls great from concrete to sand. It also looked perfectly brand new after being tested, which is a nice perk! Our tester was really impressed by the material, which seemed “strong enough to last a long time.” For families who consistently lug a lot of things to and from the beach, this wagon is a truly excellent choice.
But there is one big tradeoff: in order to have wheels that roll beautifully in sand, they have to be big. And big wheels are heavy. And a heavy wagon is hard to lift, carry, and store. This obviously isn’t a deal breaker — it’s too good a wagon to dismiss just because it’s heavy, and despite the weight, it actually is very simple to open and close. But it’s something to be aware of, especially if you’re a parent who ever travels to the beach solo with your kid(s) and could get weighed down (pun intended) by one more heavy thing to carry.
Price at time of publish: $239.99
Weight: 24.5 lbs. | Dimensions: 24.6 x 36.2 x 21.4 inches | Weight limit for cargo: 150 lbs. | Assembly required: No
One of the only wagons we tested that came with brakes for the wheels
Material is sleek and durable
Easy to open and close
The wheels drag through sand, rather than move on top of it
We really liked how smartly designed this wagon is: the material has a “tactical” quality to it, which lends itself to many different terrains, and the brakes on the tires (a standout feature we didn’t encounter often) also add to the versatility — no rolling away downhill! (Our tester, a photographer, said this wagon would be great for transporting her equipment to and from shoots.)
Our tester did take off one point for the way the wheels moved through the sand — while not impossible, they do drag more than roll, which makes maneuvering a bit more challenging. Still, for all the other terrains this wagon handled well, including grass and pavement, it’s a solid choice.
It folds and unfolds easily. It didn’t require much setup but does need slightly more assembly than the other wagons we gave top marks to because you have to unwrap the wagon cushion and then place it in the wagon once you’ve unfolded it, but minimal time is required to do this.
Price at time of publish: $119.99
Weight: 13.5 lbs. | Dimensions: 21 x 25 x 15 inches | Weight limit for cargo: 150 lbs. | Assembly required: Minimal
Ready to go right out of the box
Includes roomy extra side storage
It’s on the pricier side, but we still think it's worth it
Pretty much any type of beachgoer would be happy with the Timber Ridge wagon, which was versatile. The wheels handled every type of terrain we tried well — gravel, sand, pavement — and the cargo area was roomy enough for everything we needed. Our tester called it one of her favorites of the bunch!
The big selling feature is the oversized pockets on either panel of the wagon, as well as the drink holders on the front and back. These easy-access storage panels make getting to your essentials a cinch, not to mention free up valuable real estate in the main body of the wagon to tote all your other stuff.
The wagon was ready to go right out of the box and felt like it was made from great quality materials, on both the fabric and the wheels, that would hold up for a long time. While it was one of the more expensive ones we tried, it definitely was worth it. A standout option!
Price at time of publish: $139.99
Weight: 24 lbs. | Dimensions: 35.5 x 18.4 x 12 inches | Weight limit for cargo: 150 lbs. | Assembly required: No
What do you usually pack for the beach? Will you be bringing a cooler? Make sure yours will fit in the wagon’s interior. Then factor in sand toys, towels, and even folding chairs and umbrellas if it would make your life easier to bring those along in the wagon. If you're someone who is planning to bringing as much as you can, we recommend the Beau Jardin Folding Beach Wagon, since it's large-sized wagon that also has a high weight capacity.
When not in use, you want a wagon that’s simple to fold and store. Our testers especially loved the Seina Compact Collapsible Wagon because it's super lightweight, easy to open and close, and nicely fits in the trunk of a car.
If the wagon itself is heavy, that may make using it more cumbersome. Look for one you can easily manage on your own.
To get a good roll on sand, you’ll need a larger wheel. (Our favorite beach wagon with big wheels? The Mac Sports Heavy Duty Collapsible Beach Wagon.) If you plan to mostly use your beach wagon on other terrains, you can get away with smaller wheels. You should also note whether the wheels can rotate or are fixed in place: that will inform how easy it is to push or pull.
Summer products often go on sale in the off-season, so look for deals as peak beach season nears a close.
We PEOPLE Tested 18 beach wagons to see which ones were the best for taking our stuff to the sand. After assembling the wagons, we loaded them up with towels, umbrellas, coolers, sand toys, drinks, and other essentials. We made sure to push them over both paved surfaces and a stretch of sandy beach, evaluating the maneuverability as well as the quality of the material and how it held up over multiple beach visits. Our testers then rated each wagon on ease of assembly, performance when being pushed on the sand, how well-made it seemed, and whether it was a good value.
Definitely, if you’re a frequent beach-goer you’ll be surprised at how often you bust out one of these bad boys.
While none of our PEOPLE Tested winners have seats for kids, as long as your cargo is under the weight limit for the wagon and your kid fits, consider it a wagon-slash-stroller.
We created the PEOPLE Tested seal of approval to help you find the very best products for your life. We use our unique methodology to test products in three labs across the country and with our network of home testers to determine their effectiveness, durability, ease of use, and so much more. Based on the results, we rate and recommend products so you can find the right one for your needs.
But we don’t stop there: We also regularly re-review the categories in which we’ve awarded the PEOPLE Tested seal of approval — because the best product of today might not be the best of tomorrow. And by the way, companies can never buy our recommendation: Their products must earn it, fair and square.
In short, PEOPLE Tested provides recommendations you can trust — every day, every purchase.
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