A loaded backpacking pack should not weigh more than about 20 percent of your body weight. (If you weigh 150 pounds, your pack should not exceed 30 pounds for backpacking.) A loaded day hiking pack should not weigh more than about 10 percent of your body weight.

Choosing floor dimensions are relatively easy; about 25 inches of width per person and about 80 inches of length will be suitable for most people. Taller occupants, or those camping with a dog, may want to look at tents that are closer to 90 inches long.

Depending on your style of backpacking: ultra-lightweight, lightweight, or traditional here are the guidelines. A divided tent below 2 lbs per person is considered ultra-light with a sub 10 lb base; 3 to 4 lbs per person is lightweight going with a 15 to 20 lb base and greater than that for traditional.

For two people it is totally fine. 6 lbs is definitely on the high end of what I would want to take backpacking split between two people wouldn’t be awful but I think you’ll find yourself wanting something lighter. I like the rule of thumb that you want your tent, sleeping bag and sleeping pad under 10 lbs.

While the general rule of thumb is that each backpacker should carry between 2-3 pounds in tent weight, you should consider some other features that will factor into the weight of your backpacking tent and overall livability on the trail.

As a guide a backpacking tent should weigh no more than 3kg per person, and less is much better. But less weight often means less room inside the tent and can mean a compromise on quality. Good quality backpacking solo tents range between 1kg and 2kg, while two-man tents can weigh up to 5kg.

Two-Person Backpacking Tents with Poles

Lightweight Sleep Systems Your goal should be to reduce the total weight of your sleep system to three pounds or less. This is achievable if you can get your sleeping bag or top quilt under two pounds (32 ounces) in weight and sleeping pad under one pound (16 ounces).

Pack Weight for Backpacking and Hiking: A loaded backpacking pack should not weigh more than about 20 percent of your body weight. (If you weigh 150 pounds, your pack should not exceed 30 pounds for backpacking.) A loaded day hiking pack should not weigh more than about 10 percent of your body weight.

Just remember that keeping weight down is very important for backpacking, so choosing a lightweight model is highly advised if you’re going to bump up in tent size. Some ultralight 3-person tents we highly recommend are the Big Agnes Copper Spur HV UL 3 and the Zpacks Triplex.

If you want space for two wide sleeping pads (25 in), you’ll usually need to bump up to a 3-person lightweight backpacking tent. Two wide pads usually won’t fit in a 2-person backpacking tent. The upside of going with a three-person tent is that you’ll have a much more comfortable interior space for two people.

From a quick look at the tables, it’s rather obvious that packed size almost always correlates with weight. Simply put, the lighter the tent, the smaller the packed size. And while the actual dimensions are helpful, it doesn’t by any means force you to try and look for a space inside or outside your pack to fit a 21 x 6-inch tent burrito.

40-50 Liters (The Ultralight Thru-Hiker) It’s amazing the difference 10 liters of space will make. A pack this size can be used for multi-day backpacking trips and even Continental Trail thru-hikes provided you keep a lightweight and minimalist philosophy.