The 3 Best Portable Generators

After the last big storm knocked our power out for two full days, I promised myself I’d get a generator. Losing a whole refrigerator’s worth of food was bad enough, but sitting in the dark with flashlights got old fast. I needed something reliable for emergencies but also maybe something I could take camping.

So I spent a lot of time looking at portable generator reviews and talking to friends who own them. It turns out there’s a big difference between a small inverter generator for your electronics and a big workhorse that can run your fridge and a window A/C unit.

After all that research and a couple of years of owning one myself, these are the ones I’d recommend to family and friends. I’ve focused on models that are reliable, easy to use, and offer good value for what you get.

My Top Portable Generator Reviews for 2026

Honda EU2200i Companion Portable Inverter Generator

The Honda EU2200i will cost you around $1,199, and honestly, it’s worth every penny if you value quiet. This is the one you see at every campground and tailgate party for a reason. It’s so quiet you can have a normal conversation standing right next to it.

I borrowed a friend’s for a weekend camping trip, and it was incredible. It powered our lights and charged all our phones and speakers without any trouble. Because it’s an inverter, the power is “clean,” so you don’t have to worry about frying your sensitive electronics like laptops. And at under 50 pounds, I can easily lift it into the back of my truck by myself.

The Downside: This generator is fantastic for smaller jobs, but it’s not going to run your whole house. You can’t power a refrigerator or a space heater with it, so it’s not the best choice for a serious home backup plan.

Champion Power Equipment 4750-Watt Dual Fuel Portable Generator

For around $590, the Champion 4750-watt model is an absolute workhorse. This is the kind of generator you want for a real power outage at home. It has enough juice to keep the essentials running—I’m talking the refrigerator, deep freezer, and some lights.

What I really like is the dual-fuel capability. You can run it on regular gasoline or hook up a propane tank, which is great for long-term storage since propane doesn’t go bad. It’s a simple, rugged machine that gets the job done without a lot of fuss.

The Downside: This thing is loud. There’s no getting around it. You’ll want to place it as far from the house as you safely can, because it sounds like a lawnmower running constantly.

Westinghouse iGen4500DF Dual Fuel Inverter Generator

The Westinghouse iGen4500DF is a fantastic middle ground, priced at about $1,099. It gives you the clean, quiet power of an inverter like the Honda but with enough wattage to run some serious equipment, including the A/C unit on an RV.

It’s also a dual-fuel model, and the remote start feature is amazing. You can fire it up from inside your house or camper, which is a nice luxury on a cold or rainy day. It’s a great all-around choice if you need more power than the small camping models but still want quiet operation.

The Downside: It’s heavy. At about 100 pounds, it’s not something you want to be lifting in and out of your truck bed very often. It has wheels, but you’ll definitely feel the weight when moving it around on anything but flat, paved ground.

What to Look For When Buying

Choosing the right generator really comes down to what you’ll use it for most. If you’re mostly tailgating or camping, a small, quiet inverter like the Honda is perfect. You don’t need a ton of power, and you won’t annoy everyone around you.

But for home power outages, you need to think bigger. Add up the wattage of the things you absolutely must run (fridge, freezer, maybe a well pump) and get a generator that can handle that load. A conventional generator like the Champion offers the most power for your money, but you’ll have to live with the noise.

The dual-fuel option is a bigger deal than you might think. Having a few propane tanks on hand is so much easier than storing gasoline, which needs stabilizers and can gum up the carburetor over time. For me, having that flexibility is key for emergency preparedness.