It’s easy enough to understand why there’s a continuous demand for the best portable gas generator. You need a generator when there’s a power outage at home, and you still need to run your various appliances.
A good portable generator is also more useful since you can move it from one spot to another more easily if you bring it to a campsite.
As for using gasoline, it’s a very convenient fuel source. It’s everywhere, wherever you go there’s a gas station nearby to provide for your needs.
All you need is your gas generator to the powerhouse and a campsite doesn’t have to be torture for you. You can still power your camp lights and recharge your smartphones and laptops. You may even power a fan in the summer or even a TV if you can’t miss the football game.
Some offer enough watts to let you use a mini-fridge so you keep food fresh and your beer cold. You do need to take into account that burning gasoline leads to fumes.
This means you have to use it where you have ample ventilation. These things can be a bit noisy too, so you need to place them far enough away so they don’t annoy you (and everyone else).
Best Portable Gas Generators:
With so many gas generator brands available, how do you pick one that’s best for your needs? One easy way to choose is to narrow down your options to the generators we recommend in our list of the best options:
1. DuroMax XP4400, Best Gas Powered Portable Generator
This is also another modest generator best reserved for emergency use at home. However, it does come with a handle and wheels so you can also move it about around a campsite.
With this, you get 4400 starting watts and 3500 continuous watts. This comes with a 4-gallon tank that gives you 8 hours of use at half load.
The frame is heavy-duty, the tires are solid, and you have a 1-year warranty for the parts. This should last a good long while with features like the circuit breaker and automatic low-oil shutoff.
This isn’t complicated to use at all. There are 2 120V outlets, along with a 120-Volt/240-Volt twist-lock outlet.
The power panel has the engine shutoff switch and the voltmeter. It also has an electric key start so there’s no cord you need to pull. It’s even EPA-approved and the noise levels are tolerable.
Features:
- You have 3500 continuous watts and multiple outlets for several important appliances.
- It has a circuit breaker and an automatic low oil shutoff feature for safety, plus the frame is solidly built.
- It has a handle and wheels for easier mobility around a campsite.
- It’s easy enough to use, especially with the electric key start.
- It can run for 8 hours straight at half load.
2. DuroStar DS4000S, Natural Gas Powered Portable Generator
The DuroStar is known for its affordable yet well-made products, and the DS4000S justifies this reputation.
It’s a modest gas-powered portable generator with 4000 starting watts and 3300 running watts, which should be enough to power your essential appliances at home.
It’s easy enough to use, as it comes with a full complement of safety measures. There’s a voltmeter, an oil warning light, a circuit breaker, a forced-air cooling system, and an automatic low oil shutoff. You get 8 hours of use at 50% load, and it’s not noisy at all due to the muffler.
Features:
- It offers enough watts to run all the appliances you need at home or a camping site so you’re not uncomfortable at all. This can run a small air conditioner and a full-sized refrigerator together, along with some other devices.
- It’s very easy to use, and there are no complications to worry about. You begin with the EZX-pull recoil start.
- It has lots of safety features, such as a circuit breaker and automatic low oil shutoff. You won’t inadvertently damage the engine even if you leave it unattended.
- This comes with a 4-gallon tank, which is enough to give you 8 hours of use at half load.
- It’s EPA-approved. It’s not all that noisy, compared to average gas generators. The noise level is less than 70 decibels.
3. Pulsar 1,200W Portable Gas-Powered Generator
What if you just want a small gasoline generator to power a few simple appliances at a campsite? If you’re not going to use your generator to power your air conditioner and fridge at the same time, it’s a waste of money to buy a generator with more than 10,000 watts.
Instead, the 1,200 watts from this Pulsar should be more than enough.
This gives you 900 watts that should power more than a few lights, a music system, a fan, and perhaps a TV too. You have a couple of 120V outlets to work with, plus a 12V DC output.
This doesn’t have wheels, and that’s because it doesn’t weigh more than 100 pounds. You should be able to lift this from the trunk of your car into your campsite since it only weighs 35 pounds instead.
It also comes with a comfy handle. Bring this to the beach and have a good time. To keep it compact, this only comes with a 1.1-gallon tank.
That’s more than enough for campsite appliances, and it can still give you 8.5 hours of use at half load. You also have a low oil indicator along with automatic voltage regulation, so you have nothing to worry about. It pretty much plugs and plays.
Features:
- You have 900 running watts, which is more than enough for camping and beach fun.
- There are multiple sockets where you can plug in your appliances.
- This is portable, as it’s easy to carry due to the lightweight, compact design, and comfy handle.
- You also have nice safety features.
4. Pulsar PG2000iS 2000 Watt Portable Inverter Generator
This gives you 1600 running watts to work with, along with a couple of AC outlets and a DC outlet.
The nice thing about this is that it also comes with a USB outlet, so on camping sites and beaches, you can make sure your smartphone and laptop don’t run out of juice.
This comes with the stable sine wave technology that makes it safe for more sensitive electronic devices like smartphones.
It’s very compact and it weighs less than 47 pounds so it’s not impossible to carry to your campsite. This only comes with a 1.18-gallon fuel tank, but that’s big enough to give you 8 hours of use at half load.
You can get two of these Pulsar generators and connect them to double your power output. This has multiple safety features, including an automatic voltage regulator and a low oil shutoff feature.
It’s also comparatively quiet, as it only operates at 59 decibels even when you’re just 10 feet away. Other generators are noisier at 23 feet away.
Features:
- It offers 1600 running watts.
- Along with multiple sockets, there’s also a USB port.
- It can still work for 8 hours straight at half load.
- It’s compact and relatively lightweight.
- You don’t have to put up with a lot of noise.
5. DuroMax XP12000E 12000W Portable Gas Electric Start Generator
This is another option for those with lots of appliances to power. It offers 12,000 starting watts and 9,500 running watts.
There are a voltmeter and an oil warning light, along with automatic low oil shutoff.
It’s a simple generator to use, and you have a handle and wheels to move it about your home or campsite. This is a “Beast” of a generator, and you might not even notice that there’s a power outage at all.
Features:
- Duromax XP12000E is very easy to use.
- You can run a long list of appliances with 9,500 running watts.
- It’s very reliable and durable.
- It’s even EPA-approved.
6. A-iPower SUA12000E Gas Powered Portable Generator
Sometimes you don’t want to be bothered by a power outage, and maybe you also like to bring lots of appliances with you at camping sites.
This means you need lots of available generator power, and that’s what you get with this A-iPower.
You get 9000 running watts and 12,000 starting watts, which should be enough to power the appliances that make life comfortable.
This is also the preferred generator by quite a few construction site professionals. It helps that it does comes with wheels and a handle so you can easily move it around a worksite.
The same goes for a campsite too. To power all those devices, the fuel tank here can hold up to 7 gallons. Even at half load running 4500 watts, this should still give you 9 hours of running time.
It’s not all that noisy either considering its size, as it operates at 78 decibels. This comes with lots of features for convenience and safety. There’s a keyless electric start button, GFCI Protected Outlets, and a heavy-duty full frame.
Features:
- You can run your lights, TV, refrigerator, pump, air conditioner, plus a fan at the same time as this.
- At construction sites, you can use this to power 4 to 5 power tools at the same time.
- It offers on-site mobility.
- The frame is durable and it comes with safety features.
- You get 9 hours of running time at half load.
Benefits of a Using Best Portable Gas Generator
- Gasoline is readily available, so it’s not as if you need to search for long for a fuel source.
- Many of these portable gas generators have wheels and a handle so you can move it from one spot to another.
- They’re very easy to use. Normally, even an average child in grade school should be able to figure them out.
- If it is the height of summer, having a gas generator means being able to run the air conditioner or even just a fan when you have a power outage.
- You can use it to power your lights and other appliances at a camping site.
- At a tailgate party, this can be used to power your music system.
- When you’re racing to finish a school assignment on your PC, the generator can make sure you don’t end up failing your class.
- You don’t have to miss the football game even if the power’s out.
- This generator will have various safety features like automatic low oil shutdown and overloading protection.
Buying Guide – How to Choose the Finest Portable Gas Generator?
The best portable gas generator for one person may not be all that good for another person. It all depends on your particular circumstances and needs. To pick the right one that’s best for you, these factors must be considered:
Wattage
You have to consider the running (or rated) watts as well as the peak (or starting) watts. This is the most important consideration, as this will determine what kind of appliances (and how many of them) you can run with the generator. With enough wattage, you can run the usual appliances of an entire household during a power outage.
Running Time
This is usually determined by the size of the fuel tank and the efficiency of the motor. This will also depend on the load you’ve placed on the generator. Normally, you’d expect a gas generator to run for about 8 hours at 50% load.
Portability
This normally isn’t a problem, as these generators generally have wheels and a handle. But the weight may be an issue if you’re going alone to a camping site and you need to lift the generator from the car trunk.
Ease of Use
Again, this shouldn’t be a problem. Even average gas generators should be easy enough to figure out by most adult users. They’re usually so simple even children can use them.
However, it’s best if you do have easy to read gauges and indicators for engine and fuel status, and if you also have lots of safety features like auto low oil shutoff.
Noise
The bigger ones with the most watts tend to be noisier, so it’s up to you to balance your need for power vs. your need for quiet.
You should be able to get used to a gas generator working at 70 decibels or so, which is as loud as a vacuum cleaner. But some generators don’t make as much noise at all.
Durability
How long will the unit last? You may want to stick with well-known brands or to generators made in countries known for good quality control. The length of the warranty can also indicate how long the generator is expected to last.
Who Makes the Quietest Gas Generator?
One of the main drawbacks of using a gas generator is that you have to deal with the noise. It’s one thing to use a rechargeable power station to power your appliances. When you deal with a motor that runs on gasoline, noise is generally part of the deal.
But some generators are noisier than others, and some are run comparatively quieter. Usually, you can thank your lucky stars if your gas generator makes about 70 decibels.
That’s about as loud as a modern vacuum cleaner, or when you turn on your TV at normal sound volume. Some of the more silent gas generators emit even lower noise levels.
- The HONDA EU3000IS can run at less than 50 decibels. That’s as noisy as a quiet suburb which means it’s very quiet.
- The Yamaha EF2000iSv2 goes only up to 61 decibels even on a full load. That’s the normal sound volume of a typical office. It’s about as noisy as an air conditioner 100 feet away from you.
- The Champion Power Equipment 73536i is also good at 53 decibels.
Take note that these decibel readings were taken from 23 feet away. So you may want to get the hint and place your gas generator far from where you usually sit.
Final Verdict
A gas generator is one of those must-have items in your home. Sooner or later you’re going to need one because you’ll have a power outage.
These generators are the best portable generators for camping, picnics, tailgate parties, beach outings, so you can still have lights, music, and the use of your beloved coffee machine.
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