Buying guide
Hard shell vs soft shell rooftop tents
Updated · 6 min read
The short answer
A soft shell rooftop tent folds out over the side of the vehicle on a hinge, which buys you more sleeping area per dollar and less weight — Top Dog's Soft Top is $1,199 at 119 lb net. A hard shell has a rigid lid on gas struts that opens in seconds and packs down to a low aerodynamic profile you can leave on the vehicle year-round; Top Dog's Hard Top is $2,499 at the same 119 lb. Buy a soft shell if you want the most tent for the money and don't mind a two-minute setup. Buy a hard shell if you camp often, move campsites frequently, or care about the tent surviving a wet winter on the roof.
The mechanical difference
A soft shell tent is a fabric box on a hinged aluminium floor. The floor is split down the middle; one half sits on your rack and the other folds out over the side of the vehicle, usually supported by the ladder. When it's closed, a heavy PVC travel cover zips over the whole thing.
A hard shell replaces that cover with a rigid lid — ABS, fibreglass or aluminium — on gas struts. Unlatch it and the lid lifts itself. The canvas concertinas up with it. Nothing folds over the side, so the tent's footprint open is the same as its footprint closed.
Setup time
This is the difference people notice first and rate highest after a season of use. A hard shell is genuinely a matter of seconds: release two latches and the struts do the rest. Top Dog's Aluminum POP Top publishes a 60-second setup and a 90-second pack-down.
A soft shell takes a couple of minutes and more physical effort: unzip the cover, wrestle it off, swing the fold-out half over, extend the ladder, then peg out the awning poles over the windows if it's raining. Packing down is the harder half, because you have to tuck the canvas in as you close it — which is why Top Dog's wedge includes an elastic band that pulls the fabric in for you.
If you move campsite every night, this compounds fast. If you drive to one spot and stay four days, it barely matters.
Floor area and money
Because a soft shell unfolds to roughly double its closed footprint, you get more sleeping area per dollar and per pound. That's the whole argument for one.
A hard shell's sleeping area is bounded by what fits on your roof. Top Dog's Aluminum Wedge gives a 79 × 51 in sleeping footprint with 46 in of peak internal height, in a shell that's 86 × 54 in closed.
- Soft Top — $1,199, 119 lb net, sleeps 2, three windows and two doors
- Hard Top — $2,499, 119 lb net, sleeps 2, 450N gas struts, 17 in closed profile
- Aluminum Wedge (TD-01) — $3,595, 238 lb, 600 lb static capacity, 2-year warranty
Living on the roof year-round
A hard shell's lid is the tent's own weather protection, so it tolerates being left on the vehicle through a wet winter far better. A soft shell relies on its PVC travel cover, which is a consumable — it's the part that fails first on a tent that never comes off.
Aerodynamics follow the same pattern. A hard shell that closes to a 10–17 in wedge behaves like a roof box. A soft shell closed is a taller, blunter object with a cover that can flap.
The hybrid, which is a real third option
A Z-type hybrid puts a rigid lid over a Z-folding body. Closed it looks like an aerodynamic cargo box; opened on gas struts it gives you fold-out floor area. Top Dog builds two — the 1m 60cm at $2,800 and the 1m 90cm at $3,250, which sleeps 2 adults plus a child.
You pay for it in weight: 180 lb and 210 lb net respectively, against 119 lb for either of the simpler tents. On a roof-load budget that is a large difference.
What actually decides it
Not the shell. Your roof. Our lightest tent is 119 lb before hardware, and most factory racks are rated 110–176 lb dynamic including the rack's own weight. Both the Soft Top and the Hard Top are the same 119 lb, so the shell choice does not change your fitment answer — but choosing the 210 lb hybrid instead absolutely does.
Work out what your roof carries first, then choose a shell from what's left.
Questions
Is a hard shell rooftop tent worth the extra money?
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If you camp more than a handful of nights a year, or you move campsites frequently, yes — the setup time difference is the single most-cited satisfaction factor after a season of ownership, and a hard lid survives year-round mounting far better. For occasional use, a soft shell gives you meaningfully more tent for the money.
Are soft shell rooftop tents waterproof?
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Yes, when they're built properly. Top Dog's Soft Top uses 280 GSM canvas with a PU coating rated to 3000 mm waterproof plus a separate 420D oxford rainfly at the same rating, with UV50+ protection. The 3000 mm figure is a hydrostatic head rating — anything above about 1500 mm is considered fully waterproof for camping.
Which is lighter, a hard shell or a soft shell?
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Usually the soft shell, but not always. Top Dog's Soft Top and Hard Top are both 119 lb net, because the hard shell uses an ABS lid rather than aluminium. The aluminium-shelled tents in the range are heavier — 158 lb to 238 lb.