Compact CampingCamping gas canisters explained
Nearly all modern compact stoves use threaded screw-on canisters to the EN 417 standard. The two other systems - clip-on valve and pierceable - fit different stoves entirely, so know your type before you buy fuel.
The three canister systems
Threaded (EN 417) canisters have a 7/16" screw valve on top and are the de-facto world standard: MSR, Jetboil, Soto, Primus, Optimus and the supermarket house brands all fit each other. Clip-on valve canisters (Campingaz CV series) push and twist on without a thread and are common in France, Spain and southern-European campsite shops. Pierceable canisters (the classic C206 style) are punctured by the stove and cannot be removed until empty — the oldest system, still sold cheaply around Mediterranean campgrounds.
Match the stove, skip the adapters
Buy a threaded-canister stove unless you have a specific reason not to: the fuel is easiest to find worldwide and the range of compact stoves is far larger. Adapters between systems exist and mostly work, but each adds a joint that can leak, and a leaking joint next to a flame is the wrong place to save money. If you inherit a Campingaz or pierceable stove, just budget fuel-buying around its home territory.
Gas mixes and cold weather
Canister gas is a blend of butane, isobutane and propane. Plain butane stops vaporising around 0 °C — the canister is full but the stove starves. Isobutane keeps working to roughly −10 °C and propane lower still, so for shoulder-season trips buy "winter mix" or "four-season" canisters (high isobutane/propane share) and keep the canister in the tent overnight, or warm it in a jacket before breakfast. Performance also drops as any canister empties, whatever the label says.
How much camping gas should you bring?
Canisters come in roughly 100 g, 230 g and 450 g of gas. As a planning rule, boiling half a litre costs a compact stove around 7–10 g of gas in calm conditions — so a 100 g canister is about 10–14 boils: a weekend for one, if you only boil. Wind, cold, simmering and melting snow multiply that quickly, and so does what you cook: freeze-dried meals need one boil, while dehydrated ones want a real simmer. Weigh part-used canisters and write the empty (tare) weight on the base with a marker; it is printed on most brands.
Flying and disposal
Gas canisters are banned from aircraft outright, full or empty, cabin and hold — plan to buy at the destination, and check our flying with camping gear guide before packing the stove. At home, run canisters truly empty, then follow local rules: many areas take fully emptied (and sometimes punctured) canisters as scrap metal, others want them at hazardous-waste points.
Pair it with the right pot
A 100 g canister nests inside most 750 ml pots with a small stove beside it — the classic compact cook kit. Materials are compared in our titanium vs. aluminium guide, and complete kits in compact cookware.