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Primus

Primus Express Spider II

Mid Confidence: Medium
  • Weight: 4/10 How much it adds to your pack.
  • Packed size: 5/10 How much room it takes in your rucksack.
  • Boil speed (still air): 4/10 How fast the maker says it boils 1 litre in still air. Wind slows every stove: see Wind performance.
  • Wind performance: 3/10 How well it keeps boiling in a breeze, as sold, without an extra windshield.

Lowest price we found

£59.95 at Cotswold Outdoor

In stock. Delivery £6.95. Checked 8 Nov 2026.

RRP £69.99, checked 20 Oct 2026.

Go to Cotswold Outdoor Compare 4 shops

Three- and four-season trips where you want to turn the canister upside down in the cold (Primus fits a preheating coil for this)

Fuel
Gas
Weight
200 g
Boil 1 L, still air
5:00
Windshield in the box
No
Packed size 0.431 L, 10.5 x 8.2 x 5 cm Compare with a 2-litre bottle

Shorter than a 2-litre bottle and thinner than one. Drawn to scale.

Where to buy

Cotswold Outdoor £59.95 In stock. Delivery £6.95. Shop shows a list price of £70.00. Free Click & Collect.

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Alpinetrek £63.47 In stock. Delivery £4.49. Price includes duties and taxes; the shop shows an earlier price of £72.95. £4.49 UK delivery, free from £85; delivery takes 5-7 working days.

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Ultralight Outdoor Gear £64.99 In stock. Free delivery. Shop's list price £69.99. Lists 198 g. Free UK delivery over £15.

View at shop

Primus £69.99 In stock. Free delivery. Free shipping over £49 (£6 under £49); delivery within 2-4 working days.

View at shop

Prices checked 8 Nov 2026 on each shop's own page; shops can change them. We earn no commission on these links; shops are listed by price. More

Our ratings (out of 10)

1 to 10, compared with the whole market. Each says what it's based on. How we score

Weight

From maker's figures 4/10

How much it adds to your pack. 4: A bit below average.

Primus gives 200 g on its UK and international pages (the heat reflector and bag are extra: TheOutdoorGearReview weighed 201 g for the stove and about 258 g with both). 200 g sits in the 180-299 g band.

Packed size

From maker's figures 5/10

How much room it takes in your rucksack. 5: Does the job. Average for wild-camping gear.

Primus's UK page gives no size, but its international page lists the stove as 105 x 82 x 50 mm (depth, height, width) in the specification block. Alpinetrek prints the same figures as packed dimensions and PaleoHikerMD quotes 10.4 x 8.1 x 5.1 cm. As a box: 10.5 x 8.2 x 5 = 431 cm3, about 0.43 L, in the 0.2-0.59 L band (as a roll, 10.5 cm long and 5 cm across, it is 0.21 L, the same band). Primus does not say 'folded' in that block.

Boil speed (still air)

From maker's figures 4/10

How fast the maker says it boils 1 litre in still air. Wind slows every stove: see Wind performance. 4: A bit below average.

Primus's specification block gives 5:00 (300 s) with a regular pot and 3:35 with its heat-exchanger pot, and its copy says 1 litre in five minutes. We band the regular-pot figure, 300 s, in the 300-479 s band. Primus gives no water temperature or wind. Alpinetrek's shop copy says 4 minutes, which is not a maker figure. TheOutdoorGearReview timed 2 US cups (about 0.47 L) in 4 min 4 s at about 7 °C.

Wind performance

Estimate from maker's specs: windshield in the box 3/10

How well it keeps boiling in a breeze, as sold, without an extra windshield. 3: Below average. Fine for some trips, not others.

Estimate from maker's specs

In short

Good for

  • Three- and four-season trips where you want to turn the canister upside down in the cold (Primus fits a preheating coil for this)
  • Walkers who want a low, stable stove for a solo or two-person pot
  • Anyone who may later want to run liquid fuel (Primus sells a multi-fuel kit)

Strengths

  • Remote layout: the pot sits low on three legs and the canister stands to one side, so it is steadier than a top-mounted stove (Primus; TheOutdoorGearReview, PaleoHikerMD)
  • 200 g for a hose stove, about 258 g with the heat reflector and bag (TheOutdoorGearReview)
  • Preheating coil lets you invert the canister in cold weather; TheOutdoorGearReview calls it excellent in cool to cold weather
  • TheOutdoorGearReview boiled 2 US cups (about 0.47 L) in 4 min 4 s at about 7 °C

Weaknesses

  • No wind protection on the burner head: TheOutdoorGearReview and PaleoHikerMD both say to carry a windscreen
  • The metal heat reflector in the box is stiff and sharp-edged; TheOutdoorGearReview says it makes the stove less level and less safe to pack
  • No built-in igniter (PaleoHikerMD): carry a lighter
  • Output is modest at about 2,000 W, and the narrow flame suits small pots better than wide pans
  • Primus gives no temperature rating, and no wind or simmer figure from a test of this model

Sources

We haven't tested this ourselves. Every score comes from these specs, tests and reviews.

ShowHide sources (5)
  1. Primus UK: Express Spider Backpacking Stove (the page is titled Express Spider II), product page Specs, 20 Oct 2026. Used for: weight, boil speed (still air)
  2. Alpinetrek: Primus Express Spider II gas stove (specs as listed by the shop) Specs, 20 Oct 2026. Used for: packed size
  3. TheOutdoorGearReview (YouTube): Regulator + Pre-Heat Tube = Winter Performance, Primus Express Spider II Stove Video, 24 Feb 2026. Used for: weight, boil speed (still air)
  4. PaleoHikerMD (YouTube): Primus Spider 2 Remote Canister Stove, Innovation or Novelty? Video, 11 Oct 2022. Used for: packed size
  5. Primus (international site): Express Spider Backpacking Stove, product page with its specification block (page in Swedish, figures in English) Specs, 20 Oct 2026. Used for: packed size, boil speed (still air)