Tent Waterproof Rating: 1,500mm and Why the Floor Matters

For a tent's waterproof rating, a fly (the outer fabric) of 1,500mm reaches the makers' guide. The flies of the 13 I compared run 1,000 to 3,000mm, with no big gap there. The gap is in the floor, from tents with the same number as the fly to tents at 2.5x.

The Gear Nerd's Pick

Rain only runs down over the fly, but the floor is pressed by a person's weight against wet ground. Even at the same 1,500mm, the floor is doing much harder work. So once I know the fly is around 1,500mm, I decide only by the floor number, the thickness of the fabric and how the seams are treated.

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Key points

A waterproof rating of 1,000mm is about 9.8kPa. The test puts water pressure on one side of the fabric and reads the pressure when water comes through the other side; for 1,500mm, at a rise of 60cm per minute it ends in 2.5 minutes
Snow Peak's “minimum” and DOD's “minimum waterproof rating” are listings that write the lowest value, not an average. Keep this difference in mind when lining them up with other companies' numbers
A polycotton (TC) roof is 350mm. It is not a waterproof film; it stops rain as cotton absorbs water and swells, so the yardstick for the number is different

What is in this article (11 items)

How many mm is the guide for tent waterproof rating: the makers' words
How I chose
Waterproof ratings of 13 tents: fly and floor side by side
Why a floor needs more waterproof rating than the fly
For the floor, also look at fabric thickness and seams
How waterproof rating is measured: the 1,500mm test ends in two and a half minutes
Snow Peak's “minimum” is the lowest value, not an average
Three picks: choosing by the floor gives this
Polycotton (TC) has a different yardstick
Who is it for?
FAQ

How many mm is the guide for tent waterproof rating: the makers' words

Coleman writes 1,500mm or more for ordinary camping, and 2,000mm or more if you expect heavy rain. MSR (Mochizuki) sees about 1,500mm as enough and makes the fly of its mountain tents 1,200mm.

How I chose

The first thing I looked at was the fly (the outer fabric). I checked only whether it reaches Coleman's official guide of 1,500mm or more. Eleven of the 13 reached it, so I did not split by the fly.

What I split on was the floor. In order of ratio, fabric thickness and seam treatment, the top was the DOD The Tent M with a 5,000mm floor.

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DOD The Tent M

Lowest price on Rakuten: JPY 43,000 (as of 10/13). Prices vary by up to JPY 69,594 between shops. Prices change daily.

Waterproof ratings of 13 tents: fly and floor side by side

These are 13 tents with both fly and floor officially listed.

As shown on each official page on Oct 13, 2026. Snow Peak writes “minimum” and DOD writes “minimum waterproof rating.” The Landlock's fly is the roof number and the wall is 1,800mm. The two MSR models were listed as “discontinued this season.”
Model	Fly	Floor	Floor ÷ fly
Snow Peak Amenity Dome M	1,800mm	1,800mm	1.0x
Snow Peak Land Lock	3,000mm	1,800mm	0.6x
Snow Peak Landlock X	3,000mm	1,800mm	0.6x
Coleman Touring Dome/ST	About 1,500mm	About 1,500mm	1.0x
Coleman BC Cross Dome/270	About 1,500mm	1,500mm	1.0x
Coleman Tough Screen 2-Room TX/MDX	About 2,000mm	About 2,000mm	1.0x
ogawa Stacy ST-II	1,800mm	1,800mm	1.0x
ogawa Stacy Falda II	1,800mm	1,800mm	1.0x
mont-bell Moonlight Tent 2	1,500mm	2,000mm	1.33x
mont-bell Stellaridge Tent 2	1,000mm	1,500mm	1.5x
DOD The Tent M	2,000mm	5,000mm	2.5x
MSR Hubba Hubba LT (2-person)	1,200mm	1,800mm	1.5x
MSR Elixir 2	1,500mm	3,000mm	2.0x

Flies run 1,000 to 3,000mm, and 9 of the 13 fall in 1,500 to 2,000mm. Floors: 6 are the same number as the fly, 2 are lower and 5 are higher. The ratio spread from 0.6x to 2.5x.

Why a floor needs more waterproof rating than the fly

No pushing force acts on a fly, but a person's weight acts on a floor. Pressure is force ÷ area, so I estimated the pressure on the floor for a person of 60kg (588N).

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This is this site's estimate. It assumes half of body weight on one knee and a quarter on an elbow. It is an upper guide that assumes the same pressure acts on water under the floor, and it falls if you lay a mat.
Posture (assumed)	Weight applied	Contact area	Pressure	As water column
Sitting cross-legged	588N	600cm²	9.8kPa	About 1,000mm
Kneeling on one knee	294N	100cm²	29.4kPa	About 3,000mm
Leaning on an elbow	147N	25cm²	58.8kPa	About 6,000mm

Just sitting, about 1,000mm. Kneeling on one knee, about 3,000mm, which exceeds a 1,500 to 2,000mm floor. DOD says that even a tent with a 5,000mm floor can take in water depending on ground bumps and wetness, and recommends using a ground sheet with it.

For the floor, also look at fabric thickness and seams

A waterproof film is a thin layer coated on the fabric. The thicker the fabric that supports it, the less likely scraping on small stones is to reach the film. For the Amenity Dome M and Tough Screen, the ratio is 1.0x, but the floor is 210 denier (thread thickness; the larger the number, the thicker), 2.8 times the fly's 75 denier.

The Touring Dome/ST and the ogawa Stacy ST-II have the floor at the same 75 denier as the fly. For these two, choose them on the premise that you lay a ground sheet under.

Seams are not included in the waterproof number. The test measures fabric cut into a circle of 113mm diameter. If you cannot choose between two tents with the same rating, choose the one whose material column says “seam sealed” or “seam taped.”

How waterproof rating is measured: the 1,500mm test ends in two and a half minutes

The test just raises water pressure on one side of the fabric and reads the pressure when water comes through on the other (JIS L 1092; per the explanation of the Osaka Research Institute of Industrial Science and Technology).

If water pressure rises at 60cm per minute, reaching 1,500mm (150cm) takes 150 ÷ 60 = 2.5 minutes. Waterproof rating is a number not for “how long it holds” but for “how hard it must be pushed before it leaks.”

Snow Peak's “minimum” is the lowest value, not an average

Snow Peak's “1,800mm minimum” is a listing that holds at least 1,800mm at any single point of the fabric. DOD's “minimum waterproof rating” is the same idea, set so that the minimum, not the average, is at or above the listed value.

Three picks: choosing by the floor gives this

Family dome: DOD The Tent M

A 5,000mm floor is the highest of the 13, 2.5 times the fly, and it is a minimum-value listing. The fly is also 150 denier, double the thickness of the 75-denier domes. It suits families who look at the floor number first.

For 2 people: mont-bell Moonlight Tent 2

A 2,000mm floor against a 1,500mm fly, 1.33x, and the floor thread is 40 denier, double the fly's thickness. At a total weight of 2.46kg, only the floor was made one step thicker. But 40 denier is about a fifth of a family tent's 210 denier, so at gravel sites lay one sheet underneath. If you look at lightness first, go to the solo tent weight comparison.

Image: Rakuten Ichiba

mont-bell Moonlight Tent 2

Lowest price on Rakuten: JPY 47,975 (as of 10/13). Prices change daily.

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2-room: Coleman Tough Screen 2-Room TX/MDX

Both fly and floor are about 2,000mm, reaching Coleman's own guide for when you expect heavy rain. The floor is 210 denier, and seam sealing is stated for both fly and floor. If you put the roof number first, the Landlock with a 3,000mm roof. If you choose a 2-room by size and weight, I lined them up in the 10 two-room tents comparison.

Polycotton (TC) has a different yardstick

A polycotton roof is 350mm, a quarter or less of the 1,500mm guide. In DOD's explanation, it prevents leaks not with a waterproof film but because cotton that has absorbed water swells. The test raises water pressure within minutes from a dry state, so 350mm does not represent TC's resistance to rain as is.

DOD's A Tent makes the walls 2,000mm polyester, and the ogawa Apollon T/C adds a 1,800mm roof fly over the roof to compensate. DOD cautions that it may leak in long rain and mold is likely if stored wet.

Who is it for?

It suits people who worry about the floor getting wet, and people who go to rainy places. If the fly is around 1,500mm, you can then choose by the floor number, fabric thickness and seams.

If your current fly is around 1,500mm, you can first add one sheet under the floor. The TC's 350mm just has a different build, so you can use it as is.

Waterproof rating is a number for new fabric, and the labeling rules differ by maker too. I did not use differences of 200 to 300mm to decide rank.

FAQ

Is a tent waterproof rating of 1,500mm enough?

For the fly (roof), it reaches the makers' guide. Coleman uses 1,500mm or more as the guide for ordinary camping. Look at the floor separately by the floor's number.

How many mm of waterproof rating does a tent floor need?

If you also account for kneeling on one knee, about 3,000mm (this site's estimate). For tents lower than that, widen the area under pressure with a ground sheet and a mat.

Is a higher tent waterproof rating always better?

For the fly, higher is not necessarily better, because a thicker waterproof film makes it heavier.

Is Snow Peak's 1800mm lower than other makers' 2000mm?

You cannot compare them as is. Snow Peak lists the minimum value, and with an average-value listing, some spots can fall below the listed value.

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