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While you never want to need a first aid kit, should that need arise, you'll be glad you planned ahead and kept some high-quality medical supplies on hand.
First, permit me to share a few words on my relationship with the first aid kit. I keep a stocked first aid kit in both of our cars, in the home, at the ready for travel, and packed and ready to go with my hiking gear. I also have a few bandages tucked into my wallet. Now, I'm not a disaster prepper or anything like that. In fact, I'm pretty confident that society will be just fine in the long run, and I'd generally recommend people spend more time managing their retirement portfolio than stocking their fallout shelters.
I do very much like being prepared, though. It's just that my preparation is for cuts, scrapes, and burns around the home, a twisted (or broken) ankle or painful insect bite sustained out in the field, or even a car accident that requires more serious and expedient medical attention. As a frequent camper and hiker, I know that having a first aid kit is at times not simply a good idea, but an absolute necessity. When you're a three-day hike from the nearest hospital, you'd better be able to count on your own supplies in the event of injury or illness.
When I first started heading out into the woodlands and mountains, I carried a homemade first aid kit tucked into an old Altoids tin. It had all the basics, like bandages, antiseptic wipes, medical tape, anti-itch and burn relief gels, and so forth. In fact, I think I assembled a pretty solid little kit, and it served me well over the years. But there were a few problems: The ointments and gels would almost invariably dry out over time, the tape and bandages would grow brittle and lose their adhesion, and every time I used this or that component, I had to be sure to later re-stock it, and it was often hard to keep track of what I needed on an ad hoc basis. When I switched to a professionally assembled kit, I spent a few more dollars but got a lot more peace of mind.
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How to choose the right first aid kit for you
A good first aid kit isn't a mobile trauma center, but it will provide the basic supplies you need to mitigate the ill effects of an accident, injury, or sudden illness. Remember, it's first aid, not final, comprehensive aid. When choosing a first aid kit, you need to think about who might depend on it (in terms of the sheer number of people and the age and disposition of the user), where it will be stored and/or carried, and in what situations the likely users might endure an injury or illness.
Any first aid kit worth considering will have the supplies needed to treat minor cuts, punctures, burns, and other such common injuries. Beyond that, the suitability of a given kit depends on a careful consideration of factors ranging from weight to packaging to redundancy of the supplies included. You know where you'll be when you might need first aid and/or who might be depending on your help.
Choose the first aid kit that best suits the people and the situations in which they'll be, and then hope you never have to use it. With those tips in mind, read on to see which of our top picks is best for your needs.
Here are the best first aid kits you can buy in 2019:
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Why you'll love it: The First Aid Only All-Purpose First Aid Kit comes with all the basic medical supplies you need for quick diagnostics and the treatments of many maladies.
The First Aid Only All-Purpose First Aid Kit packs 299 doctor-recommended supplies into a soft-sided case measuring just 9.25 by 7.5 inches on its sides and about three inches deep. It's only about the size of a hardcover book, but within this kit, you will find the tools needed to assess and treat everything from a scraped finger to a heavily bleeding gash, and from a mild headache to a high fever.
This First Aid Only kit comes with comprehensive wound cleaning and closure supplies, including multiple butterfly strips, gauze rolls and pads, and several types of bandages, not to mention the various alcohol, antiseptic, and antibiotic wipes and ointments. It's the perfect triage kit for all sorts of common injuries.
The kit also comes with an array of supplies invaluable to the person administering first aid, such as sterile vinyl gloves, a single-use thermometer, tweezers, and nickel-plated scissors. And for all that, this first aid kit still costs less than $20.
With nearly 2,000 ratings on Amazon, the First Aid Only All-Purpose First Aid Kit enjoys an excellent 4.7-star rating. One customer who keeps the kit at her workplace says it has made her "pretty much the go-to girl for medical needs," while another owner says it's "great for either the car or to put in a backpack on hiking trips."
The reviewers with wiki.ezvid.com called this first aid kit "organized in a logical way that makes supplies easy to identify." A video reviewer on YouTube also noted how the plastic partition pockets help keep the various supplies grouped together for quick and easy access.
Pros: Compact but comprehensive, great low price, well organized
Cons: Limited shelf life, included tape is inferior
Why you'll love it: The Be Smart Get Prepared 250 Piece First Aid Kit is OSHA and ANSI compliant and covers the first aid needs of up to 50 people, making it perfect for the office.
The Be Smart Get Prepared Kit is a large, comprehensive first aid kit designed to meet the needs of several dozen people. It's a great choice for businesses, retail locations, schools, churches, and even for the home. What this rather bulky kit is not suitable for travel or camping.
The kit is housed in a large hard plastic case that helps keep the components organized and protected, though the case is not watertight or resistant to moisture or temperature fluctuations that can affect some of the components, so it needs to be stored in a temperate indoor environment.
The Be Smart Get Prepared 250 Piece First Aid Kit has all the wound care components you would expect, from alcohol prep pads to antiseptic towelettes to multiple bandages in varied size. What sets this kit apart from the others in terms of suitability for use in the office or at a school are the medicines it comes with. Many of these medicines are something you will have ready access to at home, but not at work, school, or on other such locations.
The kit includes two types of pain and anti-inflammatory tablets and antacids, as well as cold packs, another handy feature for use when a kitchen with ice in the freezer might not be nearby.
The Be Smart Get Prepared 250 Piece First Aid Kit has a solid 4.4-star rating on Amazon, with a customer named Jeffrey saying "it is so great to have everything in one place." An owner named Loren speaks for many when she says it's "full of stuff I hope I never have to use."
A writer with SurvivalBlog.com appreciated how the kit was "organized in compartments ... inside the sturdy plastic case," while a description from Survival Safety Supplies noted its "comprehensive selection of first aid items."
Pros: Great choice for workplace, comes with selection of medicines, hard plastic shell protects components
Cons: Case is bulky and not water resistant, latches prone to failure
Why you'll love it: With the TripWorthy Compact Travel First Aid Kit in your car, truck, or boat, you'll be ready to face minor medical emergencies even when you're miles from home.
While I wouldn't recommend the Trip Worthy Compact Travel First Aid Kit for the hiker or the mountaineer, it's the perfect choice for the person, family, or group of friends traveling by car, boat, or even by bike or canoe. There are plenty of completely waterproof first aid kits designed expressly for use on the water, but as they tend to be bulkier, I'm recommending this one for the boat and/or the car — just try to keep it dry.
The kit is a bit too big for a trekker's backpack, but it's the perfect size for stashing in the trunk, under the seat, or in a bicycle's panniers.
It features six different types of adhesive bandages, gauze pads, butterfly strips, wraps, and tape, so getting a wound covered up will be easy. Cleaning out minor wounds won't be an issue either, thanks to the wipes and ointments that come tucked away in this compact kit.
Now, aside from size, why do I think this is a great first aid kit for travel? Five reasons. The TripWorthy Compact Travel First Aid Kit comes with a compass, an emergency blanket, a poncho, a rescue whistle, and a glow stick, all of which can help make the difference in a survival situation you endure while far from the comforts — and the supplies — of home. That moleskin blister pad won't hurt, either.
I do wish the kit had any itch relief ointments and burn gels included, but you can always add those later.
The TripWorthy Compact Travel First Aid Kit has a stellar 4.8-star rating even with hundreds of reviews logged. A satisfied owner named Steven speaks for many when he says: "It comes with me on every trip and I would never leave home without it."
Video reviewer Daddy-O Geek called the kit "very compact" yet said it came with "everything you need." In a write up with Gear We Are, a tester noted its great price point and its "medical grade quality components."
Pros: Comes with great survival gear, compact but comprehensive, features multiple bandage types
Cons: Packed tightly making it hard to quickly locate items
Why you'll love it: If you are cut off from emergency services following a natural disaster or in times of civil unrest, you'll be glad you have the Lightning X First Responder First Aid Kit.
Whether you foresee a time when there won't be anyone on the other end of the line when you dial 9-1-1 or if you just really like to be prepared for any potential accident or illness, keeping the Lightning X First Responder First Aid Kit at home is the way to go. Yes, this kit is overkill for most households, but it's also pretty much the last kit you'd ever need to buy (not counting the items that merit periodic replacement, like alcohol wipes).
Anyone in need of first aid or preparing to administer it will appreciate the many bandages, the rolls and pads of gauze, the antiseptic wipes, the ointments, the tapes, and more. The person with some actual medical training will appreciate the stethoscope, the sphygmomanometer, the airway kit, and other more advanced medical tools. In the right hands, this kit is essentially a mobile trauma center, but in any hands, it's got all your basic and intermediate first aid needs covered.
This comprehensive first aid kit comes loaded in a lightweight, ergonomic backpack with padded straps and reflective stripes, so should you need to take it on the go, you'll be comfortable and highly visible. While it's a great choice for the well-prepared home, this kit was designed for emergency response professionals to use in the field, after all.
The gear review with Wiki.Ezvid.com noted the kit's "reinforced bottom for stability and water-resistance" that helps protect the supplies and called Lightning X kits ideal for "first responders dealing with an extremely wide range of emergencies."
Pros: Comprehensive supplies, features advanced medical gear, comes with backpack
Cons: Pricier than other options, many components not needed for basic first aid
Why you'll love it: The Coleman All Purpose Mini First Aid Kit costs less than a fancy cup of coffee, but it can help you treat all sorts of minor scrapes, scratches, bug bites, and more.
If you need to treat a compound fracture or a sucking chest wound, you're probably going to need a more advanced medical kit than this one. But more often than not, the damage we endure is more along the lines of minor cuts and scrapes, burns and bites, and the occasional puncture wound. For those everyday injuries, the Coleman All Purpose Mini First Aid Kit is the ideal choice.
It costs so little that there's really no excuse not to buy one (unless you essentially assembled your own using a tin that once housed mints...), and given the diminutive size of this kit, you can (and should) bring one along whenever your travels might lead you away from ready access to medical treatment.
Into that charming little tin, Coleman packed several antiseptic wipes, antibiotic ointment, sting relief wipes, and a total of sixteen bandages in five different size and shape varieties. There is also a razor blade you might use to cut away clothing or trim medical tape and gauze (not included) and a pair of safety pins that ... you probably won't use.
On the whole, people love this kit. It has a 4.5 out of five-star rating on Amazon, and most comments are along the lines of remarks left by an owner named Anna, who says it's a "perfect little kit. An owner named Ashley says the Coleman All Purpose Mini First Aid Kit is " great for your average day to day cuts, scrapes, and stings."
A video reviewer with Abel Adventures appreciated the small size and light weight of the Coleman kit, noted that it's made in the United States, and said it was certainly "worth the $6" he paid for it.
Pros: Very affordable, lightweight and compact, perfect for travel
An emergency kit is something you should have around, in case an unexpected dangerous event happens. You can make your own, or purchase a preassembled kit that has everything you may need. We've rounded up the best emergency kits you can find preassenbled.
