The best tree saddles combine versatility and comfort with a weight that is barely noticeable.
There are more and more companies in the mobile hunting space creating saddles, but there are a handful that stand above the rest, offering high-quality saddles that allow you to hang effortlessly all-day long.
Best Tree Saddles - Top Picks
(Full List Below)
Best Overall
Highest Comfort
Best Value
- High quality
- Weighs 2 lbs.
- Many accessories available
- Fits waists 28″-40″
- Very comfortable
- 2-panel flexibility
- Compact magnetic configuration
- Metal-free construction
- Available in 2 sizes
- Highly adjustable
- Designed for back support
- Includes pouches and lineman’s rope
- Fits waist sizes M/L: 28-37; L/XL: 38 – 44+
The full list below comprises the best of the best, each with their own benefits and price points.
Best Tree Saddles - Full List
(Click photos to view full size)
- High quality
- Weighs 2 lbs.
- Many accessories available
- Fits waists 28″-40″
- Very comfortable
Tethrd has become virtually synonymous with saddle hunting. The quality of their gear, coupled with excellent customer support, has put them at the top of the saddle hunting food chain.
There are several models to choose from, including the Phantom, which I personally use. The Phantom is the creme of the crop. It fits waists from 28″-40″ and can hold up to 300 lbs.
What I Like About The Phantom
Comfort Channels allow for all day comfort, giving you the ability to adjust your support angle. The Utilibridge, made of Dynalite, is stronger than steel and weather-resistant.
The Phantom’s re-engineered lineman loops are more user friendly than ever, allowing for easy use in the dark. This saddle weighs in at only 24 ounces and is made entirely in America.
Everything you need, including lineman rope and tether, can be purchased in this Tethrd Phantom Starter Kit. Add a platform at checkout if you don’t already have one.
The Tethrd Phantom really is one of the best tree saddles out there. I’ve seen it first hand, along with many other bowhunters.
Check out my full review of the Tethrd Phantom tree saddle after 3 years of hard hunting.
(Click photos to view full size)
- Metal-free rope belt design
- Even weight distribution
- Weighs only 20 oz.
- Adjustable bridge
- Removable leg straps
The Classic 2 is another great tree saddle option from Latitude Outdoors. It’s an ultra-lightweight design at just 20 ounces, but was designed to accommodate a wide range of body sizes.
What I Like About The Classic 2
Equipped with G-hooks, the leg straps are easily removed for walking in, and can be reattached quickly at the base of the tree before climbing.
Latitude claims their adjustable bridge is stronger than steel, but light enough to float on water. It provides 35 inches of adjustability for fine-tuning your comfort while up the tree.
Latitude’s Vertical Support Skeleton (VSS) distributes weight throughout the entire saddle, significantly improving comfort, and keeps the shape of the saddle when weight is applied.
The Classic 2 is yet another great saddle made in the USA by Latitude Outdoors.
(Click photos to view full size)
- 2-panel flexibility
- Compact magnetic configuration
- Metal-free construction
- Available in 2 sizes
The Latitude Outdoors Method 2 tree saddle is in a league of its own with it 2-panel design. You can see my full review of it here.
What I Like About The Method 2
The two separate panels allow you to increase your comfort to the max by adjusting each section to the contour of your body while on stand.
The two sections then connect by way of two magnets to make walking in and out a breeze.
Its circular bridge loops work in unison with the adjustable bridge to allow for quick, on the fly adjustments, while staying put once adjusted.
The Method 2 comes in 2 sizes, making way for a larger audience. Regular is suggested for waist sizes between 28 and 36 inches, while XL is recommended for waists 37 inches and above.
For all the reasons stated above, the Method 2 has set itself apart as one of the best tree saddles the industry has to offer.
(Click photos to view full size)
- Adjustable Waist Buckle and Leg Straps
- Taller design for improved back support
- Includes 33″ adjustable Rope Bridge and Carabiner
- Molle system for flexible accessory placement
- Separate Lineman Loops for safety
- 300 lbs weight capacity
- Kit includes pouches and lineman’s rope
- Fits waist sizes M/L: 28-37; L/XL: 38 – 44+
The Trophyline Covert Pro Saddle caters to hunters looking for both stability and comfort. It’s crafted with brushed windproof tricot fabric that stretches and is made to be quiet.
What I Like About The Covert Pro
This saddle is highly adjustable to fit waist sizes from 28″ to 44″+ with a weight limit of 300 lbs. It offers lower back support and flexibility due to its taller design and a 33″ adjustable rope bridge.
With lineman loops and Molle attachments, gear organization is simple. The kit includes two Mossy Oak Bottomland dump pouches, Trophyline Tree Lineman’s/Tether Rope, and a Black Diamond Screwgate Carabiner.
Initial stiffness lessens with use, ensuring optimal support and flexibility. The Covert Pro is definitely worth checking out.
(Click photos to view full size)
- Weighs under 4 lbs.
- Padded, revovable seat
- Fits waists 28″-40″
- Includes climbing-grade rope and attachments
The Hawk Helium Hammock Tree Saddle is a great line of mobile hunting products.
What I Like About The Hawk
This saddle comes with a padded and removable seat, climbing grade rope and attachments. It weighs in at less than 4 pounds.
Like the Tethrd Phantom, this saddle fits waists from 28″-40″ and supports up to 300 pounds. The Hawk Helium Hammock Saddle pairs well with Hawk Helium Climbing Sticks and the Hawk Helium HSP Platform.
(Click photos to view full size)
- Platform included
- Lineman’s rope and tether included
- Compact magnetic configuration
- Rated for 350 lbs.
XOP – Xtreme Outdoor Products has been making super high quality and well-rated stands for the mobile hunter, so it’s no surprise that they’ve jumped into the saddle.
What I Like About The XOP
Their saddle hunting system includes everything you need to hang, from the saddle harness to the lineman’s rope and tether. They even included the platform.
And the whole system costs less than most manufacturer’s saddles! This system is rated for 350 lbs., which is plenty for most mobile hunters.
This saddle is designed different than most, in that it includes shoulder straps, which helps keep it in place without too much fidgeting.
The included Edge platform’s dimensions are 13.75″x11″ and weighs 5.4 lbs.
This saddle harness system is a great option for the hunter looking to get mobile within a budget.
(Click photos to view full size)
- Weighs 2 lbs.
- 3 sizes from 20″-46″ waist
- Available in 2 fabrics and patterns
- Integrated lineman’s belt
- Internal webbing frame
What sets Aero apart from other brands is their emphasis on comfort.
What I Like About The Strike
The Aero Shrike Hunting Saddle offers three sizes to choose from – Size X, Size 1 and Size 2. The different sizes make the saddle available to waists from 20″-46″.
Color options are also available. Gorilla Mesh is a hunter green, durable mesh material. Broadside is a pattern resembling leaves with sky mixed in, which blends seamlessly into the canopy.
The Aero Shrike Hunting Saddle features a pleated seat, which expands for a better fit. Suspension is customizable due to a hitch attachment.
The fabric seat is sewn on the outside of the webbing structure, which allows the saddle to stay in position better.
Floating leg strap buckles are lifted with bungee cord, so they float over your thighs whether you’re walking, leaning or sitting. An additional band of wide webbing relieves the pressure of your body weight under your thighs.
Bridge length can be changed with one hand, thanks to the AustriAlpin adjuster buckle. Floating leg strap buckles are lifted with bungee chord, allowing them to float over your thighs while walking, leaning or sitting.
Weighing in at just 2 pounds and holding up to 400 pounds, the Aero Shrike is one of the best tree saddles on the market.
Benefits of Saddle Hunting
Although hunting from a saddle comes with a learning curve, the benefits far exceed any accompanying downsides.
Saddle hunting allows you to effortlessly change locations based on deer movement without having to disturb an area with hanging a stand in advance.
Also, the light weight of a saddle hunting setup leaves you sweating far less as you enter and exit, drastically cutting down on your ground scent.
Setup can be extremely quiet, increasing odds of success. And there are almost no limitations on tree selection, which makes it ideal not only for private land, but also public land where trimming limbs is often prohibited.
Thin, multi-limbed, crooked trees can easily be hunted from a saddle.
Perhaps one of the greatest benefits is the 360° of shot opportunities it affords. With a platform at your feet, you can hide behind a tree trunk, and lean out to shoot in front when the time is right.
Deer coming in from behind? Twist at the hips as you lean back to shoot to the rear. It’s that simple. It just takes a little practice.
The Best Tree Saddles Are Comfortable
It’s not only important to choose a saddle that offers a certain level of comfort, but you should also be giving yourself enough time to experiment with how you’ll use it.
The best tree saddles have a lot of available adjustment points, so it’s important to take advantage of every adjustment point available until you’re as comfortable as possible.
You can be very comfortable hanging from a saddle, but you can also be extremely uncomfortable if it’s not adjusted properly. It takes time to get used to it, so if this is your first saddle, don’t worry if your first sit is an uncomfortable one.
Like everything else in life, it just takes a little practice.
Great Hunting Saddles Increase Mobility
As stated before, the biggest benefit to saddle hunting is the ability it provides to move with the action. Oftentimes, as the season progresses, deer change their patterns and can change how and where they use their core areas.
With preset stand locations, you can miss out on huge opportunities, but with a saddle and climbing sticks, you can adapt, move with them, and score big at the right time.
Is it worth it?
With the size, weight and mobility offered by a saddle hunting setup, you can slink through the woods undetected and hang from a thin, multi-limbed, crooked tree that would make any hang-on or climber run screaming.
A saddle allows you to hang from the tree effortlessly for hours on end, and coupled with a lightweight platform and climbing method (i.e. climbing sticks or screw in steps), you can be safely up a tree, hidden behind its trunk, with 360 degrees of shooting range in the same amount of time – or less – that it takes to hang a conventional hang-on or climber.
Sounds perfect, right? Well, nothing’s perfect. While a saddle hunting setup does have numerous benefits, it does have a few drawbacks. One is the learning curve.
It’s not difficult to use, but it takes practice. And from my experience, not just practice in your backyard on one straight tree.
It takes time and repetition using your saddle on multiple kinds of trees, of different widths and with varying degrees of tilt, to gain the efficiency necessary to quickly and quietly get set up and ready for showtime.
That’s not to say that you should wait until you’re quick and efficient to hunt from one. It just means that you should expect slower setup times when starting out.
But all-in-all, it’s absolutely worth it.
Other Necessary Gear
Without a platform of some kind to rest your feet on, it can be quite uncomfortable, not to mention how you’ll lose the ability to easily swing around the tree for 360 degrees of shooting.
So, it may not be completely necessary, but you definitely won’t realize the full benefits of a saddle without one.
You also have to think through how you’re going to get up to hunting height before ever saddling up. Luckily, there are also very lightweight options for that as well.
Climbing sticks are the go-to for many saddle hunters because of their ease-of-use. Screw in steps are also a viable option, but are not allowed on public land in certain states, so check your local regulations before going the screw-in steps route.
There are certainly many other items that can be purchased to make the saddle hunting experience easier, but we’ll cover those in another article. For now, let’s stick with the saddle itself. Try one out and you’ll enjoy the outdoors in a way you never have before.
What do the best tree saddles have in common?
The best tree saddles don’t just allow you to hang from a tree. They’re also lightweight and designed with comfort in mind.
They offer adjustments – or different sizes – to accommodate different body types and sizes.
They’re made of high quality material that, when used properly, will keep you safe while hanging.
The best tree saddles combine multiple features that make mobile hunting a fun, comfortable, and effective way to hunt.
Questions and Comments
I’d love t0 hear from you! Leave your questions or comments below and I’ll get back with you. You can also find me on Instagram or Facebook @southeasternbowhunting.
