Big Agnes Tiger Wall UL2 vs MSR Hubba Hubba Bikepack 2P

Two shelters, measured against each other on the figures that decide whether they work on a bike.

The short answer

The Tiger Wall UL2 takes weight, floor space and price; the Hubba Hubba Bikepack 2P takes pole length, pitching on hard ground and headroom. On a bike the pole set usually decides it before the rest do.

Assembled from the differences below rather than written over them. Every figure is a published measurement or computed from one — nobody here has used either one.

Where they differ

6 of the 7 things we can measure come out differently.

Folded pole length

157mm shorter on the Hubba Hubba Bikepack 2P
Big Agnes Tiger Wall UL2
457mm — too long for drop bars
MSR Hubba Hubba Bikepack 2P
300mm — fits drop bars

The length of the pole set broken down, which is what decides whether it goes across your bars. Almost no maker publishes it, which is why this comparison is hard to find anywhere else. The verdict beside each is for drop bars.

Minimum weight

408g lighter on the Tiger Wall UL2
Big Agnes Tiger Wall UL2
992g
MSR Hubba Hubba Bikepack 2P
1400g

Trail weight where the maker publishes one — fly, inner and poles, without the stuff sacks or the footprint. Worth reading against the pole length rather than instead of it: a Bikepack edition is usually a few grams heavier for shorter poles.

Pitching

Hubba Hubba Bikepack 2P needs less from the ground
Big Agnes Tiger Wall UL2
semi
MSR Hubba Hubba Bikepack 2P
Freestanding

Freestanding matters on a bike trip more than on a hike: gravel bars, wooden platforms and hardpack are where you end up when you are following a road, and none of them take a stake.

Floor area

0.17m² more floor in the Tiger Wall UL2
Big Agnes Tiger Wall UL2
218 × 132cm — 2.89m²
MSR Hubba Hubba Bikepack 2P
213 × 127cm — 2.71m²

Inner length by inner width as published. On a bike trip the floor also has to take whatever you brought inside off the bike, so a few centimetres is not nothing.

Peak height

8cm more headroom in the Hubba Hubba Bikepack 2P
Big Agnes Tiger Wall UL2
99cm
MSR Hubba Hubba Bikepack 2P
107cm

Whether you can sit up, which decides how a rained-out afternoon goes.

Price

$120 between them
Big Agnes Tiger Wall UL2
$380
MSR Hubba Hubba Bikepack 2P
$500

As we hold it. Shelter prices move more than most gear, so check before you commit.

Side by side

Including the rows where they are level.

Big Agnes Tiger Wall UL2MSR Hubba Hubba Bikepack 2P
Folded pole length457mm — too long for drop bars300mm — fits drop bars
Pole figure sourcePacked bag length, used as a proxyMaker's own pole figure
Minimum weight992g1400g
PitchingsemiFreestanding
Floor area218 × 132cm — 2.89m²213 × 127cm — 2.71m²
Peak height99cm107cm
Price$380$500
Big Agnes
Tiger Wall UL2
$380 · 992g
MSR
Hubba Hubba Bikepack 2P
$500 · 1200g

Other comparisons with these two