8 Cheap(ish) Things to Throw the Best Backyard Party

If you usually find yourself covered in mosquito bites after a day spent outdoors, try the Thermacell E90 Rechargeable Mosquito Repellent, our favorite spatial mosquito repellent. Rather than dousing yourself in bug repellent, a spatial repellent covers a certain square footage with a vaporized liquid repellent. We think the E90 model is the best user-friendly option.

The E90 has a nine-hour battery life, so it can last all day, and the device comes with a 12-hour repellent cartridge. The active ingredient in the repellent is metofluthrin (PDF). And when used properly, this repellent is safe to use around pets and children

A portable grill, like the Weber Jumbo Joe Charcoal Grill 18″, is a budget-friendly grilling option, no matter how big or small your yard is. In our tests, we found that the vents in the lid and firebox allowed for precise temperature control.

This Weber grill weighs less than 20 pounds, and the cooking surface can hold about seven burgers at once. We like that its tripod base helps stabilize the grill, regardless of the surface, and the carrying handle locks the lid in place for easy transport.

With an instant-read thermometer, you can more confidently serve your guests a well-cooked meal. The ThermoWorks ThermoPop is fast, accurate, and affordable. It has a thin, 4½-inch probe and a large, backlit display that’s legible from almost any angle.

A large beverage dispenser is handy for holding (and chilling) drinks, so you don’t have to worry about constant refills. We like the 3½-gallon Buddeez Unbreakable Beverage Dispenser because it’s made of durable Tritan plastic, and it’s dishwasher-safe and has a non-skid base.

We also like a lot of the smaller details that set it apart, such as the internal ice cone (to keep your drinks pleasantly chilled and undiluted) and liquid measurement markers on the back (an aid for making batch cocktails).

A lidded insulated wine tumbler can keep your (alcoholic or nonalcoholic) drink cold and insect-free all day. We believe the Ello Clink is the best wine tumbler under $20, and in our testing, it was better at temperature retention than pricier picks. It’s not leak-proof, but it has a textured silicone bottom, to prevent spilling, and a small sipping port, to avoid splash-backs.

If you don’t want to splurge on outdoor speakers, the Tribit XSound Go—our budget-pick Bluetooth portable speaker—may be a good option. Although this speaker isn’t as loud as our pricier picks, the Tribit is compact and waterproof, and it provides good sound quality for your tunes. In our testing, we found that this speaker provided about 10½ hours of battery life and had a Bluetooth range of about 50 feet.

Even though the sun sets later in the summer, you’ll want to be prepared with outdoor lighting so the festivities can continue into the night. We like the Newhouse Lighting 48 ft. 11-Watt Outdoor Weatherproof String Light set for backyards because you can hang the lights once and leave them up all summer long. Setup was a bit time-consuming, but we like the sepia-toned light these bulbs give off, and they’re durable.

Disposable cameras perform best in well-lit environments, so a sunny outdoor gathering could be a prime opportunity to use them. The Fujifilm QuickSnap Flash 400 for color photography remains our favorite disposable camera because it’s easy to use and takes sharp, vibrant photos that are full of character. When you’re done with the fun and you have your photo prints, Fujifilm offers a program to recycle cameras after they’ve been developed.

This article was edited by Alexander Aciman and Annemarie Conte.