16 Highly-Rated USB Gadgets For Van Life Under $50

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It’s funny how cultural movements always end up circling back around and becoming popular again. Pompadour hairstyles, vinyl records, and now van life. Van culture was huge back in the ’70s. That’s where the inspiration for Scooby-Doo and the Mystery Machine came from, after all. This time around, though, we’re looking at budget-friendly camper vans equipped with electric gadgets to modernize the experience for comfort and convenience. This is our list of 16 devices that provide a boatload of USB functionality while staying under budget.

In the tight confines of a van, everything needs to have a purpose. Devices on this list are therefore as compact and travel-friendly as possible, provide an actual meaningful use, and maintain high ratings (at least 4 stars) with a large number of reviews. In many cases, items we found regularly sell for below $50 even if that’s not their listed price. Before you head out on the road, stock up on a few of these.

Depending on how serious you are about van life, be it just a couple of days, weeks, or longer, you need to be prepared for emergencies. Grab this FosPower NOAA Emergency Weather Radio just in case. In addition to the emergency radio, it packs a 7,400 mWh (2,000 mAh) power bank with three options for charging it: a flip-out solar panel, hand crank, or backup AAA batteries. The flashlight is a powerful 135-lumen beam with an aperture to widen it. If that’s too much, there’s a flip-out set of reading LEDs for low-light situations. The entire unit is water-resistant.

The radio can also serve as an SOS alarm and produce a flashing light in extreme emergency situations, and it’s water-resistant to boot. For a big van meant to travel far and wide, you can’t put a price on emergency preparedness — but in this case, the FosPower Radio retails for a respectable $39.99 and often goes on sale for much less. Also check out our full list of the best emergency radios to have around for a rainy day.

Any van that has 12V cigarette lighter sockets is not complete without at least a couple of accessories that make use of them. A charger is a good start. This Lisen Retractable Car Charger sets itself apart from the others by having two clean, retractable cables built in, so you don’t have to turn the entire van upside down looking for a spare — plus an extra USB-C and USB-A port for good measure. It claims to charge at up to 64W, and its USB-C port supports up to 30W Power Delivery. It looks nice, and it comes in multiple colors, too.

Admittedly, there is a surfeit of car chargers on Amazon from throwaway-name brands like this. If we’re going for van life, though, this one wins because of the retractable cables and the durable metal body. Everything in the van must reduce clutter and last long. Make sure you grab this one when it’s $16.98, which is the lowest historical sale price.

If you’re going to be in that van almost 24/7 — driving, sleeping, relaxing — it’s going to get dirty fast. A good vacuum, like the Bissell AeroSlim Lithium Ion Cordless Handheld Vacuum, is non-negotiable. It may be compact, with just a 0.1-liter dust reservoir, but it packs a punch with crevice tools and a roughly 12-minute runtime — plenty to clean more or less the whole vehicle.

Instead of having a filter you have to dispose of and rebuy, you can just wash out the included filter. Also a plus is that it charges via USB; you can plug this into your retractable car charger rather than having to use a proprietary wall plug. The Bissell gets a bit close to our $50 limit at $44.49, but it’s a known brand, and it has solid positive reviews from over 17,000 customers. If you want something for more serious cleaning, check out our list of the best handheld vacuums judged by customer satisfaction.

A common fuel myth you should stop believing is that opening your windows to get a breeze is better than running the air conditioning. Still, AC does eat up a fair amount of fuel. A happy halfway point might be these Xool Car Fans, especially in a van that might only have AC for front-seat passengers. The two fan heads are designed to clip onto the back of a headrest, although there are other models with a single clip that could go almost anywhere.

They have multiple speed settings and a 360-degree rotation angle to get the perfect airflow. Plugging them into the console or another USB port near the back should be easy with the 70-inch extension cord. They’d be a lot easier to cable-manage as a permanent feature.

Be aware that this is a frequently returned item. Durability appears to be a mixed bag, and the fans can be too noisy even for the already juddering interior of a van. Despite that, it maintains a 4.2-star average across more than 5,000 reviews.

USB-C is about as versatile as it gets, serving as a card reader, HDMI, Ethernet, and even audio connections with the help of USB-C adapters. But we’d argue the transition to USB-C isn’t yet complete. You’ve probably still got at least a handful of devices using USB-A, particularly chargers and other plug-ins. For that, come prepared with USB-C to USB-A converters. These ones from Basesailor cost $8.49 for a three-pack. They’re so cheap that it really doesn’t hurt to grab some for those unexpected situations when you’re in the middle of nowhere and need a converter plug for whatever reason.

You want to be very careful when buying adapters to make sure they can do what you need them to do. This particular model supports data transfer in addition to charging, but not a video signal. Many adapters only support charging. It’s going to really suck if you use the wrong adapter type for, say, plugging into your computer and find out you can’t use a USB-C flash drive.

If you have an iPhone, then CarPlay is a must. It’s effectively an extension of your iPhone to your van’s head unit, and it supports a bunch of CarPlay-compatible apps you can’t live without. But if your head unit isn’t equipped for it, you’re out of luck — unless you buy this Jemluse Wireless CarPlay Adapter. This device acts as a bridge between your iPhone and a car that doesn’t natively support wireless CarPlay. Reviews praise it for having easy-to-follow setup instructions.

Speaking anecdotally, upgrading to CarPlay is a game changer. It’ll be far better than the janky OS on your car’s head unit and makes it easier to safely access the best parts of your iPhone without actually reaching for it. The small size of the receiver helps reduce clutter from this “upgrade.” Please be aware that there’s a newer version of this dongle, but at the time of writing, it has only a small number of reviews.

If your van is going to be your home, then sometimes you need the right lighting for the right mood. You could install your own lighting during a van remodel, but if you want something quick and easy to set the mood, try these Febrytold USB Car Interior Atmosphere Lamps. Choose from the available colors, plug them in, and you’re good to go. Their low 18mA consumption means they’re unlikely to be a drain on your car’s battery if you forget to remove them for a night. At $5.48 for a four-pack, that’s not at all a bad price.

Your van might also be the site of a spontaneous party, if 1970s van culture is your aim. In that case, you might try these USB mini disco ball party lights. They don’t just look like a disco ball; they react intelligently to the music. Don’t let the size fool you. Take a look at the user review pictures, and you’ll see that they can easily transform a van interior into a mini disco club.

Vans are cramped spaces where it’s hard for one person to do something that doesn’t affect everyone else. Reading at night when someone else is trying to sleep can be challenging without a backlit Kindle, especially if there’s only one bed. If you’re up late burning the midnight oil — reading, working, whatever — maybe grab one of these USB LED Light Lamps. The flexible arm helps aim the light at your book — not a sleeping person’s face — and makes it useful for more than books; think other USB devices that might need light, like a laptop keyboard.

If you don’t have a USB port handy to power the lamp, don’t worry. This one has the added benefit of working with a power bank. Since it’s such a low power draw, you can probably use it comfortably for hours with whatever you’ve got. Check out our list of unique book lights for more options.

Van life is about, well, living in a van, so the lack of standard plug outlets quickly becomes pronounced. For that, you should consider getting a power inverter. There are a surprising number of options under our $50 price threshold that provide multiple plugs, plus some USBs for charging. The Bestek 300W Power Inverter is a solid choice, though it retails for $59.99. At the time of writing, it’s on sale for $41.99 and often stays below the $50 line. Bestek also has a cheaper model that starts at $34.99, likewise with two plugs and USB-A for charging.

The two Bestek models are a bit on the large side, so if you want something more compact that still has just as many plugs and USB ports, try the Foval 200W Car Power Inverter. It has a built-in cooling fan to help prevent overheating. The compact size and flat body make it an excellent choice for mounting somewhere more permanently; some reviews show people attaching it to Velcro pads stuck to a wall.

So far, we’ve detailed several devices that leverage the 12V cigarette lighter to power things. But even in a van, you’ve probably got few of those to spare. 12V DC car chargers generally offer more power than built-in USB ports, so one socket may be enough for multiple 12V-powered devices. Consider the Lihan 7-in-1 Cigarette Lighter Splitter for this purpose. Take one 12V socket and turn it into three, plus a couple of USB-A charging ports and a USB-C Power Delivery port. Obviously, it probably can’t power three demanding 12V devices at once, but it does support a total output of 80W.

We like the slim profile and long 3.3-foot cable on this one, making it another good choice for mounting somewhere semi-permanently. Plus, it’s a nice addition that you can individually switch the 12V sockets on and off, rather than having to unplug them when they’re not in use. The main on-and-off switch also makes it easy to turn everything off without unplugging it.

If you’ve got people traveling in the back of the van, they’ll want to charge their devices, too. A good option might be this Superlit 3-in-1 Retractable Backseat Car Charger. Similar to other 12V chargers with retractable cables, this one also has built-in retractable cables for USB-C, Apple Lightning, and, if needed, micro-USB. Superlit markets it toward rideshare drivers, but we’d argue it makes excellent use of a van’s limited space if you don’t have another backseat charging option.

Unfortunately, this is also a frequently returned item. Reviews point to potential durability issues, though for something this cheap with moving parts, that’s somewhat to be expected. On the bright side, it does appear to be fairly easy to open up and fix if, for example, one of the cables gets jammed. We hope an updated version comes out soon with an additional USB-C cable in place of the dated micro-USB option.

The image in your head of van life is probably one of open windows and doors in a campsite somewhere far from civilization. A perfect way to collect a lot of dust. The Wolfbox MF50 Compressed Air Duster does away with buying cheap, one-use compressed air cans thanks to a nozzle and a high-rpm mini blower fan. You’ll get up to four hours of dusting on the low setting.

Though it’s marketed primarily toward people trying to keep their home desktop computers clean, we think it aligns perfectly with the van-life mindset of keeping things clean and compact. It’s less wasteful, too, since you could probably use this thing for years before the battery would wear out enough to merit replacement. As a nice little cherry on top, this is one of those rare items that Amazon gives the “Customers usually keep this item” label, meaning it sees below-average returns compared to competing items.

Van life may be a return to ’70s hippy culture, but nobody wants their van to smell like it. Those classic evergreen tree-shaped scent pads might do the trick, but a Car Air Purifier Ionizer could help with more persistent, hard-to-remove smells; this model claims to get rid of smoke smells, for example. As a nice bonus, it has two USB-A ports, so you can make full use of that 12V cigarette lighter.

Before you buy this, be aware that air ionizers tend to be marketed as capable of things they aren’t. The EPA makes it clear that ionizers can only target very small particulate matter, such as that from smoke, and that claims about getting rid of odors and allergens are generally unsupported. Instead, they introduce ozone, a smell (which some people find pleasant) that can mask existing odors. Ozone is a lung irritant, so if you use this, be sure to air out the van as much as possible.

Much of the allure of van life is turning an old RV or van into a camper. However, rather than replacing the head unit with a modern one, the cheapest and easiest solution is sometimes to use a plug-and-play Bluetooth receiver. The Ugreen Aux to Bluetooth 6.0 Adapter 3.5mm Bluetooth Receiver uses the latest Bluetooth 6.0 codec and includes a microphone for calls. For $13.99, you’d be hard-pressed to bring an older system into the modern age for less.

As a potential downside, you need a nearby USB-A power source to plug it into. This can result in the cable stretching across the cabin from the aux port to a USB-A outlet. It also means the receiver — where the microphone is located — may sit farther away from your voice. However, some reviewers say that the microphone is very sensitive and works well even at a distance.

Another option for getting media and calls to play through your van’s speaker system — if you don’t have an aux cable — is to transmit it locally through an FM station. That’s what this Nulaxy Car Bluetooth FM Transmitter does. Connect your phone to the transmitter, then tune your van’s radio to the station shown on the display. Voilà. There’s also an SD card slot to pop in your favorite playlist and one USB-A port for charging.

Anecdotally, the FM transmission experience is going to be a mixed bag, but not necessarily because of this product in particular. It can be challenging to get a clean, stable signal from the transmitter, and it will likely be affected by local stations already occupying the airwaves. Be prepared to do a lot of adjustment to get it working. In my experience, even on long road trips, you’ll likely find yourself changing frequencies dozens of times. Nonetheless, it’s a great way to add Bluetooth capabilities to an older, radio-only system.

Older van conversions especially are unlikely to have a head unit with a screen, so make sure you’ve got a good phone mount. Again, we want to make the most of a van’s limited space and use solutions that punch well above their weight. This Soaiy 3-in-1 Cigarette Lighter Car Mount meets that criterion. It’s one part phone mount and two parts USB-A charger. Plus, there’s a nice little voltage readout, so you can tell whether your phone is taking so long to charge.

We’d argue these sorts of gooseneck adjustable mounts are the best kind, especially considering that this particular mount locks securely into your 12V cigarette lighter. The extra stability allows your phone to be held vertically or horizontally. It’ll probably stay a lot more solid than a suction-mounted or vent-mounted phone holder, and it doesn’t take up space on the dash. However, this will depend on where your 12V outlet is located.