There is no official best emergency kit. Most lists rank kits, few show how. The fair way to compare is to hold every kit against the same measure: the needs the Swedish Agency for Civil Defence (MCF) sets for a week at home, and five questions about whether the kit will work on the day you need it. Here is that measure, and Kapsel Core held against it line by line.
Which emergency kit won at Testproffs in 2026?
Kapsel Core came first in Testproffs’ comparison of eight emergency kits sold in Sweden. Read the result directly in Testproffs’ emergency kit comparison for 2026. Its separate review of Kapsel Core gives a score of 9.6 out of 10. The ranking and the review score come from two different pages.
This buying guide is published by Kapsel, the company behind Core. The award is Testproffs’ assessment.
Reviewed by Oskar Björk, defence engineer, adviser and co-founder of Kapsel. Last updated 2026-10-05.
The measure: one week at home
MCF asks every household to manage on its own for at least one week. Its advice covers food, water, washing and toilet, heat, communication, payments and cash, medicine and pets. Its checklist adds light and power: a torch, a head torch and charged power banks.
No kit covers everything. Cash, a month of your own medicines and food your household actually eats are yours to arrange. The question is what the kit does for you, and what it leaves to you.
Five questions to ask any emergency kit
1. Can someone who did not pack it use it?
A crisis rarely comes at a good time. The person who opens the kit may be tired, stressed and standing in the dark. Look for a fixed place for every item and clear labels, not a bag of loose parts.
2. Does every person get their own equipment?
A kit for four should give four people what they need: something to sleep warm in, something to drink from, something to protect their breathing. Count what comes per person, not only what is in the box.
3. How much water can it give you, not just hold?
MCF counts three to five litres per adult per day, for drinking, cooking and basic hygiene. A container holds what it holds, and 30 litres weighs 30 kilos. A filter treats hundreds or thousands of litres from a tap, a lake or a rain barrel. The better answer depends on where you live.
4. Does the first aid go beyond a scraped knee?
Every kit has plasters and a compress. Look for dressings for serious bleeding, such as a tourniquet, and a mask that actually protects your breathing.
5. Will it stay in sight?
Preparedness that is hidden away is forgotten. A kit you see in the hall gets checked, refilled and found. A kit in the storage room often gets none of that.
And if you have to leave home, to family, to a neighbour or to a place your municipality opens during a longer outage: a box stays where it is. A bag you carry on your back comes with you, with everything still in its place.
Kapsel Core, line by line
| Need | What MCF says | What Kapsel Core has | What you add |
|---|---|---|---|
| Water | 3 to 5 litres per adult per day | A filter straw (around 1,000 to 2,000 litres, depending on the water) and a filter bottle for each person (up to 2,000 litres) | Stored water, 21 to 35 litres per adult for a week, if you have no safe source to filter from |
| Food | Food that needs no fridge or freezer | A gas stove with a 1.1 litre pot and a 230 g cartridge, up to 60 minutes of cooking time | The food, and more cartridges for a full week |
| Heat | Sleeping bags, blankets and warm clothes | An emergency sleeping bag for each person, and a thermal blanket in the first aid kit | Blankets and warm clothes |
| Communication | A radio on batteries, crank or solar, and a phone list on paper | A crank radio with solar panel and FM | The phone list |
| Light and power | Torch, head torch, charged power banks | A head torch, a 10,000 mAh power bank, and a torch and 5,000 mAh battery in the radio | |
| Medicine and first aid | A month of your own prescribed medicines, and a first aid kit | A first aid kit with a tourniquet, and an empty medicine box for each person | Your medicines |
| Washing and toilet | Hygiene when the water stops | Soap sheets and a menstrual cup, a microfibre towel and an N95 mask for each person | A toilet solution, for example bags and cat litter |
| Payments | Cash and more than one way to pay | Cash |
Choose what your household needs
Start with the equipment you already have. Compare the contents of the Kapsel Core with what’s missing before choosing your system.
Kapsel Core comes for one to six people. The personal equipment comes for every person, the shared equipment is shared, and from four people a second system is added. Over 30 components in one bag and three labelled capsules, from 4,999 SEK for one person.
What kinds of ready-made kits are there?
The market splits roughly into four types.
- Water kits. Built around containers, often with a pump and a stove. Strongest on stored water. Heavy to carry and move.
- Food kits. Freeze-dried meals and sometimes a container. Strongest on food, often without radio, light or first aid.
- Starter kits. A radio, blankets and a small first aid kit. A good start, with a lot left to add.
- Systems, like Kapsel Core. Everything except food and stored water, organised in labelled capsules, with personal equipment for each person. Made to work in the dark, for someone who did not pack it, to stay in sight and to be carried on your back.
No type is right for everyone. If you live near water, filtering matters more than storing. If you live high up with no source nearby, stored water matters more, and then you add containers to a system.
What independent tests say
Testproffs compared eight emergency kits sold in Sweden in August 2026 and put Kapsel Core first (the comparison). In its own review, Testproffs gave Kapsel Core 9.6 out of 10 (the review). We walk through what the test measured in our article on the Testproffs review.
Frequently asked questions
Which emergency kit is best in test in 2026?
It depends on what the test measures. In Testproffs' comparison of eight emergency kits in August 2026, Kapsel Core came first. Use the five questions above when you read other lists, and you will see what they actually measure.
How much water does a household need for a week?
MCF counts three to five litres per adult per day, for drinking, cooking and basic hygiene. For a week that is 21 to 35 litres per adult. A filter lets you make more from a tap, a lake or a rain barrel instead of storing it all.
Why does Kapsel Core not include a water container?
We chose filtering over storing. A household can rarely carry and refill containers for a whole week, but it can filter from a tap, a lake or a rain barrel. If you have no source nearby, add containers.
Why is there no food in Kapsel Core?
Food has a best-before date and follows your household's habits. You choose it best yourself, and it belongs where you see it.
Can I return Kapsel Core?
Yes. You have 30 days after delivery to request a return. The details are in our refund policy.
Can Kapsel Core be carried as a backpack?
Yes. The bag is a backpack, so the system can come with you if you have to leave home. At home it stands in the hall or on a bookshelf, where you see it. For four to six people the system comes in two bags.
Sources: MCF, the Swedish Agency for Civil Defence, MCF on the basics of home preparedness and water in a crisis (both in Swedish), and Testproffs, emergency kits best in test 2026.
More on choosing: how to choose an emergency kit, the full checklist, what an emergency kit costs and complete emergency kits.