Best RDAs in 2024

Best RDA 2023

New RDAs seem to be released every week, with collaboration upon collaboration between reviewers and manufacturers. So finding the best RDA to suit your style of vaping can be tricky.

Whether you are looking for the best RDA for flavor or clouds or just to get started, we’ve got you covered in our list of the best RDAs available.

All of these RDAs feature excellent build quality and will deliver reliable performance. If you are just getting started and need a little help figuring out what type of RDA is best for you, look through our guide below.

Damn Vape Nitrous RDA

Best RDA – Overall

The Damn Vape Nitrous RDA is an exceptional RDA, and is one of those rare breeds that functions fantastically with single and dual-coil builds. This is due to the two top caps (included). The single-coil cap reduces the deck size while still offering fully adjustable airflow. The vapor production from the Nitrous RDA is as smooth as it comes, with incredible flavor in both setups. There are also a ton of accessories available for those that like to customize their vape. The Nitrous comes in seven different color options and is 22mm in diameter, and is probably the best flavor RDA in this list.

9.7

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Digiflavor Drop Solo V1.5 RDA

Best Dual Coil RDA

The Digiflavor DROP Solo V1.5 is the latest in the line of impressive DROP RDAs and is quite possibly the best to date. Digiflavor has kept the same excellent build deck intact but improved the top cap. The new cap brings a redesigned airflow with a dual-slot inlet instead of the T-shaped honeycomb. The DROP Solo V1.5 is a 22mm diameter RDA and is available in six color options.

9.5

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Wotofo Profile PS RDA

Best Mesh RDA

The Wotofo Profile range is synonymous with mesh coils. The latest Profile PS RDA features an even more impressive dual-mesh coil design. The Profile PS is a 28.5mm diameter RDA with a substantial build deck to accommodate two mesh strips. This dual mesh RDA has a deck that can also be transformed from parallel to serial with an extra included pin, and that’s where the ‘PS’ in the name comes from. The Profile PS produces bundles of flavor and clouds. Easily the best mesh RDA available right now.

9.4

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Vandy Vape Requiem

Best Single Coil RDA

The Requiem RDA is a collaboration between popular Spanish reviewer El Mono Vapeador and Vandy Vape. It is an incredibly versatile 22 mm single-coil RDA that comes with three top caps and three drip tips. This allows it to offer a wide array of airflow options covering anything from MTL to DL. The Requiem is available in five color options.

9.2

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Wotofo SRPNT RDA

The Serpent RDAs have always delivered amazing flavor, but the new SRPNT takes it to a whole new dimension. It comes with a build deck that can accommodate dual coils (3mm) or single coils (5mm), with adjustable side airflow. The SRPNT is a 24mm diameter RDA that doesn’t mess about and just delivers a straight-up quality vape experience. The SRPNT RDA is available in six color options.

9.0

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Geekvape Z RDA

The Geekvape Z RDA is a 25mm diamater dual coil rda. It features Geekvape’s Z line signature top-to-bottom airflow that delivers excellent flavor while also being leakproof. The Z RDA can accommodate large dual coil builds. It also features an anti-spit function and fully adjustable airflow that is smooth and low on noise. Geekvape may not be as prolific with releasing RDAs at the moment, but when they do, they are usually great, and the Z RDA is no exception.

9.0

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Vandy Vape Berserker V2 MTL RDA

Best RDA for MTL

The Berserker V2 MTL RDA is a collaboration between Vandy Vape and Alex VapersMD. The Berserker is a 22 mm RDA with a dual-shell chamber design with a thick top cap that houses the airflow tunnel. Berserker MTL V2 RDA integrates a single coil with the replaceable airflow tubes. It comes with a heatsink drip tip and has various airflow options, easy and quick to install. Berserker MTL V2 RDA is made of stainless steel and comes in 4 colors.

8.4

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Augvape Druga 2

Best RDA for Beginners

The Augvape Druga 2 is the successor to the Druga RDA with a revised Clamp Snag System build deck accomodating a single or dual coil configuration. The Druga 2 features a top cap dual-sided airflow control, allowing control over airflow intake. Thanks to the clamp snap system, the Coil installation is a breeze and makes it great for beginners.

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Styles of RDAs

There are three main styles of rebuildable atomizers: RDAs (Rebuildable Dripping Atomizers), RTAs (Rebuildable Tank Atomizers), and RDTAs (Rebuildable Dripping Tank Atomizers). A rebuildable dripping atomizer uses a coil or coils made by the user. Building an atomizer is done by wrapping a wire around a small rod, usually 24 mm in diameter. The user must then create a wick to help transport the e-liquid to the coil(s).

The wire used can be made from a variety of material types. The most common is Kanthal A1, which can only be used in variable wattage (VW) mode. However, it has a very stable resistance when heated. Titanium and ni200 or two other wire types; however, they can only be used in temperature control (TC) mode due to their varying resistance when heated.

The most popular is stainless steel, as it can be used in both VW and TC modes, as it has a slight variation in resistance when heated. Usually, wicks for the coils in RDAs are formed using cotton or rayon.

RDA Vape Explained

RDA’s have a building deck where the users place their own coils at the bottom of the atomizer. While an RTA or RDTA has a tank, RDAs only have a well to hold e-liquid, positioned just below the build deck. The tails of the wick are placed into the well to transport the e-liquid to the coils. RDA wells do not have as much capacity as a tank-style atomizer, which means vapers must frequently add more e-liquid. Unlike RTAs or Sub-ohm tanks, an RDA does not have a chimney section. Instead, it has a top cap that sits on the build deck, and then the vapor rises to the drip tip or mouthpiece. Airflow can be fed to the coils from the bottom, sides, or top, or any combination of these. Users can usually adjust the airflow on RDAs to suit their vaping style.

Different Types of RDAs

RDAs can come in various styles and sizes, ranging from a small 14mm in diameter up to a massive 46mm. Depending on the RDA size, build decks can allow from 1 up to 8 coils inside, although most are a single or dual coil by design. The majority of RDAs work well for both horizontal and vertical coils. Airflow can also be suitable for both mouth-to-lung (MTL) or direct-to-lung (DTL) vaping styles.

Some RDAs now come with an optional hollow positive pin, allowing users to integrate them with unique bottom-feeding mods – called squonkers. A squonk mod has a plastic bottle (internal on the mod) for e-liquid. The vaper then squeezes the bottle to feed e-liquid to the atomizer. Squonk mods have recently become more popular. They alleviate the constant dripping of e-liquid while still providing the benefits of an RDA.

Cloud RDAs vs. Flavor RDAs

RDA’s can frequently be categorized (although not exclusively) into two different styles, either for flavor or clouds. Cloud chasing RDAs tend to have more space for large diameter coils or fancy builds like; Clapton and Alien coils. They also have colossal airflow to generate immense thick clouds of vapor to appeal to direct-to-lung (DTL) vapers.

A flavor RDA will only hold a single or dual coil build and tend to be a little smaller in size, 22mm diameter, or less. They also tend to have less airflow, making them more suitable for mouth-to-lung (MTL) vapers. However, most RDAs do create both excellent flavor and decent clouds.

Advantages of RDAs

Experienced vapers feel that RDAs excel in the flavor category over other types of atomizers. Nothing beats an RDA for trying new flavors, as you can use just a few drops of e-liquid to test whether the flavor profile is to your liking.

RDAs are also easier to wick than other atomizers. They have far fewer parts, which also makes them easier to clean. They do not have wick channels, so there is no danger of flooding or even dry hits.

Suppose you like the sound of an RDA but want more juice capacity. As mentioned above, there are two other options, a squonk mod, or if that doesn’t take your fancy, then an RDTA may be the answer. An RDTA has a dripper style deck, and top cap like an RDA yet has the advantage of a tank beneath the deck. Wicking can be a little more difficult as the wick tails will need to be immersed in the tank below.

There are lots of other excellent RDA’s on the market, some of which we haven’t yet had the pleasure of trying. We hope that’s helped guide you through making a decision. We will always aim to keep this page updated with the latest releases, but for now, we don’t think you can go wrong with any of the above RDAs.

Key things to look for in RDA Vape Tanks?

Diameter

A lower diameter of 0.86 inches may be preferable because the juice will be concentrated in the chamber and produce better flavor.

However, this means there’s less space to build, and it might take some trial and error to get comfortable using smaller coils. When using a single coil RDA, you will notice this, but it’s also applicable with dual coils.

Post Holes

The amount of post holes and the arrangement determine how complicated a build can be. It’s probably best to go with two-post-holes for ease of use.

A single-coil RDA will only ever have a two-post design, with post holes on each one.

Some RDA tanks include four post holes, allowing for stacked or horizontal dual coil installation, like the Hellvape Dead Rabbit V2. However, using dual coil builds in this way is best left to more experienced vapers and expert builders.

You may also find RDAs with a postless build deck; these are generally easier to work with, especially with dual coil builds. However, it does depend on the design of the RDA.

Juice Well

If an RDA has a deep juice well, then it will be able to retain more juice and therefore require less dripping. However, the wick type will also play a factor as some cotton can absorb more e-liquid than others.

Japanese cotton is typically the most common wicking material used in an RDA vape tank. It does a good job of absorbing vape juice. However, nowadays, you will see lots of different types of cotton, and absorption rates will vary.

Also, remember that having a deep juice well on RDA may not suit everyone. If you are the type of vaper that only takes a few vapes, then remember that excess liquid will still be in the RDA and can leak out when it’s tilted.

Airflow Design

There are so many different designs of RDAs on the market, each with its own style of airflow holes or airflow slots. These can range from cyclops-style slots (Hellvape Dead Rabbit V2) to honeycomb-style airflow holes (Recurve Dual RDA).

It is more common for RDAs to have airflow holes positioned on the side of the RDA, as this prevents excess e-liquid spilling out. However, RDAs that have a bottom airflow design tend to deliver maximum flavor as there is closer contact with the RDA coils. 

Nearly all RDAs will come with some form of airflow control where you can adjust the airflow setting to allow more or less airflow. The more open the airflow holes, the greater the vapor production. It’s essential to play around with the airflow control settings to tailor it to your preferred vaping style. 

Materials

Your choice of RDA may also be influenced by the materials it is constructed with. Price is frequently a concern, and it’s often a balancing act between using high-quality materials and others that are still cost-effective. Fortunately, there are polymers available that make excellent components at reasonable prices.

However, if you are investing in an RDA for the long term, it’s always worth checking the materials used to ensure they will withstand the test of time.

Conclusion

The best RDA is the one that suits your needs and vaping style the best, not the most expensive one or the one which everybody else is talking about. So it’s essential before searching through the multitude of options that you work out exactly what you require. Hopefully, our rebuildable dripping atomizer guide above has helped answer some of those questions.

Whether you are looking for a single coil RDA for the best flavor, a dual coil RDA for clouds, or something in-between. Hopefully, our list above will give you some options; if you are still uncertain, look through our RDA reviews for more details. If you are interested in other types of atomizers, then head over to our best vape tanks page for sub-ohm tanks and RTAs.