Three materials dominate camp cookware and they suit genuinely different trips rather than being a quality ladder.
Aluminium
Conducts heat far better than the other two, which means it heats evenly and boils faster on the same fuel.
It is light, and it is soft, which is why it is almost always anodized to harden the surface.
Even heating matters more than people expect: it is why aluminium is the only one of the three that cooks rather than only boils.
Titanium
The lightest for a given strength, which is its entire argument
Extremely durable and corrosion resistant
Conducts heat poorly, so it develops severe hot spots
Which means food scorches in a ring above the burner
Excellent for boiling water, poor for actual cooking
And considerably more expensive
Ranges built on hard-anodized aluminium, of the kind catalogued at alocs-us.com, are choosing conduction and price over the last few grams, which suits most trips.
Stainless Steel
Heavy, tough and cheap. It tolerates abuse that would dent aluminium and it can be scrubbed hard.
It conducts heat poorly, like titanium, so it scorches. It is the sensible choice for car camping and van life where weight does not matter and durability does.
Choosing by Trip
Backpacking where every gram counts and you only boil water: titanium.
Backpacking or camping where you actually cook: anodized aluminium, which is the best compromise and what most people should own.
Car camping, van life and base camp: aluminium or stainless, depending on whether you value weight or toughness.
The Scorching Problem
The practical consequence of poor conduction, and it surprises people who buy titanium first.
A camp burner concentrates heat in a small circle. In a conductive pot that spreads; in titanium it does not, so anything thicker than water burns in a ring.
Stirring constantly helps and does not solve it.
Weight in Context
The difference between a titanium and an aluminium pot is frequently under a hundred grams.
That is worth paying for on a long thru-hike and irrelevant on a weekend, where a litre of water weighs ten times as much.
Nonstick Sits Over Any of Them
And has its own temperature limits regardless of the metal.
