A boonie hat is a form of wide-brim hat commonly used by the militaries. It has a design similar to that of a bucket hat but with a stiffer brim. Often a fabric tape band of 'branch loops' is sewn around the crown of the hat. The 'branch loops' are meant to hold additional vegetation as camouflage. A strap provides stability and keeps the boonie hat on the head. The crown may be vented with rivets or mesh panels to remove excess heat and sweating. Snaps may also be provided with which to fix the brim in the style of an Australian bush hat. They are also known as bush hats.

The boonie hat was introduced to the U.S. military during the Vietnam War, when U.S. Army Green Berets began wearing them in the field, along with Australian and ARVN units. These tigerstripe boonie hats were locally procured, the tiger stripe camo cloth was usually salvaged from other uniform items or made up by the tailor. In 1967, the US Army began issuing boonie hats, as the "Hat, Jungle, with Insect Net", made of cotton and wind-resistant poplin, in both olive drab, tigerstripe, and M65 ERDL. It was meant to supplement and replace the fatigue hats and baseball style caps that had been in service since World War II. While it was liked by troops in the field, it was scorned as slovenly by spit and polish officers such as Creighton Abrams. As the U.S. military evolved away from a garrison mentality, the boonie found a permanent place as part of the uniform of all service branches. The boonie hat has changed little through the decades since Vietnam and is still in use in Iraq and Afghanistan as an alternative to the Patrol cap. The U.S. Military boonie hat has come in a variety of camouflage patterns; the current assortment includes US M81 woodland, three-color desert, ACUPAT, and both desert and woodland versions of MARPAT. Early issue boonie hats were olive drab.

Today you can find the boonie hat worn by military, explorers, hikers, fishermen, and anyone else looking to block the sun and the heat from their face.  With so many different styles and colors to choose and concerns of skin cancer their popularity has grown exponentially.