Articles
What the numbers say about carry-on sizes, airline rules and travel bags. Every figure comes from our catalog and the airlines' own baggage pages.
A 16-inch laptop and one carry-on: the backpacks that fit every airline
470 backpacks in our catalog take a 16-inch laptop. 244 also fit all 36 airlines, but only 25 of those hold 30 litres or more.
Carry-on size is not one size: what 36 airlines actually allow
We checked 1,902 travel bags against the cabin-bag limits of 36 airlines. The same bag can fit 88% of them or barely half, and depth is usually why.
Clamshell, panel, top-loader or roll-top: what the numbers say
We compared 262 travel-sized backpacks by how they open. Clamshells are heavier but fit more airlines; roll-tops are the lightest.
One personal item for every US airline: what fits United, JetBlue, American, Frontier and Allegiant
188 bags fit the personal-item size of all five US airlines that publish one. United's 25 cm width is the limit that rules most backpacks out.
Packing for a 7 kg cabin limit: the bag is part of the problem
Nine airlines cap cabin baggage at 7 kg, bag included. A 30-litre backpack can weigh 0.3 kg or 2 kg; here are the light ones that fit all nine.
Rolling carry-on or backpack? The wheels cost you 2 kg and most airlines
A 30 to 45 litre roller weighs 3.3 kg at the median, against 1.3 kg for a backpack. Only 9 of 179 rollers fit 90% of airlines.
The 40 x 30 x 20 cm free bag: what fits under the seat on Ryanair, Wizz Air and Vueling
237 of 1,902 bags fit the free under-seat size of Ryanair, Wizz Air, Vueling and Norwegian. Only 10 of them are backpacks of 20 litres or more.
The biggest backpack that fits every airline holds 39 litres
No 40-litre backpack in our catalog fits all 36 airlines. Here is how volume trades against airline fit, and the largest bags at each step.
What a travel backpack costs per litre, and what the extra money buys
The median backpack in our catalog costs $7.31 per litre. Pricier bags are heavier per litre and use tougher fabrics, but their warranties are barely better.
What the litres on a backpack really tell you
We compared the stated volume of 1,244 backpacks with the box their dimensions make. Two bags of the same size can be sold as 15 or 32 litres.
Which airlines make you pay for a cabin bag
15 of the 36 airlines we track leave the overhead-bin bag out of their cheapest fare. Here is what each one includes for free, and the bags that fit it.