10 Best Carry On Backpacks (2024) - Favorites for One Bag Travel

[@ParkerBinion]

Danny - please do a Best Personal Item Backpack of 2024 for us 2-baggers who use a rollaboard in the cargo bin and a personal item backpack under the seat in front of us!

[@brandonknott3631]

exactly what i thought this was...never travel with just a back pack

[@ParkerBinion]

@@brandonknott3631 Most of these 30-40L bags are too big to be personal items. These are "One Bag Travel" backpacks. It's a thing, but by far the majority of people I see on planes with backpacks are using the backpack as a personal item.

[@dannypacks]

Thank you for watching and will definitely be doing an updated personal item list in the new year!:)

[@justinabbarno9398]

@parkerbinion what has been your go to for this? I’ve been using the Bellroy Transit Workpack (1st ed). I’m looking for a new solution that has a trolley sleeve. Leaning towards the Bellroy Workpack Pro.

[@ParkerBinion]

@justinabbarno9398 I like the GoRuck Bullet Double Compartment bag and the Greenroom 136 Northseeker. The GoRuck has no trolley sleeve so I use one of those Bag Bungee elastic bands to secure it. The Northseeker can be customized to include a pass thru. But it's not perfect either, as it is velcro and can be cumbersome to open. Otherwise, both are incredible bags.

[@raudytrinidad4377]

I just got the Aer ultra in 35L on Black Friday with 20% off and I love it, It just looks amazing

[@dannypacks]

Thank you for watching and that’s awesome you were able to get it with the discount! Hope you enjoy using it a lot!:)

[@copper7187]

Great video, Danny.... I really appreciate these type of videos.

[@dannypacks]

Thank you for watching and for the support! These are definitely fun ones to put together, gives me a good reason to revisit some of the bags I haven’t looked at in a little bit :)

[@TruthinLove]

Just spent a week in Prague with the Aer Travel Pack 3 Small. I loved it. Excellent bag! I'm going to buy one for my husband when another sale occurs.

[@dannypacks]

Thank you for watching and for sharing your experience with the bag! Glad to hear it’s been working out well!:)

[@jhare18]

Very nice to see well thought of bag design.

[@dannypacks]

Thank you for watching!:)

[@Ellman1231]

Great video Danny. We still need that rating system for the versatility of each bag compared with the others! 😉

[@dannypacks]

Thank you for watching and that’s a good idea, will have to think of what type of a rating system I can put together!:)

[@suzannedoran7340]

I like your criteria, but have a couple more I am trying to meet to identify which bag to buy! 1. compression straps so that the bag doesnt flop about if only partially full, and 2. shoulder harness that can zip away or tuck in so that the bag can be checked in when needed. The Allpa 42 was top of my list but is missing compression straps… the hunt continues!

[@dannypacks]

Thank you for watching and good callouts! Although I don’t really ever tuck my straps away I can definitely see why people like that feature and I agree on the compression straps, always nice to have on a travel backpack especially the way that aer was able to implement with the travel pack 3

[@jeffone]

The ULA Dragonfly 36 has amazing capacity and less than 1kg of weight. Amazing bag and my go to. I used the PAKT bag and do like it, but when travelling overseas with a 7kg limit it is too heavy. It accounts for 25% of my weight limit before I pack. The Dragonfly 36 by comparison is around 12.5%. For me, every kilo counts.

[@dave.in.oregon]

ULA is an amazing cottage vendor in the outdoor backpack space. I've had the Circuit for YEARS and have used it for many, MANY miles of hiking. I can see how the Dragonfly could work. Not my preference when traveling, but ULA does know their stuff. I use my Pakt 2.0 (45L) for longer travel but rarely have to face a 7kg limit.

[@dannypacks]

Thank you for watching and based on my experience with the 30l I’ll be curious to check out the 36l at some point!

[@jeffone]

@@dannypacks If you run into that 7kg limit when you travel, the 36L is a game changer. You can be under 7kg and actually have empty space to fill. Amazing!

[@varoom916]

Always a loves your channel. I was able to buy the GR1 heritage and xpac from your recommendation. Danny can you do a video of packable bags? Happy holiday

[@dannypacks]

Thank you for watching and for the support! I’m glad the videos have been helpful and that’s a great idea for a future roundup video!

[@Shion093]

Great video! You should add some Thule backpacks, haven't see much reviews on this brand

[@dannypacks]

Thank you for watching and good call on Thule bags, I’ve had great experiences with the ones I’ve used!

[@enriquediaz7547]

CabinZero is often overlooked & uses quality material, low cost & low weight (not too structured though).

[@dannypacks]

Thank you for watching and for the suggestion! I’ll have to see if I can check some of their bags out!

[@joemacch6284]

That Aer is fantastic. Have the travel pack 3. Just so solid with almost no weaknesses. However the best I own is from Tom Binh. It’s on another level with quality and warranty.

[@dannypacks]

Thank you for watching and I agree, both aer and Tom Bihn bags are awesome overall!

[@WeGetWildTV]

But is it as durable as a 1000d goruck?

[@BenjaminJcqt]

As a ULA Dragonfly owner who's also really tempted to get the Bellroy Lite and the Patagonia Blackhole , this is a really solid list 👌

[@dannypacks]

Thank you for watching and for the support!:)

[@RyanKry]

Great video. Could you please pop up the weight info for the bags as you do the price. As the new airline regulations begin to allow most airlines to be stricter with the weight limit on carry-on bags, it would be nice to have an idea and compare each bag. Cheers.

[@ohheyjosh]

All of the bags here are between 1-2 kg except for the Dragonfly and Patagonia, which are both about 0.8 kg.

[@RyanKry]

@ yes sir but that’s exactly what I would love to see which specific one is 1 and the other 2 kg as it is a huge difference when the total allowance is 7kg. I have the peak design 45l but weighs just over 2kg. My laptop with the charger weighs 3kg that’s 5kg gone already down to 2kg before clothes, power bank, switch, kindle, chargers, toiletries etc. What I do: I am hiding my personal bag (20l) with all the heavy items in it and keep the attention on my larger backpack but lighter the better

[@PotatoSpudRucking]

how would your list change if you were doing 1.5 bag (bag+sling) or 2 bags (bag+suitcase/duffle)? or do you only do onebag travel with a packable daybag? thanks

[@dannypacks]

Thank you for watching! For 1.5 bag travel I think my list would stay pretty much the same, but for 2 bag travel I would shift to smaller daypacks that I could use for walking around at my destination. The size and style of that could shift depending on the type of trip so for my recent trip I paired the able carry max edc with a roller bag for example. Last year I did a video sharing some of the bags I like to use as a personal item, but I will be doing an updated one in the new year as well to include some of the newer bags I’ve tried out :)

[@mumenrider677]

I’m quite surprised by the absence of the CTB35/CTB26! I understand that the CTB26 is quite small compared to the other bags here, but for a light packer or a short trip, it seems like a great option and it’s a bag that you seem to love in other videos! Have you tried the CTB35?

[@DaemonViews]

Heavy, really heavy

[@dannypacks]

Thank you for watching and definitely to leave the CTB off as I love the look and the layout so much. The 26 is still one of my all time favorites but a little small for this list and I have used the 35 and I think it’s still good as far as the layout but I’m not a fan of the harness at that size and I also don’t like how wide the bag ends up looking

[@mumenrider677]

@@dannypacks Thanks for the reply! Every part of it makes sense, I appreciate the insights!

[@junun007]

Great list. Would love to see a review for the KotaUL Ultralight backpack

[@dannypacks]

Thank you for watching and for the suggestion!:)

[@dave.in.oregon]

Great Video Danny. But if you could pick only 1 of these great packs to use.... which would it be?

[@P0WSEETr]

He'll say the most expensive one

[@dave.in.oregon]

@@P0WSEETr I'm just curious about the opinion. I already own two of these including one that's likely the most expensive so not looking to buy more.

[@dannypacks]

Thank you for watching and such a tough choice as I’ve really enjoyed using all of these. If I had to pick one I would still lean towards the aer travel pack 3

[@tedmccauley9319]

For my use the best attribute for shoulder straps is stowability, I want them to go away when not needed.

[@dannypacks]

Thank you for watching and good call out! Definitely seems to be something a lot of people like to have

[@climatecypher]

Curious: Which one is the lightest? Here in the EU, weight is a huge issue.

[@jeffone]

ULA Dragoinfly 30 amd the Patagonia are .7kg and the Dragonfly 36 (not shown but mentioned) is .9 kg. Those would be the lightest in the list to my knowledge.

[@CeruleanPeonies]

Love how many colours the Cotopaxi comes in and its internal compartments. However, I think it’s lacking a side pocket which is a deal-breaker for me.

[@dannypacks]

Thank you for watching! I agree on the Cotopaxi color combos, it’s cool to see all the options they have

[@Gareths-Travels]

I like the look of the Pakt but the thing that is putting me off is the outside material has been reported to attract Lint and hair , how was your experience with it ??

[@dannypacks]

Thank you for watching! It does attract some dust / lint but it has t been worse than other bags and was able to wipe stuff off pretty easily

[@thebadhombre9917]

ULA Dragonfly looks small but it packs a lot, the GR2 is too bulky.

[@KelvinHew7]

I used the Bullet DC 18L Robic on my last trip for 4 days with just one bag to Indonesia. Total weight 6.5 kilos.

[@dannypacks]

Thank you for watching and I agree the ULA holds much more than I expected given it’s look!

[@thisiswilson]

Osprey 26+6L, used as a personal item on both Ryanair and EasyJet. I'm a big guy, so its an optical illusion when packed out at 32L, YMMV. It's $120ish, great quality, light, and doesn't have a bunch of useless pockets and compartments. I've tried on many other bags but they are just too expensive, heavy, or too big. Anything larger (carry-on size), might as well just get a roller bag, way better use of space and easy to move around, then have a bag like the Osprey or something else as a backpack. I never understood carry-on size backpacks, what do you use as personal item then??

[@dannypacks]

Thank you for watching and good call out on the osprey! That’s been one of the most versatile bags I’ve checked out recently and as far as traveling with a larger backpack, I typically don’t have a personal item or at most I’d have a sling bag for some essentials while on the flight.

[@thedawapenjor]

I have the AER. I can't recommend it enough.

[@dannypacks]

Thank you for watching and I agree, one of the all time greats!:)

[@monicanelson1231]

Stinks that version of the peak design isn’t available in 30l anymore. Unless they plan on restocking at some point.

[@shirfong5252]

Good video Danny. May I check, for Pakt, I read some reviews that the material is a dust/dirt magnet. Is it true?

[@bethpolasky126]

I've used the past for 5 trips, and I haven't noticed this, not at all..I live everything about it but the straps- they could be more cushiony. Everything else is really top notch.

[@bethpolasky126]

Pakt!

[@jeffone]

I would say it is moderate in terms of picking up dust/dirt. However it burshes off easily. Beware, however, the Pakt bag is over 4 lbs! Likely best use case is US Domestic travel.

[@dannypacks]

Thank you for watching and I’m glad the video was helpful! It does attract some, but it’s not as bad as some of the cordura fabrics I’ve used and has been pretty easy to wipe stuff off

[@wizerdjuice9589]

Separate shoulder strap is number one for me for duffel style carry. Any here?

[@DaemonViews]

Patagonio mini mlc

[@dannypacks]

Thank you for watching and like Daemons comment said, I really like the mini mlc

[@errydm]

The top part of the Dragonfly looks way too funky for my taste. Other than that, it checked all the right boxes.

[@dhavalsavalia]

PSA: This just a list of affiliate links.

[@Palanibert]

Great reviews. 1 quibble, you used 'simplistic' incorrectly. 'Simple' should have been used instead.

[@dannypacks]

Thank you for watching and for the feedback!:)

[@CosmicNomad]

Can't believe you deemed Evergoods CTB35 as 'honorable mention'! It's the best travel bag there is!

[@lawcha91]

How? I can't even pack out the CTB26 fully and the straps can barely handle the 26L. Can't image what the 35L feels like.

[@abcdeqwerty1047]

And its sooo heavy 😢

[@CosmicNomad]

Tbh I agree, the straps are Evergoods biggest and probably the only drawback. But the bag is just amazing and the most thoughtfully designed.

[@Losersluck_]

I want to like EG bags but their straps suck for me. I love the cap2 though.

[@lawcha91]

@@CosmicNomad Yes, its such a shame. It is the best travel back design wise with layout and how they utilize the volume, but man the straps just ruin it for me. Its not that bad but bad enough to make me notice something and when you own multiple bags that arent even as expensive as the CTB its a shame

[@manueldelgado5336]

Evergoods CTB35 clears most in this list. Just the water bottle pockets and laptop compartment should be enough

[@MassiveCarbonFootprint]

Always amazed at how many different bags you find. On the downside terrible music in the background. No music is needed.

[@budbx90]

Really shocked you haven't looked at the north face base camp duffel XS (31L) nor the cabin zero military (28L or 36L). Heavily underrated and over looked bags. Please do reviews on them soon. It'll be highly appreciated

[@dannypacks]

Thank you for watching and for the suggestions! I’ve heard a lot of great things on both of those, I will see if there are any units available for me to feature on the channel!

[@budbx90]

@@dannypacks they got plenty stock for both, they never sell out but they are definitely over looked and under rated specially cabin zero, another good bag from them as well would be the cabin zero classic pro 32L