The Best Personal-Item Carry-On Bags For Flying

As POPSUGAR editors, we independently select and write about stuff we love and think you’ll like too. If you buy a product we have recommended, we may receive affiliate commission, which in turn supports our work.

There’s nothing like going on a quick weekend trip to explore other cities or taking the time to visit friends and family you haven’t seen in a while. However, the costs of flying are skyrocketing, suitcases are getting lost, and airlines are charging a pretty penny for carry-on luggage and checked bags. The hunt for cheap flights and convenient travel is an ongoing challenge. One way to keep travel costs as low as possible: utilizing the personal-item bag. The personal-item bag is a must when you fly a no-frills airline such as Frontier or Spirit Airlines or buy a basic economy seat for domestic travel since it’s the only bag you can carry that’s free of extra costs. These functional bags also make long-haul flights easier with convenient access to all your necessities.

What Qualifies as a Personal-Item Bag?

A personal-item bag can be a functional backpack, a stylish tote bag, a spacious diaper bag, a laptop or work bag, or anything small enough to fit underneath the seat in front of you. Each airline has different qualifications on sizes and proportions, so we’ve listed a few common ones below:

• United: 9″ depth x 10″ width x 17″ height
• Allegiant: 7″ depth x 15″ width x 16″ height
• Spirit: 8″ depth x 14″ width x 18″ height
• Delta: 9″ depth x 13″ width x 17″ height
• Southwest: 8.5″ depth x 13.5″ width x 18.5″ height
• JetBlue: 8″ depth x 13″ width x 17″ height
• Frontier: 8″ depth x 18″ width x 14″ height

A quality personal-item bag has enough room for all your travel essentials and necessities while being compact enough to fit the airline guidelines. Going on a quick weekend getaway? Your go-to personal-item bag should fit all your vacation must haves, including a few outfits, an extra pair of shoes, makeup, skin care, and toiletries, necessary chargers and cords, and maybe even a flat iron and a reusable water bottle. There are several stylish and quality personal-item bags on the market that take all this into consideration, so you can travel smarter. Ahead, we curated the best personal-item carry-on bags for flying, including tried and tested picks from our editors like the Béis Mini Weekender Bag and the Open Story Weekender Bag from Target.