The Best Carry-On Bags for Flights in 2024 (NEW AIRLINE RULES!)

I've tested tons of suitcases on more than 100 flights to find the best ones. Watch this video to see whether hard or soft luggage is better for your travels! All luggage shown in video is compliant with 2024 airline rules and carry-on restrictions.

🌟DISCOUNT ON All LEVEL8 LUGGAGE +FREE SHIPPING (CODE: Megan15)
Hardshell:
Soft-sided:

✈️ TRAVEL RESOURCES

🌎 WATCH NEXT

Welcome to Portable Professional, where I, Megan, use my experience from over 300 flights to offer you simple, practical and game-changing travel tips and hacks. Our mission is to help you reduce stress and make the most of every trip.

🐶 Chapters
00:00 Hardshell vs Soft-sided Luggage
00:22 Protection
01:44 Security Features
03:18 Flexibility
04:33 Design and Look
05:51 Maintenance and Upkeep
06:51 Clamshell vs Traditional Design
08:05 Durability
08:45 Luggage Material
09:08 Weight
09:52 Weight Comparison chart
10:08 Hardshell Material Comparison
10:46 Softshell Material Comparison
11:13 My suitcase
11:38 Hardshell Key Points
12:13 Soft-sided Key Points
12:55 Additional Resources

Affiliate Disclosure: This content contains affiliate links. We may receive compensation at no additional cost to you if you click through and make a purchase. Thank you for your support!

[ausflygirl]

Soft, just works for me. More flexible w packing, having more ease in putting things overhead.

[animated]

Sofe side.

1. I never check bag. Carry on and personal only

2. I spray my luggage down with Permethrin. Kills bedbugs, fleas, etc on contact for 30 days

3. Soft luggage will most likely fit in the luggage check if over stuffed. Stomped my bag down in the bag check to make it fit. Saved $100

[yellavette]

Recently, I've had two hardshell suitcases broken by baggage handlers. Expensive, well-built luggage, and the wheels were crushed back into the suitcase shell. Two flights in a row! Found a soft-sided with much sturdier wheel attachments, and it flexes when treated roughly (instead of breaking).

[clairemoonshine]

I recently saw a review of a hard shell with a top lid and one large compartment. It was too expensive for me but I really hope the style of it catches on because you are absolutely right - the main advantage of soft is the ease-of-use. If a top loading hard shell becomes the norm then it will easily win over soft shell, for me.

[claudiamiller]

I am a soft-side luggage user and assume everyone else who is, too, uses the trick of inserting a large plastic garbage bag in their luggage first…then pack your stuff INSIDE the bag. It acts as sort of a skin against theft - you’ll know right away if someone messed with your sealed bag - and adds some level of waterproofing to the contents. Works for me!! Thanks for another great vid!💕

[MrGrumpy]

As a frequent flyer, my choice is NEITHER of what was presented in this video. I have a top zipper bag with a side and a bottom waterproof pocket. It is a tennis player's bag that I bought in 1984 and have carried onto at least 500 flights. Both hard and soft-sided luggage have to be laid flat to open with that long zipper. I can reach into the overhead compartment, unzip my bag a few inches and reach my hand inside to find anything I need inflight. My laptop goes n the side pocket and my passport/cash etc goes in the bottom 'secret" compartment. As for durability, my bag has never been washed and is now 40 years old.

[PaulKeffer]

I've had hardshell for over a decade but grew aggravated by the clamshell and how inconvenient it is at destination. I've migrated to soft sided luggage entirely for this reason.

[stephenesch]

Some good points, but for a carry-on I choose to use a 2 wheel soft case. The most vulnerable points on any suitcase are the wheels. Recessed wheels on soft carries gives far greater protection as well as more capacity in the interior. Some European budget airlines have strict restrictions on weight and size and soft cases are usually much lighter. My Samsonite soft carry-on only weighs 1.7KG (half the weight to all the options shown in this video!) and I suspect I can fit more in it than all the options given as well. Most hard shells have clamshell interiors as well which is not an efficient design for packing.

Good soft cases will already have some water resistance, but if you are really worried about the rain, you can always get a light waterproof suitcase cover.

[rodsnash]

Another consideration is two wheels or four. Nearly all hard shell luggage will have four wheels. Soft sided luggage will often give the option of two wheels. Four wheels will allow 18 inches of storage in a 20 inch bag where a two wheel bag will give you the full 20 inches, minus the corners where the wheels are located. So you get 10% more room in a two wheel bag.

[Vichofeo]

Megan, thank you for another excellent comparison video. Personally, I use a TravelPro softshell, which has come in handy with an expandable zipper that gives you a little bit of extra space when you need to squeeze a few more items in it. Weight-wise, it's never been much of an issue for me, but I have yet to test the softshell in the rain. Moving forward, I'll carry a plastic bag in case I ever get caught in the rain. 😁Luggage for many will always come down to price. As long as we can all get out, see the world, and share new experiences, that's all that really matters.

[kmtabq]

I've traveled with the same TravelPro soft-sided suitcase since the early 90s. TravelPro has replaced both wheels for me and also repaired some wear on the edges. It's flown a few million miles and has covered several miles over the cobblestone streets of Vienna and other cities. Unfortunately the handle detent won't keep it extended any more, so I'll have to replace this bag after only 30 years.

[lynnleipold]

I love Travelpro Maxlite 5 as it allows me to pack it light enough to actually put it in the overhead bin. I am 79.

[lenkakonietzko]

I am used to travel in Europe and mostly just carry on only. So it's really important for me to have light weight luggage, because of weight limits of most of airlines. After long searching I found the best for me. It's AeroStep from American tourister 🎉Volume 36-40l and weight only 2, 3kg❤

[hiviolet]

I use the Ebags TLS Motherlode Wheeled Duffel. 29 inch. It’s part hard shell and part soft. It has lots of space on both sides. The protection is great because I put my clothes in the soft side and anything else in the hard side. I can also access the soft side via a front zipper without opening the whole thing. I always check a bag and use my backpack for under seat.

[Gamble]

You can pack more stuff into soft luggage because it expands unlike hard sided luggage. Also, a lot of hard sided luggage isn't as secure as you'd think because a sharp cutting tool can slice right through them. Also they can be crushed in instances were soft sided luggage will bend and give to pressure. Another superior feature of soft sides luggage is that they're more user friendly because they have outside pockets that are easily accessible as opposed to having to open the entire hard sided case to access the contents. Soft sided luggage is easier to pack as well. Lastly, soft sided luggage is much easier to fit into an overhead. I use hard sided luggage when I have to check a larger suitcase and it's at the mercy of baggage handlers but always use soft sided with carry-ons and I've had my soft sided case for years, if you purchase a good one they last just fine.

[bani_niba]

Most thieves know about the pen trick to defeat zippers, so most hard-sided luggage are NOT more secure than soft-sided luggage. I would only consider the higher-end hard-sided luggage that use latches instead of zippers as being more secure.

[Canleaf]

9:41 I had already two flights with UAL, where a gate agent made me check in my bag at the gate. Everything with a battery in my bag had to get out. So do not forget to pack a cotton bag into your carryon.

[evelyngrammar]

I have used Rick Steves' Rolling Carry-On for 13+ years. It has a molded frame, making the back hard but the front soft-sided. It's 6.5 pounds and $180.

[Steven-erbt]

Our sweet spot is our Osprey soft-side carry-on size rollerboards AND we only do air-based travel a few times a year (often to Europe from Canada) and we utilize "Zone 2" boarding, so we can avoid checked bags. Our Ospreys have built in compression flaps that are brilliant and I use a high-end waterproof spray on the exterior.

[HR-wdcw]

So the one thing I found with most of the hardshelled cases is that they have the lock built-in and it's TSA certified (meaning anyone can get a key). As far as baggage handlers are concerned I"m not that concerned about when it's being checked by TSA but more so when it's at my destination, as I tend to lock my laptop and any camera stuff I'm not going to carry with me, in my bag luggage bag as I feel this can be more secure than carrying around expensive items I am not gonig to use while out and about especially in foreign countries, but also in general. And I'm aware that a no bag is completely immune to being broken into, and the locks only buy you time from someone getting in. So the ballpoint trick has me concerned. I've been trying to find an affordable hardshelled case that doesn't have the built in locks but rather just clasps that accomodate a lock so I can then use my own non-TSA lock with when I get to my destination (I stopped locking my luggage for TSA to be honest since it seems they would cut of the locks even if it was TSA certified). So I now bring non-TSA locks to use when I get to my destination.

(I don't necessarily see the built-in TSA lock as a security feature though. I wish they didn't build these into the bags.) All I'm looking for is a bag that preferrably is hardshelled, doesn't have a zipper (maybe a hard seam with a rubber gasket to keep water out) and most importanly, no built in lock. I guess a Pelican case may be the only option that i can see (or some other similar hard-shelled case that is not necessarily meant for clothing).

I will say that Samsonite bags can be decent from a durabltility standpoint. I know the more expensive versions do last longer, but for example, I managged to pick up a small roller carry-on bag for about $80 on sale (normally it was something like $150) about 10 years ago, and that bag lasted me well over 10 years (just retired it this year and found another one, as the wheels became damaged and are hard to replace on some models, so Idecided to just get another one, but for $8 a year, that wasn't a bad buy). It had probably 200k miles of use on it and possibly more as I stopped keeping track after a while, but it lasted a long time, so there can be some good deals out there (but I also don't overpack my bags either).

I've found that the airlines that include free carry-on do not weigh them in 95% of cases, but budget airlines like Spirit and Frontier are well known for this since their baggage fees are higher and it's pure profit for them (and they're planes tend to be smaller since they only fly narrow-body jets anyway). But for example on a Delta flight 6 years ago I had roughly 45 lbs in my carry-on and nobody cared (had to wiggle it into the bin but it fit; thus saving me a $50 checked bag fee). I also overloaded a backpack that barely fit under the seat (Same flight) with about 15 lbs.