15 Best Packing Cubes To Help You Travel Better

These are the best packing cubes in 2020. We should know as frequent flyers who traveled to two dozen countries in the last year. Living on the road means we pack and unpack our bags a lot. Packing can be a drag, but investing in some of the best packing cubes for travel saves time.

We were skeptical when buying something to organize our bags and hesitant to spend the money on good packing cubes. I want to share our favorite packing cubes from eBags, REI, Eagle Creek, Shacke Pak, Topo Designs, and more. Hopefully, these make your packing, travels, and backpacking adventures easier like they have for us!

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Why Packing Cubes?

Packing cubes, to me, are very similar to having drawers in a dresser or hangers in a closet. If you want to have your bag with an organized system, packing cubes is a must. Otherwise, they eventually end up like a mess of jumbled clothing, especially if you’re traveling for a long time.

Almost all backpacks, suitcases, and duffel bags have a large compartment for your clothing and valuables. With all this space and no organization, it’s easy to end up a mess. This is where packing cubes come in handy for organizing the contents within your bag. They also help with things like the separation of dirty and clean clothes. Combined with special packing cubes that aid in compression, it allows you to save space and pack more in a carry-on, backpack, or medium-sized piece of luggage.

Packing cubes also makes unpacking a breeze once you reach your destination. Open your suitcase, place your cubes in the dresser, and put your suitcase out of the way. We always travel with packing cubes, and they make a world of difference. Plus, there are plenty of affordable options on Amazon with free two-day shipping, so you don’t have an excuse.

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The Best Packing Cubes

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Eagle Creek Pack-it Specter Cubes

Eagle Creek specializes in packable backpacks, packing cubes, luggage, and travel organization, so they’re no strangers to packing cubes. The Pack-it specter cubes are easily the best packing cubes on the market regarding weight, durability, breathability, and compression. Each bag weighs only a couple of ounces, saving your luggage weight.

They are built in ripstop nylon, allowing for good durability in a lightweight package. They don’t come in many colors but have three size options that suit most packing cube needs. The compression is a significant facet, and a handle makes pulling the cubes out of your luggage or backpack much more manageable.

Since they’re compression sacks, they’re exceptional for outdoor and hiking purposes. On multi-day hikes, it’s a great way to carry a change of socks and underwear. They’re not limited to outdoor scenarios; we’ve used them extensively throughout our travels.

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Shacke Pak Packing Cubes

These packing cubes are nylon and water-resistant. They are pretty durable and suitable for getting tossed around while traveling. The basic pack comes with four packing cubes, which should be enough for any travel bag. They’ve racked up a lot of glowing reviews, and our first set bought four years ago, looks as good as new.

So you can expect great value with these packing cubes since they’ll last long. I like the nylon that comes over the top of the packing cube and the nice depth they offer for good packing space. Shacke Pak prides itself on the quality of its zippers, which seem like a minor feature but can make or break your packing cube experience, especially if you like to overpack. One thing to note: the mesh on one bag has a rip but is still fully functional, and the color looks excellent after heavy use.

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Topo Designs Pack Bags

Topo Designs Pack Bags are some of the highest-quality packing cubes on this list. Their robust design uses heavy-duty YYK zippers and 1000D Cordura fabric, ensuring solid and water-repellent qualities. Zippers and seams do not make it fully waterproof, but it is highly water resistant. If something explodes in your bag, anything in these cubes will be safe and sound. They also feel great and are super sturdy, which bodes well for how long they’ll last, unlike many of their cheap counterparts. I enjoy their classic look with a nice top handle and large zippers.

There are two downsides: the bag’s price is $30 per cube. The second is that waterproof fabrics trap moisture inside the cube and prevent you from seeing inside the bag. That said, they come in four colors that could make organization by color possible. I love these packing cubes combined through one of Topo Designs Travel Bag kits, which comes with one of my favorite travel backpacks.

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Away Travel Insider Packing Cubes

Away Travel makes some of our favorite pieces of hard-side luggage and has some wonderful packing cubes to compliment them. The Away Travel Insider Packing Cubes come in six sizes to complement an entire wardrobe. I love that these packing cubes are structured, adding more protection and stackability and helping your clothes resist wrinkles.

They have a waterproof nylon bottom. When getting ready, setting the bag on a wet bathroom counter is helpful. If you’re a business traveler, these are a great option to protect and organize your professional dress clothes. Above all, they are attractive and well-constructed bags that make the cheap options seem silly if you’re a frequent flyer.

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Peak Design Packing Cubes

I really love these thoughtful packing cubes, as with other Peak Design products. They really think everything through. Instead of looking to copy competitors, they’ve come up with an original design that borrows the good and implements some new ideas. In particular, stand-out features with the Peak Design packing cubes are the quick pull to open tabs, compression zip, and separate dirty clothes section.

They also look attractive with a 70D nylon/poly blend on the exterior that feels nice. It also allows for weatherproofing with a silicon-lined interior to prevent water or spills from touching your clothes. The big thing to note is one large packing cube costs $40.

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eBags Classic Packing Cubes

The eBags make affordable pieces of quality luggage and luggage accessories. We love all the fun colors eBags have, making it great for organizing a family or his/her bags. The packing cubes are sold as a set and come in three sizes. eBags use a tough tech lite diamond nylon that provides the bags some rigidity, which holds your clothes or items well.

That ability also makes stacking them for organizing your luggage much simpler. The eBags are some of the most popular and recognizable on Amazon. They’re basic but well-known heavy-duty products and some of the best packing cubes for backpacking.

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Amazonbasics Packing Cubes

We’ve featured Amazonbasics products a few times on this site because they offer decent products at the cheapest prices. Don’t expect top-quality craftsmanship as they’re more or less just undercutting the plethora of drop-shippers selling cheap knock-off products on Amazon these days. With the reliability of Amazon (refunds and returns) and a slight step up in product quality, they are great packing cubes for the price.

They come in various colors, two shapes, and three sizes. For a budget option, they’re made with nylon, better material than polyester common in many cheap packing cubes. This allows them to be machine washed and gives them water resistance.

That being said, they implement a lot of mesh in the front, which saves on production cost, but creates a weak point prone to tears on the front. At the current price point, the argument could be made they’re a bad value when a more reliable brand name can be purchased for only ten dollars more. But a penny saved is a penny earned!

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Osprey Ultralight Packing Cubes

Osprey has long delivered some of our favorite travel backpacks and hiking backpacks. As a reputable brand with an “All Mighty Guarantee,” they make lightweight packing cubes that offer compression. They’re a fantastic choice and very close in competition to the Eagle Creek Specter listed above.

They deliver wonderful quality and are made of 40D ripstop nylon with a siliconized coating. With the material, you receive the benefits of durability, waterproofing, and softness. The handle makes pulling the cubes from your luggage or backpack much more accessible.

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REI Co-op Packing Cubes

REI Co-op makes some great travel and outdoor-related gear in-house. We love their packing cube sets that are high quality at an affordable price. They’re water resistant and can handle some moisture or fight stains.

The small mesh feature is a little awkward, but I appreciate a small mesh front as it is often where our packing cubes rip first or show signs of wear. I’ll file it down more as a plus because of the small mesh front’s breathability.

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Dot&Dot Packing Cubes

Cameron has the Dot&Dot system, which has held up nicely for the past two years. He keeps all sorts of things in their jeans, toiletries, and shoes. The Dot&Dot Packing Cubes for Travel hold everything together well and have held up to his destructive habits of not being sturdy. That’s impressive.

It could be that they are spacious and aren’t under much strain. I have to note that these packing cubes are larger than any others we’ve had. It’s not a bad thing, but it’s not necessary either.

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Patagonia Black Hole Cube

These are the packing cubes built for adventure. Patagonia continues on the success of their great black hole bags and has these fantastic cubes. They’re super robust and perfect for a gear back with a mix of hard and soft items. If you’re into climbing, hiking, mountaineering, or skiing, you don’t have to worry about crampons or dirty boots ruining your clothes.

That tough nature translates well into organizing the hard goods, too. I carry some of these for our snowboard and mountaineering bags and use them to organize various tools, gear, and clothes. They’re made with heavy-duty 450-denier polyester ripstop and highly weatherproof thermoplastic urethane laminate, then topped with a durable water-repellent (DWR) finish. That’s a lot of tech; when you feel the material, you can immediately feel the benefits.

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TravelWise Packing Cubes

These travel cubes come in various colors, which is great for choosing what goes in and where and distinguishing between all the bags. They come in large, medium, and small and are among some of the best packing cubes on Amazon. A basic set comes with one large, medium, and small. There is an option to get a five-piece set as well.

I only need three in my bag as it is not that big, but for those of you who love your clothes and have a bigger suitcase for packing cubes, I recommend the five-piece. The TravelWise packing cubes are one of the best travel packing cubes because of how lightweight they are.

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Bagail Packing Cubes

These packing cubes are nylon and water-resistant. They are pretty durable and good for getting tossed around while traveling. The basic pack comes with four packing cubes, which should be enough for any travel bag. They’ve racked up a lot of glowing reviews. I like the nylon that comes over the top of the packing cube and the nice depth they offer for good packing space.

Bagail Packing Cubes prides itself on the quality of its zippers, which seem like a small feature but can make or break your packing cube experience, especially if you like to overpack.

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Travelon Packing Cubes

Travelon makes great packing cubes similar to the Away Travel Insider Cube above. They come in several sizes to complement an entire wardrobe. I love that these packing cubes are structured, adding more protection and stackability and helping your clothes resist wrinkles.

They have a waterproof nylon bottom. Setting a bag on a wet bathroom counter when getting ready will be useful. If you’re a business traveler, these are a great option to protect and organize your professional dress clothes. They come in various prints and colors to suit your style needs.

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Peak Design Camera Cube

This product doesn’t belong at the bottom of the list, but not everyone needs a packing cube designed for camera equipment. We need one, and it’s one of our favorite packing products as it allows us to fly carry-on only without needing a camera-specific backpack. On top of that, built as a full kit with their travel backpack, it allows for more versatility in our travels as we can quickly change the bag’s interior.

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Why Should You Use Packing Cubes?

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Organization

This is one of the main arguments for packing cubes. You can organize your clothes, toiletries, accessories, and random items into neat, tidy bags. With these luggage organizers, you don’t have to worry as much about little things getting lost in your luggage because they’re always in the corresponding cube.

Compression

Many packing cubes (or if you jam-pack like me) do a good job at compressing your clothes. This frees up space in your suitcase, allowing room for other things.

Efficiency

When my bags are packed with packing cubes, and I open my suitcase, I can easily move the packing cubes – not all the clothes – from point A to point B. I don’t lose things like I used to. I can get in and out of my luggage with ease.

Protection

Packing cubes do a great job of protecting my clothes. I don’t have to wrap things in plastic bags in case of a spill in my bag, and I don’t have to watch out for snagging my clothes on zippers anymore.

Eco Friendly

You probably think you can just put your clothes in plastic bags, but think about all that unnecessary plastic waste. Plastic bags will not last long until you throw them in the trash. At $20 a set, it’s hard to justify using plastic bags over a packing cube. We all want to strive to be more eco-friendly!

How Many Packing Cubes Do You Need?

The amount of packing cubes you’ll need depends on the size of your luggage. Are you traveling carry-on only or a large duffle bag? Most packing cube sets come with four packs of various sizes, which is excellent for a long trip. Two packing cubes should do the job if you are only going on a weekend getaway.

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