For far-flung adventures, weekends away and expeditions abroad, duffel bags are gear-hauling heroes. Here’s what to look for and the best options out there.
Duffel bags are useful for anyone who leads an active lifestyle, especially one that involves plenty of travelling. The best duffel bags will be lightweight but durable and able to stand up to the rigours of travel. They’ll be able to support heavy loads and still be comfortable and easy to carry over short to medium-length distances and they also won’t be too rigid and bulky so that they can be kept out of the way when not needed.
Duffel bags come in all shapes, weights and sizes. The ones we have reviewed here all range from 600g to 1670g and from 55 litres to 90. We’ve also only looked at duffel bags that have shoulder straps that mean they can be carried like a backpack, however there are also plenty of models on the market that can only be carried like a briefcase, or that have just one sling strap that’s worn over one shoulder.
Forclaz Trekking Carry Bag
The best duffel bags will offer full waterproof protection but the majority tend to only be rated as water resistant – this isn’t necessarily a bad thing if you’re unlikely to need the bag for any water-based adventures.
One final point: we’ve gone for duffel rather than duffle, for the sake of consistency and also because it seems to be the form that most brands go for. Apparently there’s no set way!
The Best Duffel Bags 2024
- Best Overall Duffel Bag: Osprey Transporter 40L
- Best Value Duffel Bag: Forclaz Trekking Carry Bag 100L
- Best Durable Duffel: The North Face Base Camp Voyager Duffel
- Best Waterproof Duffel: Ortlieb ATrack ST
- Best High-Capacity Duffel: Rab Kitbag Duffel 80L
Osprey Transporter Duffel
Best overall duffel bag. This wins our top spot, with this tried and tested duffel ticking all the right boxes for our team.
Our team using the Transporter during our Outdoor 100 test trip.
Price: £100
Weight: 1,410g
Best for: Overseas backpacking, long-term travel
Key attributes: Useful pockets, packability, versatility
This design has been around for almost a decade now and it’s become one of the most popular duffels out there.
It’s a super durable and reliable bit of kit. In fact, one of our reviewers has owned one of these for over 5 years now and used it for countless trips and he says it’s still in excellent condition.
It’s proved to be tough, water resistant and excellent for organising kit. We love the fact that the shoulder straps can be tucked away quickly and easily to prevent them from snagging in transit. Kudos to Osprey for using recycled materials too.
A number of sizes are available. Go for the 40-litre version if you’re looking for an option that you can carry onto a flight with you. There’s also the Transporter Waterproof if you’re looking for one for use while paddleboarding or kayaking.
Available in: 40, 65 & 130L.
Read our full Osprey Transporter Duffel review.
| BUY NOW: OSPREYEUROPE.COM |
Forclaz Trekking Carry Bag 100L
Best value duffel bag: With its impressive performance and reasonable price, this was easily the best for your buck duffel bag that we tested this year.
The Forclaz Trekking loaded up in the back of our tester’s car.
Price: £49.99
Weight: 1.16kg
Best for: Adventures that require a lot of kit and equipment
Key attributes: Durable, excellent value
This duffel bag has swept into the guide and landed our top spot as best value duffel bag overall. It might not be the most technical duffel in our selection, but following our tests, w’d say this easily provides the best mix of performance and value for money,
It’s made from a hardy polyester material with reinforced seams, passing all of our durability tests without a scratch. It’s not fully waterproof but it is highly waterproof. We left it out in the rain during a photoshoot and found that the materials and the stormproof flap kept the contents inside all safe.
It’s 100-litre volume is huge. In fact, in our tests to see how much we could fit inside this, we actually found ourselves scratching around to find extra bits and bobs to chuck inside. It’s worth knowing, however, that this duffel is too big to fly with.
The fact that the shoulder straps aren’t removable is a bit of a downside to us. It’s handy to have the option to remove them or at least tug them away so they don’t snag. Apart from that, this is a great value duffel bag that should perform for a very long time.
Available in 40, 60, 80, 100 and 120-litre versions.
| BUY NOW: DECATHLON.CO.UK |
2. Ortlieb ATrack ST
Best waterproof duffel: This gets our pick as the best duffel for full waterproof protection. It also stood out for its innovative design.
Will showing the ATrack in use in the Brecon Beacons
Price: £175
Weight: 1560g
Best for: Hiking, active adventures, backpacking
Key attributes: Fully waterproof, excellent as a backpack
Every so often, along comes an item that seemingly makes a considerable slice of products from that same genre redundant overnight. The ISPO Award-winning, and critically-acclaimed, Atrack ST Backpack from Ortlieb is one such bit of kit. What we have here is a duffel bag that works just like a backpack, or a backpack that works just like a duffel. It’s super durable and fully waterproof. Even the main zip, which is located against your back, is 100% watertight.
The main opening is huge, so you can access kit easily without having to rummage around or fling items out and there’s loads of well paced padding that makes this comfortable even when you’re carrying around heavy loads.
One aspect we really liked during our tests was the amount of adjustment. You can really cinch this in if you’re carrying a light loads, or loosen things up if you’ve got a lot to lug around with you.
Read our full Ortlieb Atrack ST review.
| BUY NOW: ORTLIEB.COM |
3. Rab Kitbag Duffel 80L
Best high-capacity duffel: With its 80-litre capacity (and a 120-litre option available too) this came out on top as our favourite duffel for big and heavy loads.
Price: £95
Weight: 1480g
Best for: Adventures that require a lot of kit and equipment
Key attributes: Large capacity, padded shoulder straps
The biggest duffel reviewed in this group test, the Rab Kitbag is one of those that will be able to swallow everything you need for your next big trip. There’s good padding on the shoulder straps which makes for a comfortable carry, and there are two zipped mesh pockets in the lid – useful for storing things like travel documents and house keys.
The material feels quite thin and light for a duffel bag, but that’s not to say it’s flimsy and easy to tear either – quite the opposite in fact. This thing is built to withstand a lot of rough stuff.
Granted it’s not the most comfortable carry, but it’s excellent as something that can swallow a whole lot of kit and be slung in and out of the back of a car on any road trips.
Available in: 50, 80 & 120L.
Read our full Rab Kitbag 80L review.
| BUY NOW: RAB.EQUIPMENT |
4. The North Face Base Camp Voyager Duffel
Best for durability: We were impressed by the toughness of this duffel during out tests. It’s a long-lasting design.
Hamid using the Basecamp Voyager during our Greener Gear Guide kit test.
Price: £115
Weight: 1055g
Best for: Weekends away, day-to-day travel
Key attributes: Recycled fabrics, PFC- free water-repellant finish, very tough build
Stylish, practical and virtually indestructible, The North Face Voyager is a little lighter than their original base camp duffel, and has a few more useful pockets to store your essentials. But best of all is its use of a tough 300-denier recycled polyester tarpaulin and a PFC-free DWR treatment. The single material construction aids recyclability, while the recycled polyester also helps to reduce landfill waste and the use of virgin synthetics.
You can carry it as a backpack or a duffel, and it also has a padded 13” laptop sleeve and a removable divider in the main compartment. There’s now an external zipped pocket for your passport and phone, as well as a secure internal zip pocket, padded removable shoulder straps, multiple grab handles, and external webbing loops that can be used as lash points. The zipped D-shaped flap also opens up really wide to make rummaging around inside easy.
Selected for the Green Gear Guide 2021/22 – Read our full The North Face Base Camp Voyager Duffel review.
| BUY NOW: THENORTHFACE.CO.UK |
Best of the Rest
1. Bach Dr. Duffel 70L
The Dr Duffel on test by our team in Snowdonia
Price: £160
Weight: 1.69kg
Best for: Travel
Key attributes: Classic design, modern twist, reliable 1000-denier fabric
The Bach Dr. Duffel is a modern take on an old-school doctor’s bag design – one of those things that’s able to swallow more than you’d believe is possible.
It has a huge opening, giving you access to all corners of the pack, and It’s chock-a-block full of organisation pockets. It’s also made from a 1000-denier strong Cordura which is ‘air textured’, giving it a more sophisticated and matte textured appearance than your average duffel.
The storage compartments are made from mesh whilst the side and back panel of the bag are padded to protect your valuables and provide carrying comfort. It also comes with two shoulder straps that can be tucked away or completely removed when they’re not required.
Other features include a padded laptop sleeve, zips with padlock loops and two compression straps on each side, allowing you to expand/compress storage as required.
This was a contender for our pick of ‘most durable duffel’ as the fabric is super tough, but that accolade went to The North Face in this instance.
Also available in 20, 25, 30, 40 and 110-litre capacities.
Selected for the 2021/22 Outdoor 100 – Read our full Bach Dr Duffel 70 review.
| BUY NOW: BACH-EQUIPMENT.COM |
Best Value Duffel Bag
5. Eagle Creek Migrate 60L
Price: £110
Weight: 960g
Best for: Travel
Key attributes: Well-priced, durable, water-repellent, good eco credentials
The 60-litre Eagle Creek Migrate duffel has plenty of qualities to recommend it as a good travel companion. It’s the perfect size to take as carry-on, and slings easily over your shoulder or on your back thanks to the dual haul and pack straps. It’s also tough and durable, utilising a water-repellent 900-denier heavy-duty TPU fabric. This is a better alternative to PVC, which can leak toxins into the environment. The TPU is made from Bluesign-approved material, while the duffel’s water repellent coating was developed by harvesting windscreen plastics from landfill sites in Asia. Talk about junk in your trunk…
Read our full Eagle Creek Migrate 60L review.
| BUY NOW: EAGLECREEK.EU |
6. Patagonia Black Hole Duffel 55L
Price: £110
Weight: 1440g
Best for: Expeditions, overseas travel
Key attributes: Recycled materials, durable, water resistant
This isn’t an overly technical duffel bag but it’s durable and water resistant enough, and it carries very comfortably. The shoulder straps are quick and easy to remove if you want to use this as just a holdall or if you ever want to lash it down to, say, your car roof. It also all folds up into its own pocket, down to about the size of a loaf of bread – pretty handy. Best of all, however, is the fact that all of the fabrics used here are made from recycled materials and they’re recyclable as well.
I’ve been using the older version of this duffel bag about twice a month for almost ten years now and it’s served me excellently. It’s come with many on countless flights and road trips and actually doesn’t even have that many scars from the mileage.
Available in: 55L, 70L and 100L.
Read our full Patagonia Black Hole Duffel 55 Review.
| BUY NOW: EU.PATAGONIA.COM |
7. Jack Wolfskin Traveltopia 45L
The Traveltopia in use during our Green Gear Guide test weekend
Price: £130
Weight: 790g
Best for: travel and casual use
Key attributes: sustainable materials, useful storage options, packable
This is another duffel bag that impressed us for its eco credential, so much so that we decided to include it in our prestigious Green Gear Guide this year.
The Traveltopia 45 is made from 100% recycled polyester and is bluesign approved, meaning that harmful substances have been eliminated right from the beginning of the manufacturing process, and all resources involved in its manufacture have been used responsibly. What’s more, it also has Green Button certification. That’s a label awarded by the German federal government designed to help consumers identify socially and environmentally sustainable textiles.
One thing that we really liked about this is its water resistant coating which uses a PFC-free DWR (durable water repellent) treatment that’s solvent-free wax – it’s actually inspired by natural beeswax.
When it comes to performance, this is a very practical and functional bag too. The polyester construction is pretty tough and we found it enabled the Traveltopia to stand up to regular everyday use. The detachable multi-way carry straps, large main compartment, five inner pockets, reinforced base and water resistant zips all make it very practical too. Similarly, the 45-litre capacity means this duffle is big enough to take a weekend or more’s worth of clothes and essentials. When you don’t need it, the whole thing stashes neatly into its own pocket to end up as a bundle small enough to stick in another suitcase or away in a cupboard.
Available in: 45 and 65 litre capacities.
Read our full Jack Wolfskin Traveltopia review.
| BUY NOW: JACK-WOLFSKIN.CO.UK |
8. Peak Design Travel DuffelPack 65
On trial during our Greener Gear Guide trip in the Lake District
Price: £160
Weight: 1.77kg
Best for: Travelling (including short off-the-beaten-track jaunts too)
Key attributes: Practical, versatile, recycled fabrics
Peak Design’s Travel Dufflepack 65 is big enough to work as a travel bag, with a sleek and functional style. However, for the rougher stuff, it’s also fitted with ergonomic padded backpack-style shoulder and waist straps that are stowed beneath magnetically-sealed back panels, yet deploy instantly when you need to haul it around.
It’s also made from 100% recycled 600-denier nylon canvas, reinforced with an even burlier 900-denier woven polyester bottom fabric. The woven straps are made from nylon with Hypalon synthetic rubber and inside, the internal storage pockets are made from silicone-coated mesh.
The hardware is also all metal – no plastic buckles or cinches, just metal hook and loop closures. That’s a plus for lifetime durability and therefore sustainability. In fact, Peak Designs guarantee their products for life, and refurbish broken items to keep them in use and out of landfills.
Read our full Peak Design Travel DuffelPack review.
| BUY NOW: PEAKDESIGN.COM |
10. Arc’teryx Carrier Duffel 55L
Price: £130
Weight: 600g
Best for: Wet weather adventures
Key attributes: Light, packable, high quality materials
This is by far the lightest and most packable of the duffels we tested. It also has excellent wet weather performance. If you’re on a big trip and need an extra pack for roaming away from basecamp with then it’s an option worth considering. Granted, it’s not the cheapest, but it’s certainly made from some high quality materials. Available in: 40, 55 & 80L.
Read our full Arc’teryx Carrier Duffel 55L review.
| BUY NOW: ARCTERYX.COM |
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