Six Items That Will Maximize Your Carry-On Space

We may earn a commission from links on this page.

Air travel may be fast, but it’s also often a source of stress and discomfort. Aside from tight seats, delays, and generally uncomfortable accommodations, airlines have been nickel-and-diming us with fees for just about everything, including luggage. Checked bag fees range around $30 to $40 to start, so it’s not surprising that more and more people are trying to travel with just their carry-on.

Restricting yourself to a single carry-on is liberating—no more waiting at the luggage carousel, no more dragging a bulky, heavy roller behind you everywhere—but also limiting in terms of space. Clever packing, like rolling your clothes, can help get the most out of a carry-on, but eventually, you run up against the laws of physics. If you really want to stretch that carry-on’s capacity to the limit, here are a few clever items you can buy that will help you with that project.

Packing cubes

As our own Beth Skwarecki will tell you, packing cubes are life-changing. They contain all your loose items—like those rolled-up shirts—so they stay in their pristine, efficient configuration instead of getting disorganized and chaotic. Compression cubes can also shrink down many of your items so they take up as little space as possible. They also make it a lot easier to use the space inside your carry-on efficiently, transforming a bunch of oddly-shaped stuff into neat cubes that can be quickly arranged and re-arranged. Finally, they can be used to separate out your stuff by use case, so you can keep stuff neatly packed away when you access the stuff you need right now.

Vacuum bags

If compression packing cubes can shrink down some of your stuff, imagine an entire carry-on that compresses itself. Vacuum seal carry-on backpacks have a built-in vacuum that compresses everything inside all at once with the touch of a button, making the bag as small and easily stowed as possible.

The two downsides to a vacuum-sealed carry-on are access and security. If you need to grab something from your carry-on, you’ll have to decompress it first. In terms of getting these bags through security at the airport, the TSA says they are “discouraged” but allowed, so you can get them through. But the TSA agents may force you to decompress them so they can inspect the contents—especially if the compression makes it difficult to make out what’s in there. Because of the built-in vacuum, you should be able to re-seal the bag after you grab your stuff or have it inspected, but it’s still a downside.

Stuffable neck pillows

If you’re going to use a neck pillow on the plane, why not buy one that lets you easily stuff it full of rolled-up clothing or other soft items? Every shirt you get into a neck pillow is a shirt you don’t have to fit into your carry-on, opening up space for other items or making your packing job just a little bit easier, and you still get the benefit of a neck pillow. It’s a win-win!

Belt bags

Belt bags (or fanny packs, as the unwashed call them) are a great way to get just a little extra room in your carry-on. It’s true that many airlines will consider a visible belt bag to be a personal item and demand that you stuff it into your carry-on when boarding. But that can only happen if they see it—choosing a slim, compressed belt bag like this one will allow you to wear it under your clothes while boarding, and no one will be the wiser.

Stackable containers for toiletries

These hexagonal, magnetic capsules are designed to be the perfect way to bring liquid stuff with you on the plane. They hold 1.32 ounces of stuff, snap together to make packing them very easy, and are pre-labeled so you know exactly what’s in them. It’s a much more efficient way to bring some basics like shampoo, conditioner, or lotion with you than trying to manage tiny plastic bottles or even a lumpy bag of tiny plastic bottles.

Solid toiletries

If you’re going to be packing your own shampoo and other toiletries, consider bringing solid versions—shampoo bars, conditioner, or lotion—instead of their harder-to-manage liquid versions. You could replace your toothpaste with a tooth powder as well, which can be transferred to any appropriately-sized container. These options are not only easier to pack, with less chance of a mess—they also won’t get you into any trouble at the security line, since they’re not liquid.