Short answer: for a cabin bag, three to four cubes in graduated sizes, and the 4-pack covers almost everyone for trips up to a week. The longer answer depends on your bag, how long you're away, and the weather where you're going. Here's how to work it out.
Start with your bag
- Under-seat bag / personal item (around 20–25L): 2–3 cubes. Small, medium and maybe a large. A weekend.
- Standard cabin case (40L, 55 × 40 × 20 cm – the Ryanair/easyJet paid size): 4 cubes. One of each size fills one half of the case neatly, leaving the other half for shoes, wash bag and the odd bulky thing. This is what the 4-pack was designed around.
- Medium checked case (65–75L): 6–8 cubes. The 8-pack, or two 4-packs in different colours if you're packing for two.
- Large backpack (40–65L): 4–6. Backpacks are deep rather than wide, so stand the cubes on their edge like books.
Then your trip length
| Trip | Cubes | What goes where |
|---|---|---|
| 2–3 nights | 2–3 | S: underwear and socks. M: tops. L: trousers and a jumper. |
| 4–7 nights | 4 | S: underwear and socks. M: t-shirts and shirts. L: trousers, shorts, dresses. XL: jumpers, hoodies, a light jacket. |
| 1–2 weeks | 6–8 | As above, doubled, or one set per person. Keep one cube empty for laundry. |
| 2 weeks+ / multiple climates | 8 | Split by climate rather than by garment: a cube for the hot week, a cube for the cold week. |
What fits in each ciúb cube
These are real-world numbers from customers, not lab figures. Compressed.
- Small (25 × 19 cm): a week of underwear and socks, or swimwear plus chargers and cables.
- Medium (30 × 23 cm): 5–7 t-shirts, or 3–4 shirts.
- Large (37 × 27 cm): 3 pairs of trousers or jeans, or 2 pairs plus a couple of dresses.
- Extra large (44 × 33 cm): 3–4 jumpers, or a hoodie and a jacket, or 2 suits on a hanger-free trip.
"In the large cube, I fit 6x t-shirts, 1x sweater, 1x dress shirt, and 2x sports shorts. I also used the smaller cube to place 4x underwear and 6x socks." – Lucas H., 30L backpack
"I managed to pack everything I needed into three of the cubes into my wheelie bag for a 5 night trip away. I packed two days before going away to see if I could get everything in and was pleasantly surprised, as on arrival I was expecting everything to need ironing… but it didn't!" – Amanda C.
The one mistake everyone makes
Buying four cubes the same size. A set should be graduated – small for the small stuff, extra large for the bulk – so each cube is full enough to compress properly. A half-empty cube doesn't go flat. That's why ciúb sells the 4-pack as one of each size rather than four mediums.
Do I need compression for hand luggage?
If you're flying hand-luggage-only, yes. It's the difference between "a long weekend" and "a week" in the same 40L case. Soft things (knitwear, hoodies, towels) are the ones that compress most, so if you're going somewhere cold the cubes earn their keep twice over. See do compression packing cubes actually work? for the honest version.
A sample week in a cabin case
- Small: 7 pairs of underwear, 7 pairs of socks.
- Medium: 5 t-shirts, 2 shirts.
- Large: 2 pairs of trousers, 1 pair of shorts, 1 dress or smart top.
- Extra large: 2 jumpers, 1 light jacket, pyjamas.
That's one side of a standard cabin case. Shoes, wash bag and the book go in the other side.
Which set to get
- 4-pack – one of each size. One carry-on, trips up to a week.
- Bundle – the 4-pack plus a matching laundry bag and shoe bag. The most popular option.
- 8-pack – two of each size. A medium or large case, a week or more, or packing for two.
Every set is 4.7/5 from over 4,900 reviews, dispatched same day from the UK if you order by 9pm on a weekday, and covered by a lifetime guarantee on fabric and stitching.