If you've searched "vacuum bags for travel" you're trying to solve one problem: too many clothes, not enough case. There are two ways to do it. Plastic vacuum or roll-up compression bags, or fabric compression packing cubes. We make the second kind, so here's a comparison we've tried to keep honest.
The quick comparison
| Vacuum / roll-up bags | Compression packing cubes | |
|---|---|---|
| Space saved | Up to 50–70% on the first pack | Around 40% |
| Re-packing on the way home | Needs a vacuum, or a lot of rolling and kneeling | Zip and go, every time |
| Organisation | One big slab of clothes | Separate cubes per category |
| Creasing | Heavy | Light; folded clothes come out folded |
| Weight | Light, but clothes compressed hard get heavier per litre | Light (4-pack 553 g) |
| Durability | Plastic punctures and seals fail, often on trip two | Years; ours have a lifetime guarantee |
| Airport bag search | Everything out, nothing goes back | Lift cubes out, lift them back in |
| Waste | Single-use plastic in practice | Reusable, machine washable |
Where vacuum bags win
Raw squash. If you're moving house, storing winter duvets, or taking a once-a-year trip where you'll pack once and unpack once, a vacuum bag compresses harder than a cube. We're not going to pretend otherwise.
Where they fall down
Travel isn't one pack and one unpack. It's a dozen. The first time you try to re-seal a vacuum bag in a hotel room with no vacuum cleaner, the advantage disappears, and the clothes you compressed so hard come out looking like they've been through a mangle. Then the seal goes.
"Ordered these to try as an alternative to the plastic vacuum bags that I have used before which fail easily and being plastic aren't very eco. My husband promptly pinched one to take on a business trip and was impressed how it reduced the size of his packing for his carry on." – Joanna C.
"I bought some cheap compression bags and loved them, but they tore easily as soon as you packed them full. There is a world of difference with these." – Catherine S.
How a compression cube gets close without the plastic
A compression cube has two zips. The first closes the cube. The second runs around the middle and, when you pull it, squeezes the air out and pulls the cube flat. No pump, no vacuum, no rolling on the floor. It compresses a bit less than a vacuum bag on the first pack, and exactly the same on the twentieth.
"On one trip we packed two suits and put both into the large sized bag. It all fitted well and upon arrival we just hung it up and no need to iron or even steam." – Hilde Z.
Use both, if you like
Some long-trip travellers use one vacuum bag for the return journey's dirty laundry (it only needs to seal once) and cubes for everything else. That's a fair compromise.
"We had two large air compression bags for our laundry and we were able to condense two suitcases of dirty clothes into these two compression bags. I had been searching for a double set of packing cubes that compressed – these are great quality cubes." – Tim L.
Our recommendation
For anyone flying more than once a year: compression cubes. The 4-pack covers a cabin case; the 8-pack covers a checked case or two people. Ripstop fabric, YKK compression zips, lifetime guarantee on fabric and stitching, 4.7/5 from over 4,900 reviews.