Best Packing Organizer Cubes
The original was written in the spirit of a convert, which is the usual arc with packing cubes: people are sceptical, try them, and do not go back.
What they solve is findability, not volume. Cubes do not make your clothes smaller unless they compress; they stop your bag becoming an archaeological dig. That is worth the small weight penalty on any trip longer than a few days.
What to look for now, a decade and a half into the category:
- Compression zips if you carry bulky clothing. A second zip that flattens the cube genuinely saves space on fleeces and jumpers, and nothing on t-shirts.
- Mesh tops so you can see what is inside without opening it, and so damp clothes can breathe.
- Light fabric. A set of four heavy cubes is 400g of nothing; ultralight sets are closer to 100g for the same function.
- Sizes that match your bag. Measure the interior width; a cube that does not fit the short dimension wastes more space than it saves.
How many: three or four. One per clothing type and one kept empty for laundry. More than that and you are sorting rather than packing.
The alternative worth knowing: for a small cabin-only bag, rolling into a single dry bag is lighter, cheaper and uses the awkward corners better. Cubes are a system for a larger bag, and the bigger the bag the more they help.
Part of the guide to packing and organisation.