GoKawiilSummer is right around the corner. We’re headed out on adventures and bringing our stuff with us. Here are all the tech and tips that WIRED Reviews recommends for your travels.
There is a surprisingly robust debate among frequent travelers about whether it's best to carry on a suitcase or to check it. Sure, checking a bag saves you from worrying about space restrictions and confusing security requirements, needing to tote your suitcase into a bathroom stall with you, and sweating about snagging overhead bin space once you board. But you need only one really bad experience with checking luggage to convince you to avoid doing so whenever possible in favor of being a carry-on purist. My version of that incident occurred at the Delta counter in Dulles International Airport and almost made me miss my flight. (In fact, I'd prefer to not even use a carry-on! But that's another story entirely.)
I fly more often than I'd like—short work trips, cross-country flights to visit family, and international vacation hauls. I've tested countless carry-on suitcases and have now enlisted my family members to help as well. These are the best carry-on suitcases that we've found that will fit pretty much any traveler's needs.
Don't see anything you like? Check out our buying guides to the Best Travel Totes, the Best Laptop Backpacks, and the Best Toiletry Bags. Here's our guide to packing your carry-on correctly.
Updated May 2026: I completely overhauled this piece with new picks, new write-ups for existing picks, and updated FAQs. I also checked links and prices to ensure the most up-to-date information.
Best Overall
Photograph: Adrienne So
Photograph: Adrienne So Chevron Chevron Save to wishlist Save to wishlist Away Softside Carry-On $225 Amazon $225 Away
Does it surprise you that I didn't pick the iconic Away polycarbonate carry-on, that gorgeous colorful unit that jump-started the whole direct-to-consumer luggage movement from one of the few affluent-millennial–coded companies to have weathered multiple scandals and economic storms successfully since its founding in 2015? Sometimes it surprises me, too. Multiple WIRED staffers own the hard-sided carry-on because it's good-looking and reasonably priced. However, I prefer the brand's Softside Carry-On. In general, I prefer soft-sided luggage because it shows scuffs less easily, won't crack, and is more flexible if I overpack.
With regard to this specific soft-sided case, it also has a little more flexibility than its hard-shelled cousin regarding organization options. It has exterior pockets, but they're cleverly hidden. The straps compress a back panel over half the suitcase, so your stuff is squeezed down evenly. There's a proprietary interior stabilizer to help keep it balanced—it never tipped over on its front, even when I was trying to slide tote bags or backpacks onto the handle while rolling it down a rickety aluminum gangway ramp. It has three exterior handles, not just two, so you can fling it about any which way. Also, the bag's profile and hardware are pleasantly understated. There's no giant shiny logos or ugly plastic zipper pulls, and all the available colors are attractive.
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