A good carry-on is the suitcase you will use most: it rolls through every airport, slides into the overhead bin and skips the baggage-claim wait. That makes it one of the most useful gifts of the holiday travel season, for frequent flyers, new grads and anyone whose old roller has a wobbly wheel.
We compared seven carry-ons you can order on Amazon today, from the $129.99 Samsonite Freeform to the $729 Briggs & Riley Baseline Essential. Prices, ratings and sellers are snapshots from Amazon’s U.S. listings on Nov. 2, 2026, and they move often, especially as holiday sales start.
What to look for
Size that actually fits. Most U.S. airlines allow carry-ons up to about 22 by 14 by 9 inches, wheels and handles included, as CNN Underscored notes, but many bags sold as carry-ons run longer. Several picks here are 23 inches or more overall, and almost none still fit the limit when fully expanded. If you fly budget or European airlines, check their limits before you buy.
Softside or hardside. Fabric bags such as the Platinum Elite and SwissGear Sion have outside pockets and give a little when the bin is tight. Polycarbonate shells such as the Away and Monos shrug off rain and look sleek, but they scuff and usually open like a clamshell, so you need room to lay them flat.
Weight, wheels and warranty. Every pound the bag weighs is a pound you can’t pack and have to lift overhead; empty weights here run from 5.4 to 10 pounds. Four spinner wheels are easiest in airports. And because airlines are rough on bags, a warranty that covers airline damage, as Travelpro’s and Briggs & Riley’s do, is worth paying for.
How we chose
Expert testing first. We started from carry-on guides that pack, roll and drop-test bags: Wirecutter, OutdoorGearLab and both of CNN Underscored’s soft-sided and hard-shell guides. Every bag here is a pick or a tested recommendation in at least one of them. Specs come from the makers’ Amazon listings, and tested weights and volumes come from OutdoorGearLab.
Then what people actually buy. Every pick is sold on Amazon’s U.S. store and ships from Amazon. Three are sold by Amazon itself, the Maxlite 5 was offered by Amazon or a third-party seller depending on when we checked, the Away and Monos are sold by their makers’ own stores, and the Briggs & Riley is sold by a third-party seller. The Samsonite Freeform has more than 19,000 ratings.
Quick pick guide
Best overall: Travelpro Platinum Elite Carry-On Spinner: Wirecutter’s and OutdoorGearLab’s top pick, with airline-damage coverage for life, for $390.
Best hard-shell: Away The Carry-On: a sleek polycarbonate case with a built-in compression panel, for $275.
Best value hard-shell: Samsonite Freeform Carry-On Spinner: light, roomy and expandable, for $129.99.
Lightest: Travelpro Maxlite 5 Carry-On Spinner: 5.4 pounds empty with a 2-inch expansion, for about $147.
Most organized softside: SwissGear Sion Carry-On Spinner: front pockets, tie-down straps and a 10-year warranty, for $199.
Best for laptops: Monos Carry-On Pro: a padded front pocket that fits a 16-inch laptop, for $295.
Best splurge: Briggs & Riley Baseline Essential Carry-On Spinner: CNN Underscored’s top soft-sided pick, with lifetime repairs, for $729.
Comparison at a glance
| Carry-on | Price | Best for | Shell | Outside size (with wheels) | Weight | Expands | Amazon stars |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Travelpro Platinum Elite | $390.00 | Best overall | Softside | 23.5 x 14.5 x 9 in. | 7.8 lb | Yes, 2 in. | 4.4 |
| Away The Carry-On | $275.00 | Hard-shell | Polycarbonate | 21.7 x 14.4 x 9 in. | 7.5 lb | No | 4.6 |
| Samsonite Freeform | $129.99 | Value hard-shell | Polypropylene | 23 x 15 x 10 in. | 6.5 lb | Yes | 4.3 |
| Travelpro Maxlite 5 | $146.93–$148 | Lightest | Softside | 23 x 14.5 x 9 in. | 5.4 lb | Yes, 2 in. | 4.4 |
| SwissGear Sion | $199.00 | Organized softside | Softside | 22.75 x 14.25 x 10.25 in. | 8 lb | Yes | 4.3 |
| Monos Carry-On Pro | $295.00 | Laptops | Polycarbonate | 22 x 14 x 9 in. | 7.8 lb | No | 3.8 |
| Briggs & Riley Baseline Essential | $729.00 | Splurge | Ballistic nylon | 22 x 14 x 9–11.5 in. | 10 lb | Yes (CX system) | 4.5 |
Prices and star ratings from Amazon’s U.S. listings on Nov. 2, 2026. Sizes and weights are the makers’ figures; the Away’s weight is from Away’s own spec sheet, which also lists its capacity as 41 liters.
Travelpro Platinum Elite: best overall
Photo: Amazon listing
The Travelpro Platinum Elite Carry-On Spinner is Wirecutter’s top carry-on and OutdoorGearLab’s Best Overall, where it scored 92 out of 100, the highest in its test. CNN Underscored notes Travelpro is trusted by many flight crews, and the details show it: magnetic self-aligning spinner wheels, a four-stop handle and top, side and bottom grab handles make it easy to steer and lift.
Travelpro lists a 21 x 14 x 9-inch case, 23.5 x 14.5 x 9 inches overall, 7.8 pounds and a tapered 2-inch expansion. Inside are tie-down straps, a drop-in suiter for a jacket or dress shirt and a removable wet pocket for toiletries, and outside are USB-A and USB-C ports wired to a power-bank pocket. OutdoorGearLab measured about 40 liters of space. Its warranty covers repairs for airline damage for the life of the bag once you register it.
It is $390 on Amazon, sold and shipped by Amazon, with 4.4 stars from more than 4,700 ratings.
Trade-offs: it is one of the pricier bags here, and at 23.5 inches overall it runs longer than the common 22-inch limit, though Travelpro says it fits most major U.S. airlines’ sizers when it isn’t expanded.
Travelpro Platinum Elite Carry-On Spinner
Best overall: lifetime airline-damage coverage and USB ports, for $390.
Away The Carry-On: best hard-shell
Photo: Amazon listing
The Away The Carry-On is Wirecutter’s hard-shell pick and OutdoorGearLab’s favorite hardsided bag. Its 100% polycarbonate shell measures 21.7 x 14.4 x 9 inches, so it is one of the few bags here that fits inside the common U.S. limit with its wheels on, and it rolls on four 360-degree spinner wheels.
Inside, one half has Away’s patented two-buckle compression panel and the other has mesh pockets, plus a drawstring laundry bag and a built-in TSA-approved combination lock. Away lists it at 7.5 pounds; OutdoorGearLab measured 35.5 liters. Away’s Amazon listing promises LifetimeCare repair support, but Wirecutter reports the warranty is five years for purchases made on or after April 14, 2026, and OutdoorGearLab lists five years of free repairs plus lifetime repair for a fee, so check the current terms.
It is $275 on Amazon, sold by Away and shipped by Amazon, with 4.6 stars from more than 480 ratings. We also saw it on sale for $216.12 during our Nov. 2 checks.
Trade-offs: it doesn’t expand (the pricier Carry-On Flex does), and like any glossy polycarbonate case it picks up scuffs.
Samsonite Freeform: best value hard-shell
Photo: Amazon listing
OutdoorGearLab calls the Samsonite Freeform Carry-On Spinner a solid hardshell for a reasonable price, and CNN Underscored found it light and roomy, with wheels smoother and sturdier than it expected at this price. Its polypropylene shell has a little flex, which helps when you overpack.
Samsonite lists it at 23 x 15 x 10 inches with wheels and 6.5 pounds, with a 20.5 x 14.5 x 10-inch interior, an expansion zipper, four oversized spinner wheels, elastic straps, a divider, a built-in TSA lock and a 10-year warranty. OutdoorGearLab measured 41.2 liters, among the most space it found.
It is $129.99 on Amazon in Powder Blue, sold and shipped by Amazon, with 4.3 stars from more than 19,000 ratings and more than 500 bought in the past month. We also saw it for $111.68 during our Nov. 2 checks.
Trade-offs: at 23 inches it pushes past some airlines’ limits, as CNN Underscored warns, and OutdoorGearLab listed its trolley handle, so-so wheels and easily scratched shell among its cons.
Travelpro Maxlite 5: lightest
Photo: Amazon listing
At 5.4 pounds empty, the Travelpro Maxlite 5 Carry-On Spinner is the lightest bag here, and OutdoorGearLab found it a full pound lighter than most of the other lightweight bags it tested. That matters most if you lift your bag overhead a lot or fly airlines that weigh carry-ons.
Travelpro lists a 21 x 14 x 9-inch case, 23 x 14.5 x 9 inches overall, 46 liters of packing capacity and a 2-inch expansion. It has two outside pockets, a full-length lid pocket, tie-down straps and a water-resistant coating, and its warranty covers airline damage for one year after you register it. In OutdoorGearLab’s drop tests from three and six feet it came away with only faint scratches.
On Nov. 2 it was $146.93 sold and shipped by Amazon in one of our checks and $148 from third-party seller PORTMANTOS in another, with 4.4 stars from more than 12,600 ratings.
Trade-offs: OutdoorGearLab noticed some wobble when it was fully packed and found it 1 to 1.5 inches longer than domestic limits, though it fit every overhead bin they tried when not expanded. It also has no built-in lock and few extras.
SwissGear Sion: most organized softside
Photo: Amazon listing
The SwissGear Sion Carry-On Spinner is OutdoorGearLab’s budget softshell pick, and CNN Underscored called it a practical choice with ample packing space, an organized interior and a durable, expandable design. Its two front pockets keep a jacket, snacks and chargers handy without opening the main compartment.
SwissGear lists it at 22.75 x 14.25 x 10.25 inches with wheels and 8 pounds, with an expansion zipper, four spinner wheels, a locking telescopic handle, a side carry handle, interior packing straps and a 10-year limited warranty. OutdoorGearLab measured 40.5 liters but called it a bag for infrequent travel that doesn’t hold up as well for frequent trips.
It is $199 on Amazon in black, sold and shipped by Amazon, with 4.3 stars from more than 11,000 ratings. Only two were left in stock at that price during our check, and its price has been much lower in the past: CNN Underscored listed it at $120.
Trade-offs: CNN Underscored found its wheels less smooth than pricier bags, and it is the deepest bag here at 10.25 inches.
SwissGear Sion Carry-On Spinner
Most organized softside: front pockets and a 10-year warranty, for $199.
Monos Carry-On Pro: best for laptops
Photo: Amazon listing
The Monos Carry-On Pro solves a hard-shell problem: you can’t usually get to your laptop without opening the whole case. This one has a padded front compartment that fits up to a 16-inch laptop, so you can pull it out at security; OutdoorGearLab called that zippered outside compartment its sweetest feature.
Monos lists it at 22 x 14 x 9 inches, 7.78 pounds and about 36 liters, with an aerospace-grade polycarbonate shell, YKK zippers, a TSA-accepted lock, a removable compression pad and a four-height handle, plus a limited lifetime warranty. OutdoorGearLab scored it 79 out of 100.
It is $295 on Amazon in Terracotta, sold by Monos and shipped by Amazon. It has only four ratings on Amazon so far, averaging 3.8 stars.
Trade-offs: it doesn’t expand, and OutdoorGearLab measured just 29.8 liters, the least space here, because the front compartment eats into the main one.
Briggs & Riley Baseline Essential: best splurge
Photo: Amazon listing
The Briggs & Riley Baseline Essential Carry-On Spinner is the four-wheel version of CNN Underscored’s best soft-sided carry-on, whose tester says he flew more than 200,000 miles with it in a year, and it scored 91 out of 100 at OutdoorGearLab, just behind the Platinum Elite’s 92.
Its CX system expands the case from 9 to 11.5 inches deep, then compresses it back down to carry-on size after you pack. Briggs & Riley lists it at 22 x 14 x 9 inches, 10 pounds and 37 to 48 liters, in ballistic nylon, with a suit compartment, a USB pass-through pocket for a power bank and an exterior handle that leaves the inside flat. Briggs & Riley backs it with lifetime repair service, which CNN Underscored calls the best warranty in the business.
It is $729 on Amazon, sold by third-party seller FRONT ROW and shipped by Amazon, with 4.5 stars from more than 670 ratings.
Trade-offs: it is by far the most expensive bag here and the heaviest, and CNN Underscored saw wear on the exterior handle.
Briggs & Riley Baseline Essential Carry-On Spinner
Best splurge: CX expansion and lifetime repairs, for $729.
Bottom line
For most travelers, the Travelpro Platinum Elite Carry-On Spinner is the one to buy: it is the top pick at both Wirecutter and OutdoorGearLab, it rolls beautifully and Travelpro will fix airline damage for the life of the bag. If you prefer a hard shell, the Away The Carry-On is the sleek, well-organized choice, and the Samsonite Freeform Carry-On Spinner gives you most of the same for under $130.
Pick the Travelpro Maxlite 5 Carry-On Spinner if weight matters most, the SwissGear Sion Carry-On Spinner if you live out of outside pockets, the Monos Carry-On Pro if you fly with a laptop, and the Briggs & Riley Baseline Essential Carry-On Spinner if you want a bag you may never need to replace.
Whichever you choose, check your airline’s size limits, especially for budget and international flights, and remember that a fully expanded bag rarely counts as a carry-on.
