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Carry-on weight limits: how much room does the empty bag leave?
Updated
The US airline pages in our checker give a carry-on size but no weight number in the sections we read. Many international airlines do: Emirates and Qantas economy allow 7 kg, Lufthansa 8 kg. A hard suitcase can use half of 7 kg before you pack a thing.
Limits we found
- Emirates: 7 kg in Economy, 10 kg in Premium Economy, 55 x 38 x 22 cm.
- Qantas: 7 kg for International Economy. Domestic Economy allows 14 kg across bags, with no more than 10 kg in one bag.
- Lufthansa: 8 kg for one carry-on, 55 x 40 x 23 cm.
- KLM: 12 kg for the small bag and carry-on together in Economy.
- Ryanair: 10 kg for the overhead bag that comes with Priority.
Packing room left in each pick
| Pick | Empty | Emirates 7 kg | Qantas 7 kg | Lufthansa 8 kg | Ryanair 10 kg | KLM 12 kg (both bags) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Samsonite Omni 2 Smaller By Design | 7.5 lb (3.4 kg) | 7.9 lb | 7.9 lb | 10.1 lb | 14.5 lb | 19 lb |
| Travelpro Maxlite 5 21-Inch Spinner | 5.4 lb (2.4 kg) | 10 lb | 10 lb | 12.2 lb | 16.6 lb | 21.1 lb |
| Wrangler 22-Inch Hardside Spinner | 6.4 lb (2.9 kg) | 9 lb | 9 lb | 11.2 lb | 15.6 lb | 20.1 lb |
| LEVEL8 20-Inch Hard Shell Carry-On | 7.7 lb (3.5 kg) | 7.7 lb | 7.7 lb | 9.9 lb | 14.3 lb | 18.8 lb |
| Samsonite Winfield 2 20-Inch Spinner | 6.7 lb (3 kg) | 8.7 lb | 8.7 lb | 10.9 lb | 15.3 lb | 19.8 lb |
| Amazon Basics 21-Inch Hardside Spinner | 7.72 lb (3.5 kg) | 7.7 lb | 7.7 lb | 9.9 lb | 14.3 lb | 18.7 lb |
| Travelpro Maxlite 5 Underseat | 5.5 lb (2.5 kg) | 9.9 lb | 9.9 lb | 12.1 lb | 16.5 lb | 21 lb |
- Samsonite Omni 2 Smaller By Design7.5 lb
- Travelpro Maxlite 5 21-Inch Spinner5.4 lb
- Wrangler 22-Inch Hardside Spinner6.4 lb
- LEVEL8 20-Inch Hard Shell Carry-On7.7 lb
- Samsonite Winfield 2 20-Inch Spinner6.7 lb
- Amazon Basics 21-Inch Hardside Spinner7.72 lb
- Travelpro Maxlite 5 Underseat5.5 lb
The Travelpro Maxlite 5 leaves the most room: 10 lb under 7 kg. The Amazon Basics leaves 7.7 lb. That is 2.3 lb less you can pack.
Weight is not the only limit
Most of these picks are over the size limits for Emirates too. The Emirates box is 22 cm deep, about 8.7 inches, so every full-size pick here is too deep. Check both with the checker, which does size and weight together.
Softside vs hardside on weight
On these listings the two softside Travelpro bags are the lightest. The hard cases run from 6.4 to 7.72 lb. More on that in hardside vs softside.
Check your own bag against your airlines with the carry-on size checker, or compare all seven picks on the roundup page.