Lunch Bag Comparison Chart
Back to school season is officially here! That means that not only is it time to buy lunch boxes, but it’s also time to buy LUNCH BAGS to put those lunch boxes in.
I am frequently asked which lunch bags I recommend and I’m even more frequently asked which bags certain lunch boxes fit in. So I’ve put together a chart laying out the different key features of seven popular lunch bags — all for you! I’ve also put five of my favorite lunch boxes — and a few assorted containers — in each of those bags and photographed them so you can see how they fit and how much space they take up. Again — all for you!
Here are the criteria for the bags I reviewed:
- Insulated: All the lunch bags are insulated to help keep lunches at a safe temperature until lunch time. (Pack an ice pack
or two with cold lunches; put warm foods in a thermos
- Not-too-small: I wanted most (or all) of our many lunch boxes to fit in the bags. I also wanted an assortment of containers to fit for those people who don’t use a single lunch box. For my test I used a Thermos Funtainer
- Easy to Find: All of these lunch bags are easy to find online or in retail stores.
- Boy or Girl-Friendly: Each of the lunch bags tested come in both boy and girl-friendly colors and patterns. The lunch boxes I purchased tend toward the boy-ish because I have two boys, but they also come in a variety of cute colors or patterns that will appeal to any pink or lavender loving girls. There are lots of colors and patterns here to appeal to all kinds of kids.
Ready? Let’s get to the chart!
(Starred links are affiliate links. Click any photo to enlarge it.)
| Embark Lunch Satchel Purchase* |
EasyLunch- boxes Cooler Bag Purchase  * |
LL Bean Lunch Box Purchase |
Lands’ End ClassMate Soft Sided Lunch Box Purchase |
PlanetBox Carry Bag Purchase* |
Bentology Insulated Lunch Bag Purchase* |
Pottery Barn Kids Taylor Lunch Bag Purchase |
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| Notes | This lunch bag is large enough to fit every lunch box tested and it comes with a low price tag. | The most economical bag I tested. It also is the only one that holds lunch boxes flat when held by the handle. | The smallest lunch bag in the bunch, this easily fits in a kid’s backpack. Comes in 34 designs. | Great all-around lunch bag. Fits most lunch boxes and comes with a guarantee. |  Fits the PlanetBox (obviously) but fits all other lunch boxes too. Insulated outside pockets are a nice touch. |  Another great all-around lunch bag. The newest prints are some of the cutest of the bags I reviewed. |  Pottery Barn Kids has a number of lunch bags, but this one has the largest footprint of the bunch. The twill outer gives it a classic look. |
| Front click image to enlarge |
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| Back click image to enlarge |
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| Open click image to enlarge |
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| Price | $12.99 | $7.95 | $19.95 | $19.00 | $26.95 ($12.00 when purchased with a lunch box) | $18.99 | $22.50 |
| Colors/Prints | 6 colors | 7 colors | 11 colors 23 prints |
5 colors 10 prints |
5 colors 4 prints |
4 prints or plain navy blue | 5 colors |
| Bottle Pouch | Yes | No, but kid-sized water bottles fit easily inside. | No, and water bottle will not fit inside with a lunch box | Yes | Yes (insulated) | Yes, includes a bungee tie | Yes |
| Pockets | Front pocket | None | Zip pocket on outside, velcro mesh pocket inside | Zip pocket on outside, mesh pocket inside | Velcro pocket on outside (insulated), mesh pocket inside | Zip pocket on outside, velcro mesh pocket inside | Zip pocket on outside (insulated), small zip mesh pocket inside. |
| Dimensions | 10 x 7.75 x 3.5 inches | 9 x 6.5 x 6.5 inches | 9.5 x 7 x 3.75 inches | 11 x 8 x 4 1/2 inches | 12 × 9 × 2.5 inches | 8.5 x 10 x 3 inches | 9.5 x 8.75 x 3.25 inches |
| Holds Lunch Flat or Vertical? | Vertical | Flat | Vertical | Vertical | Vertical | Vertical | Vertical |
| Materials | Polyester | Outside: 300D polyester Lining: Vinyl free (PVC free) and lead free, with an FDA-compliant PEVA lining | Outside: packcloth Lining: BPA and PVC free | Outside: Polyester | Outside: 100% recycled PET with PU coating Lining: PET with TPU coating | Outside: Polyester Lining: Reflective Lining (No lead, BPA, or phthalates) | Outside: cotton twill Lining: PEVA |
| Cleaning | Wipe clean with a damp cloth | Machine Washable | Wipe clean with a damp cloth | Wipe clean with a damp cloth | Hand wash (fully submerging bag in water is OK) and air dry | Wipe clean with a damp cloth | Wipe clean with a damp cloth |
| Special Features | Carabiner for attaching to a back pack | Adjustable strap | 34 fabric options! Personalization available. | Clip handle to quickly attach to a back pack. Personalization available. | Elastic bands on inside hold flatware. Easy adjust strap. | Front pocket expands, bottle pouch has a drawstring to keep it snug. | Personalization available. |
| Which Lunch Boxes Fit? | |||||||
| Embark Purchase* |
EasyLunch- boxes Purchase * |
LL Bean Purchase |
Lands’ End Purchase |
PlanetBox Purchase* |
Bentology Purchase* |
Pottery Barn Purchase |
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| Bentology (formerly Laptop Lunches) click image to enlarge (More info) Purchase* |
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Does not fit | Does not fit |  |
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| Easylunch- boxes click image to enlarge (More info) Purchase  * |
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| LunchBots click image to enlarge (More info) Purchase* |
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| PlanetBox Rover click image to enlarge (More info) Purchase* |
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Does not fit | Does not fit | Does not fit |  |
Does not fit | Does not fit |
| Yumbox click image to enlarge (More info) Purchase* |
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| Assorted Containers click image to enlarge |
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| Purchase link* | Embark Lunch Satchel* | EasyLunch- boxes Cooler Bag * |
LL Bean Lunch Box | Lands’ End ClassMate Soft Sided Lunch Box | PlanetBox Carry Bag* | Bentology Insulated Lunch Bag* | Pottery Barn Kids Taylor Lunch Bag |
* Disclosure: Though this post contains affiliate links, I have not been compensated in any way for writing this post or pulling this information together.
Notes:
- Flat or Vertical: When I asked about what my readers look for in a lunch bag on Facebook and Instagram, many people told me that they wanted a bag that held their lunch box horizontally when it was carried by the handle. I heard you! But…I’d also bought all the bags for this review at that point and I really needed to draw the line somewhere because I can’t fit more than seven lunch bags in my chart! There is one lunch bag that holds lunch boxes flat in this post, but I will keep this request in mind if I decide to do a second post about lunch bags down the road.
- So Many Lunch Bags: The seven lunch bags I chose are a mix of bags I already own and bags from popular brands that I’m trying for the first time. (A few of the lunch bags I use regularly — from PlanetBox and Laptop Lunches — were older versions that are no longer available for purchase so I bought the current versions to test.) There are so many great lunch bags I could have reviewed that fit all my criteria but I simply didn’t have space for them!
Do you use any of these lunch bags? Share your experiences with them in the comments for others to learn from! Do you have a different lunch bag you recommend? Share that too!
