The best commuter bags for men: Briefcases, backpacks and slings

Your alarm didn’t go off. Your bus is on diversion. The tube is like a pressure cooker, and we can send a robot to Mars but can’t keep leaves off a train track. The morning commute can be horrible, so we all like to carry around some distractions to keep us sane as we navigate the 9-to-5.

But picking up the best commuter bag that suits all of your needs can present its own set of challengers to the morning traveller. What’s more important, style or storage? Is a rucksack too casual for the client meeting? Is it a bit much to turn up down the pub with a briefcase?

We put more thought into a pair of trainers we’re going to wear for a single season than we do the bags that work alongside us for years at a time, and the choice can be as confusing as navigating the Circle line.

So we’re here to take the strain off your shoulders with four hand-picked choices. We’ve lived with each of these bags for months (years, in some cases), and can personally vouch for their bus-ready status.

Oh, and try not to be a tube-wanker with any of these picks, please, they deserve better — pop your bag at your feet when standing, and keep it off the seats!

The best commuter bags for men

You don’t have to sacrifice style and forward-thinking design ideals just to survive the 6pm tube crush. Take the Troubadour Apex 3.0, which we crowned the best commuter backpack on the market. Designed by London-based Troubadour Goods, the Apex 3.0 is a sleek and sturdy backpack available in a range of colours, with ‘circular’ design principles in mind. In other words, it’s made from recycled materials (used up plastic bottles in this case), and treated in such a way that, when it reaches the end of its life, it can safely degrade without harming the environment.

With its green-credentials guilt-free, you can then enjoy its practicality. A good size at 48cm x 32cm x 15cm with a 25L capacity, it accommodates up to 17-inch laptops and features numerous pockets for organization, including dedicated pouches for tablet and notebooks, and a mesh compartment for smaller fiddly bits. Exterior features include a key clip pocket, elasticated bottle holders on either side, an AirTag pocket, and a hidden shoulder strap zip pocket.

A lockable main compartment keeps your valuables secure, while a 'NanoCushion' laptop sleeve protects your gadgets from bumps and scrapes. The backpack is well-padded with sculpted shoulder support to make sure weight is distributed evenly, and breathable back panel — a godsend when stuck between stations. It also includes a luggage sleeve for suitcase handles and fits British Airways carry-on size limits. It’s near faultless, and will be your daily commute’s best friend.

If you’re looking to elevate your look without side-stepping storage, a classic leather briefcase is an essential in your wardrobe. If you’re happy to splash a bit more cash, the Carl Friedrik Sonder Dunloe is a beautiful, luxurious option that pairs its confident styling with a capacity that makes it more than just a boardroom statement.

Textured, grained semi-aniline bovine leather is the dominant finish, with smooth Italian vachetta leather detailing around the clasps, piping, handles and the rear luggage strap for securing to your suitcase. It’s soft and supple, but heavy-duty buckles and underside feet ensure its durability too.

Unlike many leather briefcases, the Sonder Dunloe is no slouch when it comes to packing your daily bits and bobs in too. Open up the main zip and you’ll find a smaller secondary zipped compartment on the inside, along with two pouch pockets, held shut with magnetic clasps. An exterior zip-free pocket is great for easy access to non-valuables, letting you slickly tease that paperback favourite you’re reading to nosey commuters around you.

While we’re a sucker for the classic chestnut finish, you’ve also black, and dark olive finishes on offer, too. With a 40.5cm width, 30cm height and 11cm depth, it’s got a 13L volume, and oodles of storage slots among its lining.

The Mous Extreme Commuter is a bit like Mary Poppins bottomless bag, but, you know — EXTREME. It may have the same 25L storage space as the Troubadour backpack up top, but something about its dimensions and design seems to make it capable of carrying an almost limitless amount of stuff.

With more of a “tech-chic” feel than other items on the list, this rugged pack is particularly good for storing gadgetry, with a bit more give to its 17cm depth making it better suited for carrying chunky items like photography gear.

Mous is pretty bullish about its AirFoam tech built into the lining of its bag — it’s even put together a video where it drops the Extreme Commuter off the top of a crane to reveal its devices inside have survived unscathed. It’s also well defended against pickpockets, with a top-opening flap secured with a ‘Fidlock’ clasp that’s incredibly difficult to open while it’s on your back.

Water resistant with multiple mesh pocket inserts, this is a backpack for road warriors.

You don’t always need to carry the world on your shoulders — figuratively and literally. Troubadour’s Apex Sling is perfect for those moments where you just need the essentials with you on a day out, ready to be slung over a single shoulder and pulled back around to your front for easy access.

Made from an attractive, green-friendly and waterproof FortiWeave fabric made from recycled plastic bottles, its deceptively small size still has plenty of room inside. A front pocket houses an integrated carabiner for keys, while there’s a hidden pocket on the rear for holding a wallet or cards securely.

Inside there are a further two pockets — padded to protect delicate screen-packing devices like an iPad mini, while there’s a mesh pocket too for keeping all your fiddly bits handy.

Great for festival season, a city break, or a daily sling if you’re a travel-light commuter.

What to look for when buying a commuter backpack or bag

It’s no good having a great looking bag that isn’t comfortable, and it’s not much fun having a comfortable, useful bag if it looks like you’ve fished it out of the back of a skip. When we’re looking for a great commuter bag, here’s five important things we keep an eye out for…

• 1. Comfort: Do your back and shoulders a favour — a good backpack needs to distribute weight evenly across your back, and should be well padded to make it easier to carry heavy weights. Look especially for straps that fit the curves of your shoulders, but don’t hug so tightly that your armpits end up chaffing. For sweaty summers, get a breathable back panel so some airflow gets between you and your load. And, if you’re cycling, find a bag with chest straps (both the Troubadour and Mous bags have these) — it’ll stabilise the weight as you lean and turn. Likewise, even a briefcase’s strap needs to be well padded, or whichever shoulder you sling it across is going to moan at you come home time.
• 2. Water resistance and durability: If you’re in the UK there’s one thing you can never rely on — the weather. A gorgeous summer’s day can turn into a monsoon in a matter of minutes, so make sure your bag is ready for all conditions with good weather proofing. Likewise, do pay attention to the zippers — they’re not all made equally, and those with YKK badging can generally be relied on not to pop or get stuck.

• 3. Storage size: This one will vary based on what you’re hoping to carry around with you all day, but it never hurts to have a little more space than you’re planning for, in case you end up picking something unexpected up on your travels. We’d consider something around the 25L size good for a backpack, 12L for a briefcase, and 5L for a crossbody or sling. Just keep an eye on the dimensions for those larger bags — if you’re a frequent flier you’ll want to find something that fits inside as many airline’s guidelines as possible (though some of those budget ones are very stingy in their carry on allowance sizes).
• 4. Pockets, compartments, and organisation: This goes hand in hand with the one above. Without pockets and ways to organise your items, you haven’t got a bag. You’ve got a sack. Think about how you use your bag — what items do you need easy access to? What needs particular protective care? Is there anything you want to keep secret and safe? Check the placement and size of pockets before purchasing — we’re always keen on having a zipped compartment against our backs that now wandering hands can get inside, and one built into a front strap for easy access to moment-to-moment essentials.
• 5. Wardrobe matching: Try not to think of your bag as an item in isolation, but alongside the rest of your wardrobe too. A day-glo colourway might be cool on a shop shelf, but unless you’re a night time cyclist, is that going to work with your trench coat? A rucksack or briefcase can often travel with you from the working day to your extra-curricular activities, so try to find something that matches your fashion sensibilities in both settings.

• Is this the ultimate commuter backpack?