1. What Are the Advantages of Having A Garment Bag?

Even after reading about all these great bags, we wouldn’t be surprised if a few of you were still a bit skeptical as to the value of garment bags. Why can’t you just delicately store your suit in a regular suitcase and save some cash? While you certainly could do this, you'd be missing out on all of the advantages that garment bags provide. Firstly, garment bags are excellent at protecting your formal or expensive clothing from getting wrinkled or ruined far beyond what a regular suitcase can provide. Regular suitcases have lots of space and are usually used to carry more than one type of clothing. The fact is, it doesn’t matter how good you think you are at folding your clothes and storing things in an organized manner. If you store your formal clothing with the rest of your clothes, they’re bound to get a little wrinkled. Garment bags, when used for expensive or formal clothes only, avoid a lot of the same issues. Garment bags also usually have specific pockets that are perfectly sized for properly folded shirts, socks, or other articles. Not only does this prevent the clothes from being quickly wrinkled or ruined, but it also makes it super easy to retrieve specific clothing items when you’re getting dressed or if you need to replace one part of your outfit after a spilled glass of wine. Don’t discount the value of having an organized bag to keep you on task and focused when getting dressed – many former or soon-to-be grooms, no doubt, will agree with us on this point! Secondly, many garment bags are pre-sized to be travel safe, so they make taking your most expensive clothes with you into the airline cabin a breeze. You don’t have to spend 20 minutes digging out your fine clothing from your regular suitcase and trying to make it all fit into your carry-on bag. Instead, garment bags have a pre-sized clothing solution that should usually pass through security just fine and let you keep an eye on your suit rather than giving it up to the luggage guys. Even better, many garment bags have hooks that either come attached to the bag itself or which poke through the bag’s exterior to let them by hug on a clothing rack without taking your clothes out of the bag. This makes storing your clothes once you arrive at a hotel or a vacation cabin much more convenient. Just grab your bag, hook it onto the closet rack, and you’re good to go! Hanging your delicate clothes in this way is a great way to keep them from wrinkling over time, too. Overall, garment bags are far from a necessity that every guy must have as a critical tool or part of his wardrobe. But they really are excellent tools that can make traveling with fine clothes much easier and help you keep your beautiful clothes looking perfect for longer without having to spend lots of time organizing or un-wrinkling the clothes by hand.

2. How To Use A Garment Bag

If you’ve taken the plunge and either picked out one of the garment bags we loved during our search for the best, or you just found a great garment bag from another source, you might be wondering how to use it. The good news is, using a garment bag isn’t tricky or complicated, even if it’s “special.” Whenever you use a garment bag, the primary concern should be ensuring that you pack all of your clothes correctly. For starters, you should always pack as few garments of clothing into a garment bag as possible. Remember, a garment bag is meant to carry your formal or expensive clothes and prevent them from being wrinkled by being crunched or compressed when stored with other clothing items. Besides, garment bags can become a little too big for carrying onto a plane if you overstuff them. Many guys want to store khakis in a garment bag, but we found that these garments can usually be capably folded and put into a regular suitcase and look no worse for wear. After you’ve laid out the clothing you want to place in your garment bag, take the time to wash and iron each article of clothingbefore folding it. You can also take dry-clean items to the cleaners well before it’s time for you to go on your trip so that there’s plenty of time for you to pick up the clothing and store it properly before you need to go. Cleaning and ironing your items will make sure that they look excellent when you put them into the garment bag, doubling their chance that they’ll still look great when you take them out. Ironed clothes are less likely to get lots of wrinkles, anyway. Don’t forget to check for any missing zippers or buttons on any of your clothing items, too. Doing this will prevent you from having to make an emergency repair after you’ve reached your destination. Next, use white tissue paper to stop the arms and legs of your clothing items. This will help them maintain their shape in addition to the garment bag itself and stop wrinkles from accruing. White tissue paper is better than colored on the off chance that the paper becomes wet. Colored paper could bleed dye onto your clothes. After your clothes are dry cleaned and prepared, consider the order in which you’ll be donning the clothes and pack them accordingly. Place the items that you’ll need later in your trip, like the final suit jacket for a fancy dinner, at the back of the garment bag in place more common items of the front. Not only will this make retrieving your clothes easier and quicker, but it’ll also prevent you from accidentally wrinkling your quotes by rustling around in the depths of the bag to retrieve a single item. It’s also a good idea to hang each major garment on its own hanger, although you can combine garments onto a single hanger within reason. Don’t hang up too many clothes on a single hanger, as it might bend or break while in transit. A good rule of thumb is to hang up a single large piece of clothing and several accessories, like ties or belts, together on one hanger to conserve space without getting too crazy. You can also use built-in hangers if your garment bag has one as part of its design. Don’t forget that pants often benefit from being stored on specific pant hangers that stopped the trousers from moving while in transit. Don’t forget to close all the fasteners, including buttons or zippers, on your garments before you begin to close up the garment bag. Again, this prevents the clothing items from moving and wrinkling and also keeps things compressed for better storage efficiency. To be even better when it comes to storage space, you can store underwear or socks inside the pockets of your various garments. This also prevents wrinkles from accruing over time and makes smart use of available space that would otherwise go unused. If you want to really go over the top, you can always place a dry cleaning bag made of plastic over each individual hanger, although this is really only necessary if your garment bag isn't water-resistant, and you know you'll be going someplace where it rains all the time. After doing all this, feel free to zip up or close your garment bag and prepare for travel. If you’ve done everything correctly, your fancy clothes should look great when you remove them from the bag at your destination.

3. What’s the Difference Between A Garment Bag and A Suitcase?

The main difference between garment bags and suitcases is that the former is designed only to hold expensive or fancy clothing, and the latter can be used to keep everything you’ll need to take as you travel. Toiletries, gifts, hobby items, clothing, and even shoes can all be tossed into a suitcase with abandon, as these cases are designed with robust outer skeletons to help them retain their strength and ensure proper durability. These cases are supposed to weigh much more than garment bags, and it’s not uncommon for these to be stopped with all the items people love to take with them when they travel. While these bags are great for general travel purposes, they're not suitable for ensuring that your clothes remain wrinkle-free as you drive or fly around. Even well-folded clothes are liable to get at least a little wrinkly when exposed to the utter chaos most suitcase interiors experience each time they’re packed.

8 Best Men’s Garment Bags in 2024

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Whether it’ll be a wedding or an international business conference, there will come a time in your life when you need your finest clothing to show up at your destination looking as pristine as it did when it was hanging in your closet.

The trouble is that most suitcases don’t do a great job of protecting suits or good trousers from wrinkling or crunching up while in transit.

The problem of nice clothes being ruined during travel is one that has troubled men and women for a long time.

That’s why garment bags were invented.

You’ve probably seen travel garment bags in the real world even if you didn’t know that’s what they were called.

The most basic version of these suit bags (as many call them) is the single suit sheathe that holds one business suit and is usually slung over the shoulder of some earpiece-wearing business guy racing to the airport.

But there are lots of different garment bags available, especially in the online marketplace.

This article will focus on the very best men’s garment bags you can find anywhere.

It would do you well to pick up a garment bag, so the next time you have a black-tie engagement, your best clothes will truly look as excellent as they should.

Don’t want to spend lots of time researching different garment bags just to find something that’ll suit your needs?

Not a problem!

We’ve already found the best garment bags for men of all types and needs, so head down, and you’ll find a curated selection of top choices our testers personally appreciated.

We’ll also help you consider the main things to remember as you select a garment bag, plus give you some tips to help you pack everything nicely when it’s time to fly.

Let’s begin!

QUICK OVERVIEW: Best Men’s Garment Bags


	Our Top Pick Univivi Garment Bag for Travel and Storage Has a window to let you check on your garments Great structure to prevent crumpling	VIEW ON AMAZON →
	ZEGUR Suit Carry-On Garment Bag for Travel and Business Trips Lots of compartments for organization Can be easily attached to a suitcase	VIEW ON AMAZON →
	Uniquebella Carry-On Garment Bag Very easy to carry by the handle Durable and waterproof fabric	VIEW ON AMAZON →
	AmazonBasics Premium Garment Bag Plenty of room on interior and exterior Has buckles for your suits	VIEW ON AMAZON →
	TravelPro Crew Versapack Carry-On Rolling Garment Bag Wheels are ball-bearing and high-performance Includes foam roll to protect the suit from wrinkling	VIEW ON AMAZON →
	WallyBags Extra Capacity Garment Bag with Pockets Affordable for most Extra-large interior pockets	VIEW ON AMAZON →
	Samsonite Lineate Duet Wheeled Garment Bag Has four wheels and customizable handle for easy transportation Comes with buckles and hangers for suits	VIEW ON AMAZON →
	Nubily Carry-On Garment Bag Has suit sleeve to prevent wrinkling Anti-theft pockets on the outside	VIEW ON AMAZON →

Use the table of contents below to jump to the sections most important to you.

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What Exactly Is A Garment Bag?

There are backpacks and bookbags and even suitcases, but what on earth is a garment bag, and why do you need one?

It’s all a matter of design and purpose.

Backpacks are designed to carry your school supplies, camping gear, or hiking equipment from place to place while providing you ergonomic comfort much greater than if you carried that stuff by hand.

It’s a lot easier to carry heavy things on your back, after all, then with your arms.

Duffel bags allow you to carry lots of clothing or survival supplies by spreading their contents out along a wider container.

Briefcases are for carrying legal documents, or important papers and suitcases are great for carrying your clothing, toiletries, and anything else you need while on vacation or a business trip.

So, a garment bag is a bag designed explicitly for carefully carrying garments in an organized fashion.

But these bags are further distinguished because they are usually meant to carry suits or other fine clothing that can possibly be ruined from being stuffed into another clothing bag like a suitcase or duffel bag (there are also garment duffel bags).

In fact, garment bags are so well-tailored to suits (pun intended) that men who are serious about looking their best, whether for work or a wedding, will want to own one to make sure that their best clothing doesn’t have a wrinkle on it even after flying across the country.

Garment bags are carefully designed to give your finely tailored suits and similar clothing accessories enough space so that they aren’t wrinkled or squeezed while in transit.

They’re often small enough that you can carry them on airplanes or combine them with a suitcase set.

Other garment bags are designed to be carried on the shoulder, and they may have special hooks to help to transfer your suit from where it hangs in a closet into the case itself.

Many of the best men’s garment bags will also have soft interior liners that go easy on your delicate apparel compared to the regular liners inside many suitcases or clothing bags.

So, put simply, garment bags are specialized cases designed to store and organize your nice clothing much more elegantly than regular bags.

Things to Consider When Buying A Garment Bag

Before you see the garment bags we chose as our favorites from hundreds, let’s go over what our testers focused on in their search and what you should think about as you settle on the ideal garment bag for your needs.

1. Material

The material each bag is made from will have a significant impact on its aesthetic, how easy it is to carry, and how durable it is.

However, most garment bags aren’t made from a wide variety of materials.

Instead, most of these bags are made from a few different material types that all provide great flexibility and durability without compromising either factor.

Nylon is one of the most common garment bag materials, usually because it’s super durable compared to materials like canvas and is still lightweight enough that a garment bag made out of it won’t weigh too much.

You can, however, find many garment bags made primarily of canvas; these are usually even lighter in weight and are softer to the touch.

Still, more garment bags are made of genuine leather.

These are great choices for men with a little extra cash to spend who want the best of the best.

Leather is both durable and water-resistant, so it’s arguably the best material for a garment bag that you want to ensure protects your sensitive suits as well as possible.

Leather garment bags are as stylish and durable as they come.

All in all, garment bags need to be durable and stylish first and foremost, more than they need to be flexible or high capacity (although the latter factor does matter).

When selecting a garment bag for your next trip, try to consider whether the material that makes up the bag will serve your purposes in both of these areas.

2. Durability

Durability, as mentioned above, is super important for a garment bag.

Many duffel bags or other clothing carrying cases will be relatively flexible in letting you stuff them into cramped airline compartments or throw them in the back of your car trunk along with a bunch of other stuff.

Garment bags are meant to take significant wear and tear and protect your suit or other delicate clothing.

There are also usually somewhat rigid, though garment bags aren’t all the same shape.

Some garment bags are squarish or rectangular, while others may look more like a traditional bag but feature an outer skeleton that keeps the bag properly shaped throughout your journey.

Always look for a durable garment bag more than one that can compress into a cramped airline storage compartment.

It’s also usually a good idea to find a garment bag that has some water resistance, either because of its material (like leather) or because of an additional lining.

While it’s not likely that your garment bag will ever be exposed to water for long, this can be a lifesaver if you have to travel through rainy weather.

The last thing most guys want is their wedding suit to be ruined by a sudden downpour of rain.

3. Rolling or Not?

Next, consider whether a given garment bag can roll with an extendable handle.

These rolling garment bags will both feature that kind of handle and either two or four rolling wheels on the corners of the bag’s skeleton.

These bags are great for taking with you to the airport because you don’t have to carry them by hand or hold them for long periods.

Moving them across broad airport terminals is much more relaxed.

These carry on wheeled garment bags also usually have secondary handles to let you pick them up for more maneuverable walking when you need to dart through a crowd.

Rolling wheels aren’t strictly necessary for any garment bag, but we included this as a significant factor because most guys will have these bags and be thinking about airport travel at the same time.

Just like premier luggage and suitcases for your other stuff, the best men’s carry-on wheeled garment bags will facilitate easy airport walking.

4. Capacity

You’ll also need to think about the overall capacity of a garment bag before you decide to purchase it.

Garment bags will, at a minimum, have enough room for a single full suit, including a jacket, trousers, shirts, and often shoes.

These smaller bags are great as secondary containers to combine with a great set of luggage.

Other garment bags have much more carrying space and can carry not just one suit or suit jacket but multiple.

Such large garment bags are a great choice for men who fly around on business frequently or guys who like to take both a professional and casual wear suit with them wherever they go.

Most guys will probably be okay picking up a carry on garment bag with enough room for one full suit, but it’s still good to consider this in case you want some extra space.

Capacity also determines the accessories you can easily stuff into this garment bag luggage, like ties, cufflinks, toiletries, and more.

While many of these accessories can be stored in a regular suitcase or another piece of luggage, you might want to keep all of the minor parts of your suit ensemble together rather than split up between multiple cases.

Of course, garment bags with larger capacities will also be larger in size, which may affect how easily you can bring them onto an airline flight.

5. Travel-Safe

Speaking of airline flights, you’ll want to think about whether a garment bag is sized appropriately for most airline travel.

The tricky thing about travel safe luggage is that almost every airline has its own specifications and maximum dimensions for carry-on bags.

You can always check your garment bag, but that does go a bit against the spirit of the bag.

After all, you’ll only purchase a garment bag to make sure that your suit is correctly cared for and doesn’t wrinkle while in transit.

Leaving your suit’s final look up to the underpaid luggage handlers of the airport is a little risky.

Just imagine them tossing the garment bag into a pile with heavy luggage thrown on top of it next… no, thanks.

So, purchasing a garment bag that is small enough to qualify as carry-on luggage might be a smart idea for most men.

To that end, we’ve already figured out whether each of our chosen garment bags is sized appropriately to be carry-on luggage.

This way, you can decide whether a suit garment bag or a suit carrier luggage (whatever name suits you best) is right for you based on this factor without having to do the measurements yourself.

In case you’re curious, most airline luggage dimensions hover around 22” h x 15” w x 9” d, with plenty of variation from airline to airline.

This general rule is still a good number to keep in mind if you ever want to carry additional luggage onto a flight and aren’t sure, off the top of your head, whether your bag is small enough.