If you’ve read our article explaining what to take bikepacking your next question may well be how big do your bags need to be to hold all this stuff? What capacity will your ideal bikepacking setup need to be? Can you just strap your 80 litre backpacking bag to your rear rack and be off on your way? Well you could, but it won’t be the most fun ride you’ve ever had! In this article we are going to be looking at what capacity each bag could (or should) have. This will give you a bit of guidance when looking at what bikepacking bags to buy.
To save you reading the entire article here is an estimation for how many litres you could manage on a bikepacking setup.
So, how many liters of storage for Bikepacking? Let’s add up everything we mention in the rest of the article (capacity estimates):
Main bags:
- Handlebar bag: up to 15l
- Frame bag: up to 14l
- Saddle bag: up to 20l
Total: up to 50 litres! (Although it’s usually around 35 litres)
Extra optional bags:
- Rucksack: up to 20l
- Accessory bag: up to 4l
- Top tube bag: up to 1l
- Cargo bags: up to 16l total or 8l either side of the fork
- Stem or feed bags: 1l or more each
Total extra: up to 42 litres +
Total maximum loading: 92 litres!!
But read more below if you want a better understanding to how we got these numbers and what you could expect for your bikepacking setup.
Handlebar bag capacity
This is the bag that attaches to your handlebars and is a great place for things that need to be easily accessible. It’s usually a cylindrical shape with either a roll top at one end or a zip across the top, or even a roll across the top like this waterproof 10 litre bag from Altura. We discussed in our article about how to pack your bikepacking bags that your tent and/or sleeping mat usually goes in your handlebar bag. Bear in mind that these bags come in all shapes and sizes. From ones designed to just hold your phone and some snacks (usually called accessory bags) like this 3.5 litre stylish roll top option from Ortlieb. To those big ones designed for tents and more. Your main handlebar bag for bikepacking overnighters will usually be between 7-15 litres. Many brands will offer different sizes like this one from Ortlieb coming in 9 and 15 litre options.
Frame bag capacity
If we move backwards on your bike your next main bag will be your frame bag. This is the bag that sits snugly into the shape of your frame, sitting sleekly between your legs. Again, these come in all sizes. Some are just for carrying essentials and kit like this 3.5 litre compact version from Altura. These still allow access to rear bottle racks and are for people wanting to stay light weight. Others are for carrying stoves and food as well! These can fit between 7- 14 litres like this popular larger choice from Apidura and one of our favourite 7 litre options from Blackburn. We like frame bags that have lots of different zipped sections, there’s nothing worse than rummaging to the bottom of a frame bag in the rain to find your tire levers! It’s also good to have a bigger frame bag and store more here for your weight distribution, put your heavy stuff at the bottom for a more pleasant ride.
Tube bag capacity
While we are in the middle we will cover tube bags. Not everyone rides with a top tube bag but they are excellent for holding your phone and snacks. If you’re going away for a longer adventure then you might choose to add one (or two) for those extra bits and bobs or socks! These are the little guys that strap to the front or rear end of your top tube. They tend to hold up to 1litre maximum. Most designs are 0.5 litre like this one from Blackburn and this funky yellow one from Evoc. The bigger options are at the 1 litre end of the spectrum like this hardy Topeak option.
Saddle bag capacity
So your other major bag choice is going to be your saddle bag. You’ve probably got one you take out on day rides to keep your spares in but for bikepacking we are thinking big! This straps to the seat post and under your saddle and can be conical in shape for added comfort, you don’t want your legs bashing on it every revolution! This is where you’ll keep your low weight but bulky items like your sleeping bag and clothes. Anything heavier needs to be stored at the bottom of this bag near the seat post so it doesn’t swing around and throw you off balance! For most overnight or multi day trips these bags probably need to be around the 15 litre mark with some reaching 20 litres. Again, they come in all sizes so choose depending on your load needs. Topeak do a design that comes in 6,10 and 15 litre options with a roll top and it’s completely waterproof. However the most well reviewed one we have found is the Apidura 17 litre expedition pack. It compresses down really well and sits in tight making riding with it a lot easier than some bigger packs.
Rucksack capacity
If you choose to ride with a rucksack then you need to promise us you won’t take a huge one and come hobbling back with horrible back pain. It’s just not worth it. Taking a rucksack is a good place for carrying a water reservoir and some odd shaped extras, but nothing heavy or too bulky. The bag should fit closely to your body and have a body strap to stop it bumping around. You shouldn’t have more than 20 litres here. Osprey have a good range of different sizes and styles to choose from depending on your needs. You can find them all in their own mountain biking section on the website. Ideally you should only need a Camelbak style pack focussed on carrying water, again these guys have a cycling and mountain biking section to their website and do offer larger sizes too.
Cargo bag capacity
These guys are for those of you packing a lot of kit. These are bags that attach to your front forks and are for anything else you can’t fit in your main bags. Due to their positioning they’re good for food, extra water or even your sleeping bag! In our previous article about cargo bags, I highlighted that my setup used Blackburn cargo cages and 8 litre Sea to Summit dry bags to them. This gives me space to fit my tent and extra clothes on longer journeys or just fix on more water for shorter hotter ones! If you don’t have a touring bike with cargo cage holes or you have front suspension then you can strap on something like these ‘Pico Panniers’ from OuterShell Adventures.
Remember, just because you can fit it on your bike doesn’t mean you should. Always look at the maximum load ability of your bike, and take into account the load of your body too. An overloaded bike is big but it’s not clever.
You want to take into consideration the weight distribution while the gear is packed on your bike too. But as you can see you can carry quite a lot if you had too with a bikepacking setup. I used to think only touring setups could attain such large storage potential, but bikepacking setups have the potential to store everything you would need to take you around the world and be self-sufficient.
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