United Airlines allows a personal item of 17 × 10 × 9 inches and a carry-on of 22 × 14 × 9 inches. Both measurements include wheels and handles, which is where most people get caught out.
Measure the outside, wheels and handles included — that’s what they measure at the gate.
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Enormous margin against every limit here, and it looks like a normal bag rather than travel gear. Ten litres is a daybag though, not a travel bag.
The most margin of anything here — comfortably inside United’s brutal 17 × 10 × 9 and inside the budget carriers’ 18 × 14 × 8 too. Structured neoprene that holds its shape instead of sagging.
Buy the MEDIUM. The Large is 16.5 × 11 × 9 and fails United on width.
Five ounces. It stuffs into its own pocket, so it costs you almost nothing to carry as insurance — and it clears every personal item limit on this page.
Unstructured, so 7.48 inches is the empty depth. Pack it full and it rounds out.
The only bag we verified that fits United and still takes a genuine 15-inch laptop. Military-grade build from a brand that makes packs for people who abuse them.
Only a quarter inch of width margin — don’t overstuff it. Also 8.5 inches deep, so it misses the budget carriers’ 8-inch limit.
Sold as a “17x10x9” bag but the manufacturer’s own spec is 40 × 25 × 20 cm — meaningfully smaller than the limit, which is exactly what you want. Clears United and the budget carriers both, for under thirty dollars.
At 0.77 lb this is a thin packable, not a structured daypack. Treat it as a very good backup bag rather than your only one.
A rare expandable that stays legal even when expanded — 5.9 inches deep collapsed, 7.9 expanded, and still inside United’s limit either way.
Don’t confuse this with COSCOOA’s expandable tote, which grows to 13 inches wide and busts United.
See all 12 bags that fit United’s personal item limit →
Narrower questions: United personal item size · United carry-on size · best United carry-on bags. Flying with camera gear? 20 camera bags fit United — see the camera bag guide.
United Airlines allows a personal item up to 17 × 10 × 9 inches, and that measurement includes wheels, handles and straps. It has to fit fully under the seat in front of you. 12 of the bags we track fit it.
United Airlines allows a carry-on up to 22 × 14 × 9 inches including wheels and handles. No carry-on weight limit is published, but you must be able to lift the bag into the overhead bin yourself. 6 of the bags we track fit it.
Not usually, but Not included on Basic Economy for most routes. The personal item is free on every fare.
Yes. United Airlines measures the outside of the bag, so wheels, handles, straps and external pockets all count. This is why a suitcase sold as a "20-inch carry-on" is often 22 inches overall and can still fail a sizer.
On Basic Economy you pay the checked bag fee plus a $25 gate handling charge — $65 in total, which United pre-authorises on your card at online check-in. On any other fare an oversized personal item usually just gets moved to the overhead bin at no charge.
Manufacturers publish dimensions inconsistently, and a “20-inch” spinner is almost never 20 inches once you count the wheels. Where a brand states dimensions including wheels and handles, that’s the number we use. Where it only publishes the case, we say so on the card. Airlines measure the outside of your bag — wheels, handles, straps and all. Anything marked borderline is down to the gate agent, and remember that a soft bag squashes into a sizer while a hard shell won’t.
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Limits verified August 2026 against each carrier’s published policy. Airlines change these without notice — always confirm before you fly. Spirit Airlines ceased operations on 2 May 2026 and is no longer listed.
Airline Bag Size Checker v1.0.15 · last updated 2026-08-12