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The best suitcases in the UK for your next holiday, rigorously tested

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A suitcase is like the portrait in the traveller’s attic, accumulating more than its fair share of knocks and scrapes while we refresh ourselves on the road. We trundle them over cobbles, see them tumble from luggage racks on the train – and if we choose to fly, there’s a fair chance they’ll be mishandled before we reunite at the carousel.

For our testing, we pushed 11 suitcases to the limit by dropping them on to a hard surface, as if they’d been fumbled by a baggage handler. Air travel is especially tough on suitcases, so you might get away with choosing a less-resilient case if you make the climate-conscious choice to travel by rail or sea.

According to one Gatwick worker interviewed by the Guardian, the average baggage handler has to load about 150 bags within 40 minutes to facilitate every landing or takeoff – and that’s one of several stints of intense effort during a shift. It’s only natural, then, that some suitcases are roughly handled or dropped. Sita, a service provider to the civil aviation industry, reports that more than 24m items of hold luggage worldwide – or just under five per 1,000 passengers – were mishandled in 2025. Clearly, dings, scratches, and even breakages are a distinct possibility.

The good news is that many of today’s suitcases are extremely tough. Some of the best are made with highly durable plastics such as polycarbonates, which are also used in hard-wearing items such as safety goggles and windscreens.

There’s more to being a suitcase than getting bashed about, of course. Most travellers want something that looks appealing, provides useful internal organisation, such as storage compartments and pockets, and is easy to manoeuvre with components such as casters and a telescopic handle. I tested 11 models – diverse in shape, size, material, style and price – to help you find the best suitcase to be your trusty travel companion.

At a glance

Best suitcase overall
Away The Large
£348 at Away
Best budget suitcase
Tripp Holiday 8 Large
£69.50 at Amazon
Best lightweight suitcase
July Checked
£275 at July
Best small suitcase
Horizn Studios H6 Pro
£450 at Horizn Studios
Best for a luxurious look
Carl Friedrik The Trunk
£645 at John Lewis
Best suitcase for teenagers
Miffy Cabin trolley spinner suitcase
£190 at Case

Why you should trust me

I’ve been reviewing products since the mid-2010s – long enough to know you can’t assess a product superficially. I’ve tested them rigorously, from the waterproof jackets I’ve worn in the pouring rain to the sunrise alarm clocks that woke me up every day one winter. But luggage has felt like a special case – to test them to the same degree of rigour, I had to consider the suitcase’s experience when out of the owner’s hands, too.

How I tested

A man stands on a ladder and drops a suitcase from the top‘Among the hardiest performers during drop testing’: the July Checked suitcase. Video: Christian Hopewell/The Guardian

Whether they’re being dropped at the train station or tumbling from the hold of an Airbus A320, suitcases must prove their mettle. So I stress-tested each case by filling it and dropping it, several times, from a ladder on my driveway. As we’ll see, some cases sustained significant damage as a result of the drop tests, while others emerged with just a few scuffs.

I also assessed each model’s everyday functionality by packing it, carrying and wheeling it, and testing features such as TSA combination locks and telescopic handles. The most impressive models offered durability and travel-ready convenience in equal measure.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, given my testing methodology, none of the brands wanted their suitcases back after testing. Review units in saleable condition have been donated for fundraising to the Cat Action Trust 1977, a small national charity dedicated to the welfare of feral cats. This charity is close to my heart: I’ve fostered over a dozen of their cats and kittens, and some of their cats helped me to review the best cat toys.

The best suitcases in 2026

A man stands on a ladder and drops a suitcase from the top‘Held up impressively’: Carl Friedrik’s the Trunk. Video: Christian Hopewell/The Guardian

Horizn Studios H6 Pro Check-In Luggage (61L)

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The best of the rest

A man stands on a ladder and drops a suitcase from the top‘This case split at one of the corners’: the It Legion Medium. Video: Christian Hopewell/The Guardian

M&S Pisa 4-Wheel Hard Shell Medium Suitcase

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Antler Icon Stripe 4-Wheel 78cm Large Expandable Spinner Suitcase

What you need to know

What makes some suitcases more durable than others?

Among the various factors that play into a suitcase’s durability, its materials, design and construction are particularly important.

Most modern hard-shell suitcases are made of plastic, but this shouldn’t be taken as an indication that their material has similar durability. Some plastics, such as polycarbonates, are particularly tough and lightweight, and you’ll find these types used in some of the hardiest luggage.

Suitcase design also affects durability and the level of protection given to the items inside. Corners are especially vulnerable to splitting, so in some cases they’re shored up with a hard-wearing guard over the suitcase shell. Joins between the parts of a suitcase can also prove to be weak points.

If you don’t have the luxury of being able to drop several suitcases from a ladder, you might have a hard time determining which suitcases are well constructed with secure joins. Tightly fitting parts and premium fixings such as rivets often bode well, but above all, a generous guarantee should put your mind at ease. Some suitcase brands offer lifetime coverage against manufacturing faults, and we’d recommend seeking a multi-year guarantee at minimum.

Are all suitcases suitable to fly as hold luggage?

The maximum permitted dimensions (and weight) of your suitcase will depend on the airline and options you choose when booking a flight. Bear in mind that budget airlines and short-haul operators sometimes apply tight size limits, so choose a case to suit the stingiest airlines you use. There are often options to pay extra for an increased hold luggage size allocation when booking your flight.

If a suitcase has one or more locks – and most good ones do – then these must be TSA locks, with a special keyhole that will allow customs officials to open the case using a master key. Most large suitcases have these TSA locks, which are denoted by a red diamond symbol. If your suitcase doesn’t have locks and you wish to keep it locked, you can use a TSA padlock such as this Master Lock model (£12.16).

For this article, we’ve focused on large suitcases that would be placed in the hold of an aircraft, rather than the cabin. Smaller cabin bags can stay with the passenger on certain flights – although restrictions apply, and you should always check the flight operator’s policy.

The best way to pack a suitcase

This depends on your objectives, and to some extent, on the suitcase you’re using.

For the best use of space, rolling up items of clothing is generally considered ideal. This allows each sausage-shaped item to be squeezed into a well-suited gap inside the suitcase’s storage compartments. A nice side benefit is that this method will prevent irregular wrinkles from forming in the fabric.

When packing smarter clothing, such as your best dresses or shirts, you may prefer to fold these items neatly, rather than rolling them up. It’s usually good practice to fold them at seams or at natural pivot points on the body, such as where the sleeves join the main body of a shirt, or at the waist of a dress. You can use packing cubes to keep items in their neatly folded shapes within a suitcase.

Make good use of your case’s internal storage options to compartmentalise your things. For instance, zipped pockets or sections are handy for storing worn clothing (on your journey home) or toiletries.

If travelling by air, pop your packed case on to some weighing scales before you leave for the airport. It’s easy to overpack, and if your case is found to be over the weight limit at check-in, you may face a costly surcharge. Also consider that the weight of your luggage directly affects your carbon footprint. The lighter you pack, the less fuel the plane will use on your journey.

For more, check out the best travel packing hacks to save you space and money

What to do with your old suitcase

The easiest way to repurpose an old suitcase is for storage at home. My family’s Christmas decorations lived in a tattered suitcase for much of my childhood, and there are surely countless other examples of these containers spending their semi-retirements in cupboards, loft spaces, garden sheds and so on.

A suitcase is good for keeping groups of items together and reasonably well protected (depending on the case’s condition), so you might consider using one to store things such as spare bedding, old documents or seasonal items. However, if these things have sentimental value, then storing them inside an airtight, watertight storage box would be a safer bet.

One good use for old suitcases in good condition is to donate them to a charity working with young people in precarious housing situations. A serviceable case could be useful to a young person who doesn’t own a dependable bag and must carry their belongings between locations. Often, refugee charities and adult homelessness charities will also make good use of a well-looked-after, preloved suitcase. If there are no charities in your area that can make direct use of your suitcase, you might be able to donate it to a local charity shop for resale.

For more, read the best carry-on luggage and the best travel pillows

Pete Wise is a journalist with more than a decade’s experience covering everything from global development and social causes to technology and music. He’s had some interesting experiences as a product reviewer – setting up a plethora of pet water fountains to discover which one his cat liked best; squinting at severed plant stems to see which secateurs cut the most cleanly – but dropping suitcases from a ladder might take the biscuit

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