How to pack a carry-on only
Pack a carry-on only by planning outfits around two or three colors so everything mixes, packing for about five days and planning to wash, wearing your bulkiest shoes and jacket on the plane, rolling soft clothes, and putting liquids of 3.4 ounces or less in one clear quart bag. Check your airline's size and weight limits before you pack, not at the gate.
Why it matters: One bag means no lost luggage, faster exits and easier stairs.
Steps
- Check your airline's carry-on size and weight limits and any personal item allowance.
- Choose two or three base colors so every top works with every bottom.
- Pack for about five days and plan to wash small items.
- Wear your bulkiest shoes and jacket on the plane.
- Roll soft clothes, and use packing cubes to compress them.
- Put liquids of 3.4 ounces or less into one clear quart-size bag, packed where you can reach it.
- Keep medicines, documents, chargers and one change of clothes in your personal item.
- Weigh the packed bag at home.
Common mistakes
- Packing an outfit for every possible event.
- Bringing full-size toiletries.
- Packing medicines in a bag that might be gate-checked.
Teach this to someone
A one page sheet for showing a friend, a teenager or a parent: what to say, what to show, and one question to check it landed.
Teach: How to pack a carry-on only
What to say
Pack a carry-on only by planning outfits around two or three colors so everything mixes, packing for about five days and planning to wash, wearing your bulkiest shoes and jacket on the plane, rolling soft clothes, and putting liquids of 3.4 ounces or less in one clear quart bag. Check your airline's size and weight limits before you pack, not at the gate.
What to show
- Check your airline's carry-on size and weight limits and any personal item allowance.
- Choose two or three base colors so every top works with every bottom.
- Pack for about five days and plan to wash small items.
- Wear your bulkiest shoes and jacket on the plane.
- Roll soft clothes, and use packing cubes to compress them.
- Put liquids of 3.4 ounces or less into one clear quart-size bag, packed where you can reach it.
- Keep medicines, documents, chargers and one change of clothes in your personal item.
- Weigh the packed bag at home.
Check question
What size are liquids limited to in a carry-on?
Answer: 3.4 ounces or less each, in one quart bag. Each container must be small, and all must fit one clear bag.
Your checklist
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Quick quiz
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Related skills
Sources
- US federal airport security screening guidance for liquids, 2026. Reviewed September 28, 2026.
Written in our own words from the sources above. It is general information, not advice for your situation; where a professional, your doctor or your lease says something different, follow them.
Last reviewed . First published .