The Best Bike Saddle Bags of 2024

Why You Should Trust Us

With a serious affinity for riding bikes of all kinds, the team at Bikerumor is always searching for the best ways to carry the essentials with us on all of our rides. While on-bike storage is constantly evolving, the humble saddle bag is still one of our favorite ways to ensure that we have our ride essentials at the ready on our rides. We love the set-it-and-forget-it aspect of saddle bags, where our tools and flat repair items are waiting patiently until we need them. We also know that having so many options to choose from can make it harder than you might expect to find exactly what you need.

For our bike saddle bags buyer’s guide, we rounded up a selection of 11 different models to test and compare side by side. Review author, Jim Graham, tested all of the bags in this review to see how they perform out on the road or trail, and how they compare to each other. Jim is an avid outdoorsman who lives in southern New Hampshire where he splits his time between cycling, trail running, and coaching a Nordic ski team in the winter months. While he enjoys all types of riding, in recent years, he’s taken a shine to gravel riding and loves going out exploring the wealth of country roads and rail trails accessible from his home, as well as participating in some long-distance cycling events. He also likes to be prepared on his rides, and he’s been using saddle bags for decades to keep his essential gear on the bike to deal with flat tires and other mechanical issues. Jim is enjoying semi-retirement, which gives him even more time to get out and ride and test gear. In addition to this review, Jim has contributed to Bikerumor’s guides of the best gravel biking tires and our favorite bike multi-tools.

After researching the best saddle bags on the market, we gathered a diverse selection of 11 models for testing and comparison. After a close inspection of each bag’s materials, construction, and layout, we packed each one up, mounted it to our test bike, and headed out for numerous test rides to see how they performed in the real world. In the process, we analyzed the ease of attachment, storage space, stability, ease of opening, closing, and removing items, and special features like organization pockets, reflective elements, tail light clips, and water resistance. After installing, removing, and loading/unloading each saddle bag countless times, we zeroed in on our favorites and those that excel in specific ways compared to the rest.

Buying Advice: How to Choose a Bike Saddle Bag

With so many brands, models, and sizes on the market, it’s easy to get lost comparing specs and details when you’re shopping for a saddle bag. And you have to wonder: Are all those options really necessary, or even worth worrying about?

The truth is that most saddle bags will work well enough across the huge range of cycling styles and fit the vast majority of bike saddles and bicycles. And they will hold the most important essentials that every cyclist should bring on every ride. Depending on your riding style, what you choose to carry in a saddle bag, attachment style preference, and need for water resistance, you should be able to narrow down the choices to find seat pack that perfectly suits your needs.

What Type of Riding Are You Doing?

What you carry with you, and therefore, how much storage you need may vary depending on whether you’re riding road, gravel, or mountain bikes. Here are some guidelines for matching a bag to the type of riding you’re doing, based on our experience, but bear in mind that this may vary depending on what you like to bring with you on a ride and how much of it you want to put in a saddle bag.

Road

For road cycling, we’re typically minimalists. Give us a small, lightweight bag with just enough room for a simple multi-tool, tire levers, a spare tube, a tire patch or two, and a car key. Most small saddle bags will also fit a CO2 inflator and cartridge or two, but it’s not a deal breaker for us if we need to mount a mini pump to our frame. Since road tubes are generally pretty small, all this can typically squeeze into small-capacity saddle bags like the Silca Mattone Seat Pack (0.4-liter), Blackburn Grid MTB (0.4-liter), or the Lezyne M-Caddy QR (0.5-liter).

Mountain

Although the use of saddle bags is a bit less common on modern mountain bikes than it used to be, many riders still choose them as their preferred method for adding some on-bike storage. Riding trails can be harder on your bike, and you’re more likely to be farther away from any place where you can get help, so you’ll want to pack gear that covers a wider range of repairs and adjustments. The basics include a robust, full-featured multi-tool, spare tube (or two), tire levers, a CO2 inflator, and a couple of CO2 cartridges. (Inflators make it much easier and faster to fill a large-volume mountain bike tire than a mini pump.) It’s also wise to carry a quick link to fix a broken chain, tubeless tire plugs, a spare derailleur hanger, perhaps extra tire sealant, and a small first aid kit. A bit of duct tape can’t hurt either!

Since mountain bike tubes are much larger than road or gravel tubes, you need a little more space in a saddle bag to fit them. Some of the larger and mid-sized bags we tested, like the Blackburn Grid (medium), Ortlieb Micro Two, ToPeak Wedge DryBag, and the EVOC Seat Pack Boa are capable of fitting a slightly larger load, and the latter three of those claim to be waterproof as well.

It is important to mention, however, that on modern full-suspension mountain bikes with dropper posts, rear tire clearance can be an issue. You’ll want to check and make sure that a saddle bag won’t conflict with your rear tire when the rear suspension is compressed and that it works with your dropper post (if you have one). For this reason and others, many mountain bikers will opt to carry their gear in a quality hip pack or hydration backpack.

Gravel

For gravel riding, we like a saddle bag that’s somewhere in between. We find that mid-ride stops for repairs and adjustment are generally less frequent and serious than in mountain biking. On the other hand, gravel rides usually require more frequent pitstops than road rides. For this reason, we like a mid-sized bag that’s not as bulky or heavy as one we’d use for mountain biking, but which will also carry a little more gear than we would on the road, especially a master chain link and a spare tube or two. Depending on what you put in your saddle bag, some of the small capacity options could work well, but something with a medium capacity, like the ToPeak Aero Wedge (0.66-liter, size small), makes it a little easier to squeeze in slightly larger gravel tubes and/or extra CO2 cartridges.

Bikepacking

Overnight or multi-day adventures require significant amounts of storage space to carry things like sleeping bags, jackets, cooking gear, etc. Thankfully, there is a growing number of brands putting out amazing saddle, frame, and handlebar bags made specifically to meet the demands of modern bikepackers. While the products tested and reviewed here are generally more appropriate for everyday rides that don’t involve camping, several of the models we tested come in larger sizes that might speak to the bikepacking audience. The EVOC Seat Pack Boa is a good example. The 1-liter size we tested is the smallest of the three options, with 2-liter and 3-liter sizes offered for those who need more storage. Otherwise, brands like ToPeak, Blackburn, Ortlieb, Restrap, and many others produce a wide range of bikepacking-specific bags to suit those with greater storage needs.

Attachment Style

These days, saddle bags typically come with either a strap mount system (hook and loop straps or Boa) or a quick-release attachment. Some bags are even offered in both so you can choose whichever you prefer. Generally speaking, this comes down to personal preference.

Quick-Release

Quick-release attachments are sturdy and secure because they bolt onto a saddle with a durable bracket. They also suspend the bag slightly away from the saddle rails which reduces the chances of the contents rattling against them or the material rubbing and causing abrasion. A quick-release tab makes removing your saddle bag fast and easy, which is a nice feature if you need to leave your bike in a place where your bag might be the target of thieves. The downsides are that quick-release bags weigh a tiny bit more than those with hook-and-loop straps, they don’t fit some saddles with widely spaced seat rails, and some are not recommended for use with fancy carbon rails. The Lezyne M-Caddy QR, Topeak Aero Wedge (QuickClick), Ortlieb Micro Bag Two, and ToPeak Wedge DryBag all use some sort of quick-release system.

Strap Mount

Hook-and-loop closures are highly and easily adjustable and can fit virtually any bike seat with rails. They also allow a saddle bag to be cinched up tight against the saddle, a feature we like because it keeps the bag tucked up out of the way. The downside is that hook-and-loop straps generally aren’t as durable as quick-release clips, and the grip can become worn and less effective over time. In our experience, hook-and-loop straps are plenty strong and can last for years, but it pays to inspect them regularly and avoid cramming your saddle bag with heavy items that will stress the bag over time.

A few bags use a Boa strap to attach them to the bike. The two models we tested with this system are the Mattone Seat Pack and the Seat Roll Asymmetrico, both made by Silca. In both cases, a wide strap wraps around the pack and seat rails where it is joined and tightened with a Boa dial and thin wire. We’ve found this type of attachment to work relatively well, especially on the Mattone. The EVOC Seat Pack Boa also uses a Boa, but in this case, it secures the pack around the seatpost.

Size Options

Some saddle bags come in a single size, while others are available in multiple size options to cover varying storage needs. For example, the ToPeak Aero Wedge models we tested come in 4 sizes, extra small (0.4 liters), small (0.66 liters), medium (0.98 – 1.31 liters), and large (1.48 – 1.97 liters). This size range provides options for everyone from the light packers to the “everything but the kitchen sink” crowd. Similarly, the ToPeak Wedge DryBag, Blackburn Grid, Ortlieb Micro Bag, and EVOC Seat Pack Boa also come in multiple sizes.

Other brands simply make other models of varying sizes. For example, the Silca makes the Mattone (0.4 liters) and the Mattone Grande (0.74 liters). Lezyne makes a large range of saddle bags in their Caddy lineup with varying sizes, attachments, and designs to choose from, plus they offer a number of kits, like the M-Caddy – Tubeless Kit, that includes a saddle bag, multi-tool, tubeless repair tools, and CO2 canisters.

Water Resistance

A saddle bag’s position under the tail of your bike saddle means that it’s directly in the line of fire from spray coming off the rear tire whether you’re riding wet pavement or gravel, or splashing through streams and mud puddles on a mountain bike. Most saddle bags are made from nylon or something similar with some claiming to be water-resistant and others claiming to be completely waterproof. For those who ride in wet conditions frequently, water resistance may be an important factor to consider, while for others, it may not matter much at all.

The water-resistant options typically have a DWR (durable water-repellant) finish and a water-resistant zipper. They can usually shrug off light amounts of moisture, but with a proper soaking, it’s still likely that the contents will get a bit damp inside. If your bag’s contents get wet, it’s usually a good idea to let them dry out between rides so your multi-tool doesn’t start to rust.

Saddle bags claiming to be waterproof are generally made with a material that’s been coated to repel water and feature sealed seams to prevent water ingress. They may have waterproof zippers, but drybag-style roll tops are another common way of sealing up the opening. The three waterproof models we tested are the ToPeak Wedge DryBag, the Ortlieb Micro Bag Two, and the EVOC Seat Pack Boa.

Multiple Bikes?

Depending on how much you ride, how many bikes you have, what you bring with you on different bikes, and your budget, it makes sense for many riders to use just one saddle bag that gets switched between a road, gravel, or mountain bike. This can save you a few bucks, and it works just fine – until it doesn’t. Inevitably, you might forget to swap out the road tube for a gravel tube (or some other snafu) and find yourself with the wrong tube for your bike. Similarly, if you have just one multi-tool, which you use both to work on your bikes at home and to take with you on rides, there could be times when you forget to put it back in the saddle bag. It’s aggravating and embarrassing to cut a ride short because you left a simple but incredibly important multi-tool at home.

It costs a bit more initially, but we’ve found that the ultimate solution is to have a dedicated saddle bag for each of our bikes. Inside each of those are the right tools and spares, and they always stay on that particular bike. For the home shop, we have separate tools, too. Otherwise, it’s just too tempting to take a multi-tool or spare tube out of a saddle bag and think, “I’ll put it back later” and forget. The upfront cost of multiple saddle bags and tool kits may deter many riders but it can save the frustration of trying to track down the right saddle bag and tools before every ride or, worse, forgetting them altogether.

Durability

There’s great news when it comes to durability. The quality of design, materials, and construction in all the bags we tested felt rock solid, and they are highly recommended in many user reviews. Additionally, many bags come with lifetime warranties against manufacturers’ defects. 

However, saddle bags are made of nylon or other fabrics and they wear over time – especially if you don’t tighten them up against your seat or frame. Loose bags tend to rub, which can cause abrasion that eventually weakens the material, and can also contribute to annoying rattling noises over bumpy terrain. But if you tighten those bags up snugly, they should rub less and last longer, while sitting more quietly and securely under your seat for years of hassle-free cycling.

Value

When you’re spending thousands of dollars on the bike of your dreams, it makes sense to shop around for a saddle bag that will fit your bike just right, carry and organize all your essentials, and last for thousands of hassle-free miles and many years. It’s a small investment for such a useful, durable piece of gear that ensures you have your tools when you need them.

The most expensive saddle bag in our guide is $110, while the least costs less than $20. And, they all held up well enough through nasty conditions, although some are much more water-resistant than others. We’ve owned saddlebags that have lasted 10 years, which is a tremendous bang for the buck, and the construction quality and functional designs of the newest bags are even better. As mentioned above, making sure your saddle bag is attached properly will help not only to keep it quieter over rough surfaces but also prevent abrasion and extend its lifespan.

Saddle bags have a relatively easy job, and even the least expensive options we tested will get the job done with simpler designs, materials, and constructions. Generally speaking, as the price goes up, it’s due to the use of more advanced materials, constructions, water-resistant zippers, and features like Boa straps or quick-release systems. Size may also play a role as it takes more material to produce a larger bag than a smaller one. So, for example, if waterproofness is high on your list of priorities, you can expect to pay a bit more to get it. Still, even the most expensive options we tested should last for many years of normal use which helps to offset the initial sticker shock.

Frequently Asked Questions