Take a walk on any college campus, and you’re bound to spot more than a few tote bags. (At my alma mater, one student actually ran an entire Instagram page dedicated to spotting totes across campus.) But as a proud backpack adult, I’m here to make the case for the college backpack. For students constantly traveling between classes and their dorm, a backpack is remarkably practical, capable of fitting anything you might need, from a trusty water bottle to a laptop. And with two straps instead of one, it won’t strain your shoulders as much as a tote. During my recent college years, I used a now-unavailable leather backpack from Madewell, but there are plenty of other worthy backpacks out there. To find the best ones, I talked to 12 college students from across the country (and combined what they told me with my own backpack-loving expertise) to bring you their favorites — from the one all over UCLA to the preferred bag of Bates.
By far, North Face’s Borealis backpack was the favorite bag of many students I spoke with for this story. So popular is the bag at UCLA that student Mari Osman says her roommate, who was an exchange student, asked if owning one was a prerequisite for attending the school. The bag’s appeal extends far beyond the UCLA campus, though, and the students I spoke to cited its practicality as the main draw. With so many pockets — including a dedicated laptop compartment and an expansive pocket fitted with additional organizational sleeves — the backpack has enough storage space to hold everything a student might need when they leave their dorm. Lucy Harris, a student at University of North Carolina Wilmington, says, “If I’m spending a night out with friends, I can put in a change of clothes, pajamas, and my hair dryer in it with all of my school stuff too.” And, of course, you can’t forget about a water-bottle pocket — this one has two. They’re large enough to fit even the largest water bottles, like the Nalgene that Georgia Tech student Tyler Kwok uses, and can be adjusted for smaller water bottles, like Hydro Flasks and Owalas. Although carrying so much stuff might get heavy, the bag has a clippable chest strap to balance out the weight. “If it’s really heavy, or at the airport, I always use that, and it takes so much pain off of my shoulders,” Harris adds.
The backpack has a water-repellent nylon exterior that’s available in more than 20 colors. It’s not quite waterproof, but Harris says “I’ve left mine outside in a rainstorm before, and my stuff was fine on the inside.” And in the light gray color she owns, she says, the backpack goes with every outfit. Baylor University student Alexa Hernandez adds that the bag is decidedly grown up: “It doesn’t look like I’m a middle-schooler carrying around a backpack with 500 things. It looks very college-esque,” she says.
If you’re looking for something a bit more affordable that still has that North Face durability, go with the Jester. It has all the perks of the Borealis — including a dedicated laptop sleeve and two adjustable water bottle pockets — with a little bit less storage space. That said, Elle Gardner, a student at University of North Carolina Wilmington, had no trouble fitting an iPad, laptop, textbooks, pencil case, and more in hers. And since it’s water-resistant, her belongings were safe and sound no matter the forecast. “I go to a school on the East Coast, so during my first six weeks of college, we had like four hurricanes,” she says. Despite “walking a mile to class in hurricane rain,” she adds, “I never had any problems with my computer getting wet or any of my textbooks getting wet.”
Like the Borealis, the Jester comes in loads of colors, including a subtle mauve and hunter green. Gardner warns the lighter colors can get dirty easily, though, meaning you’ll need to put it in the wash and let it air dry. “After washing, it’s still in perfect condition to use throughout the years,” she adds. “I’m planning on keeping it throughout my college years.”
This last North Face backpack is one of the most expensive options from the brand, but it’ll last for years. Miami University student Brady Meyerson has been using his for five years and has only lost one zipper tab in the process. Other than that, he says, “It’s perfect.” It includes two water-bottle pockets, a large compartment with a laptop sleeve, and a smaller compartment with organizational pockets. “There’s a pocket for about everything I need,” Meyerson says, so he can easily use the backpack for travel and school. Unlike the Borealis and the Jester, the Recon has a mesh front pocket instead of a webbed set of strings for storing larger items. Meyerson prefers this pocket because he finds the backpack looks nicer and more compact.
Though North Face backpacks run the show at many colleges from coast to coast, at Bates College, students love Patagonia backpacks. Anders Landgren got his Black Hole backpack his freshman year after seeing that all his peers had one. Three years later, the backpack is still going strong, even after he used it for weekend trips while traveling abroad. It features a large compartment with smaller organizational pockets inside in addition to an easily accessible front “stash” pocket that Landgren uses for chargers. Despite bearing the weight of his school supplies or things for weekend trips, the backpack’s straps don’t budge. “I got them to a pretty comfortable spot and haven’t had to adjust them since,” Landgren says. Though it has a water bottle pocket, it’s not large enough to fit Landgren’s Hydro Flask, which is a downside worth considering if you don’t want to keep your water bottle in the large pocket.
Another thing to note: Since Landgren purchased his backpack, Patagonia rebranded its Black Hole line, swapping out a shinier fabric with a fully recycled matte material. Although Landgren found that the shiny material has been particularly durable, we think the new material — which is water-repellent and has abrasion-resistant coating — will hold up just as well.
While North Face and Patagonia make some of the most durable backpacks we’ve seen, you might consider Jenny Duan’s Herschel bag if you’re looking for something more fashionable. “I was looking for just a really classic and minimalist design. I wanted something that was just super, super simple and basic,” the Stanford student says. “Mine has a gold zipper. I like that, specifically because I think it just looks nice and neat.” In terms of storage space, the backpack is simple: There’s a large compartment with a laptop sleeve, water-bottle pocket, and a smaller compartment for essentials. Duan typically carries her laptop, her iPad, a pencil case, and a pouch with everyday goods like lip gloss and hand sanitizer. But after using her Herschel backpack for three years, she’s making the switch to a Timbuktu backpack she got from her summer internship. Only time will tell how the two compare.
A growing player in the college backpack space is Lululemon. The New Crew is one of the most popular options, and with a large Lululemon logo, it’s best for those who aren’t shy about their Lulu love. Fresno Pacific University student Amanda Aguilar has been using hers for two years and says she was initially drawn to it because it had a separate, padded pocket for her electronics. The larger pocket, though, has organizational sleeves, which she finds helpful as a nursing student who spends time in classes and the hospital. “It just has so many hidden pouches within the backpack itself, so you don’t have to be scrambling looking for everything,” she says. While she hasn’t put it in the wash, Aguilar says, “The material is wipeable. So even if it gets a little dirty or gets dirt on it, you can just wipe it off.”
If you’d rather not walk around with a big Lululemon logo, this simpler backpack is a better bet. It’s also from the brand, but it’s ideal even for a “Lululemon hater” like Virginia Tech student Bella Seoane. With such a simple exterior, Seoane can make it her own with pins, like Hernadez does with her Borealis. At Virginia Tech, Seoane says, “A lot of sorority and other club members will put their pins on their backpacks. I’ve seen a lot of pins that people have bought from the store, too.” To wash, she just puts it in the washing machine and lets it air dry — just as you’d do with Lululemon leggings.
On the inside, she can transport everything she might need for class, including an extra charger, her laptop, a Kindle, a pencil pouch, and a travel wallet. As with Landgren and his Patagonia, Seoane finds her straps to be sturdy despite the heavy load. “I don’t think I’ve adjusted them once since I’ve gotten the backpack,” she says.
As a freshman, Georgia Tech student Morgan Gordon is introducing a new backpack to the college scene: the Light Flight travel backpack. It’s the most affordable backpack on this list, yet it easily competes with North Face’s Borealis backpack in terms of storage space. So far, Gordon says, “I’ve been able to put so many things in there, and it took up no room. It’s like nothing’s in there.” She opted for the Light Flight after her North Face Jester backpack broke in high school. “I don’t want something expensive if it’s just going to break,” she says, so that’s how she landed upon the much more affordable Light Flight. Though Gordon has only had the backpack since this summer, she plans on using it as long as she can. “It’s pretty easy to clean because anytime something gets on it, I just take water and wipe it off, and it comes right off.” The only downside, she says, is that the water-bottle pockets are too small for her water bottle. With so much internal storage space in the backpack, though, this shouldn’t be a problem if your bottle is leakproof.
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