With hundreds of explorations under her belt, Sian Lewis, founder of The Girl Outdoors, puts the best small waterproof bags to the test to help make any journey easier while travelling.
Are you considering heading to the ocean and exploring the open waters for your next vacation? If so, it’s essential to do your research and pack everything you need to make the trip a success, including the best small waterproof bags.
At a glance – editors top choices for best small waterproof bags
But before you start pulling together all your necessities, make a checklist of all the must-have features you need your bag to have. As there are hundreds of options on the market, narrowing down the specifications that matter the most to you will help you with the search. We’d recommend considering lash points, the robustness of the fabric, its weight and the capacity of the bag.
To help make your decision easier, we put the small waterproof bags through their paces and put a spotlight on capacity, durability, ease of use and waterproofness. Here’s everything you need to know about your next travel companion.
7 of the best small waterproof bags
1 / Musto Evo Dry Tube 1.5 Litre
Specifications:
Material: Polyamide
Capacity: 1.5 litres
Colour: grey or black
Lash Loops: 1
Weight: 138g
Reasons to buy: compact size, translucent window, portable
Reasons to avoid: light grey colourway can look grubby, not submergible
If you need something compact and wearable that’ll keep your essentials dry, Musto’s dinky 1.5 litre Dry Tube is a great alternative. This bumbag-sized pack is perfect for keeping your phone, your wallet and a lightweight spare layer safe and dry when you’re exploring near water. It features a clever translucent panel so you can see what is inside, ensuring that you can pack it and unpack the bag easily.
The whole pack has a great solid construction. It feels like it’d be difficult to cut or damage, so it should last for many wears. This dry bag is portable thanks to the decent strap and the buckle that doubles up as a handle. It can be worn as a shoulder bag, and the base is reinforced so you can also set it down on rough surfaces. A lash loop with a plastic ring makes it effortless to attach the bag to a paddleboard, kayak or bike when you aren’t wearing it.
We also used this pack to double-bag smaller valuables and electronics when storing them inside a non-waterproofed backpack. We found this dinky bag got regular use whatever we were up to – we reached for it again and again when heading to the beach or just walking the dog in the rain. The nylon outer material feels nice to touch but the light grey colourway could get dirty easily – the black is a better option. At £20, this is a bit of a bargain of a bag and larger sizes are also available.
2 / Sea to Summit Lightweight Dry Bag 13 Litre
Specifications:
Material: recycled nylon
Capacity: 13 litres
Colour: five available
Lash Loops: 0
Weight: 81g
Reasons to buy: light weight, also work for packing,
Reasons to avoid: feel flimsier than most dry bags, no lash loops or strap
As the name suggests, this dry bag is pleasingly lightweight – we tested out the 13-litre version of this pack, which despite having a good capacity weighs in at just 81g. It packs down super small, so it’s easy to carry with you in case you need it. The 13-litre version of the Lightweight Dry Bag sits in the middle of seven sizes ranging from 1.5 litres to 35 litres, so this design is a good choice if you’re after a matching set that can double up as a packing cube for clothing when you’re travelling.
The recycled nylon fabric of this dry bag is soft to touch but would be believe it may be easier to rip through than some tougher bags we’ve tested. While it may be thin, the material is still splashproof (but not submergible) and the bag features a roll top closure, taped seams and a light-reflecting white interior for better visibility when you’re sorting kit inside it.
The oval base also makes it easy to stand this design up. We like a bag made with planet-friendly materials, and Sea to Summit use recycled, traceable 70D nylon fabric here and waterproof it with a non-PFC DWR finish. You can buy a dry bag strap to fit the bag separately – we’d have preferred this to be included to make this design more versatile. Seven sizes and five colourways are available – the bright orange and yellow are good choices for spotting where you’ve left your bags quickly, while the olive won’t show dirt and would blend in if you’re fishing or wild camping.
3 / Musto Evo Dry Tube 20 Litre
Specifications:
Material: polyamide
Capacity: 20 litres
Colour: grey or black
Lash Loops: 1
Weight: 390g
Reason to buy: useful handle, clear panel, tough fabric
Reason to advoid: not submersible, grey colourway could get dirty
Musto’s Evo collection was designed with sailors in mind. These dry bags look and feel like great quality – if you’re after something splashproof they’re a solid all-rounder for sailing and water sports alike. This 20-litre version of the Dry Tube design was reliably water-resistant on test. We wouldn’t class this as a fully waterproof bag and you can’t submerge it, but it will withstand rain and splashes, so it’s better used near water rather than where there’s a likelihood of it getting dumped overboard.
It’s also tough enough to chuck about on boats and bikes or to attach to the outside of a mountaineering backpack and that’s why it has made it to our best small waterproof bags list. A clever translucent panel means you can see what is inside at a glance – this feature is great when you’re packing multiple dry bags full of kit for adventure camping or for international travels – and also makes seeing inside the pack easy.
We’d pick the black colourway over the light grey version of the Evo Dry, as the lighter hue could get dirty easily. The included strap is of decent quality (although there’s no padding so while it’s comfortable enough to sling over your shoulder, we wouldn’t carry it far). When the bag is rolled up, the buckle doubles up as a grab handle – a fantastic feature which makes this option easy to transport. There’s only one lash loop, but it’s solid plastic so you can pop a carabiner on it. All in all, this is a great all-rounder for activities above the water line, and all for a decent price.
4 / Mustang Survival Bluewater Rolltop 5 Litre
Specifications:
Material: nylon
Capacity: 5 litres
Colour: black/yellow
Lash loops: 0
Weight: 107g
Reasons to buy: simple and sleek design, cube shape helps with packing
Reasons to avoid: no lash loops, material feels thin, clips are flimsy
We like the sleek looks of this black and yellow dry bag – it lives up to the best small waterproof bags material. What you see is what you get here – a fuss-free pack made of diamond weave ripstop nylon and with a plastic interior that is easy to keep clean and to wipe dry after adventures. We did notice on test that the material Bluewater bag felt a bit thinner and flimsier than some other dry bags we tried out, and it might not withstand chucking about or dumping on rough terrain as some sturdier models would.
The roll top of this bag is easy to do up quickly and securely, but the clips also felt flimsier to handle than those of other models, and there are no lash loops for securing this bag in place on deck or when you’re using it for water sports. We did like that the Survival Bluewater is a cube in shape once it’s full and rolled down – it’s designed to be packed with multiple others and is handy for maximising packing space in a narrow hold or if you’re playing Tetris with your belongings in bike panniers or a in a small tent.
The square design also makes it easier to pop this dry bag inside a backpack, so it’s great as a waterproof liner if you’re heading on land camping or hiking after in wet weather. Taped seams held water back from contents when we splashed this bag on test, so it’s a good choice for stashing valuables in. At under 110g, this bag barely weighs anything and won’t take up room when it’s not in use, so we’d recommend it as a packing cube for storing clothing and valuables rather than for water sports.
5/ Mustang Survival Highwater Backpack 22 Litre
Specifications:
Material: nylon
Capacity: 22 litres
Colour: black
Lash Loops: 0
Weight: 567g
Reasons to buy: good size, handy mesh pockets, shoulder straps, light weight
Reasons to avoid: straps have limited padding, pricy for such a simple design
Mustang’s Highwater is exactly what it looks like – a dry bag you can also pop on your back thanks to simple shoulder straps. It’s worth noting that this is not a pack we’d use for extended hiking – but it does work well as a waterproof container you can wear if needed, so it’s ideal for paddleboarding excursions, walking to a wild swim spot or for popping a weekend’s worth of clothes in for a boat trip.
A roll top entry makes it quick to stash kit and then seal the bag, and watertight seams stopped any splashes getting through on test. This pack has more external features than most dry bags, including three handy stretchy mesh pockets which are great for quickly storing clothing and kit on the go. The interior is black, which does make it hard to see what you’ve squirrelled away. The shoulder straps are foam padded and there’s a sternum clip – they’re comfortable for a few miles but not structured enough for a proper trek (despite Mustang’s claim of ‘all-day comfort’).
Where this design does stand out compared to other backpack designs is for its light weight – at under 600g it won’t weigh you down. There are no dedicated lash loops but you can use the straps to cinch this pack to a board or a bike. We reckoned despite that being a versatile pick this is quite a pricy option for such a simple design – there are more affordable best small waterproof bags on the market.
6/ Red Adventure Waterproof Backpack 30 Litre
Specifications:
Material: recycled nylon
Capacity: 30 litres
Colour: blue, green, black
Lash Loops: 1
Weight: 1.57g
Reasons to buy: good straps, great internal organiser, tough waterproof fabric
Reasons to avoid: heavy, limited lash loops
While this is the largest bag on our list, the fully waterproof backpack is comfortable enough to hike proper distances with is a rare – but the Red Equipment have found the perfect formula with this adventure pack. There’s everything we’d expect to find in a decent trekking pack here – well-padded shoulder straps and a chest strap are comfortable to wear, and mesh panels wick away sweat. There are plenty of external pockets including stretchy water bottle pockets and a zipped external compartment ideal for stashing wet kit in.
Red then add in extras to make this pack ideal for water sports and aquatic adventures including waterproof zippers, a tough, abrasion-resistant base so you can stand the pack upright and a roll-down top to keep everything water resistant. Inside the pack is roomy and there’s a clever removable organiser which you can take out completely and hang up or keep in the pack – it’ll store a small laptop, toiletries and plenty of other bits and bobs. There’s also a small, zipped pocket inside the main bag that’s ideal for stashing away your phone. It’s a pity there’s just one lash loop on a bag with so many other bells and whistles.
The outside material of the Adventure pack is super thick and tough, is easy to keep clean and feels bomb-proof. The nylon is made from recycled materials including plastic bottles, so this is a more eco-conscious pick than most. The compromise is that this is quite a heavy pack compared to a simply dry bag. We tested out the smart but muted blue version of this bag, which features reflective details that make you more visible when hiking and cycling after dark.
7 / Itiwit Duffle Bag 5 Litre
Specifications:
Material: polyester
Capacity: 5 litres
Colour: orange, yellow
Lash Loops: 1
Weight: 290g
Reasons to buy: bright orange is great for safety, great value, strap
Reasons to avoid: splashproof only
You’ll be easy to spot if you’re sporting Itiwit’s bright duffle bag. This vividly-coloured dry bag is available in sunshine yellow or neon orange, both ideal for being seen by other water users when you’re on or near the ocean or a river. Itiwit is one of sporting goods retailer Decathlon’s stable of in-house brands, and we reckon it offers great value for money all round – this handy little bag is a steal at under £10.
This design is dinky enough to work as a sort of outdoor handbag – sling it over your shoulder to keep valuables such as your phone and your wallet within reach but protected from splashes when you’re paddleboarding, kayaking or just out walking the dog in horrible weather.
The Itiwit bag has good solid clips and a simple but adequate strap (it isn’t padded, but then again this bag is too small to be too heavy when slung on one shoulder). There’s a top clip that works like a lash loop, so you can add a carabiner and attach this to another bag or a bit of equipment.
Our favourite feature was the numbered stencilling on the outside of the polyester material so that you can see if you’ve folded this bag far enough before you secure it – we’d love it if all dry bags had this feature. This bag is only ‘waterproof to splashes’ and should not be immersed according to Decathlon – on test we found it let in water after a minute when submerged. Ideal for popping your phone in for more relaxed activities near water.
Small waterproof bags vs large waterproof bags
Unsure whether to pack a large or small waterproof bag? The main difference comparing a small waterproof bag to a larger one is that you can easily stow a smaller option if you have limited space onboard your boat. The best small waterproof bags will often be easy to carry on and off the vessel: this is vital if you’re planning on lots of excursions.
Ultimately, whatever bag you choose it needs to be right for you and when you find it, you’ll know. To help you make the most of your trip, read Pip Hare reveals the 15 essential items in her grab bag to inspire you on what to take with you and help make packing less stressful.