Best 17x13x8 Bags in 2023 - JetBlue Personal Item Backpacks

If you have booked your next flight with JetBlue Airways, then it is possible that you are starting to sound the alarm about not finding a bag small enough to be considered a personal item in time for your next trip.

The golden rule is that your personal item must fit underneath the airplane seat in front of you. Easy, right?

Well, JetBlue is very clear about the size of their personal item bags, with strict maximum dimensions of 17" L (43.2 cm) x 13" W (33 cm) x 8" H (20.32 cm) and the space under an airplane seat can vary from jet to jet - and sometimes even from seat to seat on some planes. So sticking with the JetBlue required dimensions will be your best bet.

In this buying guide, we hope to make picking out your next personal item bag as easy as possible. We focus mostly on the best 17x13x8 backpacks, but we have also found a few great convertible tote bags and under-seat travel duffels that get the job done just as well.

Jetblue personal item examples from left to right: Timbuk2 Division, King Kong EDGE23, Troubadour Bivy Tote Backpack

Our Top Pick JetBlue Personal Item Bags

1. Timbuk2 Division - Best JetBlue laptop backpack for underseat

2. King Kong EDGE23 - Best for one-bag packing (for Blue Basic fare with no carry-on)

3. Troubadour Bivy Tote Backpack - Most stylish. Converts from backpack to tote bag.

JetBlue Personal Item: What You Need to Know

The JetBlue personal item guidelines are clear: if a bag is any larger than the 17x13x8 bag size limit then it is considered a carry-on bag and must be placed in the overhead bin.

The stakes are even higher for Blue Basic passengers who are only allowed have one personal item included in their fare. This means the Blue Basic ticket-holders run the risk of additional charges or a checked bag at the gate if their bag goes over the JetBlue personal item size limit.

Pictured above: Patagonia Atom Tote Pack 20L

What Counts as a Personal Item on JetBlue?

You can bring any bag as long as it fits JetBlue underseat bag size of 17” x 13” x 8” (or 43.2cm x 33cm x 20.32cm). This includes backpacks, tote bags, duffel bags and purses.

How Much Can You Fit In A JetBlue Personal Item?

You can expect a 17x13x8 backpack to be between 15 liters and 25 liters in capacity. For JetBlue Blue Basic ticket holders who want to pack with just a personal item, you can expect to fit 2-4 days worth of clothing depending on how you pack.

If you want to see what different sized backpacks can hold, we recommend you check out our Ultimate Backpack Size Guide with real examples.

Luggage with Wheels

Will small under-seat luggage fit underneath the seat in front of you? Maybe. But we found that 99% of carry-on bags with wheels will go over the JetBlue personal item size limit.

The problem with wheeled underseat luggage is that the spinner wheels and handles are counted toward the overall baggage dimensions, which wastes significant packing space. We also found that they are often too wide to be considered a JetBlue personal item and may not always fit under the airplane seat.

Best Backpacks 17 x 13 x 8 inches or Under

King Kong EDGE23 Backpack

Finding a high quality 17x13x8 travel bag is tough but King Kong has really saved the day here! The EDGE23 is the travel bag we recommend to passengers with a Blue Basic fare which only includes a personal item with the ticket price. Despite its compact size, the King Kong EDGE23 gives you the features you normally only find in larger carry-on backpacks.

The EDGE23 backpack opens like a suitcase and includes straps and compartments inside for organized packing. There is even a sealed compartment for shoes or dirty laundry to keep your funky items away from your clean clothing.

Other great features include a trolley sleeve for attaching the EDGE23 to rolling luggage and plenty of exterior pockets for easy access to essentials like water bottles, headphones and a laptop. The beefy compression straps are also a life saver for keeping the bag under the personal item size limit if you tend to over pack.

Features at a glance:

• Dimensions: 16 x 11 x 7.9 inches

• Capacity: 23L

• Weight: 3.3 lbs

• 15” laptop compartment

• Tough construction backed by a lifetime guarantee

tomtoc Voyage-T50 Laptop Backpack

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The tomtoc Voyage-T50 and airline travel are a match made in heaven! This bag's dimensions fit comfortably underneath the airplane seat, allowing you to keep your belongings close at hand throughout the flight. And with travel features like a trolley sleeve for attaching to luggage and easy-access pockets, the Voyage-T50 makes the perfect travel companion.

We really love the wide-open main compartment that gives you enough room for 1-2 days packing. In fact, light packers might be able to squeeze in another day or two. The square design maximizes packing space while keeping the dimensions intact, allowing you to use the Voyage-T50 for one-bag travel on short trips. In addition to the roomy main compartment, a rear tech compartment provides a spot to quickly access a laptop, tablet, and chargers during flights.

While many other backpacks include thinner shoulder straps, the tomtoc Voyage-T50 is equipped with wider shoulder straps that are usually found on larger backpacks. This makes the Voyage-T50 a great choice for those with wider shoulders who often find the fit of compact backpacks to be too small.

Features at a glance:

• Dimensions: 17 x 12 x 5 inches

• Capacity: 20L

• Laptop compartment fits 16” laptop + 12.9” iPad Pro

• Durable 420D Nylon construction with YKK zippers

Timbuk2 Division Laptop Backpack

"Small but mighty" best describes the Timbuk2 Division laptop backpack. In addition to a roomy 22-liter main compartment, the Division provides plenty of storage for multiple tech devices and small items, giving you all the ingredients you need for a comfortable and stress-free trip.

Our favorite travel features include an exterior 15-inch laptop compartment, a sleeve for attaching the bag to rolling luggage, a water bottle pocket, and perfectly padded shoulder straps and back panel for long travel days. The adjustable straps on the side of the Division allow you to compress the bag as needed to ensure it always stays compliant.

The Timbuk2 Division works great as for Basic Blue passengers who need personal item bag for short trips as well for as all other passengers who just want a reliable underseat bag to compliment carry-on baggage in the overhead compartment.

Features at a glance:

• Dimensions: 17.3 x 10.6 x 5.12 inches

• Capacity: 22L

• Weight: 2.2 lbs

• 15" laptop compartment + second padded sleeve inside main compartment

Patagonia Atom Tote Pack 20L

The Patagonia Atom Tote Pack has to be one of our favorite JetBlue underseat bags, and it's easy to see why once you delve into all of its features.

This small backpack gives you 20 liters of packing room, but it's a large 20 liters. We found that we could easily pack for a weekend trip. The dimensions are also perfect and measure well below JetBlue's 17 x 13 x 8 bag size limit, so there are zero worries at the gate when boarding your flight.

A special feature of the Patagonia Atom Tote Pack is its removable laptop sleeve. This padded sleeve includes a mesh pocket so that you can easily grab everything you need to enjoy Netflix on your flight without having to rummage through multiple pockets. It neatly keeps your laptop or tablet, chargers, and earbuds all in one spot.

For a closer look, check out our Patagonia Atom Tote Pack review.

Features at a glance:

• Dimensions: 16 x 12 x 5 inches

• Capacity: 20L

• Weight: 1lb 7oz

• 13” removable padded laptop sleeve

• Super comfortable padded shoulder straps

Troubadour Bivy Tote Backpack

The Troubadour Bivy Tote Backpack is one of the nicest backpacks on the list, and one that we have personally used as an underseat bag on multiple trips. One of the best features of the Bivy Tote is the ability to switch between a backpack and a tote bag by tucking away the shoulder straps. This also allows for a neater experience when stowing the bag under the airline seat, which is a huge plus.

Along with a very spacious 21-liter main compartment, the Bivy Tote offers many pockets for organizing your travel essentials. Inside, you'll find a 17" laptop sleeve and plenty of pockets for smaller items, while the outside of the bag provides you with a hidden pocket for a passport or wallet, a large front pocket, and discreet water bottle pockets that blend in with the bag when not in use for a cleaner look.

Features at a glance:

• Dimensions: 17 x 11 x 7 inches

• Capacity: 21L

• Weight: 2.2 lbs

• Convertible backpack to tote bag design

• Highly water resistant construction

Got Bag Daypack

The Got Bag Daypack makes a great JetBlue personal item backpack for essential items, thanks to its compact size and useful features. With an 11 liter capacity, you’ll have enough room for a laptop or tablet, some reading material, headphones, snacks, and a sweater.

With that being said, the Got Bag Daypack is on the small side, and we definitely recommend it for travelers who only need a personal item to complement their checked luggage or carry-on item in the overhead bin. Those with a JetBlue Blue Basic ticket who need room for packing might want to skip this one.

Got Bag is a relatively new brand with a mission to clean up our environment from plastic waste. Their bags are made of Ocean Impact Plastic, which comes from plastic waste that would otherwise have ended up in the ocean. It’s a great ethos that we can stand behind.

For a closer look check out our Got Bag Daypack review.

Features at a glance:

• Dimensions: 14 x 11 x 5 inches

• Capacity: 11L

• Weight: 1.19 lbs

• 13” padded laptop sleeve

• Water resistant construction

Harber London Office Backpack

This one is for business travelers or those who want something more sophisticated than your typical polyester laptop bag. Harber London handcrafts each of their backpacks in Spain using premium materials like rich full-grain leather and aviation grade aluminum. And you’ll really notice a difference one you get your hands on one - the bags are stunning in person and wear like a dream.

The Harber London Office backpack not only fits under the maximum personal item dimensions of most major airlines, but it also provides some great features for a comfortable trip. It includes a padded laptop sleeve and a second padded sleeve for a tablet, along with plenty of pockets for items like passports and earbuds. It also has a trolley sleeve to attach the backpack to rolling luggage. You really can’t go wrong with this backpack.

For a closer look check out our Harber London Office Backpack review.

Features at a glance:

• Dimensions: 16.9 x 11.6 x 5.5 inches

• Capacity: 18L

• 16” laptop sleeve + 13” tablet sleeve

• Lots of pockets for organizing travel items

Topo Designs Rover Pack

The Topo Designs Rover Pack is a backpack for those who need trusted reliability. It has enough pockets for organization, but not too many where items can get lost in the chaos. Plus, its recycled nylon construction means it's lightweight, yet still high-quality enough to endure some serious traveling.

One of our favorite features of the Topo Designs Rover Pack is its large and stretchy side pockets that can fit larger 32oz water bottles, making it one of our favorite backpacks with water bottle pockets for this reason. Sure, this may seem like a strange reason to love a bag, but the side pockets really are a pleasure to use.

As an underseat bag, the Rover Pack shines, thanks to its top lid design and side compression strap system that enables you to manage the depth and height to ensure you always stay within JetBlue's required 17x13x8 bag dimensions.

Features at a glance:

• Dimensions: 17 x 11 x 4.5 inches

• Capacity: 20L

• 15" laptop sleeve

• Lightweight yet rugged construction that's perfect for travel

Fjallraven Kanken Laptop 17”

The Fjallraven Kanken Laptop 17" is the largest backpack in the Kanken family, providing 20 liters of packing space inside (compared to the original Kanken Classic's 16L). This means you have more room for packing while still being small enough to fit underneath the airline seat.

The Kanken's large main compartment makes it an excellent option for Blue Basic passengers who want to avoid carry-on luggage fees, but it's also a great companion for those with a full-size carry-on bag who only need a way to keep their essentials within reach during a flight. The Kanken Laptop 17" includes a padded laptop sleeve, two zippered pockets for smaller items, and side pockets for easy access to stuff like a water bottle or airline tickets.

Features at a glance:

• Dimensions: 16.53 x 11.81 x 7.08 inches

• Weight: 1.1 lbs

• Capacity: 20L

• 17" laptop sleeve

Pacsafe Eco 18L Anti-Theft Backpack

The Pacsafe Eco 18L is a very interesting backpack that is small enough to fit under United airline seats, but packed with surprising features.

First, the Pacsafe Eco 18L makes a great anti-theft travel backpack. It has built-in locks for each outside compartment and the backpack itself can be secured to a tablet or chair leg to prevent theft in busy airports or cafes. Inside, you'll also find an RFID-safe pocket for stuff like a passport and credit cards.

If that wasn't impressive enough, the Pacsafe Eco 18L can also double as an outdoor backpack for hiking or biking. It has a lightweight construction, a roomy main compartment, and great exterior pockets, as well as super breathable shoulder straps and a back panel. Not only does the Pacsafe Eco 18L make a great travel backpack, but you can take it on a hike when you get to your destination!

Features at a glance:

• Dimensions: 16.9 x 10.6 x 7.5 inches

• Capacity: 18L

• Weight: 1.61 lb

• Built-in zipper locks and anti-theft design

JetBlue Personal Item Duffels

EcoHub 18x13x8 Duffel Bag

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This Ecohub duffel is cheap, lightweight and designed to fit under the 18x13x8 personal item bag size limit. What more can you ask for?

Ecoub designs underseat luggage and bags made to fit specific airlines. Their Jetblue bag gives you just enough room for some packing plus extras like inside and outside pockets for orgnaization. It's compact size is also great for international travel in Europe where the personal item bag restrictions are even smaller.

Features at a glance:

• Dimensions: 16.1 x 11 x 8 inches

• Capacity: 20L

• Made for under seat storage on airplanes

Dagne Dover Landon Carryall Duffel

This travel duffel is for anyone who wants to show up to the airport in style. The Dange Dover Landon Carryall offers a sleek design that's available in a ton of great colors and has some great travel features to boot. Each Landon bag allows you to carry it like a tote bag or crossbody duffel thanks to included shoulder strap. You also get a trolley sleeve for attaching the Landon to your carry-on luggage.

The Dange Dover Landon Carryall is available in a few different sizes. For JetBlue flights, we recommend sticking with the Medium size to stay under the 17" x 13" x 8" bag requirements for personal items. But, if you really wanted to test the limits you can upgrade to the Large size that only goes over the size limit by an inch or so.

Features at a glance:

• Dimensions: 14.5 x 9 x 7.5 inches (medium size)

• Capacity: 18L

• Weight 1.7 lbs

• Available in lots of colors

Wrap Up

JetBlue has a smaller personal item size limit than a lot of other US domestic budget airlines, making for a hyper-specific hunt for the right bag. Whether you are flying Blue Basic or Mint, the personal item bags on this list will make sure you stay compliant.

Below are some helpful links with additional information to help you get ready for your next flight with JetBlue Airlines. It's worth noting that the policies for carry-on baggage allowance and baggage charges can change so it's always best to check for the most up-to-date information before your trip.

Helpful Travel Resources:

• JetBlue - Fares and Guidelines

• Nerdwallet - Guide to Blue Basic on JetBlue Airlines

• CheapAir - JetBlue: Every Ticket Type Explained

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