News

Aug 05, 2023

The Best 5 Backpacks for College and High School Students of 2023

Sign up for Wirecutter’s daily newsletter, The Recommendation, for a chance to

Sign up for Wirecutter's daily newsletter, The Recommendation, for a chance to win the $800 Miele Complete C3 Calima—a nimble canister vacuum our experts have long loved after years of rigorous testing. Terms and conditions apply.

We’ve been reviewing backpacks since 2015, and these are our new picks for the 2022 back-to-school season.

A backpack is a school-wardrobe staple—from classroom to gym, and from late-night library marathons to early-morning coffee runs, a good bag will carry all the supplies you need for a long day. So it's important to find one that's comfortable, stylish, and durable enough to hold up to daily use. Since our first round of testing in 2015, we’ve tried dozens of backpacks in a variety of styles. These five bags are the best we’ve found for any college or high school student.

We’ve reviewed backpacks at Wirecutter for seven years, scrutinizing hundreds of them online and evaluating dozens in person across a range of styles and situations. For this update, I built on the many hours of research and hands-on testing from previous guides. I also scoured online forums, review sites, and best-selling styles from popular brands and retailers to add more than 25 new bags to our testing lineup. Finally, I consulted with Sarah Lloyd, a physical therapist and director of clinical education at Spear Physical Therapy, for expert advice on how to choose a comfortable backpack and wear it ergonomically.

Students tote a lot of stuff, from textbooks and laptops to water bottles and lunch boxes. Though a backpack needs to be spacious enough to accommodate a full day's worth of gear, Lloyd emphasized in our interview that it shouldn't be larger than your back and should never weigh more than about 15 pounds. A backpack that is too heavy or is worn incorrectly can cause neck, back, and spinal health problems—a particular concern for younger students, whose spines are still growing. With that in mind, we focused on comfort, adjustability, and ergonomics when selecting and testing backpacks. Features such as contoured, easy-to-adjust shoulder straps, breathable mesh padding on the straps and back panels, and adjustable-height sternum straps (a horizontal strap that goes across the wearer's chest) can all encourage correct ergonomic wear and enhance a bag's comfort.

We also considered each bag's organizational features, deciding that a bag should at a minimum have an easily accessible front pocket in addition to its main compartment, as well as a place to stash a water bottle. A secure laptop compartment or pocket is also essential, both for protecting a computer and for holding its weight close to your body. "If you have something that's heavy far away from you," Lloyd explained, "it's going to create more strain on your back."

A good school backpack should be durable enough to survive the wear and tear of at least four years of education, as well as weekend getaways and trips back home. To assess durability, we looked for sturdy, weather-resistant materials and quality construction, as well as generous warranties. We also considered the experiences of our long-term testers and studied owner reviews for clues about each bag's longevity.

We focused on options that cost $150 or less. With that price range, we kept student budgets in mind while also acknowledging that students use their backpacks all the time, in and out of school. We considered some cheaper bags (around $30), but we instantly found that their quality and craftsmanship were lacking—spending a bit more is worth it for something that a student will carry every day.

Finally, we assessed each bag's aesthetics. The backpacks we considered vary in style from rectangular campus mainstays to sporty daypacks to bags polished enough for office internships. All of our picks are good-looking backpacks that our testers felt confident wearing.

Bags that measured up to our initial criteria underwent real-world testing. After loading them up with laptops, water bottles, running shoes, textbooks, groceries, gym clothes, toiletries, and just about anything else you might think to carry on your back, we wore the backpacks in a Seussian variety of situations (on a train! on a bike! in the rain! on a hike!), assessing each model for its comfort and ease of use. We also asked a panel of testers, representing a diverse range of heights and body sizes, to examine the finalists, and they looked more closely at each bag's fit, style, and organizational features, as well as its materials and construction.

Padded mesh straps and back panels make heavier loads feel effortless. This pack also has the easiest-to-use water-bottle pockets of any bag we’ve tested, as well as a removable laptop caddy. If you loved previous versions of the Refugio, keep in mind that this redesign is lighter on interior organizational features.

*At the time of publishing, the price was $99.

Who it's for: If you have lots of stuff to haul around—heavy textbooks, a large water bottle, bulky gym gear—this backpack is a joy.

Why it's great: Of all the bags we tested, the Patagonia Refugio Daypack 26L was the most comfortable and the best at distributing weight. The adjustable contoured shoulder straps and generously padded back panels are composed of a breathable recycled polyester mesh, making even a fully loaded pack particularly lightweight and cool. A removable sternum strap (which you can position at six different heights for optimal ergonomic benefit) helps to stabilize the bag on your body—it's a feature that comes highly recommended by physical therapist Sarah Lloyd for taking pressure off the spine.

The Refugio is also equipped with a number of unusual organizational features. Its dual side pockets are made entirely from a stretchy mesh material that can easily accommodate larger water bottles (you can also use the compression straps, positioned diagonally above the pockets, to keep tall bottles even more secure). A roomy front-panel pocket opens via a vertically oriented zipper, which means less digging around into the bottom of a deep pocket for your stuff. Behind the cavernous main compartment—which is ideal for bulkier items like clothing and shoes—sits a dedicated top-access zip compartment for your laptop and textbooks. Inside, you’ll find a removable padded 15-inch laptop sleeve with a zippered mesh pocket for storing chargers and school supplies.

The Refugio has a sleek, sporty look and is available in nine colorways that feel at home on any college or high school campus. The outer body, constructed from abrasion-resistant recycled polyester, repels water thanks to a PFC-free DWR (durable water repellent) finish. All of its components—from the buckles to the sliders to the zippers—are high quality and easy to use.

Several reviewers and commenters on Patagonia's website have expressed disappointment with the pack's recent redesign; whereas the older version had a large main compartment with an internal tech organizer, the updated Refugio has a separate laptop compartment containing a removable tech caddy. The caddy has organizational pockets, but pockets are not integrated into the compartment itself. The update—designed in part to make the pack more trail-friendly—allows you to remove the tech caddy entirely and instead use the back compartment to hold a water bladder. But the change has been a divisive one, with some Patagonia customers complaining that it offers less internal organization. That said, none of our testers (including yours truly, a certifiable Type-A neatnik) were too bothered by this. Though the Refugio isn't a hyper-organized bag, we think it offers versatile enough storage options to satisfy most people.

Dimensions: 19 by 12 by 6.5 inches

Weight: 1.75 pounds

Warranty: The Refugio is backed by Patagonia's ironclad guarantee, which promises repair, replacement, or refund at any time if you’re not happy with an item. The company will fix damage due to normal wear and charge you depending on the extent of the repair.

This small, durable, and practical backpack is high on aesthetic appeal: It's the knapsack you might have carried to elementary school, all grown up. Though the lightly padded straps represent a significant upgrade from the straps on the original Kånken, this still isn't a backpack for carrying extra-heavy loads.

*At the time of publishing, the price was $120.

Who it's for: This one's for cool kids who want a vintage-influenced backpack that will build a patina over time.

Why it's great: The original Kånken, designed for Swedish schoolchildren back in 1977, continues to enjoy a following among kids and adults alike. The updated Fjällräven Kånken Laptop retains that youthful charm while adding useful features such as a separate padded laptop compartment and cushioning on the straps, so you can tote your daily essentials with ease. I carried the Kånken Laptop—loaded with a laptop, a change of clothes, a toiletry bag, a notebook, a water bottle, chargers, and other odds and ends—for a full 12-hour day on my feet, and it was so comfortable that I nearly forgot I was wearing it.

The laptop compartment of the model we tested fits computers up to 15 inches and has a separate zipper, so you don't have to dig through the main compartment to grab your laptop. (The style is also available in 13- and 17-inch versions, so you can choose the size that best suits your needs.) A zippered pouch on the front is the perfect spot for smaller items you need to access quickly, such as a wallet, keys, or a phone charger.

The Kånken Laptop's main compartment is roomy and deep, with one slip pocket for stowing a notebook or textbook. A zipper runs around three sides of the backpack, allowing the pack to open like a suitcase—a feature that one tester appreciated when using the Kånken Laptop as an overnight travel bag. The backpack also has double top handles (it's the only bag we tested with this feature), which make it easy to carry by hand and to hang securely.

The Kånken Laptop is constructed from Vinylon F, a hard-wearing synthetic material that's water resistant without the use of any chemical coating. One of our testers who found herself caught in a downpour happily reported that the contents of her backpack remained dry. The bag is available in an impressive array of 19 colors, from muted grays to splashier shades of coral, turquoise, and mustard.

One long-term tester reports that after five years of regularly using the Kånken Laptop to carry a laptop and notebooks, the bag is still sturdy, without any ripping at the seams. Although the Kånken Laptop's material can feel a bit stiff straight out of the box, it softens up and develops a patina over time. Another Wirecutter staffer, who has used the Kånken Laptop for about a year, says that she no longer notices any awkward stiffness to the material.

The Kånken Laptop's lightly padded straps are comfortable for carrying light to medium loads but are less than ideal for toting multiple textbooks and other heavy gear. The pockets lack internal organization features (save for a simple slip pocket in the main compartment), so this is not the bag for people who like to have a specific spot for each gadget and accessory. The non-elasticized twin bottle pockets (one on either side of the bag) are a bit narrow—a 27-fluid-ounce Klean Kanteen fits, but a 1-liter bottle doesn't.

Dimensions: 15.7 by 11 by 6.3 inches

Weight: 1 pound

Warranty: The Kånken Laptop is covered by a limited lifetime warranty that offers repair or replacement (at the discretion of Fjällräven's warranty team) for products purchased from authorized sellers. The warranty does not cover normal wear and tear.

Sleek form and utilitarian features (such as a luggage pass-through and magnetic top closure) make this elegant bag look more pricey than it is, but it isn't backed by a warranty like our other picks.

*At the time of publishing, the price was $85.

Who it's for: This backpack is ideal if you’re looking for an understated bag that easily transitions from campus to office to airport and beyond.

Why it's great: Everlane's The ReNew Transit Backpack is a versatile, feature-packed bag that delivers on both looks and functionality. The bag's polished appearance belies its under-$100 price tag, and though its materials aren't quite as hard-wearing as those of our picks from Patagonia and Fjällräven, we still think the Transit is well made and will hold up nicely over time: The bag's water-resistant exterior is made from a sturdy recycled polyester, and the all-metal hardware feels durable.

The Transit's clean aesthetic makes it appropriate for nearly any setting, from classrooms to coffee shops to office internships. Its water-resistant, recycled-polyester exterior is available in a pleasing array of muted hues, from classic black, gray, and army green to lighter shades of beige and blue. Featuring a lightweight build and padded, subtly contoured straps, this pack was comfortable for carrying medium-size loads in our tests, and we found the straps easy to adjust to get the perfect fit.

This Everlane bag has a spacious front zip pocket that affords quick access to on-the-go essentials, so you don't need to take the pack off every time you have to flash your ID, swipe a transit card, or stash your sunglasses. The main compartment is equipped with two slip pockets for notebooks or folders and an interior water-bottle pocket, while a second, exterior water-bottle pocket on the opposite side offers added versatility. The fold-over top features another roomy zip pocket and is secured with a convenient magnetic closure—a favorite feature among all of our testers, and a plus if you have reduced manual dexterity.

The Transit is also our only pick equipped with a luggage pass-through strap, which allows you to attach the backpack to the handle of a rolling suitcase. A zipper along the side of the bag opens to a separate, lightly padded laptop pocket that can accommodate computers up to 15 inches.

Accessing the 15-inch laptop compartment can be a little fiddly, even with a 13-inch computer. The bottom of the shoulder strap is attached just outside the compartment's zipper opening and can get in the way of sliding a laptop in and out, so you’ll have to insert and remove your computer at an angle. And although the side zip allows quick and natural laptop access for right-handed people, our left-handed tester found its placement frustrating. The Transit's lightly padded shoulder straps, while perfectly fine for medium-size loads, are not as comfortable when the backpack is heavily weighed down. This pack is also the only bag we recommend that isn't backed by a warranty. We will be assessing how long it holds up over the long term, and we will update this guide accordingly.

Dimensions: 17.5 by 12 by 7.25 inches

Weight: 1.42 pounds

Warranty: none

Simplicity is what makes the Classic Backpack XL cool. It comes in a plethora of colors and patterns to stand out or blend in—but it offers no fancy laptop protection or organizational features.

Who it's for: Label-conscious teens and young adults who appreciate a classic aesthetic and straightforward functionality will gravitate toward this bag.

Why it's great: An unfussy, functional bag with retro-inflected styling, the Herschel Classic Backpack XL has a dedicated following among cool kids (and adults). Though simplicity is the better part of its charm, the Classic has enough signature details to keep it from feeling anonymous. Herschel's characteristic red and white striped lining, corded zipper pulls, and branding on the front pocket may not appeal to everyone, but they are instantly recognizable, while thoughtful additions like elastic loops for wrangling excess strap webbing add a little polish. The pack also comes in a range of 24 colors, patterns, and materials, from basic blacks and grays to poppy sunflowers and psychedelic swirls.

We found the Herschel pack's padded mesh straps comfortable, flexible, and easy to adjust. Plus, they have an interesting feature to help tame whatever webbing remains dangling after you adjust the straps: elastic loops for tucking in the excess length. We were also surprised by how compact the bag felt, considering its large, 30-liter capacity. The Classic's fabric is sturdy and substantial, and though we wouldn't want to get caught in torrential rain with our laptops inside, the durable polyester material is inherently water resistant. For $30 more, you can purchase the Classic Backpack XL in a weather-resistant fabric, but we didn't test that version.

The Classic's front zip pocket is ideal for carrying smaller items like earbuds, pens, and a wallet, and it includes a clip for securing your keys. Inside the spacious main compartment, you’ll find an elasticized laptop sleeve that can accommodate computers up to 15 inches; you could also use it to store notebooks or a textbook. Unlike smaller versions of the Herschel Classic, the XL also comes equipped with two side water-bottle pockets that are each large enough to comfortably fit a 24-ounce Takeya bottle.

The Herschel Classic Backpack XL is light on organizational features: Of the bags we recommend, it has the most spartan design. Because the laptop sleeve sits inside the main compartment, quickly retrieving your computer is not as easy, so this bag is less suitable for travel than our picks with dedicated laptop pockets. The laptop sleeve features only minimal protection; the lightly padded back panel is the only thing cushioning your computer. In addition, taking the Classic's impressive capacity into consideration, we’ve concluded that although this pack is comfortable, it could be more ergonomic. Its shoulder straps are straight rather than contoured, so they don't follow the natural curve of the body, and it lacks a sternum strap and a breathable back panel—a nice feature that we’ve found makes wearing a large backpack close to the body more comfortable—so wearers should beware of overloading.

Dimensions: 17.5 by 12.5 by 6 inches

Weight: 1.6 pounds

Warranty: The bag is backed by Herschel's limited lifetime warranty, which guarantees a product free of material and manufacturing defects when purchased from an authorized retailer. It does not cover loss, damage, or general wear and tear.

The Eastpak Padded Double is sturdily constructed with durable polyester and has several cool storage options beyond the two front pockets. If you carry a giant water bottle, this bag's single, smallish side pocket might not pass muster.

May be out of stock

*At the time of publishing, the price was $65.

Who it's for: If you’re looking for a cool, casual backpack from a brand with recognizable street-style chops, the Padded Double is the way to go.

Why it's great: The Eastpak Padded Double is a functional yet still fab twist on the brand's best-known backpack, the Padded Pak’r, which has been bedecking the backs of cool kids for 45 years. The Padded Double serves up the Eastpak-label cred without the boxiness: It retains its predecessor's streetwear vibe but is higher in quality, more comfortable, and decidedly better looking.

The Padded Double's polyester fabric feels substantial compared with the thin nylon exterior of Eastpak's popular Pak’r and Zippl’r models—and is also less stiff than the Herschel pack's material. Polyester is also inherently water resistant, offering some protection for your gear in inclement weather even without a water-repellent surface coating.

We were impressed with the Padded Double's shoulder straps. Rather than feeling stiff and scratchy like the straps on other models we tested from Eastpak and JanSport, the Padded Double's padded, gently contoured straps were well constructed and comfortable for us to wear. The zippers are outfitted with long pulls that make opening and closing the backpack's various pockets and compartments a breeze, and the bottom of the bag is padded and reinforced. The Padded Double's elongated shape also confers several advantages, including its namesake double front pockets, a generous 28-liter capacity for holding all of your school gear, and an attractive, well-proportioned silhouette.

We like this Eastpak bag's balance of simplicity and organizational features. Its two large front zip pockets offer added versatility for wrangling smaller items that you need to access quickly. A discreet third pocket at the top of the bag unzips to reveal one of our favorite design elements, a phone (or sunglasses) pouch with a delightful, minky-soft lining. An elasticized slip pocket in the Padded Double's large main compartment fits most 13-inch laptops and could also work to keep a textbook or notebooks secured close to your back. A hidden stash pocket on the back panel is great for securely storing important items such as passports and credit cards, especially if you plan on using the bag when traveling.

As on the Herschel Classic Backpack XL, the Padded Double's laptop pocket is located not in a separate zip pocket but inside the main compartment, making computer retrieval a bit more cumbersome. The Padded Double also has only one water-bottle pocket, located on the left side (it fits a 24-ounce Takeya water bottle, but only just). Physical therapist Sarah Lloyd told us that when you’re carrying a water bottle on one side of your body, you should offset the load with weight on the other side—which can be a bit more difficult when your bag isn't equipped with dual side pockets. One (imperfect) fix is to pack heavier items on the opposite side of the bag's interior.

Dimensions: 18.5 by 11.2 by 8.3 inches

Weight: 1.18 pounds

Warranty: The Padded Double is backed by Eastpak's 30-year warranty, which covers damage to zip pulls, sliders, seams, and some fabrics. Discoloration and damage to the buckles, zipper tape, and inside coatings are covered during the first two years of the warranty period. The warranty does not extend to holes, cuts, tears, or self-repairs.

If you can spend a bit more on a backpack that’ll last long past school: Get the Timbuk2 Authority Laptop Backpack Deluxe, which was a pick in previous versions of this guide. We still think it's a great bag, but at around $160, it's pricier than our other picks here. If that's within your budget, the Authority Deluxe will last you a long time, and it's backed by Timbuk2's lifetime warranty. The bag has a clean, utilitarian vibe that, while not the most aesthetically inspiring, will easily transition to life beyond college. It's also seriously organized: Equipped with numerous pockets and a well-designed internal organizer, the Authority Deluxe is especially handy for wrangling school supplies, cords, chargers, and other tech. The dedicated 17-inch laptop compartment is well padded, and the bag's durable polyester exterior and waterproof reinforced bottom make it extra tough. It's comfortable, too—like the Patagonia Refugio Daypack 26L, it has cool-wearing padded shoulder straps and back panels, as well as a removable sternum strap for added stability.

If you want an affordable, quality backpack with a slight sheen: We love the look of the Lululemon Everday Backpack 2.0. It's sleek, stylish, and constructed with high-quality materials and components, all for under $100. That said, colleagues and prospective testers across genders agreed that the bag's silky, slightly shiny nylon material may not suit everyone's taste. If that doesn't bother you (or if, in fact, it delights you), the Everyday Backpack is an attractive, versatile option that will transition seamlessly from your school career to your professional one. Like Everlane's ReNew Transit Backpack, this stylish and lightweight bag has a generously sized front zip pocket, a dedicated laptop compartment, and a handy luggage pass-through strap. The laptop compartment fits computers up to 16 inches, and its top zip opening makes it easier to use than the side-zip compartment on the Transit. Keep in mind, however, that this Lululemon pack's lightly padded straps aren't the most comfortable for carrying heavy loads.

If you’d like to fit all your gym gear: The San Francisco–based brand Aer makes excellent gym-ready backpacks that we recommend in our guide to laptop backpacks. We especially like the 19-liter Aer Fit Pack 3 and the 21-liter Aer Duffel Pack 3 (other than their size, the bags are identical) for their combination of comfort, quality materials, and cool, vaguely futuristic design. At $150 and $180, respectively, these Aer packs are more expensive than other bags we recommend for college and high school students, but if you can swing it, these backpacks are built to last and backed by Aer's lifetime warranty. Both bags feature an ultra-durable Cordura ballistic-nylon exterior, YKK zippers, Duraflex plastic hardware, and an interior liner treated with an antimicrobial coating to ward off icky bacterial growth from sweaty gear. Other features include a ventilated shoe compartment, a luggage pass-through, padded mesh shoulder straps and a padded back panel, and a sternum strap.

If you’re on a tight budget: The Amazon Basics Backpack for Laptops is a functional, unfussy bag that can fit laptops up to 15 inches. It's also the best backpack we found for under $30: Unlike models we tested from Target's Made by Design and Embark lines, the Amazon Basics bag felt sturdy and offered ample padding for a laptop. It also has nicely padded shoulder straps, mesh back panels, and two elasticized water-bottle pockets. At that price, however, you do make some sacrifices—the fabric is somewhat scratchy, the sternum strap is too short to be useful for people with broader frames, and the pack is available in only one color (maroon).

Eastpak's Padded Zippl’r is a laptop-compatible update to the company's popular Pak’r silhouette—but this bag doesn't live up to the hype. In our tests, the straps were extremely stiff and required a break-in period to sit correctly, and the nylon material felt thin and scratchy in comparison with that of our picks (including the Eastpak model that we do recommend, the Padded Double). The bag's short, squat silhouette is also, in the words of one tester, "disastrously ugly."

We tested two best-selling styles from JanSport, the JanSport Main Campus and the JanSport SuperBreak Plus. Though we have fond memories of carrying bags from the classic backpack brand, we found that the quality of both of these JanSports paled in comparison with our picks from Eastpak and Herschel. The Main Campus's padded straps were stiff and lined with a scratchy mesh fabric that felt unpleasant against our skin. The bag also has an unappealing boxy shape, and we struggled to find a color that didn't offend. We liked the SuperBreak Plus even less: Its straps, like those on the Eastpak Padded Zippl’r, were stiff, and the body material felt especially insubstantial.

We used to recommend the small, stylish Rains Backpack Mini for college and high school students. Although we still appreciate its good looks and fully waterproof exterior, we’ve concluded that it's better suited as a fashion backpack or a purse alternative. The bag's unpadded straps are difficult to adjust, and its small capacity and subpar ergonomics are hard to overlook—especially in comparison with our new picks, such as the equally stylish but much more functional Everlane ReNew Transit Backpack—and these days we aren't fans of the Rains pack's lack of organizational pockets and its carabiner closure. In addition, the Rains pack doesn't have enough room to accommodate the amount of stuff that the average college or high school student totes around—and even if it did, this wouldn't be the bag to tote all of that in. When full, the Rains Backpack Mini tilts away from the body, increasing strain to the neck and upper back, and its thin straps dig into the shoulders.

Though the Topo Rover Pack is currently a pick in our guide to the best laptop backpacks, we actually prefer its campground aesthetic and colorblocked design for the college and high school crowd. If you’re into the look, it's a well-made and comfortable bag. However, its tall and narrow shape restricts the amount of stuff you can pack—much of its 20-liter capacity is vertical. We also found the top double-buckle closure annoying.

In a previous version of this guide, we recommended The Hakuba from Lo & Sons as a great polished gym bag. After further testing, however, we’ve discovered some drawbacks. Unlike the Patagonia Refugio Daypack 26L or the Aer Fit Pack 3 and Duffel Pack 3, the Lo & Sons Hakuba doesn't have a padded mesh back panel, so it feels hot to wear. This is a big deal when you’re trekking across campus in a warmer climate, especially with such a substantially sized bag. With a 35-liter capacity, it can hold a lot, but a fully loaded backpack can feel quite heavy—and with no sternum strap on this pack, we don't think it's a good idea to carry that much gear. The bag's size also means that it won't fit comfortably on smaller-framed people. And at $275, it's expensive, exceeding our $150 price cap even at its occasional 40%-off sale price.

We considered a few bags under $40, hoping to find a solid budget backpack. The inexpensive Made by Design Basic Backpack from Target initially looked promising, as it had a clean design and impressively padded breathable mesh straps and back panels. Once we had it in hand, however, the backpack's poor quality quickly became apparent—we noticed lots of loose threads, frayed edges, and uneven stitching. It's also restrictively narrow, with a capacity of only 15 liters.

At just $20, Target's Embark 16.9″ Backpack was another intriguing prospect. Alas, we just can't recommend it. The lightweight polyester material is laughably thin, and the bag is unreinforced at the bottom, so we would never trust it to protect a laptop from bumps and drops. Although we didn't notice as many loose threads on the Embark as we did on the Made by Design, the stitching still looked sloppy and uneven.

Even though we found the Amazon Basics Laptop Backpack alarmingly unattractive, we still wanted to test the best-selling bag. (At this writing, the $35 backpack has an impressive 4.6-star rating, out of five, across nearly 17,000 Amazon customer reviews.) Unfortunately, the style was out of stock, so we weren't able to get our hands on one with enough time to do our due diligence for testing. We plan to test it for our next update if it's in stock.

This article was edited by Catherine Kast, Jennifer Hunter, and Jason Chen.

Sarah Lloyd, PT, DPT, SCS, director of clinical education at Spear Physical Therapy, phone interview, July 14, 2022

Zoe Vanderweide

Zoe Vanderweide is a staff writer reporting on style and accessories at Wirecutter. She has been wearing things for over three decades, and she has spent years covering streetwear, luxury, art, and design. Off the clock, you can find her painting the town rainbow with her (devastatingly stylish) daughter.

by Christina Williams

Here are 35 of our favorite school supplies.

by Ellen Lee

A great school backpack should be comfortable to carry, durable, organized, and let kids express themselves. Here are four backpacks we think kids will love.

by Truth Headlam

Whether you’re going to school, work, the gym, the store, or on vacay, you need a bag. Here's the Wirecutter-recommended carrying gear we love most.

by Christine Cyr Clisset

Whether you’re sending your kid back to school, planning for more distance learning, or preparing for a hybrid of the two, here's the gear you need.