Ranking and Reviewing the Perfect Tote Bags: Round 2 Contenders

Alright, it is finally time! We are ranking up the round 2 tote bag contenders in my Perfect Tote Bag series to see if we have a new number one. If you are new to the series, I’ve been on the hunt for my new perfect Travel tote bag that meets all of these requirements and since the beginning of the year I have been trying and testing out tote bags. You can find them all in the playlist below, including these new 10 tote bags that were part of round 2 and have yet to be ranked. So let’s see how they all stack up against each other and see where my favorites of the bunch slot in against the current top 10 list. Will we have a new favorite? Let’s find out! But first, before we get into the rankings, we need to hand out some honorary awards. The first award is for lightest Tote Bag, and that goes to the Bag Smart Vegan Tote, which weighed only 8 pounds when fully packed. The award for most affordable tote goes to the Bag Smart Quilt to tote, which is only $30 and was featured in round one. The award for most airline friendly tote bag goes to the Dagny Dover Medium Land and carry all, which meets all 10 US airlines personal item requirements and eight out of 20 international requirements. And finally, the award for best pockets is going to the Dagny Dover Wade Tote, which has Been holding on to that title since round one. Now let’s talk about how I’m actually ranking up these tote bags. I weigh 13 different categories when it comes to calculating my final scores. This includes my original nine categories, but also factors in things like weight, cost, pocket usefulness, general usability, how much the bag can fit. Bags will score higher if they are very airline friendly, they’re lightweight, they’re low cost. They’ll also get docked for things like the zippers not closing all of the way, a really small laptop compartment being hard to clean, things like that. Now let’s get into the final rankings. I’m not going to be going through the bottom five just for sake of time, but they’re listed down below. In fifth place we have the Baggallini Modern Avenue, which came very highly requested. This tote has some really great pockets and internal organization. The reason it’s coming in in number five is because it kept falling over when I was packing it, so it was a little bit tippy. It also wasn’t very great quality, especially for the hundred and forty dollar price tag. Some. Some of the cheaper options on this list are much better quality in my opinion. Now coming in fourth place and kind of the opposite end of the spectrum is the Tumi Voyager Valetote. The quality of this bag was outstanding. I actually really loved this one. It had great front pockets. I loved how packable it Was, but this bag was a little heavy when packed. But what really tanked its score was the 475 dollar price tag, which is more than some of my carry on suitcases. So that’s why this one’s in fourth place. Third place is a bag that I’ve actually been reaching for a ton, but I need to kind of put an asterisk on that is the Calpak Tara 35 liter tote bag. There’s a lot that I love about this bag. It is super packable, it can hold a ton. I really like the front pocket. It has been my go to for road trips this summer. Well, this bag technically meets personal item size requirements for four US airlines and four international airlines. This thing is huge when it’s packed. I would feel really nervous about bringing this as a personal item on a plane just because of how big it is, even if it does technically meet requirements. So that is why I put a little asterisk on this one. I do really love it, and it does technically meet requirements, so that’s why it’s coming in at No. 3. Coming in in second place is the most airline friendly bag on this list. It is the Dagny Dover Land and carry Ariel. I’ve actually owned and loved this tote bag for a long time, well before I started my perfect tote bag series. And the reason that this one is not my perfect tote bag and is Coming in at number two is for the reasons that it got docked 1. This bag is quite heavy when it’s fully packed and the neoprene material is pretty hard to clean when on the go. So those two things plus the hundred and eighty five dollar price tag is what slotted this one into second place. Now for the top rated tote bag in these round two rankings, the No.. 1 ranking goes to the Brixley Tote, which I love to see another woman owned small business topping this list. I really loved the layout of this tote bag. It honestly feels like a perfect marriage between the two number one bags from my round one rankings. The Poppy and peonies tote in the base work carry all. I love the front pocket organization of the bags, all of the pockets inside the key leash, the way it’s organized. This one was also really lightweight so it’s easy to carry around for a long period of time. The only areas where this bag got docked points were in its ability to stand up on its own. It was a little wobbly when it wasn’t completely. I also thought the quality left just a little something to be desired. I definitely don’t expect it to be the same luxury quality as some of the hundred and eighty five dollar bags or 475 dollar bags on the list, but for the 72 dollar price I do wish it was just a Little bit more buttoned up. So those are your round two perfect tote bag contenders, all ranked up. The question is, where do these stack up against our original top 10 list? Let’s find out in 3. 2. 1. The Brixley Tote came super close with a rating of 8.8, but it could not dethrone our current number ones, the Poppy and peonies go get her tote and the base sport tote, which are currently tied at number one with a rating of eight. 8.9 total. Delilah duffle by Pop Flex and the Dagny Dover Wade Tote are still holding strong in the top 5. Those were from the original round one of rankings. Now, I do think it’s worth noting that I’ve owned many of these bags for months now, and the ones that I’m reaching for the most aren’t necessarily the top three. The bags that I have actually been using in real life the most are the base Sport Tote, which is my personal favorite on this list. Delilah Duffle by popflex, which I’ve been reaching for a lot for beach vacations because there’s no real beach bag on this list. The Dagny Dover Wade Tote which I just brought with me on my trip to Amsterdam, and the Calpak Tara 35 liter. Like I said, I’ve been using this one a ton for road trips this summer. The personal preference does play a large part in this, and of course that’s not reflected in the rankings. Obviously, you’re gonna go for a bag that you love the look of, that is in your price range, that meets all of your priorities. So with that being said, I wanna know which of these tote bags are your favorites. Has the series LED you to your perfect tote bag yet? I am gonna keep the series going because I feel like there’s a tote bag out there that rates at least a 9, and I am determined to find it. You know of any others that meet my requirements, be sure to drop them down in the comments. And I can’t wait to hear what you think of the final rankings.