11 Best Dopp Kits and Toiletry Bags for Men 2024 | The Strategist

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A great Dopp kit will keep your grooming essentials organized once you reach your destination and prevent them from leaking in your bag while you’re in transit. It must be waterproof (or at least water-resistant), have a wide opening that means you won’t have to rummage around, and have a handy loop or hook for easy storage in whatever bathrooms your trips take you to. To find the best Dopp kits that meet these criteria, I cross referenced recommendations we’ve received over the years from stylish men who are always on the go, from grooming experts to creative directors. Then I ordered samples to test those recommendations out for myself, placing products inside and playing around with how they’d fit into various compartments. Below, find well-organized pouches and bags for every kind of trip. While you’re here, I’ve also written about the best travel toiletry bottles and personal-item carry-on bags for flying.

Update on August 20, 2024: Named Sea to Summit’s Hanging Toiletry Bag the best lightweight Dopp kit; updated prices and checked stock for all products.

One thing all the best Dopp kits have is either a hook or handle so it can be hung up when you get to your destination. It gives you back some counter space and it ensures your stuff won’t be sitting in water all day. It means you can carry it around easily instead of having to “hold it like a football,” according to photographer Gray Malin. Ones with hooks, called hanging dopp kits, take it a step further and allow you to open up the bag while it’s hanging, which gives you a full view of all your products. “It unfolds like a mini garment bag and has a little hanger so you can keep your stuff out of the sink,” Nick Greene, author of How to Watch Basketball Like a Genius, describes his pick. “It makes you feel grown,” Greene summarizes, “without busting your bank.”

Surprisingly, few of the travelers we spoke to prioritized compartments within the Dopp kit as something they were looking for. While they are a bonus, “you don’t need a lot of zippers, pockets, and compartments,” Peter Hunsinger, the co-founder of sock brand Kane 11, says. He prefers something easy to open that allows you to see everything. Our experts were above all concerned with the size of the kit. Most of the cases below have room for your skin-care routine and travel-size toiletries, but there are a few ten-liter Dopp kits that appear on our list, which are large enough to hold a compact blow-dryer or clippers. While the latter may take up more room for those who travel light, the size is ideal for those who can’t travel without taking a chunk of their bathroom. Every bag on this list is made from a fabric flexible enough to squish into an already stuffed suitcase or weekender, so the larger size shouldn’t be a problem.

Speaking of material, that seems to be the most important thing to consider when buying a Dopp kit. Something durable, easy to clean, and water resistant is what you want to look for. You’ll find that many are made from nylon, which is wipeable in case of spills. It won’t be ruined by sitting on a wet countertop. Leather, silicone, and canvas have these qualities as well, the latter of which is another popular option among our experts. The thick material is durable and affordable, and it can look more distinguished than other common Dopp kit materials. Like the other fabrics, they can be wiped or spot-cleaned. The material on the inside is just as important. It should be easy to clean and waterproof or resistant as well. For that, nylon or canvas is the way to go.

The last thing to consider is how easy it is to get to your products, which is easiest with a Dopp kit that unzips all the way around to lie flat. This is guaranteed with hanging bags, while with others it’s a toss-up. Each of the options below either unzips fully or has a wide mouth.

Hanger type: Hook | Size: 2.5 L | Material: Nylon | Access: Wide opening

For just under $50, here’s a hanging toiletry bag with multiple compartments that’s literally constructed from ballistic nylon, a material that was originally developed to protect soldiers from shrapnel. So I think you can reasonably expect it to arrive at LAX unscathed. I’ve found that Aer’s Travel Kit is water-resistant on both the interior and exterior and isn’t too oversize to place into a small backpack for weekend trips. (It also lies nice and flat when zipped up, which is ideal for suitcases.) It has a hidden hook for hanging and while compact when zipped up, still manages to fit all your necessities. On the outside, there are front and back pockets as well as an exterior toothbrush holder. Inside, there are two zippered pockets and elastic organizers for your toiletry bottles. I also like that it has YKK zippers and an antimicrobial coating on the liner. Barron Cuadro, the founding editor of Effortless Gent, adds that the nylon is not only “crazy durable” but also easy to clean.

Hanger type: Hook | Size: < 1 L | Material: Polyester | Access: Wide opening

For less than half the price of the Aer bag, you can get this one by Muji. Compared to the Aer, it’s significantly smaller and made from cheaper polyester. But it doesn’t feel flimsy, and when I placed travel-size bottles of shampoo and conditioner inside (Muji’s own reusable toiletry bottles are obviously very compatible, but others work too), they were well-secured. A toothbrush fits easily, but you’ll have to place it horizontally. While the fabric might not be as nice as ballistic nylon, it’s still very resilient and quick-drying. And honestly, I find that larger Dopp kits can sometimes just encourage overpacking of bulky tools and products. This Muji case is the bag Greene said made him feel “grown,” with its garment-bag-style hanging option. Inside, there are two zippered pockets and four elastic holders for bottles or grooming tools. Then there’s another zippered pocket on the front of the bag, plus another slip pocket on the back.

Hanger type: None | Size: 2.5 L | Material: DWR-treated nylon | Access: Wide opening

I am a fan of Peak Design’s indestructible packing cubes and tech organizers; the brand is known for its slim “origami” fabric pockets, which expand and contract as needed. Photographer Michael Blevins has happily been using this Dopp kit since 2020. “I needed something that was not a floppy bag with lots of excess room while still fitting all my essentials,” he says. “Others I’ve had were either made from heavy leather or made from cheaper quality materials, and the zippers tended to fail.” On a recent trip to Germany he was able to store spray deodorant, an electric razor, a toothbrush, toothpaste, and tooth floss, hair cream, tweezers, nail clippers and a file, a beard comb, beard oil, cologne, travel-sized body wash and shampoo, and a box of matches into the bag, which sits flat and opens wide instead of hanging from a top hook. It worked “exceptionally well.”

Hanger type: Hook | Size: 1 L | Material: Ultra-Sil Cordura nylon | Access: Wide opening

I am a happy owner of outdoor brand Sea to Summit’s packable day pack, so I was curious to try its Dopp kit made from the same very thin yet durable Ultra-Sil fabric. Though it’s designed especially with campers and backpackers in mind, I think this compact toiletries case would suit any traveler who wants to avoid the extra weight of a hefty leather Dopp kit. It is small but thoughtfully laid out, with three internal mesh zipper compartments that let you see what’s stored inside as well as one large open compartment for bigger items like shampoo and soap. At just 2.8 ounces, it feels featherlight compared to the Aer, Muji, and Peak Design options above — when empty you can scrunch the case up in your hands. There’s a tiny removable mirror for shaving, and the coat-hanger-style hook is surprisingly sturdy.

Hanger type: Carry loop | Size: 14L | Material: Polyester ripstop | Access: Wide opening

Sometimes you have to think outside the box to find the best solution to your problem. Bags that aren’t technically Dopp kits, such as this Patagonia packing cube, might actually be the best thing for storing your toiletries. Like the rest of the brand’s products, it’s built for the outdoors. Matt Kays, a senior vice-president at PR Consulting, relies on this Patagonia number for its ripstop, practically indestructible exterior. He actually has two: He uses one as a Dopp kit for travel and the other as a wet bag to hold his things when he goes to the beach, so you know the water resistance is serious. This packing cube doesn’t have many compartments, which Hunsinger actually appreciates. It unzips to lie flat and opens like a hard-shell suitcase: Both sides are separated by a mesh zippered partition. One side alone can hold a pair of shoes, so you’d easily be able to stuff all your grooming products as well as clippers or a travel blow-dryer in here if you needed to. This bag has both a top handle and a daisy chain for clipping it to something else or hanging it from a hook.

Hanger type: Carry loop | Size: 5 L | Material: Nylon | Access: Wide opening

This is another packing cube turned Dopp kit. But here, you get the same-size bag for half the cost. Topo Designs makes a specific, triangular-shaped toiletry bag, but barber Mark Miguez, of New York City’s Friend of a Barber, prefers its ten-liter packing cube because it lies flat, adding that he has used “so many Dopp kits for work” and that this is the one he has been happiest with. It’s cheaper than the Topo Designs Dopp kit. It’s made from 400D nylon, which has great abrasion resistance, water resistance, and tear strength. It has a U-shaped opening, so it lies flat, and you can easily toss in and retrieve your products. It has a nice loop handle, which makes it easy to hang in places without counter-height surfaces. There are no compartments inside, so you’ll want to make sure your toiletry caps are screwed on tight and not breakable, as there’s nothing to hold them in place.

Hanger type: No carry loop | Size: 5.9 L | Material: Silicone | Access: Average opening

Tooletries makes waterproof silicone accessories that suction to your shower wall, making your grooming tools accessible and the whole experience more streamlined. It has thought of everything from a soap holder to a beer holder to a shower mirror and has brought its technology outside the shower with this silicone Dopp kit. Its waterproof, leather-looking, antibacterial silicone is what Kyle Bergman, former senior merchant at Birchbox and founder of Swoveralls, loves most about the bag, saying it’s “leakproof and essentially stain-resistant,” as well as “very easy to clean.” It doesn’t have as much of a handle as some others, but based on the product images, the loop seems to have been designed to be big enough to fit a finger through, though using it with a carabiner to hook on to another bag might be more comfortable. It’s a medium-size bag compared to the other Dopp kits on this list, but Bergman was still impressed with the size: “It’s like an old-school Chevy Suburban inside with the amount of room it has for various products.” He didn’t mention the zipper or how easy it was to access products, but the opening is visibly smaller than others on this list. You’ll still be able to access your toiletries, but you might not be able to see them all at once.

Hanger type: Extra large carry loop | Size: 5 L | Material: Nylon canvas | Access: Wide opening

Herschel is one of the most trusted names in luggage and backpacks, so it makes sense that the brand makes a solid Dopp kit. Dylan Raasch, senior design director at Nike, always travels for work with his. “I’ve been on dozens of trips with it and it looks as new as the day I bought it. It’s easy to clean and seems to fit everything I need without having to dig around.” It doubles as a travel and storage item, where Raasch keeps his things organized so his partner can take up shelf space with her toiletries. The bag is also a favorite of former Strategist editor Maxine Builder. She says it has just the right amount of pockets — enough that everything has a space, but not so many that she forgets where she’s put something. She’s also a fan of the oversize hook, which has “proved to be really useful when I’m digging through a duffel bag.”

Hanger type: Carry Loop | Size: 3.6 L | Material: Leather | Access: Wide opening

For a classic option, here’s the original Dopp model that gave these kits their name. Investment banker Tsz Hin Kwok says he has used his leather Dopp kit “pretty much daily” for the past few years because it’s longer than most other kits (but still portable). We reached out to Dopp, who told us that Kwok’s exact model is no longer in production, but pointed us towards this remarkably similar option. Like Kwok’s, the kit is also made from leather, which means it’s built to last and luxurious. At a length of 10.25, it’s great for oblong items like a hairbrush, or full-size tubes of toothpaste or hair gel if you’re checking a bag. The kit also has a flat bottom and a wide mouth like a vintage doctor’s bag, as well as a convenient carry loop.

Hanger type: Carry loop | Size: 5.5 L | Material: Leather | Access: Wide opening

Given your Dopp kit will inevitably become smeared with toothpaste, it feels slightly wrong to recommend purchasing anything too extravagant. But if you are prepared to make more of an investment, this leather kit is a worthwhile splurge. It’s good-looking but not too precious to get dirty. The outside wipes clean anyway, and the inside lining is water resistant in case of leaks or spills. These double zippered pockets are equal in size, adding to the “structural” design that made Gray attracted to it. (And it looks a lot like the $1,790 Tom Ford bag the Points Guy recommended to us but comes at a fraction of the cost. ) It’s perfect for overpackers, traveling with a partner, or just separating your a.m. and p.m. routines. As Gray says, “It just fits everything.” It has the extra-special touch of being customizable: You can choose between signature and premium leather, and if you purchase it from Leatherology, there is an option to monogram it for an additional $10 to $15. Malin went with a rose-gold monogram, but you can pick from 22-karat gold, silver, or other options.

Hanger type: Carry loop | Size: 3 L | Material: Coated nylon | Access: Wide opening

Particularly if you’re more prone to traveling with a duffel bag or backpack as opposed to hard luggage, it might be worth considering a long and slender Dopp kit instead of a flat rectangular one. This Topo Designs toiletry bag that’s shaped like a pencil case is designed to squish into tight spaces, says Thomas Pardee, brand director at Lupine Creative. That’s not to say the bag is small. “The triangular shape is deceptively roomy,” Pardee says. It sits upright on any surface without tipping over, but in case of spills, its coated-nylon fabric is water resistant and easy to wipe clean. The kit also has a heavy-duty zipper with handy grab tabs to pull on, as well as a sturdy strap to loop over a hook.

• Kyle Bergman, founder of Swoveralls• Michael Blevins, photographer• Barron Cuadro, founding editor of Effortless Gent• Nick Greene, author of How to Watch Basketball Like a Genius• Peter Hunsinger, co-founder of sock brand Kane 11• Matt Kays, senior vice-president at PR Consulting• Brian Kelly, the Points Guy• Tsz Hin Kwok, investment banker• Gray Malin, photographer• Tim Melideo, photographer and menswear blogger behind Stay Classic• Mark Miguez, co-owner and operator of Friend of a Barber NYC• Jonathan Daniel Pryce, photographer known as GarconJon• Thomas Pardee, brand director at Lupine Creative• Dylan Raasch, creative director at Nike

Additional reporting by Rachael Griffiths and Jenna Milliner-Waddell.

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