Backpack Statistics [2024]: Consumer, Product & Growth Data

Key Backpack Statistics

• From 2010 to 2019, US backpack gross sales elevated over 170%.
• The worldwide backpack market was valued at $15.9 billion in 2022 and is anticipated to develop to $31.38 billion by 2030.
• VF, the mum or dad firm that owns JanSport and The North Face accounts for over 55% of backpack gross sales within the US.
• The common carry-on backpack has 38.8 L of quantity, weighs 3.4 lbs, and prices $237.00.
• The common on a regular basis backpack has 22.2 L of quantity, weighs 2.5 lbs, and prices $199.84.
• The common mountain climbing daypack has 22.4 L of quantity, weighs 1.5 lbs, and prices $145.58.
• The common multiday mountain climbing backpack has 51.9 L of quantity, weighs 4.5 lbs, and prices $289.81.
• The commonest materials for journey and on a regular basis backpacks is midweight woven nylon or polyester.
• The commonest materials for mountain climbing and outside backpacks is ripstop nylon.

Backpack Market Statistics

Within the US and globally, the backpack market has seen great development over the previous many years. Extra individuals are counting on backpacks for his or her day by day lives and for recreation, and that’s driving up backpack gross sales and incentivizing corporations to take a position extra in again design and innovation.

Listed here are the important thing statistics for understanding the backpack market.

US Backpack Retail Gross sales Over Time

The USA has the biggest marketplace for backpacks worldwide, and regardless of setbacks resulting from COVID-19, that market is continuous to develop steadily.

The chart and desk beneath present the whole retail gross sales for backpacks within the US from 2010 to 2021.

The info above reveals an amazing development price within the US backpack market. From 2010 to 2019, US backpack gross sales elevated by over 170%.

Unsurprisingly, there was a serious drop in backpack gross sales throughout 2020 as COVID-19 put a halt to journey and shut down colleges. By 2021, US backpack gross sales had been already again to 76% of the pre-COVID excessive, and that pattern is barely anticipated to proceed as increasingly individuals within the US are touring or getting exterior.

World Backpack Market Dimension Forecast

In 2022, the worldwide backpack was valued at $15.9 Billion, in keeping with Statista.

The desk beneath reveals the forecasted development of the backpack market worldwide, from 2022 to 2030.

Clearly, the backpack trade is poised for enormous development over the following a number of years. This may be attributed to a number of elements:

• As journey tourism and outside actions turn into more and more common within the US and across the globe, individuals want specialised backpacks designed for mountain climbing, tenting, biking, snowboarding, mountaineering, and extra.
• 50 years in the past, in the event you had been headed into the workplace, you carried a briefcase. At this time, as workplaces turn into extra informal and fewer structured, backpacks are shortly turning into the norm. Extra manufacturers are growing professional-looking laptop backpacks that slot in completely with the trendy office.
• COVID-19 launched the world to distant work on a large scale, and extra individuals than ever are selecting “digital nomad” existence. A carry-on backpack is the right device for touring the globe whereas staying related to the grid.

World Backpack Google Search Curiosity by Month

The backpack market is extremely seasonal. Distinct seasonal developments are obvious in each retail gross sales and web search quantity.

The desk beneath reveals worldwide Google Trends search curiosity within the time period “backpack” by month from January 2021 to December 2023.

Within the chart above, there’s a distinct spike in Google search curiosity for backpacks each July-August. Throughout this spike, searches for the time period “backpack” jumps to over 170% of regular.

Whereas puzzling at first, there’s a quite simple rationalization for this seasonal spike: again to high school.

It’s true that increasingly individuals are shopping for backpacks for work, journey, and outside actions, however there’s no denying that college students are the biggest marketplace for backpacks. From Kindergarten by way of faculty, college students are those utilizing a backpack all day, on daily basis.

That isn’t more likely to change anytime quickly.

In fact, the back-to-school pattern doesn’t maintain for mountain climbing or journey backpacks. These usually tend to be bought in spring (firstly of journey and mountain climbing seasons) or nearer to the top of the yr across the holidays and Black Friday.

Backpack Model Statistics

As extra individuals are shopping for backpacks for quite a lot of makes use of, the trade is turning into extra aggressive, with manufacturers vying for market share.

A couple of manufacturers, like JanSport, have turn into family names, however many smaller startups are starting to make critical inroads available in the market.

Listed here are the important thing backpack model statistics from our analysis.

Prime Backpack Manufacturers by Google Search Quantity

One solution to examine the highest backpack manufacturers is by search quantity. Whereas this isn’t an ideal metric for income or variety of backpacks offered, it’s an correct solution to gauge the curiosity and model consciousness in a selected model.

I did in-depth Google search evaluation to seek out the manufacturers with the very best search quantity on Google. As a result of most of the manufacturers promote extra merchandise than simply backpacks (like Nike, for whom backpacks are merely an adjunct product), I used search phrases that embody the phrase “backpack” or “backpacks” (whichever ranked larger).

The desk beneath reveals the highest 20 backpack manufacturers rated by Google search quantity.

Curiously, of the highest 10 manufacturers by search quantity, solely 3 specialize particularly in backpacks. Most of the prime manufacturers are attire corporations which have constructed out backpack product traces (Nike, Lululemon, and Adidas).

Inside this prime 20 record, there may be a variety of journey, city, and outside manufacturers.

The undisputed chief of the pack is JanSport, which has greater than double the search quantity of Nike backpacks in second place. This is sensible in the event you’ve spent a lot time in a faculty or faculty campus and paid consideration to the backpack manufacturers. That little JanSport patch is all over the place.

Prime Backpack Manufacturers by Class

Backpacks may be divided into three broad classes: on a regular basis backpacks (which incorporates faculty, laptop computer, and commuting baggage), journey backpacks, and outside backpacks. The desk beneath reveals the 5 hottest manufacturers in every class.

Observe that The North Face seems in each the on a regular basis and outside backpack lists. Whereas The North Face initially began as an outside gear firm, it has broadened its product vary to incorporate quite a lot of day by day carry backpacks for varsity, commuting, journey, and laptop computer carry. This introduced the model extra into the mainstream.

It’s additionally value noticing that JanSport and The North Face are each owned by the identical mum or dad firm: VF, which additionally controls Timberland and Eastpak. Between its diverse manufacturers, VF accounts for 55% of backpack gross sales within the US, according to the New York Times.

Backpack Model Manufacturing facility Places

I analyzed 82 of the world’s hottest backpack manufacturers to seek out their manufacturing unit areas and see how backpack manufacturing is distributed across the globe. Some manufacturers personal a single manufacturing unit and carry out all product meeting underneath one roof. Others contract out to dozens and even a whole bunch of factories around the globe to make their merchandise.

The chart beneath reveals the share of manufacturers that depend on factories in every area.

Unsurprisingly, Asia has the very best focus of backpack manufacturing by far, with 82.9% of manufacturers utilizing manufacturing services in Asian nations. China, Vietnam, and the Philippines account for almost all of backpack manufacturing in Asia.

28% of manufacturers have some manufacturing in the USA, whereas solely 9.8% manufacture completely within the US. For a lot of of those manufacturers (like GORUCK and Hyperlite Mountain Gear), “made within the USA” is one among their main advertising claims.

Travel backpacks embody packs which might be designed to hold clothes and kit on journeys by aircraft, prepare, bus, and automotive. Whereas some journey backpacks are designed with comfy harnesses for trekking, additionally they deal with options optimized for extra city journey.

Journey backpacks are used to interchange extra conventional baggage and are bigger than daypacks. Whereas many individuals use daypacks throughout journey, it’s usually along with a bigger bag.

Journey backpacks vary from slim 30L personal-item-size baggage to cavernous packs you’d should verify on a flight. As a result of our dataset has a low variety of checked luggage-sized journey backpacks, I centered this evaluation on carry-on backpacks, that are far more frequent.

Carry-On Journey Backpack Quantity

The final consensus is {that a} journey backpack will need to have over 30 L of quantity. Lower than that, and it’s a daypack.

The common carry-on backpack quantity is 38.8 L, and 68% of carry-on backpacks are between 33.6 L and 44.0 L. The truth that the median is larger than the typical signifies that journey backpack quantity is barely left-skewed, which means that there’s a excessive focus of backpacks barely above the typical weight. This is sensible since 40L is a reasonably normal carry-on backpack dimension.

At TravelFreak, we usually advocate 35-45L as a great dimension vary for a carry-on backpack for most individuals. These information outcomes present that backpack producers additionally comply with the same guideline.

Carry-On Journey Backpack Weight

Backpack weight can also be an essential issue when shopping for a journey pack. Heavier baggage are extra tiring to hold and make it more durable to remain underneath weight restrictions. That mentioned, we predict consolation and sturdiness are extra essential than weight.

Our information reveals that the typical carry-on journey backpack weight is 3.5 lbs and that 68% of journey backpacks are between 2.7 lbs and 4.1 lbs.

Carry-On Journey Backpack Costs

Journey backpacks are dearer than most backpack classes at $237.00 on common. This larger value is sensible as a result of carry-on backpacks are competing within the baggage market greater than different kinds of backpacks.

Carry-On Journey Backpack Supplies

Carry-on backpacks are made from a variety of supplies, from easy ripstop nylon to laminated sailcloth materials. A majority of carry-on backpacks are made with medium weight (400D-800D nylon or polyester). These supplies are extensively accessible and stability sturdiness, weight, and ease of producing.

On a regular basis Backpack Statistics

On a regular basis backpacks are daypacks which might be designed for commuting, work, faculty, and every other day-to-day actions. Many on a regular basis baggage are designed primarily as laptop backpacks, as that may be a normal requirement within the trendy world.

On a regular basis Backpack Quantity

The overwhelming majority of on a regular basis baggage have lower than 30 L of quantity. Any greater than that’s beginning to encroach into journey backpack territory.

The common on a regular basis backpack quantity is 22.2 L, and 68% of on a regular basis backpacks are between 16.0 L and 27.6 L.

On a regular basis Backpack Weight

Most individuals don’t pay a lot consideration to weight when selecting an on a regular basis backpack. Only a few on a regular basis baggage are overly heavy. Design and options are extra essential for on a regular basis use than low weight.

The common weight for on a regular basis backpacks is sort of a full pound lighter than journey backpacks: 2.5 lbs. That is primarily as a result of smaller dimension, however on a regular basis backpacks additionally typically use lighter supplies and have much less construction and padding since they received’t be carrying as a lot weight.

On a regular basis Backpack Costs

On a regular basis backpacks are considerably cheaper than journey backpacks, with a mean value of $199.84 and a median value of $199.00. 68% of on a regular basis packs are priced between $110.55 and $281.03. The costliest daypack in our database is the Mission Workshop Rhake, which prices $545 within the X-Pac model.

On a regular basis Backpack Supplies

Like journey backpacks, on a regular basis backpacks are most frequently constructed from mid-weight nylon. There are additionally extra on a regular basis backpacks produced from nylon or polyester with a thick TPU or PVC coating, which provides spectacular water resistance and power.

Mountaineering & Out of doors Backpack Statistics

Hiking and outdoor backpacks are technical items of substances which might be designed to carry out throughout a spread of out of doors actions together with mountain climbing, operating, backpacking, snowboarding, biking, and extra. These packs are sometimes very specialised to a selected use case and vary from ultralight vest packs for path operating to large gear haulers for multi week excursions within the backcountry.

Mountaineering & Out of doors Backpack Quantity

Since they’re designed for thus many various use circumstances, outside backpacks are available an enormous vary of volumes. It makes extra sense to divide outside backpacks into two subcategories: daypacks and multi day packs.

Daypacks have a mean of twenty-two.6 L of quantity, whereas multi-day backpacks are usually greater than twice the dimensions, with a mean of 51.9 L of quantity.

Mountaineering & Out of doors Backpack Weight

Weight is a precedence within the design of out of doors backpacks, which are sometimes worn all day underneath demanding situations. Many individuals search for the lightest pack potential that doesn’t compromise primary features.

Out of doors daypacks are usually the lightest of any backpack class. The common outside daypack weight is 1.5 lbs—that’s over a full pound lighter than on a regular basis daypacks. Mountaineering daypacks are designed to be minimal and streamlined and normally don’t have options like padded laptop computer sleeves or a great deal of group pockets.

Due to their dimension, multi-day packs are considerably heavier—4.5 lbs on common. Nonetheless, there may be a complete area of interest of “ultralight” backpacking backs, that are underneath 2.5 lbs all the way in which right down to a mere 14 oz. For instance, the Z-Packs Arc Haul Ultra is a full-featured 50 L backpack that weighs a scant 1.3 lbs.

Mountaineering & Out of doors Backpack Costs

Out of doors backpacks additionally differ extensively in value. Due to their simplicity, mountain climbing daypacks are the least costly class we analyzed, with a mean value of $145.58. On the opposite finish of the spectrum, multi-day packs are the costliest.

Mountaineering & Out of doors Backpack Supplies

Mountaineering and outside backpacks are extra uniform within the supplies used than every other class. The overwhelming majority use some type of ripstop nylon. The primary motive for that is weight: ripstop nylon may be extremely light-weight whereas sustaining good sturdiness.

Some technical outside backpacks additionally incorporate extra superior supplies like HMWPE (often known as Dyneema), which is stronger than metal and provides spectacular sturdiness. These baggage include a value penalty, although.

Backpack Statistics by Area

Backpack use and curiosity are usually not uniform across the globe. In some areas, backpacks are seen as day by day requirements, whereas in different areas, they’re pointless luxuries.

Listed here are an important regional backpack statistics.

Google Search Curiosity in Backpacks by Area

Breaking down Google search quantity for backpacks by area is an attention-grabbing solution to examine the curiosity in backpacks between areas. This isn’t an ideal metric, nevertheless it reveals how a lot individuals are looking for backpacks on-line.

Utilizing Google Trends, I ranked the nations with the very best and lowest search curiosity for the time period “backpack” in 2023.

Google charges search curiosity as a proportion of all searches. The area with the very best search curiosity will get a rating of 100, and each different area’s rating is a share of that (a rating of fifty means half the search curiosity of the very best rating). I excluded areas with low search quantity for this research; that leaves 58 areas to contemplate.

The desk beneath reveals the ten areas with the very best search curiosity for the time period “backpack.”

The desk beneath reveals the ten areas with the bottom search curiosity for the time period “backpack.”

The broad pattern within the tables above is that extra prosperous nations have larger search curiosity in backpacks whereas growing nations have decrease curiosity. This clearly isn’t a tough and quick rule, although. Jamaica is a less-developed nation that ranks fifth for essentially the most backpack search curiosity. Japan and France are each very prosperous, developed nations that rank within the lowest 10.

The general pattern is sensible, as individuals in wealthier nations have larger shopper spending total and spend extra on backpacks. Nonetheless, there is no such thing as a clear rationalization for the exceptions. Why does Jamaica have a excessive curiosity in backpacks whereas Japan doesn’t? This query requires additional analysis.

Google Search Curiosity in Backpacks by State

There’s additionally important variance in curiosity in backpacks by state throughout the US. The map and desk beneath present the rating of the 50 states by backpack search curiosity.

The Western US states have larger total search curiosity in backpacks than the remainder of the nation, whereas the Midwest Area has the bottom curiosity.

It is usually notable that within the prime 10 states for backpack search curiosity, there are a number of states which might be well-known for outside recreation: California, Hawaii, Washington, Utah, Colorado, Arizona, and Oregon.

It additionally is sensible that there’s a excessive focus of backpack and outside gear corporations with headquarters in these states. Areas like Boulder, Portland, and Salt Lake Metropolis are hotspots for outside gear design.

Sources and Methodology

The info used on this report is split into three classes: market information, search information, and product information.

The market information contains annual gross sales, world market dimension, and market development forecasts. I collected this information from a number of sources, together with Statista, IndustryArc, and The New York Times. I mixed these particular person information factors and units to get a extra full image of the worldwide backpack market.

Search information was collected utilizing Google Trends. I used this device to gather Google search statistics for the 2023 calendar yr. I analyzed search outcomes for the search time period “backpack” and segmented out searches by nation, state, and month. These search outcomes function a proxy for public curiosity in backpacks, and are helpful for measuring developments geographically or over time.

To gather product information, I used TravelFreak’s backpack score database, which shops the metrics we use for reviewing and scoring backpacks. We retailer 44 distinct information factors for each backpack in our database, which supplies a wealth of knowledge to attract from. The main points in our product database come from our many years of in-depth analysis and testing.

I used this information to extract averages and statistical distributions for weight, quantity, MSRP, and supplies used throughout the totally different backpack classes.

Changelog

We periodically evaluation this report, verify for errors or inconsistencies, and replace it with the latest information. Right here is the change historical past for this report.

• February 26, 2024—first revealed