UK Hand Luggage Sizes 2026: Every Major Airline Compared

Every airline sets its own hand luggage rules, and in 2026 several changed. This is a plain comparison of what the main UK airlines let you carry for free, what a larger cabin bag costs, and which kind of bag actually fits. Airlines change these sizes, so always check the airline's own page before you fly.

UK hand luggage sizes 2026

Tap any airline for the full guide to that carrier.

Airline	Free underseat bag	Larger cabin bag
Ryanair	40 x 30 x 20 cm	55 x 40 x 20 cm, with Priority
easyJet	45 x 36 x 20 cm, up to 15kg	56 x 45 x 25 cm, with Up Front or Plus
Jet2	40 x 30 x 20 cm	56 x 45 x 25 cm, up to 10kg
British Airways	40 x 30 x 15 cm	56 x 45 x 25 cm, 23kg combined
TUI	40 x 30 x 20 cm	55 x 40 x 20 cm, up to 10kg
Wizz Air	40 x 30 x 20 cm, up to 10kg	55 x 40 x 23 cm, with Priority
Aer Lingus	25 x 33 x 20 cm	55 x 40 x 24 cm, up to 10kg, on every fare
Vueling	40 x 30 x 20 cm	55 x 40 x 20 cm, higher fares only
Emirates	Included in the cabin allowance	55 x 38 x 22 cm, up to 7kg in Economy
Virgin Atlantic	40 x 30 x 15 cm	56 x 36 x 23 cm, 10kg combined

Free bag or paid cabin bag?

Most airlines give you one small bag free that must fit under the seat in front of you. These are small, around 40cm on the longest side. A larger bag for the overhead locker usually costs extra or comes with a priority fare, and those go up to 55 or 56cm.

Aer Lingus is the exception worth knowing: the overhead bag is included even on its cheapest fare.

The trap is buying a bag sized to one airline's free allowance. Those underseat sizes vary a lot between airlines and change often, and an EU-wide minimum underseat size is being introduced across European carriers. The paid cabin sizes are not changing, so a bag built for those is the safer buy.

Watch the depth and the width, not just the length

Most people check the longest side and stop there. The number that actually catches bags out is depth, and on long haul it is width.

TUI, Ryanair and Vueling allow only 20 cm of depth against the 25 cm at British Airways and Jet2, so a bag bought for a Jet2 flight can be too fat for a Vueling one. Virgin Atlantic allows 36 cm of width where BA allows 45 cm, so the same bag can be too wide for a Virgin flight even though it is well inside on height. Aer Lingus is the most forgiving at 24 cm deep.

Which airline is strictest on weight?

Emirates, at 7kg in Economy. Jet2, TUI, Wizz Air, Aer Lingus and Vueling all allow 10kg, and British Airways works to 23kg across both bags. Virgin allows 10kg but spreads it across the cabin bag and the underseat item together, so the split matters.

Which bag actually fits?

Our Vacuum Compression Pack measures 49 by 32 by 15 cm, opening to 20 cm deep. That fits the larger cabin allowance on every airline in the table above. On the 20 cm airlines (Ryanair, TUI, Vueling) pack it in standard mode rather than expanded, since expanded puts it exactly on the limit. It is too long for the small free underseat bag, so it is the bag to bring when you have a cabin allowance and want to keep everything out of the hold.

See the full cabin and travel backpack range.

Sizes correct at time of writing for 2026. Airlines change hand luggage rules often, so confirm on your airline's website before you travel.