How to Pack Toiletries for Travel

Updated September 2026 · Vacation Checklists

The short version of how to pack toiletries for travel: every liquid, gel, cream, paste, and aerosol in your carry on has to be in a container of 3.4 ounces (100 ml) or less, and all of them together have to fit in one quart sized zip top bag, one bag per passenger. Everything else goes in checked luggage or gets swapped for a solid version.

The leak problem is separate from the TSA problem, and it has a separate fix: squeeze the air out of every bottle before you seal it, then pack the bag upright.

Not sure about a specific product? Our free Can I Bring It? checker gives you the carry on and checked answer for hundreds of items in a couple of seconds.

Updated September 2026. TSA rules change, and officers make the final call at the checkpoint regardless of what any website says. Check tsa.gov for the current rule on anything unusual, especially medical items and anything you cannot replace.

The 3-1-1 Rule in Plain English

Three numbers, and they mean exactly what they say.

• 3 stands for 3.4 ounces, which is 100 milliliters, the maximum size of each container.
• 1 stands for one quart sized clear zip top bag to hold them all.
• 1 stands for one bag per traveler.

The container size is what counts, not how much is left in it. A half empty 8 ounce shampoo bottle gets taken, even though it holds less than 3.4 ounces of product right now. Officers read the label, not the level.

Those last three rows are the exceptions worth memorizing. Medically necessary liquids are not limited to 3.4 ounces and do not have to fit in the quart bag. You do have to declare them at the checkpoint and take them out for separate screening. Our guide to flying with medication covers the labeling and documentation side of that.

For the full detail on the liquids rule, including what counts as a gel and how the quart bag actually gets measured, see our TSA liquid rules breakdown.

How to Pack Toiletries for Travel in a Carry On

Here's the method, in order, and it takes about ten minutes the night before.

1. Lay everything you use out on a towel. Everything, including the things you use once a week. You'll cut this list in half in step two.
2. Cross off anything the hotel provides. Shampoo, conditioner, body wash, and soap are on the counter at most hotels. That's four bottles you don't carry.
3. Cross off anything you can buy there. Sunscreen for a beach week is heavy, liquid, and available at every drugstore at your destination.
4. Decant what's left into travel containers. Fill to about 80 percent, not to the brim. Air needs somewhere to go when cabin pressure drops.
5. Squeeze the air out before you cap each bottle. Press the sides in, then screw the lid on while it's still compressed. This one habit prevents most leaks.
6. Swap to solids where you can. Shampoo bars, conditioner bars, solid sunscreen sticks, and toothpaste tablets all leave the quart bag entirely. Solids are the only option in a charity box, which is why packing an Operation Christmas Child shoebox rules liquids out completely.
7. Load the quart bag, laying bottles flat, caps toward the same edge. Seal it, then press the air out through the last inch before you close it fully.
8. Put the quart bag in the outermost pocket of your carry on. You'll need to pull it out at the checkpoint, and digging for it under a packed bag is how people hold up a line.
9. Pack solids and non liquids in a separate pouch. Brush, comb, razor, floss, meds in pill form, cotton swabs. This pouch never has to come out at security.

Two pouches, not one. The quart bag is a security document, effectively. The other pouch is your actual toiletry kit. Keeping them separate means the checkpoint takes ten seconds instead of two minutes.

Worked Example: One Week in a Carry On

A real quart bag from a seven day trip, with sizes, to show what actually fits.

That's eight items in the quart bag, totaling about 11.3 ounces of product, and the bag closes flat with room to spare. Everything else moved to the dry pouch by switching format rather than by leaving it behind.

Swapping shampoo and conditioner to bars alone freed up roughly 6 ounces of quart bag space, which is the difference between a bag that closes and one that doesn't. That's the highest leverage change on this whole page. Our carry on packing list shows where both pouches sit in the bag itself.

Stopping Leaks for Good

Leaks happen because the cabin pressure drops as you climb and the air inside a sealed bottle expands, pushing product out past the threads. Two things fix it.

Squeeze the air out. Compress the bottle, cap it while compressed. There's now less air to expand. This is free and it works better than anything you can buy.

Add a barrier under the cap. Cut a small circle of plastic wrap, lay it over the mouth of the bottle, then screw the cap down over it. Old trick, still the most reliable one.

Beyond that:

• Fill to 80 percent, never to the top
• Tape around the cap of anything that has ever leaked before
• Put each liquid in its own small zip bag inside the quart bag if you're carrying anything oily
• Pack the toiletry bag upright and near the top of the suitcase, never crushed under shoes
• Bring shoes and clothes you'd be sad about, then don't pack them next to the toiletries anyway

For checked bags, add one more step: a strip of tape over the cap of every bottle, because checked luggage gets tossed, stacked, and pressure cycled harder than anything in the cabin. What not to put down there at all is covered in our guide to what not to pack in checked luggage.

Choosing a Toiletry Bag

Three formats, and the right one depends on where you'll be getting ready.

Flat zip pouch. Smallest and lightest. Best for short trips and for anyone with a short routine. Everything ends up in a pile on the counter.

Hanging toiletry bag. Has a hook and unfolds into compartments. This is the one to own if you'll be in hotel bathrooms with tiny counters, or sharing a bathroom. Everything stays visible and off wet surfaces.

Clear zip case. Doubles as your quart bag if it's the right size. Fewer pieces to manage, and officers can see the contents without opening it.

Whatever you pick, it should be wipeable inside. Fabric linings hold spills and eventually smell. A wipeable interior means one leak is a paper towel problem, not a replace the bag problem.

Size it to your routine rather than to your trip length. A week and three weeks use almost identical toiletries, since you refill or rebuy at the destination. The only thing that scales with trip length is quantity of a few consumables.

Razors, Scissors, and the Sharp Stuff

This is where people get things confiscated.

The safety razor is the one that catches people. The handle is fine, the blade is not, and separating them lets you carry both. The blades go in your checked bag if you have one, or they get bought at the destination.

Aerosols are the other trap. Aerosol deodorant, dry shampoo, and hairspray all count as liquids under 3-1-1 in the carry on, and checked bags have their own limits on total aerosol volume. Solid or roll on versions dodge the whole issue.

If you're unsure about anything on this list or anything not on it, run it through the Can I Bring It? checker rather than guessing at the airport.

Packing Toiletries in a Checked Bag

If you're checking a bag, the 3-1-1 rule stops applying and you can bring full size bottles. Three things still matter.

Pressure. Cargo holds are pressurized, but less than the cabin. Squeeze the air out anyway and tape the caps.

Position. Toiletries in the middle of the bag, wrapped in clothes, never against the outer wall where a hard knock lands.

Backup. Put one day of essentials in your carry on: toothbrush, toothpaste, deodorant, any medication. Bags get delayed, and a delayed bag with all your toiletries in it turns into an unplanned drugstore trip. Our guide on what to do about lost luggage covers the rest of that scenario.

Medication never goes in a checked bag. Not the liquid kind, not the pill kind. It stays with you, in its original labeled container, always.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does toothpaste count toward the 3-1-1 liquids rule?

Yes. TSA treats pastes, gels, creams, and aerosols the same as liquids, so toothpaste has to be 3.4 ounces or less and go in the quart bag. Toothpaste tablets are solid and skip the rule entirely, which is why they've gotten popular with carry on only travelers.

Can I bring a full size shampoo bottle in my checked bag?

Yes. The 3-1-1 rule applies only to carry ons, so full size bottles are fine in checked luggage. Squeeze the air out, tape the cap, and pack it in the middle of the bag surrounded by clothes, because checked bags take much rougher handling than anything in the cabin.

How do I fit everything in one quart bag?

Switch formats rather than cutting items. Shampoo and conditioner bars, a solid deodorant, sunscreen sticks, and toothpaste tablets all move out of the quart bag and into your dry pouch, and those swaps alone usually free up half the bag. Then decant what's left into small bottles instead of buying travel sizes.

Do hotel toiletries mean I can skip packing any?

Mostly. Nearly all hotels supply shampoo, conditioner, body wash, and soap, and many supply lotion. What they never reliably supply is anything you'd notice the absence of: your deodorant, your toothpaste, your skincare, your medication. Pack those and skip the rest.

Are solid toiletries actually worth switching to?

For carry on only travel, yes, because they don't count against the quart bag at all. Shampoo bars last longer than a travel bottle and can't leak. The one thing to plan for is drying them, so bring a small tin or a mesh pouch rather than sealing a wet bar in plastic.

What happens if my liquids bag is over the limit?

The officer will ask you to remove items until it closes properly, or take the oversized containers. It's not a fine or a delay beyond a couple of minutes, but you lose whatever gets pulled. Repacking at the checkpoint with a line behind you is unpleasant enough that it's worth testing the bag closes at home.

Can I pack makeup in my carry on?

Yes. Powders, pressed products, and pencils are solid and go anywhere. Liquid and cream products count as liquids, so foundation, concealer, liquid lipstick, and mascara all belong in the quart bag. Large quantities of loose powder can trigger extra screening, so keep those in checked luggage on a long trip.

Should I use packing cubes for toiletries?

Cubes are for clothes, not liquids, since they're fabric and won't contain a spill. Use a wipeable toiletry bag instead and keep it separate from your cubes. Our guide to using packing cubes covers where the toiletry bag sits relative to everything else in a well packed suitcase.