Summer is in full swing, meaning kids from across the globe have been released from the classroom en masse.
Yet, no matter how hard one may summer, i.e. jetting off on holiday, kicking back at home or actually doing the assigned homework in time for the school year to begin, the dawn of the September always manages to rapidly creep up.
With it, the month brings mixed emotions. Facing looming exams, hitting the textbooks and being legally required to learn maths aren’t the most appealing of prospects. The upside of a new year? New accessories - in particular, new bags.
What should I look for when choosing a school bag?
Whether shopping for yourself, your litte one or your teenager, there are certain boxes the ideal school bag should tick. Firstly, it has to be spacious enough to house bulky chemistry folders, a full-to-bursting pencil cases and a water bottle. Secondly, it has to be comfortable and durable. Thirdly, and most crucially, it has to look good.
This isn’t such an issue for primary schoolers. But it doesn’t mean parents can’t get creative when it comes to school bag shopping. There are a whole host of adorable, small-sized pieces for youngsters on the market. Affordable options make for a sensible buy, considering a child’s school bag is likely to be obliterated with marker pens and excessive wear and tear. But the luxury sphere is also catching on.
Rucksacks and backpacks are the top choice for school bags because they’re so easy to carry and the straps distribute weight evenly across the shoulders. Not all rucksack straps are created equal, though, so check for plenty of padding, and consider a cross-body satchel or book bag as an alternative for young children. Whatever style of school bag you go for, get them to try it on for size if you can.
Preschoolers and primary-age children will need something smaller of course, as it’s likely they’ll want to carry their bag independently and a full-sized rucksack will probably swamp them. Older children bringing a laptop or A4 folders to school, meanwhile, will need a bag with dimensions to match.
Renowned names such as Stella McCartney, Ralph Lauren and Marni have all crafted children’s accessories ranges. This is obviously a more exclusive option, but if you’re willing to splash the cash on an impeccably crafted, bonny bag, then it’s worth a browse. Plus, many brands offer matching sets, so parents and kids can twin - better invest before they turn 13 and think they are too cool to hang out with mum and dad anymore.
To help you prepare you or your child to enter the new year full steam ahead, we’ve rounded up the best school bags for kids, tweens and teens. Spanning all prices, styles and genders, these items will ensure that you’ll have all upoming assignments in the bag.
Best school bags for children
Marc Jacobs Kids Terry Backpack
Kicking off the list is Marc Jacobs’ colourblock backpack in punchy shades of candy pink, cornflower blue, lemon yellow and seafoam green. A trendy buy for those with a penchant for luxury, this uber-soft item will instantly upgrade your child’s school wardrobe.
Buy now £112.00, MyTheresa
Kalidi Extra Large Backpack
Kalidi’s pastel offering comes in a multitude of unisex colours. It features a smooth-edged square shape, front pocket, interior storage compartments and a subtle design that makes for a timeless bag that will last the entire year and then some.
Buy now £31.99, Amazon
Herschel Heritage Backpack
Herschel is one of the biggest names in the backpack market - and for good reason. This adorable yet playful surfer dude design is suitable for ages 3-7 and is sure to incite playground envy.
Buy now £30.90, Amazon
Kipling Supertaboo Medium Drawstring Bag
Drawstring bags are a rite of passage for school children. Whether used for PE lessons or everyday attendance, they are a fun, functional choice. Kipling’s is created with water-repellent material with an easy-use drawstring compartment and interior pockets.
Buy now £34.00, Kipling
John Lewis Kids' Colourblock Backpack
John Lewis has been supporting parents with their back-to-school shopping lists since the company’s inception. This uber-affordable peach design is a sporty twist on the classic rucksack silhouette.
Buy now £8.00, John Lewis
M’A Kids Pink Spike Tote Bag
If you’d like your offspring to inherit your fabulous fashion sense, this is your chance. Marques’ Almeida’s shirred tote in a Barbiecore hue is a girlish purchase for the confident kids who are happy to think pink.
Buy now £70.00, SSENSE
Stella McCartney Kids Logo Colorblocked Backpack
Brighten up your little one’s day with Stella McCartneny’s colour block backpack. Crafted with a striking ruby red body, a Barbie pink flap, blue straps and fern green side pockets, the designer item is the ultimate fun, playful piece that will brighten up their school look.
Buy now £90.00, MyTheresa
Ralph Lauren Blue Polo Bear Backpack
Ralph Lauren’s bears are still going strong, and have now intercepted the brand’s childrenswear lines. This genderless backpack for kids comes complete with a suitably primary colour palette, a durable canvas material, colourful trims and the brand’s signature Polo bear mascot.
Buy now £125.00, Children Salon
John Lewis Small Stuff Kids' Initial Rucksack
The most adorable mini bag in a retro high school style, this pocket-friendly carrier can be personalised with your child’s initials on the front. It is cut from a nostalgic corduroy fabric, guaranteeing a comfortable carrying experience for your youngster.
Buy now £20.00, John Lewis
Eastpak Padded Pak’r Bag
With padded shoulder straps for comfort, this backpack is both functional and stylish. Perfect for fashion conscious teens, Eastpak’s Padded Pak’r Bag is actually able to fit A4 books and binders in with ease - meaning no more curled corners and torn edges of notebooks.
Sturdy enough to manage the weight from a couple of textbooks yet still remarkably lightweight, this backpack also has a front pocket for easy access to smaller essentials. Better yet, it’s water resistant to provide some protection from the unpredictable English weather and is 100 per cent vegan.
Available in over 200 different colourways and designs, there’s bound to be a choice to suit your child’s personality.
Buy now £47.00, Eastpak
Best school bags for tweens and teens
PACHEE Beltbackpack
This cleverly designed backpack is the perfect back to school bag for all ages. Intended to ‘give children a sense of pride’, the PACHEE Beltbackpack is so much more than just a classic design. Fully customisable with collectable woven badges, there’s also a detachable belt bag that is perfect for younger children that just want to take a few small treasures into school with them that day.
Available in all of your children’s favourite block bright colours and made of sustainable eco cotton canvas, the bag features a large main compartment with a padded separator, zip compartment and name badge, as well as two deep side net pockets that fit a water bottle securely.
Parents will love the thick padded shoulder straps and chest strap, and there’s a removable waist strap for days your child is carrying heavier books. Children will love the secret pockets and collectable reward badges - whether your child is a maths whizz, gymnast enthusiast or mini Picasso, there’ll be a badge of honour just for them, as well as initial badges too!
Also available at Not on the High Street
Buy now £35.00, PACHEE
Rains Trail Shell Backpack
Any Rains customer will know that these bags are the real deal. The brand centres minimalist designs created from wipeable 100% polyester. Buy yours now and take it with you to university when freshers week comes calling.
Buy now £110.00, Rains
Fjallraven Kanken Laptop 13’’
If you want a bag that’s going to last, Fjallraven’s instantly recognisable Kanken bags are a great option. They’re expensive, yes, but the timeless design means they’re not going to go out of fashion, and they’re made from durable, water repellent fabric that’s built to last.
The Kanken Laptop bag is a twist on the classic Kanken, and the smallest size fits a 13-inch laptop with just enough space for books and a pencil case too. We found the side pockets just a little too small for a water bottle, but the bag is also available in 15-inch and 17-inch sizes if your child has a fair bit to carry around. There are 14 muted colours to choose from, including a simple black and the latest addition – Foliage Green.
Buy now £104.28, Amazon
Ganni Purple Tech Backpack
Fancy a pop of colour? Cult label Ganni has given the utilitarian backpack a much-needed makeover. Complete with a grape hue, padded shoulder straps, a top handle, a front buckle fastening with engraved Ganni butterfly logo, front pockets and a foldover top, it provides everything you need and more wrapped up into one striking bag.
Buy now £235.00, Ganni
H&M Quilted Backpack
Shopping on a budget doesn’t need to be restrictive. Quilting has stood the test of time and at present, is very much on trend. Load up your textbooks and saunter around the school grounds in style.
Buy now £27.99, H&M
Tommy Jeans Heritage Tote Bag
Bring Nineties flair to the classroom with Tommy Jeans’ heritage tote in a navy hue. This carry-all can double up for weekends away with its roomy silhouette and distinctive brand insignia.
Buy now £110.00, ASOS
Cos Oversized Quilted Shoulder Bag
Each season, a high street bag goes viral. This year, Uniqlo’s round shoulder bag battled it out against Cos’ quilted shoulder number. As much as we love both, Cos comes out on top when it comes to school attire. This spacious shoulder piece is both functional and fashionable. Simply hook over your shoulder and let the textural design do all the talking.
Buy now £59.00, Cos
Fiorucci Angels Tote
Nobody ever went wrong with a classic tote bag. Gen Z are all about Y2K motifs and this Fiorucci piece merges dark denim and the brand’s distinctive angel insignia to create a cool-girl bag like no other.
Buy now £40.00, Flannels
Uniqlo Two-way Utility Bag
Demonstrating function at its finest, Uniqlo’s unisex utility bag is the answer to all indecisive shoppers’ wishes. Its two-way design is elevated by a ripstop fabric in olive, a water-repellent finish, a storage capacity of 23 litres and the option to be worn as both a backpack and a tote bag for any occasion.
Buy now £29.90, Uniqlo
Carhartt WIP Terrell Striped Cotton Tote Bag
Tote enthusiasts will coo over Carhartt’s striped cotton creation. The bag is an everyday must and can fit a laptop with ease. Smaller interior pockets are useful for phones, wallets and stationery. Cool kid cliques and art students, run, don’t walk.
Buy now £70.00, John Lewis
M&S Recycled Polyester Pro-Tect™ Backpack
M&S has met us in the middle of the crossroad between function over fashion, turning out a failsafe backpack for all to enjoy. Available in both black and green, this traditional backpack showcases a main section, front pouch, internal pockets, exterior mesh pockets and a scuff-resistant material.
Buy now £25.00, M&S
The Cambridge Satchel Co 13-inch Satchel
If you’re looking to splash some cash on an investment purchase for an older child, a leather satchel will last them well past their school years and into adulthood. We love the classic look of The Cambridge Satchel Co’s 13-inch satchel in vintage tan brown, which won’t date or go out of fashion. The bag itself is incredibly robust, crafted in the UK from thick leather and finished with convenient magnetic closures.
There’s a small front pocket as well as the main compartment, and you can upgrade to the 15-inch design to better carry coursework or an electronic notebook. You can even get it embossed with your child’s initials if you want to add an element of personalisation or give it as a very special gift.
Buy now £190.00, The Cambridge Satchel Co
Superdry Unisex Printed Montana Rucksack
Superdry has a whole range of new rucksacks that are perfect for older kids and teens entering the new school term. The Unisex Printed Montana Rucksack comes in several different prints, and we particularly like the leopard – which teams a bold patternwith a muted brown colour scheme.
At 46cm high, this is the biggest of the bags we tested, and there’s oodles of room in the main compartment, meaning this could double up as an overnight bag for sleepovers. There’s a laptop sleeve and a zipped internal pocket in here too, and the zipped front pocket on the outside is also a decent size. Last but not least, the base is reinforced – which will keep it looking new for longer.
Buy now £44.99, Superdry
Land’s End Kids’ Packable Drawstring Bag
Don’t forget about a PE bag! An often overlooked bit of kit, your child will appreciate a functional but cool bag to transport their sweaty PE kit home to be washed, rather than a disposable plastic bag that is likely to be put down and forgotten, or shoved into a locker for weeks on end.
This Land’s End Kid’s Packable Drawstring Bag is well made and sturdy yet still incredibly lightweight - it can even fold in on itself when not in use to a small pouch, making it perfect for storing and travelling. The thick drawstrings are sure to withstand heavy use as they’re slung over shoulders or worn as a backpack, and there’s even mesh pockets on the side for a water bottle. Available in a range of colours from unisex greys and blacks to blue galaxies and purple patterns, there’s bound to be a colourway your teenager will love.
Buy now £15.00, Land’s End
Sandqvist Konrad Backpack
Sometimes it’s better to bite the bullet and buy a higher priced backpack for the guarantee of higher quality. This water-resistant and functional rolltop backpack is constructed from recycled polyester. Ideal for cyclists, it has reflective webbing to ensure you are visible at night.
Buy now £145.00, Sandqvist
Matt & Nat Brave Vegan Backpack
If a bag to last a lifetime is what you’re searching for, then look no further. Matt & Nat has a slew of timeless, contemporary designs that are styled to house everyday staples and school essentials. The brand is vegan and cruelty free, and the products’ interiors are crafted entirely from recycled plastic bottles.
Buy now £130.00, Matt & Nat
