Choosing the winners for this one was pretty simple, unlike some of the other awards I've been working on. I don't have a car, I get around by bike everywhere, or by train, and so I am using the best cycling backpacks on a daily basis. I've had a stack of twelve options to choose from after completing our buyer's guide, and of these, there are a few that I gravitate towards and one that has cemented itself firmly as my go-to daily driver.
In my eyes, the recipe for a good cycling backpack is simple: Comfortable straps, waterproof construction, some extra pockets for organising, and not too big that it's ungainly. While it isn't perfect, nothing hits the Goldilocks zone of all of these as well as the Chrome Barrage, though the Rapha backpack is a close second for me. Add into the mix a quality build and solid hardware and it's the bag I reach for when commuting, and for every press trip I've been on while working here at Cyclingnews too.
The winners
Best overall
I use the Chrome Barrage more or less every day now unless I have a specific need for a larger cargo capacity, like doing the big shop. At 18-22l (depending how rolled the top is) it hits the sweet spot for size, the inside is made of seemingly bulletproof tarpaulin, and while the outside pockets are a little tight when the bag is chock full they are capacious enough to accept a D-lock and a water bottle, which in my experience is all you ever really need from a side pocket.
The real star of the show is the cargo net though. Without it, it's still a very good bag, but adding a very sturdy net to the whole outer face of the bag is so much more useful than I ever envisaged. For those awkwardly shaped items, it's perfect. I've carried shoes, helmets, camera tripods, five kilograms of supermarket fusilli, bike wheels, wet gear after a swim... And when you don't need it, it just cinches away and blends into the rest of the bag.
It's not necessarily the most comfortable of the lot, the back gets a little sweaty, to be honest, but it's comfortable enough and the ability to carry much more than would ordinarily be possible with a backpack is more than enough of a tradeoff. It's also why I've taken it on every press trip so far, along with the fact it conveniently fits within more or less all airline hand luggage limits for size.
Finally, it's been in more or less constant use for a year and isn't really showing any signs of wear. While it's not this bag specifically, I also have a Chrome messenger bag that is going on 8 years old now and still absolutely golden, so while it may be an expensive option you're unlikely to need to replace it within a decade at least.
Best value
It's no coincidence that dhb products make up a big portion of our 'best value' awards. The in-house brand of Wiggle-CRC has carved out a bolthole in the market by making decent gear at attractive prices. The simply named Waterproof Rucksack is a great option if you don't need bells and/or whistles. It's a drybag style backpack, whereby it's literally a single-skin drybag with shoulder straps attached, but for shorter commutes that's all you really need.
Drybags are also, as the name suggests, dry. The Chrome barrage is impervious to water, but as a double layer the outer can become waterlogged to some degree, but that's not the case here. Considering the price, too, you get a lot for your money. Decent straps, a chest and waist strap (in my opinion a waist strap isn't necessary, but some people love them), an outer pocket that fits a D-lock, and reinforced corners to improve longevity.
As per many drybag style cycling backpacks, it's unorganised inside, simply a void, so definitely one where you'd need a laptop sleeve, but it also means none of the 25-litre capacity is wasted on what may be unnecessary pockets and padding.
Honourable mention
Along with the Barrage, the Chrome Kadet is the bag I use most often, on and off the bike. It's small, but the perfect size for slinging in a camera, an extra layer, a few snacks, and a beer. It even has a D-lock holster in the back of it so you don't have to slip it into your belt and pretend you're a New York bike messenger.
In short, you don't always need a full-size backpack and rarely do smaller options cater for the needs of the cyclist; simple sling bags don't come with a stabilisation strap to stop them flopping around to the front, and bum bags are too small for more than the essentials.
It's one of those products that's perhaps a little hard to justify, in that you can quite easily just not fill up a backpack, but once you have one it makes total sense. For quick trips into town, or an evening out where I don't want to be encumbered by a giant bag but still carry a tube, pump, tools, and some other things it's perfect, or nearly perfect as it isn't waterproof.
