Let’s be real: Packing for a trip is tedious, stressful, and time-consuming. For most of us, it just plain sucks. If you’re not the sort of masochist traveler who actually enjoys packing, smartphone technology is here to help. There’s an app for everything, and they have come up with the best packing apps so you don’t have to cry while putting things randomly into your suitcase.
There’s a huge selection of travel apps out there, including packing apps for every flavor of traveler. From control freaks to those who want a dead-simple wizard to hand-hold them through every step of the packing process, these mobile packing apps make the process as quick, painless, and even mindless as possible. These are the best packing apps for travelers who seriously hate to pack.
For almost anyone: PackTeo
PackTeo promises to be all things to all people. Whatever your packing style, the app’s user-friendly design makes it a snap to use. For those who like to be in control, it allows for adding specific details about everything in your luggage, like weight and which bag you plan to put each item in. Alternatively, the built-in templates mean you’ll pick from typical lists (say, “Camping,” “Cycling,” or “International”) without having to create your own from scratch. Then, it’s just a matter of customizing it to fit your style of travel.
For the minimalist traveler: OneBag
OneBag is arguably the most streamlined travel packing app, aiming to keep the process easy and quick. It encourages packing light (hence the name) with a focus on the weight of each item, ensuring you’re keenly aware of how much stuff is in your bag. As any long-term traveler will tell you, light luggage — only packing your travel essentials or even being a carry-on-only passenger — makes for easy traveling. Knowing the total weight of your luggage also helps to avoid oversized baggage fee surprises at the airport.
For the globe hopper: Packr
Packr has one thing going for it that’s lacking in most other packing apps: Multi-destination trip planning. It seems like a strange oversight, but most of its competitors don’t offer this feature. For that reason alone, it’s the best on this list for landhoppers who typically plan medium or long-term, multi-country trips. It’s otherwise similar to the others on this list, with a solid lineup of features, including auto-generated packing lists, the ability to share your lists with others, and weather forecasting for your next destination.
For the list lover: Easy Pack
Easy Pack isn’t the best packing app overall, but there’s a lot to like about it. First, it’s lightweight, and its creators promise it’ll be free forever. Second, while its competitors rely on trip-centric list creation, Easy Pack takes a unique bag-centric approach. So, for example, if you take the same messenger and duffle bag on every trip, it’s easier to create several listed “bags,” and then re-use them for each new trip.
The app takes into account unique points about upcoming trips, like whether you’re traveling with pets, the type of stay, and any transportation concerns. Lastly, it doubles as a daily planning app to help prep for mundane activities closer to your home base, like packing for a day at the beach or taking your dog on a hike.
For the ultimate lazy traveler: PackPoint
For travelers who are seriously packing averse, it doesn’t get easier than PackPoint. It’s clear a great deal of thought went into the user interface. The streamlined design offers a simple, wizard-like process to handhold users through every step of packing. Just launch the app and enter a few basic details like the date of your trip, where you’re heading, any activities you plan on doing while there (e.g., hiking, swimming, beach-going, etc.), and whether it’s for business, leisure, or both.
PackPoint checks the weather forecast and pre-populates a packing list with a best guess of everything it thinks you might need. It’s just under $3 to buy for either smartphone platform (iOS or Android), but the long list of great features — like TripIt integration, forecast-checking, and list-sharing with friends and family — make it worth it.
For the control freak: Packing Pro
If you’re not keen on packing but still appreciate being in full control of the process, Packing Pro is your jam. The app lacks the polish of the others mentioned here, and it could feel a bit confusing on first launch, but it makes up for it with extreme versatility. Every item on your packing list is customizable with options like which bag it goes in, the item’s level of importance for your overall trip, weight, monetary value (for insurance purposes) — the list goes on. Users create specific templates (say, one for business and one for leisure) and you could even create templates within templates if you really want to drill down. This is an app designed for serious “power-user” type travelers.
For the every man traveler: PackKing
PackKing’s user interface is simple and streamlined like PackPoint, although it lacks some of the panache. The free version offers a few more features than the former, which is why we like it for most travelers. It offers a long list of preloaded activities, like
For the outdoorsman: TrekPack
We said there was an app for every type of traveler, and we’re not leaving out the outdoorsy one. TrekPack is for the hikers and trekkers who will do the bulk of their traveling with their feet. You could use one of the other apps for your non-
Put in what kind of terrain you’ll encounter, where you’ll sleep, how you’re going to cook your food, and the total weight of your bag to create your ultimate packing list. You’ll be able to make multiple lists for the same trip if you want to find the one that fits best. You could even share your lists with others to see if you forgot something you’d need or might have overpacked.
However you travel and wherever you travel, if you have to pack a bag to get there, make sure you find the right app to help you on your journey. Take one thing off your plate so you don’t wind up screaming into an empty bag. You won’t want to leave your packing to the last minute once you figure out which of the best packing apps is the one for your travel needs.
