Packing List Generator

Why quantities matter more than the list

Most packing lists tell you to bring socks. The useful question is how many, and the honest answer depends on one thing above all others: whether you can wash anything. With access to a hotel or coin laundry, almost nobody needs more than about a week of clothing regardless of how long the trip is — a three-week trip and a seven-day trip pack identically. Without laundry, the count really does scale with the nights, and that is where suitcases get heavy.

Layers beat garments

For anything cooler than about 18 °C, what keeps you comfortable is the number of layers rather than the thickness of any single item. A thermal base, a jumper and a windproof coat cover a much wider temperature range than one heavy parka, and they pack smaller. Japan in December is the classic case: daytime Tokyo sits around 10 °C, but you will alternate between cold streets and aggressively heated trains, shops and restaurants all day. Being able to shed a layer matters more than the coat being warm.

Carry-on only changes the maths

Cabin-only travel is less about ruthless minimalism than about two specific constraints: liquids must fit the 100 ml rule, and your bulkiest items — boots, coat — get worn onto the plane rather than packed. Once those are handled, a week of clothing fits comfortably in a 40 L bag, and laundry covers the rest of any trip length.

The part people actually forget

It is rarely clothing. It is the plug adapter, the second payment card kept somewhere separate from the first, prescriptions in their original labelled packaging for border checks, and offline copies of every booking — because the one moment you cannot rely on having signal or battery is the moment you land. Screenshot or download your confirmations before you leave, and keep them somewhere that works in aeroplane mode.

How it works

Everything in the clothing section flows from one figure: the number of days you need to dress for before you can wash. With laundry access that is your number of nights, capped at seven; without it, the cap rises to fourteen. Underwear and socks are one more than that figure, up to 15. Tops are one per day, never fewer than 2 or more than 10. Trousers or skirts are one per four days, rounded up, between 1 and 4. Sleepwear is 2 for trips over seven nights, otherwise 1.

Carry-on only then caps tops at 6, trousers or skirts at 2 and underwear and socks at 8, and marks toiletries as 100 ml or less. The climate picks the layers and outerwear — thermal base layers, an insulated coat and waterproof boots when freezing; a linen overshirt, sun hat and quick-dry towel when hot and humid. The trip style adds its own short list, such as a 20–30 L daypack and head torch for hiking, or a suit and dress shoes for business. Toiletries, tech and documents are the same for every trip. The headline figure counts lines on the list, not individual garments.

A worked example

Fourteen nights of city sightseeing in cold weather, with laundry and a checked bag.

Take laundry away and the same fortnight needs underwear and socks ×15, tops ×10 and trousers or skirts ×4 — nearly double the clothing. Keep no laundry but switch to carry-on only, and the caps bring it back to ×8, ×6 and ×2, which in practice means planning to wash in a sink. The headline stays at 32 in all three cases, because only the quantities change.