6 Best Carry-On Size Checkers in 2026 (Free & Tested)

Fees, policies, and figures in this guide reflect what we verified as of Aug 2026 and can change afterward. Our live tools and the data behind them are re-verified more often than the written guide.

I’ve had a bag pulled out of line exactly once. It was a Frontier flight out of Denver, and the gate agent was using one of those metal sizer bins that every budget airline keeps next to the jet bridge. My bag fit, barely, but the two people behind me weren’t as lucky. One of them paid $99 at the gate for a bag that would’ve been fine on Delta. That’s the kind of thing a carry-on size checker prevents.

The problem is that “carry-on size” means different things on different airlines. Southwest gives you 24 x 16 x 10 inches. Ryanair’s free cabin bag is 40 x 30 x 20 cm. A bag that clears every US carrier might get flagged on half the airlines in Europe. The best carry-on size checkers let you enter your bag dimensions once and see which airlines accept it across the board. The best free carry-on size checker in 2026 is CarryFit, because it checks 172 airlines, the widest coverage I found, and its open-source data is there for anyone to audit. We also build a Carry-On Size Checker of our own. It isn’t in the ranking: grading our own tool against the ones we review isn’t a fair test, so it gets a short, clearly labeled note after the list instead.

Update (May 2026): Spirit Airlines no longer enforces a sizer bin at any gate. It ceased all operations on May 2, 2026 and entered a Chapter 7 liquidation, so it is not a bookable carrier. Spirit’s old limits remain in these checkers for reference; flyers who once packed to Spirit’s sizers can compare Frontier, Allegiant, and Breeze.

What We Looked For

A good carry-on size checker saves you from a surprise fee at the gate. Here’s what separated the useful tools from the noise:

• Airline coverage, because checking against six US carriers doesn’t help when you’re flying Wizz Air or AirAsia
• Personal item support, since budget airlines enforce personal item limits just as strictly as carry-on limits
• Data accuracy and freshness, because airlines change dimensions more often than you’d expect (Ryanair alone has adjusted its cabin bag rules three times since 2023)
• Bag orientation handling, meaning the tool should sort your dimensions automatically so you don’t have to guess whether to enter length or height first
• No signup or paywall, because checking a bag size should take ten seconds, not a registration form

1. CarryFit

CarryFit is an open-source carry-on size checker covering 172 airlines worldwide. Enter your bag dimensions, and it shows a compliance percentage for each airline. Toggle “soft bag” mode if your bag has some give, and filter by region to narrow results.

Pros:

• 172 airlines, the largest coverage of any carry-on size checker I found
• Checks both carry-on and personal item dimensions
• Open source on GitHub, so the data and code are transparent
• Soft bag toggle adjusts results for flexible luggage
• Region filtering across 7 geographic zones
• Links to each airline’s official policy page
• Free, no signup

Cons:

• Does not include gate-check risk ratings or enforcement context
• No per-airline detail pages; it’s strictly a dimension checker
• Does not track weight limits (only dimensions)
• Results are described as “guidance, not a promise” with no verification dates on the data

Pricing: Free, open source. Platforms: Web Best for: Travelers who want the widest airline coverage possible and just need a quick pass/fail on dimensions.

2. TravelClosely

TravelClosely offers separate carry-on and personal item checkers covering 120+ airlines. Enter your dimensions (the tool reminds you to include wheels and handles), select a region, and get instant compatibility results.

Pros:

• 120+ airlines, the widest coverage here after CarryFit among tools that publish a count
• Dedicated personal item checker as a separate tool, not just an afterthought
• Reminds users to measure with wheels and handles included, which catches a common mistake
• Region filtering to narrow results
• Also offers airline-specific strictness guides, a volume calculator, and a luggage size chart
• Free, no signup

Cons:

• Tools are embedded in blog posts rather than standalone pages, which makes them harder to bookmark or share
• Published in late 2025; I could not verify how frequently the airline data is refreshed
• No gate-check risk ratings or enforcement data
• No weight limit information

Pricing: Free. Platforms: Web Best for: Travelers who want both carry-on and personal item checking with solid airline coverage and don’t mind the blog-format presentation.

3. SizeGraf

SizeGraf is one of the few tools that distinguishes between domestic and international routes and lets you check all three bag types: carry-on, checked, and personal item. Select your unit system, route type, airline, and bag category, then enter dimensions and weight.

Pros:

• Distinguishes domestic vs. international routes, which matters because some airlines have different limits for each
• Supports all three bag types (carry-on, checked, personal item) in one tool
• Includes weight checking, not just dimensions
• 99 airlines for international travel, 13 for US domestic
• Free, no signup

Cons:

• You have to select one airline at a time rather than checking against all airlines at once
• 13 US domestic airlines is limited if you fly regional carriers
• Interface is more form-based than visual, no at-a-glance pass/fail grid
• No verification dates on the data

Pricing: Free. Platforms: Web Best for: Travelers on a specific airline who want to check all their bags (carry-on, checked, and personal item) against that one carrier’s rules, including weight.

4. SizeFit

SizeFit is a carry-on size checker with a separate personal item comparison chart and airline-specific carry-on rule guides. Enter your dimensions in inches or centimeters, and it checks against its dataset.

Pros:

• Dataset last updated June 4, 2026, with a stated 90-day review cycle, one of the freshest update policies I found
• Dedicated personal item comparison chart as a separate resource
• Airline-specific carry-on rule guides provide context beyond just dimensions
• Unit conversion between inches and centimeters
• Free, no signup

Cons:

• Exact airline count is not stated; the site references “all airlines” without a specific number
• Self-describes as “a planning helper,” not definitive
• No gate-check risk ratings or enforcement context
• No weight checking

Pricing: Free. Platforms: Web Best for: Travelers who value data freshness and want supplementary guides on specific airline carry-on rules.

5. CarryOnSize.us

CarryOnSize.us covers 44+ airlines and stands out for its reverse search feature: instead of just checking one bag against airlines, you can find all airlines that accept a given bag size. It also includes cabin class selection (Economy, Business, First) and a baggage fee calculator.

Pros:

• Reverse search finds airlines that fit your bag, useful when you haven’t booked yet and want to choose an airline based on your existing luggage
• Cabin class selection adjusts results, since Business and First often have larger allowances
• Built-in baggage fee calculator for 11+ airlines
• Data updated weekly per the site
• 50+ baggage policy guides for individual airlines
• Free, no signup

Cons:

• 44 airlines is on the lower end of coverage
• No personal item checking
• No weight limit data
• Fee calculator covers only 11 airlines

Pricing: Free. Platforms: Web Best for: Travelers who want to choose an airline based on their existing bag, rather than buy a bag to fit a specific airline.

6. Away Airline Comparison

Away’s airline comparison page is a brand-specific tool that checks whether Away’s carry-on luggage products (Carry-On, Bigger Carry-On, Softside, Aluminum) fit a given airline’s limits. Search by airline name and see which Away bags are approved.

Pros:

• If you own or are considering an Away bag, this is the fastest way to check compatibility
• Covers about 40 airlines
• Clean interface with per-bag results for each Away product
• Free, no account needed

Cons:

• Only checks Away’s own products, not arbitrary dimensions
• About 40 airlines is limited compared to general-purpose tools
• The site notes its data is accurate as of November 2025, so any 2026 airline changes may not be reflected yet
• Useless if you don’t own or plan to buy an Away bag

Pricing: Free. Platforms: Web Best for: Away luggage owners who want a quick compatibility check before a flight.

Our own tool (not ranked)

Full disclosure: the Carry-On Size Checker is ours, built by Travel Vient, so it gets no rank and no rating here. It checks your bag against every airline in its database at once and adds two things most of the tools above lack: gate-check risk ratings (High, Medium, Low) for each airline, and per-airline pages covering carry-on fees, weight limits, and basic economy rules. It also handles US ULCC personal-item limits (Frontier, Breeze, Allegiant, plus Spirit’s historical limits, since it ceased operations in May 2026) and European budget sizers like Ryanair’s 40 x 30 x 20 cm. It covers fewer airlines than CarryFit, and there’s no AR measurement, so you need your bag’s dimensions. Bloggers can embed it as a free widget.

The Bottom Line

Start with CarryFit. It covers 172 airlines, checks personal items as well as carry-ons, and the open-source code means the data is transparent. It’s a pure dimension checker, so you get a pass/fail and nothing about how strictly an airline enforces it.

For 120+ airlines with a dedicated personal item tool, TravelClosely is the middle ground. And if you haven’t booked yet and want to find airlines that fit your existing bag rather than the other way around, the reverse search on CarryOnSize.us is a feature nobody else here has.

If you want enforcement context on top of the dimensions, our own Carry-On Size Checker (unranked, see above) adds gate-check risk ratings and per-airline rules.

A note on mobile apps: dedicated carry-on measuring apps like BagSizer and Luggage Fit exist on iOS, but both haven’t been updated since 2019-2020 and have poor reviews. Southwest and easyJet have AR bag sizers in their apps, but those only check one airline. For now, web-based tools running in your phone’s browser are the most reliable option.

If you’re specifically wondering whether a standard 22-inch suitcase will work, we have an airline-by-airline breakdown of where it fits and where it fails. For airlines that charge extra for overhead bin access, see our guide on which airlines charge for carry-on bags. And if you want to know how likely your bag is to get pulled at the gate, the gate-check risk guide rates every airline.