5 Best Laptop Backpacks for a Safe, Comfortable Commute

• Gorgeous retro look
• Sizeable laptop sleeve
• Buckles and drawstring keep your goods secure
• Lots of easy-to-access pockets

• Light on padding
• Tight water bottle pocket

Topo Designs makes backpacks that look a lot more expensive than their modest price tag would suggest. To us, they still always the star among stars, courtesy of the retro, playful color-blocked aesthetic. We love to look at this backpack. We love to bring it places to make other people look at it. We really just think it's neat.

The Rover Pack is timeless, rugged, and pocketed for the delight of your laptop and other essentials. Take it to the campground, where you'll use it as a rucksack. Or bop around town with it like a solidly cool guy in a solidly cool backpack. Wherever your work takes you, the Rover Pack goes with.

• A whopping 26 liters of carrying capacity
• Comfortably fits a 15 inch laptop
• Durable, water repellent material
• Never feels too heavy, even when it's stuffed

• Not strictly professional, style wise

If you live an active lifestyle, but only really want one backpack, an Arc'teryx Mantis can pull double duty. A bag with unbelievable capacity that you can take anywhere, from the office to the gym to next Thursday's flight to Istanbul, and be alright. This is what the the Arc'teryx Mantis 26 delivers. With 26 liters of carrying capacity, padded shoulder straps with adjustable waist belts, and a 15 inch slip pocket for you laptop, this backpack is the pick if you're hauling a serious load.

We gave this backpack the full Esquire tested and reviewed treatment earlier this year, writing: "Arc’teryx designed the Mantis 26 with technical specs designed to make your life easier, rather than the bells and whistles that travel companies usually design their backpacks with, like sleek leather exteriors and slim silhouettes that don’t allow for things to be stuffed inside."

• Fits laptops up to 17 inches
• Nice looking
• Comes in compact and mini versions

• Feels lighter on space than advertisted

If all you really need is a stylish bag to carry around your abnormally large laptop, Troudabour has got your back. Not the first time, probably not the last either, and this time with its Apex 3.0—a backpack for the elevated commuter.

Look at this thing—it's beautiful. And we aren't even talking the $900 leather variant. Comfortable too. The straps are padded, but not visibly bulky. Best of all, it can fit laptops up to 17-inches. Most competitors top out at 15.

Ultimately, it feels a bit small for a backpack that boasts a 25 liter volume. Compared to the Mantis 26, it isn't built to carry nearly as much stuff. Whereas one laptop and a tablet was child's play for the Mantis's main compartment, you may find that a tight fit in this Troubadour depending on what else you've got in the pockets.

• Sleek, professional
• Built to last
• Effecient pocket and compartment design

• Smaller laptop sleeve
• We swear it didn't used to cost $650

We've written at length about this backpack. We've called it an amazing travel backpack (it is), but it works just as well as a daily driver. (As long as your laptop is compact enough...) Funny enough, that makes it a great laptop bag too. It looks cool, has premium touches, and is functional.

The nylon body can take a beating, and it's easy to clean when needed. The leather handle and leather trim all around the backpack make it feel high-end. The interior pockets and quick-access compartments make getting everything a breeze when you're slogging through TSA. All around, it's a great bag.

• Comes in a variety of classy shades
• Will last you for the rest of your life
• One laptop sleeve, three smaller compartments for keys, phone, and sunglasses

• Requires some extra care to keep dry
• No water bottle holder (hide that anyway)

If you're looking for luxury in a laptop backpack, you could go for leather, but at that point we'd tell you to get a more professional looking briefcase. Bennet Winch makes a leather backpack, but we really love this weather-proof canvas. If you're on a subway commute (tube if you hail from the brand's native London) it'll fit a laptop, your gaming handheld, a book, and the pair of loafers you change into before your boss sees that you took the train wearing Hokas. From the cotton canvas exterior and smart lining to the bronze zippers, it quietly says "I'm a professional," in a sea of overly technical monogrammed Tumi backpacks.

Specs-wise, this is pretty great all around. 22 liters of capacity is nothing to sneeze at. And while its relatively low on pouches (only three in addition to the laptop slip), the backpack makes up for it in how much you can just stuff in there. Secure your laptop, and you'll still have space for everything I listed above.

So there, you have our recommendations. If nothing quite tickles your fancy, or you're not quite sure yet, we genuinely don't mind. In fact, here are some tips on what you should look for if you want to open up your browser and start searching for yourself.

• Capacity: Certainly it's not just a laptop that your backpack will store—no one's life is that simple. Hence you should consider the capacity or volume of a laptop backpack—how much and what kind of stuff it can hold besides the laptop matter just as much.
• Organization: Organizational opportunity can makes or break a laptop backpack. We defined this by pockets and compartments, how many of them its got and how useful they actually are. If it's got a shoe compartment, you can carry it as a gym bag to Equinox; with water-bottle pockets, it makes for an outdoor-friendly carryall. And don't forget the many small pockets that you'll find for quick access of stuff—any organization that'll save you from digging through your bag ever again.
• Laptop Sleeves: It's what makes a laptop backpack a ... laptop backpack. Inside the sleeve, padded for better protection or not, is where you'll nicely slip your laptop in and out. The size of the sleeve thus is the game changer here. They tend to range from 14 to 17 inches. If you have a 14-inch MacBook Pro, for instance, your sleeve should house at least that much—with some being able to contain a 17-inch Windows PC.

We tried a bunch of them. We wore the backpacks to the office, to the coffee shop, and around town. We traveled with them, and we stress-tested them. The backpacks that stood up to all that while looking good are the backpacks you see here today. Those are the best laptop backpacks on the market.

• Comfort: You want straps that keep your shoulders from aching, but don't look bulky. You want something padded, you can lean back on if need be. Most importantly, you want something that will fit—no jostling around on your commute.
• Materials and build quality: Quality matters, and when it comes to protecting your laptop as well as everything else in there, well, it's the number one thing we look for. Companies we trust using materials that, once tested with our own eyes and hands, we can vouch for. They need to look nice, feel nice, and hold up for not just a few months—but for years.
• Looks: Yes we already mentioned it a bunch, but listen, you want a nice looking backpack. You don't want to look like you're still wearing your high school backpack walking into your first day on the job. You want something professional—always still functional, but sharp enough that it will match whatever dress code changes are enforced as you climb the corporate ladder. Or don't—whatever you do, you need a backpack for it that will reflect your own style. That's what's most important.

We have your best interest in mind. Not only are we style nerds; we're tech freaks. It's not good enough for something to look good. It's got to perform just as well. A laptop bag has got to protect your gadgets and fit your personal style. That's why we had to test these and give you our honest opinions.