Cubes vs. folders vs. organizer sacs...which optimize better?

You came to the right place for advice on this subject, which has been exhaustively dissected here in the last year. Use the search box in the upper right corner of this page, search on "cube" and you'll get 130 hits, prior discussions of the subject.Search on "packing cube" and you will get another 20 hits.And this is just discussions on the helpline. You will get even more hits if you look at other sections of the website such as the graffiti wall.

I've never used cubes, they seem to take too much room. I used instead the dry cleaning mash bags.They worked very well. I prefer to pack in small bags than big ones, becasue I can put them in smaller places in my backpack, for exemple in pockets.
I pack my toiletries in a plastic zip bag made of a sort of hard plastic, not the ziplock kind. They feel more secure in this bag. Then I have another soft zip bag for makeup.
I used many time vacum bags and dry sacs. I love those bags because I can compresse my clothes and carry more.The vacum bags have the tendency to get the air back after a few hours, but once you put them in your lugguage they kind of remain compact.
The dry sacks are really the best. I have 3 different sizes and I was able to put a lot of stuff in the medium one and the large one.
I don't see the need of using folders.

Everyone develops their own preference. I use one packing envelop or floder for all of the pants and shirts. Keep them nice and neat and winkle free. Use a number of 2 gal zip locks for underwear and socks. A small, hanging toiletry kits for razor, etc. And two zipper packing cubes for misc items. Nothing in the bag is loose. Everything is in another bag of some type.

I used both cubes and a packing folder. The folder was for pants and some shirts that wrinkle easier. I bought a variety of different cubes that worked great for sorting out my other clothes and misc. items. I agree with Frank that I liked having nothing loose.

The cubes are great because they are see thru and TSA can glance at them and let you go. They also work great in backpacks. The only reason I don't use the folders is they are not as flexible or hold as much as the cubes. To me, the cubes fit perfectly in my 20" suitcase... almost like it was meant to fit that way.

When you say the folders don't hold as much the cubes, I not sure we are describing the same thing. My folder holds much more than any cube. But they are designed for different purposes. My folder will hold and compress two pairs of pants and three shirts plus a couple of misc items very nicely in a pretty small space. The medium size is just right size for a carryon bag.

I still love my 2 gal. Ziploc bags -- inexpensive, see-through, can be compressed (and stay that way), lots of uses, and no one needs to paw through your clothes to see what's in your bag. I have even used one as a pillow in an airport once - you can't do that with a packing folder or a cube. I don't tend to carry anything that will wrinkle easily, so that's not an issue I know much about.

Hello Roy. This is a topic that is worthy of being talked about more, even for us experienced Europephiles. It depends on the size of your primary travel bag. Now that AMERICAN AIRLINES is adding a fee, to the price for an airline ticket, for each bag that is checked to an airplane's baggage compartment, more people will use a carry-on bag, carried in an airplane, as their primary bag. If your primary bag is small, I think using one packing cube (3 1/2 inches thick) and one Pack-Mate: medium size is good. I think a clothing folder is not the most efficient use of space in a carry-on size bag.
All of a man's underwear can be put in one packing cube (3 1/2 inches thick). A few shirts can be rolled in a Pack-Mate. Roll it tight, and put rubber bands or string around it. The shirts should be the kind that will not become wrinkled. (The No-iron Oxford cloth shirts from L.L. Bean or Land's End are satisfactory for that). I put only one pants (non wrinkling) in my bag, whatever size of bag.

Bea : What is a "Dry sack" ?