10 of the best tote bags for men to buy right now
From the obsessively overbuilt to the obnoxiously luxurious, this is what we prefer to carry
BE HONEST – when was the last time you bought a tote bag? You can’t remember because cheap totes are a modern-day party favour. You probably have a dozen or more stacked up in your closet from years of work retreats, brand events, or school-sponsored activities. You keep ’em around because they work in a pinch for grocery shopping or a quick outing, but do you really enjoy using any of them?
Case in point, I have a lot of tote bags lying around at home and twice as many in a drawer at work; only two or three of them are worth owning. The rest blur into a sea of crappy canvas to good-enough recycled plastic bags splashed with various levels of garish branding. If you’re like me, you can save yourself a lot of figurative headaches and literal backaches by investing in a high-quality tote – one that is spacious and easy to carry.
Since there are many places where you just shouldn’t bring a backpack as an adult, a tote you love is a necessity. We aren’t going to waste your time suggesting a ton.
One of these ten will do the trick, no matter your budget.
The North Face Borealis Tote
Technical enough for Mount Everest, subtle enough for your daily commute.
Steele Canvas Beach Tote
Steele Canvas is America’s best bag maker. The classic canvas numbers are good, but we really appreciate this polyvinyl beach tote. After a long day at the shore, knock the sand out and hose it down – easiest bag to care for.
Yeti Camino 35 Carrall
The Best Utility Tote
If carrying all (and I mean all) of your shit is the priority here, you gotta go with a Yeti. It’s the preferred tote of soccer and beach dads everywhere. Anytime you need anything for yourself plus two kids, the Yeti comes out because it can just carry so damn much.
Rains messenger tote
Best Waterproof Tote
For those rainy days you can’t avoid by faking a cold, you need a waterproof tote. And yes, the Yeti is technically rainproof, but it doesn’t have a full-length zipper; this tote from Rains is fully equipped to keep everything as dry as a bone. It is designed from Rains’s own performance fabric, which is fully waterproof in a light rain. Beyond that, it’s still pretty resistant and comes with a few different straps so you can carry it over your shoulder or with a handle, just depending on what your load demands.
LL Bean Boat and Tote
The Best Beach Tote
Part of the appeal of the beach tote is you don’t care if it gets sand-ridden or otherwise trashed. It’s the beach. This US$40 L.L. Bean tote is probably the most stylish and durable one you can get where you still won’t feel bad if something happens to it. This is a basic canvas bag, elevated by an accent that comes in something like a dozen different colors. Sturdy, simple, and it looks good. Check, check, check.
If you need a tad more security on your beach day, L.L. Bean also sells a version with a zip-top for a little extra.
Troubadour Elemental Tote
If you want a tote as a backpack replacement, that’s basically what Troubadour has done here. This bag offers serious protection from the elements (hence Elemental), has multiple compartments, and goes from handheld to over-the-shoulder without much fuss. If you need to fill it with wet items (shoes, swimsuit, drenched shirt, etc.), it comes with a fully waterproof detachable internal pouch where you can keep your phone and car keys. Like a backpack, there’s also a water bottle pouch on the outside. I can’t think of any other tote that offers that.
Filson rugged twill zipper tote
The Best Looking Affordable Bag
Filson makes some of the best-looking affordable rugged goods out there, and this tote is absolutely not an exception. It comes in three classic colours, each subtle and accented by solid brass zippers. The handles are made from bridle leather and the outer fabric is waxed for water resistance. There are two large stow pockets on each side, and when you open it up, there’s 25 litres of space to work with. There aren’t a ton of pockets, but what it lacks in utility it makes up in pure size and higher-class aesthetics at a great price point.
Bennet Winch leather tote
The One Tote Bag For The Rest Of Your Life
This one is like the other luxury leather bags on the list, but it’s got more backbone. Every Bennett Winch bag our editors have ever used has been used hard. Not just because it can take it, but because it relishes it. That leather – or the suede, or the canvas versions – wears in so beautifully that you’d be doing your purchase a disservice to not rough it up a little.
Métier Your Shopping bag
Our Favourite Tote Bag
It’s an Esquire Travel Award winner, what more do you need to know?
Loewe Puzzle leather tote
Best Designer Tote Bag
Okay, so it may not actually be the best designer tote because as long as you are willing to pay more, you can get something better. Sky’s the limit at Balenciaga, for example. But as far as luxe totes go, this leather Loewe bag is going to carry all your goods while accomplishing the goal of turning heads and raising questions about where you got the tote. That’s kind of the whole point of spending this much on an alternative to a bag you could get for free.
Related:
