The best packing list apps in 2026

November 8, 2026 · 6 min read

A good packing list does two jobs. It stops you forgetting the charger, and it stops you carrying the third pair of boots. A bad one is a list you wrote at midnight and never opened again.

There are plenty of apps for this. The ones below are the ones we looked at, and what we say about each comes from its own website or App Store listing, as of November 2026. If we could not confirm something, we left it out. We make Travel Life, which is on the list. Apps change, so read the current listing before you rely on a feature.

What to look for

Packing apps fall into a few styles, and the right one depends on how you pack.

Generated lists. You enter where and when, and the app suggests what to bring. Good if you start from a blank page and freeze.
Blank lists. You make the list yourself and reuse it. Good if you already know what you take.
Shared lists. Several people can see who is bringing what. Good for groups, families and anything with a shared tent or a shared speaker.
Weather. Some apps use the forecast at your destination.
Reuse. The best lists are the ones you copy from the last trip and adjust.

A list is a habit, not an app

Whatever you use, a few things make a packing list work. Write it a few days before you leave, not the night before, so you have time to buy what is missing. Pack in categories, such as clothes, toiletries, documents and tech, so that a gap is easy to spot. Tick things off as they go into the bag, not as you think of them. And after the trip, note what you carried and never used, because that note is the most useful part of next time's list.

For a group, split the shared items early: the speaker, the first-aid kit, the board games, the beach tent. Two people packing the same thing and nobody packing another is the classic failure, and a visible shared list is the simple fix.

Travel Life

Travel Life is a trip planner for iPhone and Android, with packing lists as one part of the trip.

Best at: packing lists that live inside the trip, including a shared list for the group.

Who it suits: people already planning a trip in the app, and groups that want to decide who brings the shared things.

Each trip has a packing list for your own bag and a shared list for the group, plus to-dos. On the free plan you make the lists yourself. Pro adds AI packing lists, templates and copying lists from past trips. The lists work offline, and one member's Pro covers the whole trip.

Worth knowing: it is a whole trip planner, so if all you want is a packing checklist, a dedicated app may feel lighter. There is no web app.

PackPoint

Best at: a generated list from where you are going, how long and what you will be doing.

Who it suits: people who do not want to start from scratch and like a list that changes with the forecast.

PackPoint's App Store listing, as of November 2026, says it builds packing lists from trip length, destination weather and planned activities. You enter a city, a departure date and the number of nights. It accounts for trip type, including business or leisure, adds an umbrella if rain is forecast, and lets you reorder items, change quantities and hide checked ones. There are options such as repeating basics for reusing clothes and a laundry checkbox. The listing says the app is free with in-app purchases, and PackPoint's website says Premium adds connecting to TripIt, customising activities and list items, and sharing your list with other travellers.

Worth knowing: the App Store listing is for iPhone; its website links to Google Play as well.

Packr

Best at: lists that learn from your earlier trips, with bags and travellers.

Who it suits: people who travel often and want the app to get better at predicting what they take, or who pack for a pet.

Packr's App Store listing, as of November 2026, says it creates packing lists from your destination, dates and planned activities, using length of stay, weather and activities. It says it learns from your previous trips, scales some items to the length of your stay, lets you assign items to bags or suitcases, filters by traveller and includes packing lists for pets. It handles multi-destination trips, including importing itineraries from TripIt, and it works offline. It syncs across devices with an Apple account, and you can share your checklist with companions or print it. The listing describes the app as free with in-app purchases for Premium.

Worth knowing: the listing we read is for iPhone and iPad.

Pack This

Best at: a plain checklist you build yourself, with travellers assigned to items.

Who it suits: people who want to organise their own categories, and families or couples who tag who brings what.

Pack This's App Store listing, as of November 2026, says you set trip dates and who is going, build lists with your own categories (it does not pre-populate headings or items) and duplicate a list for a similar trip. You can add fellow travellers and tag them on tasks, and email a finished list to your travel mates. It lists a vacation countdown timer and weather updates for your destination. It works on iPhone, iPad and Apple Watch, and the listing says it is free with in-app purchases, some of which unlock travel companions or unlimited trips.

Worth knowing: it is an Apple-only app, according to the listing.

Wanderlog

Best at: packing checklists alongside a full itinerary.

Who it suits: people planning their trip in Wanderlog who want the checklist in the same place.

Wanderlog's website, as of November 2026, describes a free vacation planner and itinerary app with checklists for packing, to-dos, shopping or any other list, alongside live syncing, collaborative editing, expense splitting and itinerary tools. There are iPhone and Android apps, and a web planning flow.

Worth knowing: the site does not describe a generated packing list, so treat it as a place to keep a list you write yourself.

How to choose

Decide first how you pack.

If you stare at a blank page, choose a generated list: PackPoint or Packr.
If you know what you take, and want to reuse it, a blank-list app such as Pack This, or the lists in Travel Life or Wanderlog, does the job without suggestions you will ignore.
If you are packing as a group, pick an app where the list is shared or items can be assigned. Our guide to what a group should share says what to split.
If you want everything in one app, use the packing list from the planner you already use for the itinerary.

Think about where you will open it, too. If you pack at the airport gate or in a hostel with no signal, an app that works offline matters more than one with a clever generator. If you pack on a phone while standing over the bed, a short list with large tick boxes beats a thorough one you have to scroll. And if you and a partner always bring the same things twice, check that the app lets each of you see the other's list.

Whichever you pick, the list is only as good as the kind of trip it is for. Start from a specific one, such as a city break or carry-on only, and then save your version for next time. The second trip is where a list pays off.