Carry-On Weight Calculator: Will Your Bag Pass the Airline Limit?
The standard cabin baggage weight limit across Australian airlines is 7kg per item, and the usual size limit is 56 x 36 x 23 cm. What varies between airlines and fare types is how many items you get and whether there's a combined total, so the number of bags is what you need to check, not the 7kg.
The bigger problem is that an empty cabin case already eats 2.5kg to 4kg of your 7kg before you pack a single thing.
Use the Carry-On Weight Calculator to total the bag, the contents and the airline limit, so you find out at home instead of at the gate.
Australian carry-on allowances at a glance
| Airline | Usual weight limit | What to confirm |
|---|---|---|
| Qantas | 7kg per item | Number of items differs between jet and turboprop services and by fare |
| Jetstar | 7kg standard | A paid upgrade to a higher cabin allowance is offered on most fares |
| Virgin Australia | 7kg per item | Item count and combined totals vary by fare and aircraft |
| Rex | 7kg | Smaller aircraft have tighter size limits |
| Bonza-style and charter operators | Usually 7kg | Check the specific operator, allowances vary widely |
Airlines change baggage policy often and allowances differ by fare, route and aircraft. Treat 7kg per item as the Australian norm and confirm the item count on your airline's own baggage page before you fly.
What things actually weigh
This is where people get caught. Weigh a few items once and you'll never guess again.
| Item | Typical weight |
|---|---|
| Hard-shell cabin case, empty | 2.8kg to 4.2kg |
| Soft-sided cabin case, empty | 2.0kg to 2.8kg |
| Cabin backpack, empty | 0.8kg to 1.5kg |
| 13 to 14 inch laptop | 1.2kg to 1.6kg |
| 15 to 16 inch laptop | 1.6kg to 2.2kg |
| Laptop charger | 0.2kg to 0.5kg |
| Tablet | 0.45kg to 0.7kg |
| 20,000mAh power bank | 0.35kg to 0.45kg |
| Cables, adapters and chargers pouch | 0.3kg to 0.6kg |
| Camera with one lens | 1.2kg to 1.8kg |
| Pair of shoes | 0.6kg to 1.1kg |
| Toiletries bag, cabin compliant | 0.6kg to 1.0kg |
| Jeans | About 0.6kg |
| T-shirt | About 0.15kg |
| Jumper or hoodie | 0.4kg to 0.6kg |
| Jacket | 0.7kg to 1.2kg |
| Paperback book | 0.3kg to 0.5kg |
| 1L water bottle, full | About 1.3kg |
Ranges for planning. Weigh your own gear once and you'll have exact numbers forever.
A worked example of how 7kg disappears
Say you're flying Sydney to Melbourne for two nights with a hard-shell cabin case and a laptop:
- Hard-shell cabin case, empty: 3.5kg
- 15in laptop: 1.8kg
- Laptop charger: 0.4kg
- 20,000mAh power bank and cables: 0.5kg
- Spare shoes: 0.9kg
- Toiletries bag: 0.8kg
That's 7.9kg and you haven't packed a single item of clothing. Swap the hard case for a 1.2kg cabin backpack and you're at 5.6kg with 1.4kg left for clothes, which is roughly two shirts, a jumper and underwear.
The bag is almost always the problem, not the packing.
Nine ways to get under the limit
- Buy a lighter bag. The single biggest lever. A 2kg soft case versus a 4kg hard case is 2kg of clothes back.
- Wear the heavy stuff. Boots, jeans and the jacket weigh nothing when they're on you. Cabin crew almost never care.
- Move the laptop. Where the airline allows a personal item as well, the laptop and charger go in that, not the case.
- Empty the water bottle. A full litre bottle is 1kg. Empty it before the gate and refill after security.
- Decant toiletries. Full-size bottles are mostly packaging and water. For international flights you're capped at 100mL containers anyway.
- One pair of spare shoes maximum. Wear the heavier pair.
- Books to the phone. Two paperbacks is close to a kilogram.
- Charger audit. One multi-port USB-C charger replaces three bricks.
- Weigh it at home. Luggage scales are cheap. Otherwise stand on the bathroom scales holding the bag, then without it, and subtract.
What you can't move to checked baggage
If you're over the cabin limit, the obvious fix is to shift weight into checked luggage. Some things legally can't go there:
- Power banks and spare lithium batteries. Cabin only, always. Under 100Wh needs no approval, 100Wh to 160Wh needs airline approval, over 160Wh is banned outright.
- E-cigarettes and vapes. Cabin only.
- Matches and lighters. Generally on your person only, and limited.
- Anything valuable or irreplaceable. Not a rule, just sense.
Which means the power bank is stuck in your 7kg no matter what.
What happens if you're over
Gate staff tag the bag and it goes in the hold. On low cost carriers you'll often pay an excess or gate bag fee, and buying baggage at the gate costs considerably more than adding it online beforehand. If you know you're marginal, adding checked baggage the night before is nearly always cheaper than arguing about it at the gate.
Enforcement is inconsistent. Domestic flights out of quieter airports rarely weigh anything. Jetstar and full flights out of Sydney, Melbourne and Bali weigh a lot more often. Planning around "they probably won't check" is a way to pay the highest possible price on the day you get caught.
Related calculators
- Carry-On Weight Calculator to add up your bag before you get to the airport
- Power Bank Capacity Calculator to check whether your power bank clears the airline threshold
- Currency Budget Calculator for working out how much local currency to take
- Postage Calculator for sending things ahead rather than carrying them
Frequently asked questions
What is the carry-on weight limit in Australia?
7kg per item is the standard across Australian airlines, with a usual size limit around 56 x 36 x 23 cm. The number of items you get and whether there is a combined total varies by airline, fare and aircraft, so check your airline's baggage page.
Does the bag itself count towards the 7kg?
Yes. An empty hard-shell cabin case weighs 2.8kg to 4.2kg, which is up to 60% of a 7kg allowance before you pack anything. Switching to a 1.2kg cabin backpack frees up more than 2kg.
Do airlines actually weigh carry-on bags in Australia?
Inconsistently. Low cost carriers and busy international departures weigh far more often than quiet domestic services. If you are over, gate baggage fees are considerably more expensive than adding checked baggage online beforehand.
Can I put my power bank in checked luggage to save carry-on weight?
No. Power banks and spare lithium batteries must travel in the cabin. Under 100Wh needs no approval, 100Wh to 160Wh needs airline approval, and over 160Wh is not permitted on passenger aircraft at all.
How do I weigh my bag without luggage scales?
Stand on bathroom scales holding the bag and note the reading, then stand on them without it and subtract. Accurate to within a couple of hundred grams, which is close enough.