Best Beach Bags for Long Days on the Sand or by the Pool

• Pros: Comfortable, sturdy straps that fold down easily.
• Cons: It doesn’t hold as many items as the Bogg or Crocs bags.

This bag fits five beach towels, one water bottle, two bottles of sunscreen, a hardcover book, four small packs of pretzels, and sunglasses. I fit my wallet, car keys, and a lip balm in the zippered insert plastic bag.

Like the Bogg, the Simple Modern beach bag is made of soft EVA material and has the thickest hand straps of all the bags, except the Target bag, below (which has thicker but uncomfortable straps). It has the best handle design of all the bags we tested. The handles folded backward and forward easily and never got twisted, unlike every other bag. The bag was comfortable to wear on the shoulder and hold in my hands, and its handles felt sturdy.

This bag didn’t hold as much as the Bogg or Crocs bags, but it could still fit five beach towels and all of the necessities I usually take to the beach. It has traction grips at its base, but not as many as the Bogg or Crocs (and the grips don’t extend to the outsides of the bag the same way). It comes with one detachable water-resistant zipper pocket that helps hold smaller items. 

Like all of the bags on this list, it got hot when I ran a blow dryer over the straps, making holding it less comfortable—but that’s a con you’ll likely find with bags made of these materials. I could wash sand off the outside and inside of the bag without much effort, and it dried quickly with a microfiber rag.

• Pros: Comes with a shoulder strap.
• Cons: The insert pouch has a Velcro-like closure instead of a zipper.

It fit four beach towels, one hardcover book, one water bottle, two bottles of sunscreen, sunglasses, two small bags of pretzels, and my phone. The clear insert pouch fits my car keys and wallet.

This was the only bag that came with both hand straps and a shoulder strap, but all of the accessories have to be placed on the bag yourself (I didn’t test the shoulder strap, so that the comparison I make with the other bags is consistent). It was a little tricky at first to apply the straps, and I figured out through trial and error that the strap’s cap has to be pushed in and twisted off like a medicine bottle cap before you can insert the strap into one of the bag’s holes and secure it with the cap. I was prepared to deduct points from this bag just for the inconvenience, but once the straps were in place, they felt sturdy. 

The straps were slightly thinner than the Bogg and less comfortable to wear. The bag fits less than the Bogg, Simple Modern, and Crocs bags, but is a good choice for anyone who doesn’t need to carry around as much and wants to spend a little less on a beach bag. It has some traction and grips on the base, but not as much as the Crocs and Bogg bags. And, although it comes with a clear insert pouch, it has a Velcro-like fabric closure instead of a zipper, which feels cheaper. 

It washed and dried as well as the other bags. But when I ran a blowdryer over the handle and body of the bag, its vinyl material felt like it got hotter faster, and retained its heat for the longest time. It boasts one of the cutest designs, though, with a subtle sunshine pattern on its front.

• Pros: This bag fits everything you need—and then some. 
• Cons: Its price.

The Bogg Bag holds six beach towels, one hardcover book, one water bottle, two bottles of sunscreen, sunglasses, four bags of pretzels, my phone. Two interior pouches can hold my car keys, wallet, lip balm, a small mirror, and have room for more items. 

This is one case where the original and most expensive item is one of the best. Of all the bags we tested, the Bogg fits the most items, and its large and small zippered waterproof inserts add to its capacity. It is the only bag we tested that provides a weight limit (40 pounds), and even when it was filled to the brim, it was comfortable to carry around, with soft and sturdy-feeling handles. The handles did twist once in a while, which is annoying, but they were much easier to untwist than the Target bag’s handles. 

Like all of the bags, this one got hot under direct heat. It washes and cleans well, but some sand got stuck in the Bogg logo on the bag and the “B’s” on the base of the shoulder straps. I sprayed these areas with a strong stream of water from my garden hose, and this immediately cleaned them.

• Pros: It fits almost as much as the Bogg bag, features the most extensive traction and grips at its base, and has a dipped curve at the top for your shoulder. 
• Cons: The straps aren’t the most comfortable to wear or hold. 

It fit six beach towels, one hardcover book, one water bottle, two bottles of sunscreen, car keys, sunglasses, four bags of pretzels, a phone, and a wallet. This bag doesn’t come with an insert, so everything you need to take goes into the one large bag.

The Crocs Classic Large Tote is a good bag, and it stands out most for its extensive traction on the base and sides of the bag, as well as a dipped curve on top to make it more comfortable to carry on your shoulder. It feels like it’s made from top-quality materials and fit almost as much as the Bogg. Still, it lacks interior inserts, so placing smaller items like keys, credit cards, and lip balm requires you to pack them within your own smaller bag, or they run the risk of getting lost within such a large beach bag.

Its hand straps weren’t as comfortable on the shoulder as the Simple Modern straps, and they twisted more. The bag washed and dried well, and got as hot as the others under direct heat (but the Costco bag became hotter).

• Pros: Smaller and more compact if you don’t want to lug around too much.
• Cons: The bag’s plastic material feels harder, more slippery, and less comfortable.

It fit three towels and little else; or two towels, one hardcover book, one water bottle, two bottles of sunscreen, car keys, sunglasses, two small bags of pretzels, and my phone.

There’s no denying the allure of a $15 beach bag, and if you’re willing to make a few concessions, this is a cute pick with a few things going for it. It’s made from plastic, so it washes and dries like a dream, and I didn’t notice sand getting stuck in any of its holes or crevices. However, the straps continually twisted (and wouldn’t be untwisted), and the material is stiff, slippery, and hurt my hands within a few minutes of holding them. It doesn’t come with additional features like inserts, either. Unless you take solo trips to the pool and beach and don’t need to bring a lot (and your journey from the parking lot to your destination isn’t lengthy), this is one to skip.