10 litres or 20: why the smaller bag holds twice as much

Nothing new entered the catalogue this week, so this issue answers a question instead.

It is the question buyers ask us most often after price: how much does this bag actually hold?

The front of the bag will not tell you. Two bags in the range make that very clear.

Both are 340 g/m² GOTS certified organic cotton canvas. Same material, same weight, same certification, one colour print on one side, print included, excluding VAT:

The Marina is smaller across the front, holds twice as much, and costs €1.16 less a bag. On a 25-piece order that is €29.00 less for double the capacity.

The whole difference is the 17 cm gusset. A flat tote is two panels sewn together, so it holds whatever will lie flat against someone's leg. Add depth at the sides and the base and the bag becomes a box: it stands up on a table, and a laptop, a book and a water bottle fit next to each other instead of stacking.

The gusset is cheap at every price level

This is not only a premium-range question. The same choice exists on the standard 220 g/m² cotton tote, in the same 38 × 42 cm format.

Flat: €8.76 a bag at 25. With side and bottom gussets, 38 × 42 plus 10 cm at each side: €9.47 a bag at 25.

That is 71 cents a bag, or €17.75 across a 25-piece order, for a bag that stands up and carries a full load. It is the smallest upgrade in the range that changes how the bag is actually used.

The catch worth knowing before you choose

Capacity and print size pull in opposite directions, and it surprises people.

The flat heavyweight tote takes a print up to 33 × 36 cm, which is close to a full front panel. The gusseted 220 g/m² tote takes 28 × 32 cm. The organic canvas Varsity shopper holds 20 litres but takes a print of only 16 × 17 cm, because the front panel is broken up by its handles and external pockets.

So the roomiest bag is not automatically the one that shows your logo best. If your artwork is a wide wordmark rather than a compact logo, check the maximum print area on the page before you settle on a shape.

How to pick in two minutes

Decide what has to go in the bag first. A conference programme and a pen fit in a flat tote. A hoodie, a bottle or a pair of shoes need a gusset.

Then read the litre figure, not the dimensions. Every product page lists capacity in litres, and that is the number that answers the question.

Then check the maximum print area against your logo. If the two do not agree, send us the artwork and we will tell you which shape it fits.

Eleven days to the Christmas order date

Production takes 10 to 15 working days after you approve your digital proof, plus delivery. Friday 6 November is the last comfortable order date for Christmas gifts delivered before mid-December. That is eleven days from today.

If you are choosing between shapes and the clock is the problem, email sales@printsandbags.com with what the bags are for and roughly how many. We will come back with two or three that fit, and the date they would arrive.

You can also compare the gusseted 220 g/m² totes, the flat heavyweight organic canvas totes, or browse all cotton bags with custom print.