16 Backpack Brands Like North Face for Hiking and Commuting
Your North Face pack has done four winters, the shoulder straps have gone flat, and every third person on the platform is carrying the same one. The fit was wrong from the start, too. A pack cut for the middle of the bell curve is not cut for your torso.
The North Face is a VF Corporation outdoor brand selling hiking packs and travel bags at mid-range to premium prices, sitting in the same group as JanSport, Eastpak, Kipling and Timberland. These 16 brands cover the same ground, which is bags built to survive weather and weight.
Several of them fit better because they size the back panel to your torso instead of selling a single length, and a handful cost a third of the price. The specialists do one job, like carrying two camera bodies or three litres of water, far better than a general-purpose hiking pack manages.
Quick comparison:
- Closest match to The North Face: Osprey, Deuter, Gregory, Kelty (trail packs with sized back panels)
- Most technical, most expensive: Arc'teryx, Patagonia, Mystery Ranch
- Cheapest way in: Venture Pal, Hynes Eagle, High Sierra, Columbia
- Specialist picks: Lowepro for cameras, CamelBak for hydration, Eagle Creek for travel, Timbuk2 and Thule for commuting
| Brand | Price | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| Osprey | Mid-range to premium | A first multi-day pack that fits |
| Deuter | $100 to $280 | Ventilated backs on sweaty climbs |
| Gregory | Mid-range to premium | Adjustable torso length |
| Kelty | $89.95 to $299.95 | Family camping on a budget |
| Arc'teryx | Premium | Climbing and alpine days |
| Patagonia | Premium | Packs you can trade back in |
| Columbia | Mid-range | A knockabout everyday daypack |
| Mystery Ranch | $249 to $1,025 | Heavy loads and rough treatment |
| Lowepro | Mid-range | Camera bodies and lenses |
| Eagle Creek | $159 to $299 | Carry-on travel that opens flat |
| High Sierra | Budget to mid-range | School bags and commutes |
| Timbuk2 | $118 to $228 | Laptop commuting by bike or train |
| CamelBak | $82 to $166 | Drinking on the move |
| Hynes Eagle | $38.99 to $69.99 | Cabin travel packs under $70 |
| Venture Pal | $24.99 to $28.99 | A foldaway spare daypack |
| Thule | $89.95 to $319.95 | City travel that looks like luggage |
Osprey
Osprey builds hiking and travel packs around sized suspension, which makes it the closest like-for-like swap on this list for a North Face trail pack. The difference shows up on day two of a walk.
Where a general-purpose daypack comes in one back length, Osprey sizes the back panel across much of its hiking range, so the weight settles on your hips instead of hanging off your shoulders. The range runs from small daypacks to expedition packs in the same mid-range to premium bracket as The North Face's technical line.
One caveat comes with that sizing. Measure your torso before you order, because the small and the large version of the same pack fit differently, and a mail-order guess is how people end up with a pack that rubs.
Best for: A first multi-day hiking pack that fits your back rather than an average one.
Deuter
Deuter is a German pack maker whose Aircontact back systems are the reason it turns up on long-distance hiking kit lists. The AC Lite 24 ($120) is the everyday walking pack, and the Aircontact Core 50+10 ($280) is the one you take when a tent is going in.
The overlap with The North Face is durability. The difference is airflow. Deuter's mesh back panels hold the pack off your spine, which matters if you sweat through a shirt on any climb over an hour. The AC Lite line also comes in SL versions cut for shorter torsos, starting with the AC Lite 14 SL ($100).
The US catalogue runs to 273 items, and Deuter carries bluesign, Fair Wear and Green Button certification. Stock is the weak point. Plenty of listings show as currently unavailable, so the colour you want may take a season to come back.
Best for: Ventilated back panels on long, sweaty climbs.
Gregory
Gregory builds its reputation on fit, with adjustable torso lengths and moulded hip belts running through the Baltoro and Paragon lines. Its own store spans the Terros 20L for day walks up to the Baltoro 75L for expeditions, with the Paragon 60L sitting in the middle for multi-day trips.
Samsonite owns Gregory, which is worth knowing because the same parent company sits behind High Sierra further down this list. The two brands share nothing in build quality. Gregory is the technical one.
Against The North Face, Gregory asks you to spend more time choosing and rewards you with a better carry under load. Pricing lands mid-range to premium, and the site redirects by region, so what you see depends on where you shop from.
Best for: Multi-day packs where you can dial in torso length.
Kelty
Kelty makes camping and backpacking gear out of Broomfield, Colorado, and it undercuts The North Face on almost every comparable pack. The Asher 24 ($89.95) covers day walks, the Asher 55 ($169.95) handles a weekend, and the Glendale 65 ($279.95) takes a loaded multi-day trip.
It also makes the Journey PerfectFIT child carrier ($299.95), which is why Kelty ends up in so many family garages. Shipping is free over $49.
The trade for that pricing is weight. Kelty packs generally run heavier than the equivalent Osprey or Gregory, and the fabrics feel less refined in the hand. If you count grams, this is the wrong brand. If you are loading a car and walking two miles to a pitch, the extra ounces cost you nothing.
Best for: Family camping and weekend trips on a smaller budget.
Arc'teryx
Arc'teryx is the premium end of this list, an Amer Sports brand that makes minimalist packs for climbing and alpine work. Its daypacks leave out pockets and straps that other brands add, on the logic that anything you do not need is weight you carry up a mountain.
Set against The North Face, the comparison is a price one. Arc'teryx costs considerably more and gives you lighter, more weather-resistant packs with a cleaner shape. If your walking is a canal path on a Sunday, you are paying for engineering you will not use.
If you are on rock or snow, that engineering is the whole point. Our guide to brands like Arc'teryx maps the rest of this price bracket if you want to compare before committing.
Best for: Climbing and alpine days where weight and weather decide the kit.
Patagonia
Patagonia sits at the premium end alongside The North Face and runs Worn Wear, its own trade-in and resale programme, which buys back eligible used gear so it finds a new owner instead of a landfill. The Black Hole Pack 32L and the Black Hole MLC Pack 45L cover travel, the Terravia Pack 28L covers hiking, and the Cragsmith Pack 45L carries climbing gear.
On durability the two brands are close. Resale is where Patagonia pulls ahead, because a bag you can sell back does more for its cost per wear (the price divided by how many times you use it) than any spec sheet can.
The catch is that you pay for all of that at the till, and Patagonia's storefronts redirect by region, so shoppers in the US, the EU, the UK and Australia see different ranges and different stock. We put the two head to head in Patagonia vs North Face backpacks if you want the pack-by-pack version.
Best for: Packs you can trade back in rather than throw out.
Columbia
Columbia makes weather-resistant daypacks at mid-range prices, and it is the sensible step down from The North Face rather than a step sideways. The packs are simpler, the fabrics are less technical, and the price reflects both.
Columbia's strength is everyday use, and it handles a school run or two hours in drizzle without complaint. Its weakness is load carrying, because the suspension on a mid-priced Columbia pack will not move a heavy multi-day load the way an Osprey or a Gregory will.
Buy it as your knockabout bag and keep your money for the pack you take up a hill. Our full North Face vs Columbia comparison breaks the same value question down across the wider range.
Best for: A daypack you can throw in a car boot without wincing.
Mystery Ranch
Mystery Ranch builds packs in 500D CORDURA for military, wildland fire, hunting and everyday-carry customers, and the first three explain the whole design. The 2 Day Assault ($249) carries 27 litres and uses YKK AquaGuard zips that repel water. The Blackjack 50 ($1,025) is a wildland fire pack with a Dyneema-CORDURA laminate frame.
This is the heavy-duty extreme of the list. Mystery Ranch packs outweigh the North Face equivalent and cost several times as much, and they are built to be loaded well past the point where a consumer daypack gives up.
For a day hike it is overkill, and the price on the professional lines makes that obvious. For anyone who has torn a pack in the field and had to keep working, the extra fabric weight is the reason to buy.
Best for: Heavy loads and gear that gets thrown in the back of a truck.
Lowepro
Lowepro makes camera backpacks, which is the one job a North Face pack does badly. Padded dividers hold bodies and lenses apart so they stop knocking together on a descent, and the ProTactic BP 350 AW III and Pro Trekker BP 650 AW II are the two most photographers choose between.
The Fastpack BP 250 AW IV is the lighter option for one body, two lenses and a laptop. Shipping is free over $150.
Pricing sits mid-range for camera bags, which puts it above a plain daypack of the same size, because you are buying padding and a weather cover rather than volume. Carry a camera in a hiking pack once and you will understand what you are paying for.
Best for: Carrying camera bodies and lenses on a walk.
Eagle Creek
Eagle Creek makes travel packs sized to cabin rules, backed by its No Matter What warranty. The Tour Lite Travel Pack 28L ($159) is the carry-on, the Tour Travel Pack 40L ($249) handles two weeks, and the Tour Travel Pack 55L ($299) is for people who overpack and know it.
The North Face builds for trails first and travel second. Eagle Creek reverses that. Its packs open flat like a suitcase instead of top-loading like a hiking bag, which is the difference between finding your charger in ten seconds and emptying everything onto a hostel floor.
What you give up is comfort under real load. A flat-opening travel pack has less structure through the back than a hiking pack at the same capacity, so a long uphill walk with a full 55 litres is not pleasant.
Best for: Carry-on travel where you want to open the bag flat.
High Sierra
High Sierra is the budget school-and-commute brand in the Samsonite group, and it is where you look when a pack has to survive a teenager rather than a mountain. The range covers laptop and wheeled backpacks rather than anything built for a trail.
Set against The North Face, you give up fabric quality and warranty depth, and you save a lot of money doing it. Treat a High Sierra as a two-or-three-year bag rather than a decade-long one.
That maths works for a school year and stops working for a daily commute you expect to keep for five. Pricing runs budget to mid-range, and the online shop pushes you through a country selector before it shows you a single bag.
Best for: School bags and commutes where the pack takes a daily beating.
Timbuk2
Timbuk2 makes commuter backpacks with padded laptop compartments, and it is the city answer to a North Face daypack. The Q Laptop Backpack 2.0 ($118) is the entry point, the Authority Laptop Backpack Deluxe ($152) adds organisation, the Never Check Expandable Backpack ($211) grows for a weekend away, and the Foundry Pack ($228) tops the range.
The Custom Tuck Backpack ($119) can be built in your own colour combination, which is unusual at this price and impossible at most of the outdoor brands here.
What you do not get is trail performance. There is no load-bearing hip belt and no adjustable back length, so this is a bag for a bike and a train, not a ridge. Our guide to brands like Timbuk2 goes deeper into this corner of the market.
Best for: Laptop commuting by bike or train.
CamelBak
CamelBak makes hydration packs, which means the reservoir and the drinking tube are the product and the bag is built around them. The Arete 18 Pack ($82) is the light option, the Lobo 9 with a 70 oz reservoir ($110) suits trail running, and the M.U.L.E. 12 with 100 oz ($142) is the mountain bike standard.
Against The North Face, this is single-purpose kit. A CamelBak carries water, a windbreaker and a snack, and that is the entire brief.
Try to pack a tent in one and you will run out of room immediately. If you have ever stopped mid-run to dig a bottle out of a bag, though, this is the fix, and the M.U.L.E. EVO 12 ($166) is the upgrade once you know you want one.
Best for: Running and riding, where stopping to find a bottle breaks your rhythm.
Hynes Eagle
Hynes Eagle is the budget travel-pack brand here, and it copies the flat-opening carry-on format that Eagle Creek charges more than three times as much for. The Carry-On Travel Backpack 44L ($69.99) is the flagship, the Workday Laptop Backpack ($69.99) is the office version, and the Motion Laptop Backpack ($49.99) is the light one.
The fabric is thinner than the premium brands and the shoulder straps carry less padding, which you feel once the bag is full and you are walking the length of an airport.
For two trips a year with no checked bag, that trade is worth making. For a pack you carry every day for five years, it is not. Sling and duffel options like the Motion Crossbody ($38.99) round out the range.
Best for: Cabin-sized travel packs under $70.
Venture Pal
Venture Pal makes packable daypacks that fold into their own pocket, and at $24.99 for the 35L and $26.99 for the 40L it is the cheapest brand on this list by a wide margin. The nylon is thin and water-resistant, with a double-layer base and a wet pocket for swim kit.
One thing to know before you click through. The Venture Pal homepage now leads with electrolyte powders and supplements, and the bags sit in a separate collection. The packs are still listed and still cheap.
Treat this as your second bag, the one that lives folded inside your main luggage for a day trip. Load it like a hiking pack and the straps will tell you off within a mile.
Best for: A foldaway spare daypack for under $30.
Thule
Thule covers commuting and city travel with a range starting at the AllTrail daypack 18L ($89.95) and the Lithos backpack 20L ($89.95), moving through the EnRoute backpack 30L ($159.95) and the Paramount backpack 27L ($179.95), and topping out at the Crossover 2 backpack 30L ($319.95).
Against The North Face's outdoorsy look, Thule reads like luggage. The Aion travel backpack 40L ($209.95) and the Landmark 60L travel pack ($249.95) are the ones to line up against a North Face travel bag, and free shipping kicks in over $199.
What Thule does not make is a serious hiking pack with a load-bearing hip belt. This is the brand for a commute and a weekend, not a week on a trail.
Best for: City travel in something that does not announce itself as hiking kit.
How to Choose the Right Backpack Brand for You
Start with the heaviest thing you will carry, because that decides everything else. Under 20 litres and a single day's kit, almost every brand here works and you can buy on looks and price. Over 40 litres and a multi-day load, the shortlist narrows to Osprey, Deuter, Gregory, Kelty and Mystery Ranch, because those are the packs with suspension built to move weight onto your hips.
Then sort by job. Camera gear goes in a Lowepro. Water on the move goes in a CamelBak. Cabin-legal travel goes to Eagle Creek from $159 or Hynes Eagle at $69.99. A commute goes to Timbuk2 or Thule. If money is the constraint, Venture Pal at $24.99 and High Sierra will get you through a season, and you can spend properly once you know what you carry week to week.
One last thing, and it costs nothing. Measure your torso before you order a hiking pack. It fixes the complaints that no brand switch can, and most shoppers skip it. If you want to keep reading, our Herschel alternatives cover the stylish end of the same question, or browse the rest of our articles.
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Written by
Spencer Lanoue
