Patagonia Black Hole® MLC® 45L vs. Sherpani Santiago

Two carry-on travel backpacks, compared spec for spec.

Patagonia Black Hole® MLC® 45L

Front facing view of the Patagonia Black Hole® MLC® 45L
Capacity45 L
Weight1.7 kg
Dimensions56×37×19 cm
Airline fit26%
Price$240

Feature by feature

Patagonia Black Hole® MLC® 45LFeatureSherpani Santiago
Storage
N Compression N
None Expanded Capacity None
1 Opening 1
top Passport front
Y Passthrough Y
Carry
Y Backpack Y
N Hip Belt Y
Y Sternum Strap Y
Inside
15in Laptop 15in
5 Main Compartments 5
N Organizer N
Outside
× Hard Shell ×
N Rain-fly N
2, side Water Bottle Holder N
Y Water Resistant Y
Material
14.1-oz 900-denier 100% postconsumer recycled polyester ripstop with a postindustrial recycled TPU-film laminate

Sherpani Santiago

Front facing view of the Sherpani Santiago
Capacity39 L
Weight1.1 kg
Dimensions53×31×18 cm
Airline fit88%
Price$185

Key differences between the Patagonia Black Hole® MLC® 45L and Sherpani Santiago

Both have: luggage passthrough, backpack straps, sternum strap, laptop sleeve, water resistant.

Which airlines take each bag as a carry-on

We checked both bags against the carry-on size limits of 189 airlines. 49 accept both. 0 accept only the Patagonia Black Hole® MLC® 45L, and 118 accept only the Sherpani Santiago.

Only the Sherpani Santiago fits

Aer Lingus, Aeroflot, Aerolineas Argentinas, Aeromexico, Air Asia, Air Baltic, Air Canada, Air Caraibes, Air China, Air France, Air India, Air Macau, Air Malta, Air Mauritius, Air Serbia, Air Seychelles, Air Wisconsin, AirAsiaX, Alaska Airlines, All Nipon Airways, Allegiant Air, American Airlines, ANA, Asiana Airlines, ATA Airlines, Austrian, Avianca , Azerbaijan Airlines, Bahamasair, Bangkok Airways, Biman Bangladesh, Blue Air, Boliviana de Aviacion, Brussels Airlines, Bulgaria Air, Cambodia Angkor Air, Cathay Pacific, Cayman Airways, Cebu Pacific, China Airlines, China Eastern, CommutAir, Copa Airlines, Czech Airlines, Delta Airlines, Dragonair, Emirates Airlines, Enter Air, Ethiopian Airlines, Eurowings, EVA Air, Fiji Airways, Flair Air, flybe, Garuda Indonesia, Gol Linhas Aereas, Hawaiian Airlines, Hong Kong Airlines, Iberia, Icelandair, Indigo, InselAir, Interjet, Iran Air, Japan Airlines, Jet Airways, jetBlue Airways, Jetstar Airways, Jetstar Asia, Juneyao Airlines, Kenya Airways, KLM, Kulula, LATAM , Liat Airlines, LOT Polish, Lufthansa, Luxair, Mahan Air, Malaysia Airlines, Mango, Meridiana Fly, Mesa Airlines, Nordwind Airlines, Norwegian, Pakistan International, Peach, Porter Airlines, Qantas Airways, Republic Airways, Royal Brunei Airlines, Ryanair, S7, SAS Scandinavian, Scoot, Shandong Airlines, Shenzhen Airlines, Sky Airlines, Skywest, Inc., South African Airways, SriLankan Airlines, Sun Express, Swiss Int'l Air Lines, TAP Air Portugal, TAROM, Tianjin Airlines (A320 & E190), Tiger Airways, Trans States, TUI, Turkish Airlines, Ukraine International, United Airlines, Vietnam Airlines, VIM Airlines (Closed), Virgin Atlantic, Volotea, WestJet, Xiamen.

Patagonia Black Hole® MLC® 45L vs. Sherpani Santiago: which should you pack?

The Patagonia Black Hole® MLC® 45L carries 6L more than the Sherpani Santiago (45L vs. 39L), while the Sherpani Santiago is the lighter pack at 1.1kg (vs. 1.7kg). For carry-on flexibility, the Sherpani Santiago fits 88% of the airlines we track — the higher of the two. If you prioritise packing volume, choose the Patagonia Black Hole® MLC® 45L; if you want to travel lighter, the Sherpani Santiago is the better call.