Free hand luggage varies sharply by airline: Ryanair includes one under seat bag of 40 x 30 x 20 cm, easyJet 45 x 36 x 20 cm, while British Airways and Jet2 include a full overhead cabin bag as standard. European airlines have adopted 40 x 30 x 15 cm as the minimum free personal item, so a bag at that size clears effectively every carrier.
TL;DR · LAST REVIEWED 25 JULY 2026
- Ryanair: free under seat bag 40 x 30 x 20 cm; the 10kg overhead bag (55 x 40 x 20 cm) requires paid Priority, which can sell out
- easyJet: the most generous free under seat bag at 45 x 36 x 20 cm; overhead bags are a paid extra
- British Airways: two bags free on most fares, a 40 x 30 x 15 cm personal item plus a 56 x 45 x 25 cm cabin bag, up to 23kg each
- Jet2: a 10kg cabin bag up to 56 x 45 x 25 cm included, plus a small under seat bag
- The Airlines for Europe standard minimum personal item is 40 x 30 x 15 cm: size a bag to that and it flies free on effectively everything
| Airline | Free allowance | Paid or included extras |
| Ryanair | 1 under seat bag, 40 x 30 x 20 cm | 10kg overhead bag (55 x 40 x 20 cm) with Priority, capacity limited |
| easyJet | 1 under seat bag, 45 x 36 x 20 cm | Large cabin bag as a paid extra |
| British Airways | Personal item 40 x 30 x 15 cm + cabin bag 56 x 45 x 25 cm | Both included, up to 23kg each, most fares |
| Jet2 | Under seat bag + 10kg cabin bag, 56 x 45 x 25 cm | Cabin bag included as standard |
| EU minimum standard | Personal item 40 x 30 x 15 cm | The size that clears every adopting carrier |
KEY FACTS
- Universal safe size: 40 x 30 x 15 cm fits the free allowance across the major European carriers
- Ryanair oversize gate charges run to roughly 70 euros; Priority overhead access is capped at about half the aircraft and sells out on busy routes
- The EU Court of Justice ruled that reasonably sized cabin bags cannot attract extra charges, a ruling airlines are implementing through the new minimum standard
- Spain fined five low cost airlines a combined 179 million euros in late 2024 over cabin bag charges, suspended pending appeal
- Ryanair enlarged its free bag from 40 x 25 x 20 cm to 40 x 30 x 20 cm rather than adopt the smaller 15 cm depth standard
- Airline sizers measure including wheels, handles and external pockets; soft bags forgive a centimetre where hard shells do not
Why the rules diverged, and the ruling pulling them back
Low cost carriers unbundled the overhead locker into a paid product, leaving only an under seat bag free, while legacy and holiday airlines kept a full cabin bag in the fare. The EU Court of Justice then ruled that reasonably sized cabin bags cannot be charged for, forcing a partial reset.
Airlines for Europe, the trade group spanning Ryanair, easyJet and the legacy carriers, responded by adopting a standard minimum free personal item of 40 x 30 x 15 cm. Spain had already fined five low cost airlines a combined 179 million euros over bag charges, suspended on appeal, and the wider question of charging for overhead sized bags remains contested rather than settled.
The practical upshot: the free under seat bag is now near universal and slowly standardising, while the overhead bag remains the paid battleground.
The trap inside Ryanair's Priority
Ryanair's overhead allowance is not merely paid but capacity limited: Priority is capped at roughly half the aircraft and sells out on busy routes. A traveller who buys it late can still be told to check the bag, which makes the overhead slot something to secure at booking, never at the gate.
Gate enforcement is where the money is: oversized bags at the gate run to roughly 70 euros on Ryanair, against a fraction of that when paid at booking. The sizers measure everything: wheels, handles and stuffed external pockets, and a soft bag squeezes where a hard shell fails by the same centimetre.
Packing to the strictest airline
Free allowances now differ enough that the airline brand no longer predicts the rule: a bag that sails through easyJet's 45 x 36 x 20 cm is refused against a 15 cm depth limit elsewhere. The durable strategy is sizing the bag to the strictest carrier on the itinerary and enjoying the slack everywhere else.
A bag at the 40 x 30 x 15 cm standard clears effectively everything in Europe; the next size up, built to Ryanair's 40 x 30 x 20 cm, covers the low cost majors. Mixed itineraries across a legacy outbound and low cost return inherit the low cost limit for the whole trip, which is the detail that catches connecting travellers.
Where consumer rights actually bite
The court ruling gives passengers a genuine argument against charges on reasonably sized bags, but enforcement runs through regulators and the airlines' own adopted standards rather than gate side debate, where the staff apply the published policy and the sizer decides.
Disputes after the fact go through the airline's complaints process and then the relevant aviation regulator or approved dispute body, with the booking confirmation's stated allowance as the evidence that matters. Charges outside the published policy are recoverable; charges correctly applied to an oversized bag are not, however the ruling develops.
RELATED GUIDES
DISCLAIMER
This article is editorial information, not financial advice. Kael Tripton Ltd is not authorised or regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. Figures were correct at the last review date shown above; verify current rates and rules with the primary sources listed below before acting.
Frequently asked questions
What size hand luggage flies free on every airline?
A bag no bigger than 40 x 30 x 15 cm, the standard minimum personal item adopted by European airlines, fits the free allowance on effectively every major carrier.
What is Ryanair's free bag size?
One under seat bag of 40 x 30 x 20 cm on every fare. The 10kg overhead bag of 55 x 40 x 20 cm requires paid Priority, which is capacity capped and sells out on busy routes.
Which airline has the most generous free allowance?
Among the low cost carriers, easyJet at 45 x 36 x 20 cm under the seat. British Airways and Jet2 include a full overhead cabin bag in the standard fare on top of a personal item.
Can airlines legally charge for cabin bags?
The EU Court of Justice ruled that reasonably sized cabin bags cannot attract extra charges, and airlines responded with a standard free personal item size. Charging for larger overhead bags continues and remains contested.
What does an oversized bag cost at the gate?
On Ryanair, roughly 70 euros, and comparable penalties elsewhere: several times the price of buying the allowance at booking, which is the entire enforcement model.
Do the sizers include wheels and handles?
Yes: wheels, handles and bulging external pockets all count. Soft sided bags forgive a squeezed centimetre; hard shells do not.
SOURCES
- GOV.UK: Hand luggage restrictions – accessed 25 July 2026
- Civil Aviation Authority – accessed 25 July 2026
