# Best Dry Bags (2026): Roll-Top Closures, Denier and What 'Waterproof' Means on the Label > Six roll-top dry bags compared on fabric, denier and what each maker says about submersion, with the roll counts their instructions give and an IP code primer. - Source: https://saltprooflab.com/dry-storage/best-dry-bags - Publisher: SaltProofLab (https://saltprooflab.com) - Published: 2026-09-29 - Category: dry-storage - Tags: dry bags, roll-top dry bag, kayak dry bag, boat dry bag, denier, hydrostatic head, IPX5 - Method: picks chosen from Amazon listings and brand specs; not hands-on tested; current Amazon prices are on the page; content checked 2026-09-29. - Quick answer: For a boat deck or a kayak that takes spray all day, buy the Sea to Summit Big River: 420D TPU-laminated nylon, tape-sealed seams and a stated 10,000 mm hydrostatic head. The Earth Pak Original is a 500D PVC bag that its maker says floats when you leave air inside, with a phone case in the box. ## Key takeaways - Roll-top dry bags are not built to be held under water: Sea to Summit says water will seep through the closure of any brand if it stays submerged deep or long enough. - Roll the top the number of times the maker says: three for Sea to Summit's rated volume, three to four for Earth Pak, three to five for MARCHWAY. - IPX5, the rating Osprey gives its Ultralight Dry Sack, covers water jets, not immersion. ## Products (chosen from listings, not tested) 1. **Sea to Summit Big River Dry Bag, 13 Liter** (details: https://saltprooflab.com/dry-storage/best-dry-bags#product-B0BVW6MR54) — Buy it if the bag lives on a deck or kayak and takes spray all day. - Pros: 420D nylon with a TPU laminate and a triple-coated base, per Sea to Summit; Double-stitched, tape-sealed seams; the maker rates the body at 10,000 mm hydrostatic head; Lash points and an oval base that resists rolling; the buckle can be replaced with a screwdriver - Cons: Sea to Summit says to avoid submersion, because water can seep through any roll-top closure 2. **Earth Pak Original Dry Bag, 10L** (details: https://saltprooflab.com/dry-storage/best-dry-bags#product-B01GZCUCP4) — Buy it if you paddle and want a floating bag and a phone pouch in one purchase. - Pros: 500D PVC with a roll-top closure, per Earth Pak; Earth Pak says the bag floats if you leave some air inside when you roll it; Includes a phone case the listing calls IPX8 certified, for phones up to 6.5 in; five-year warranty - Cons: Earth Pak publishes no hydrostatic head or IP rating for the bag itself 3. **MARCHWAY Floating Waterproof Dry Bag, 10L** (details: https://saltprooflab.com/dry-storage/best-dry-bags#product-B01LYAQTCL) — Buy it if you want a simple floating sack with written closing instructions. - Pros: Welded seams and a round bottom that traps air so the bag floats, per the listing; Clear instructions: spread the bottom, roll three to five times, buckle; Five sizes from 5L to 40L; 20L and up have backpack straps - Cons: MARCHWAY says it is not for extended submersion, and names no fabric weight 4. **Pelican ExoDry 20L Dry Bag** (details: https://saltprooflab.com/dry-storage/best-dry-bags#product-B09R6P4CWD) — Buy it if you want to see your gear without unrolling the bag. - Pros: 500D PVC with a translucent middle section so you can see what is inside, per the listing; Water-resistant zippered outer pocket and two removable shoulder straps - Cons: The listing says it is not intended for submersion, and the outer pocket is water-resistant only 5. **Sea to Summit Lightweight Dry Bag, 5 Liter** (details: https://saltprooflab.com/dry-storage/best-dry-bags#product-B0BVWG3DGM) — Buy it to keep a first aid kit or spare layer dry inside a larger bag. - Pros: Recycled 70D nylon with a white PU interior coating, per Sea to Summit; Maker rates the coating at 10,000 mm hydrostatic head; seams double-stitched and tape-sealed - Cons: 70D fabric is far lighter than the 420D Big River; Sea to Summit pitches it for packing, not rough decks 6. **Osprey Ultralight Waterproof Dry Sack, 6L** (details: https://saltprooflab.com/dry-storage/best-dry-bags#product-B0BKQGM42N) — Buy it for gear that rides inside a hatch, a cooler or a larger bag. - Pros: Roll-top closure with waterproof-coated fabric and seams, per the listing; Rated IPX5, which Osprey's listing spells out as waterproof and non-submersible; Rectangular shape packs flat; D-ring for hanging it to dry - Cons: An IPX5 rating covers water jets, not a swim A dry bag on a boat faces spray, rain, a wet deck and bilge water, and on a kayak it may go over the side. The labels differ: some makers rate the fabric in millimeters, one gives an IP code, and most say the bag is not for submersion. Here is what each one states, and how to close it the way its maker says. **How we chose:** we did not test these bags; the picks come from the makers' pages and Amazon listings, and all six were sold by Amazon.com or the brand's own store and in stock on September 29, 2026. ## Six dry bags side by side | Bag | Fabric (per maker or listing) | What the maker says about water | Roll the top | Sold by | Amazon price | |---|---|---|---|---|---| | [Sea to Summit Big River 13L](https://saltprooflab.com/dry-storage/best-dry-bags#product-B0BVW6MR54) | 420D nylon, TPU laminate | 10,000 mm hydrostatic head; avoid submersion | 3 times (rated volume) | Sea to Summit North America | see the current Amazon price on the page | | [Earth Pak Original 10L](https://saltprooflab.com/dry-storage/best-dry-bags#product-B01GZCUCP4) | 500D PVC | Floats with air left inside | 3 to 4 times | Earth Pak | see the current Amazon price on the page | | [MARCHWAY Floating 10L](https://saltprooflab.com/dry-storage/best-dry-bags#product-B01LYAQTCL) | Not stated; welded seams | Not for extended submersion | 3 to 5 times | MARCHWAY | see the current Amazon price on the page | | [Pelican ExoDry 20L](https://saltprooflab.com/dry-storage/best-dry-bags#product-B09R6P4CWD) | 500D PVC | Not intended for submersion | Not stated | Amazon.com | see the current Amazon price on the page | | [Sea to Summit Lightweight 5L](https://saltprooflab.com/dry-storage/best-dry-bags#product-B0BVWG3DGM) | 70D nylon, PU coating | 10,000 mm hydrostatic head | 3 times (rated volume) | Sea to Summit North America | see the current Amazon price on the page | | [Osprey Ultralight 6L](https://saltprooflab.com/dry-storage/best-dry-bags#product-B0BKQGM42N) | Waterproof-coated fabric | IPX5, non-submersible | Not stated | Amazon.com | see the current Amazon price on the page | ## What "waterproof" means on a dry bag Nearly every listing here uses the word waterproof. What each maker backs it with differs, and the difference matters when a bag goes overboard. Sea to Summit is the most direct. Its [Big River product page](https://seatosummit.com/products/the-big-river-dry-bag) rates the body fabric at 10,000 mm hydrostatic head, then answers its own FAQ: avoid submersion "since water can seep through the roll-top closure of any dry bag." The fabric is rated; the closure is not. The company goes further on its [dry bag collection page](https://seatosummit.com/collections/dry-bags): roll-top bags from all brands "are not designed to be submerged." They keep gear dry inside a boat, but if the closure is held under deep enough or long enough, water gets in. That is the plain reading of every roll-top on this list. Osprey is the only maker here that quotes an IP code for a bag, and its listing adds "waterproof non-submersible" beside it. The second digit of an IP code rates protection against water under [IEC 60529](https://www.iec.ch/ip-ratings), on a scale from 0 to 9. Level 5 is water jets from a 6.3 mm nozzle; immersion starts at level 7 (up to 1 m for 30 minutes), per the test summary in [Wikipedia's IP code article](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IP_code). So IPX5 means a bag that shrugs off a hose, not one that survives a swim. ## Denier, PVC and TPU: reading the fabric line The "D" after a number is denier, a measure of yarn weight. The makers here use it to separate duty levels: Sea to Summit's rugged Big River is 420D, its packing-weight Lightweight bag is 70D, and Earth Pak and Pelican build from 500D PVC. Sea to Summit coats both of its bags differently. The Big River has a TPU laminate and a triple-coated base. The [Lightweight Dry Bag](https://seatosummit.com/products/lightweight-dry-bag) uses a polyurethane coating, and the maker rates that coating at the same 10,000 mm. A lighter fabric is not automatically leakier; it is thinner against a rough deck or a shell bank. Earth Pak describes its 500D PVC as thick and abrasion resistant. It does not publish a hydrostatic head, so there is no figure to set against Sea to Summit's. ## How to close a roll-top, by each maker's rules The closure is the part that lets water in, so it pays to close it the way the maker wrote. - **Earth Pak** says to roll the top down three to four times, buckle the ends into a handle, and leave some air in the bag, which is what keeps it floating, per its [product FAQ](https://earthpak.com/products/dry-bag). - **MARCHWAY** says to spread the bottom open so it fills with air, roll the top three to five times and buckle, per its listing. - **Sea to Summit** lists every volume "with closure rolled three times," so three rolls is the minimum for the size you paid for. Only Earth Pak and MARCHWAY tie the trapped air to floating. Neither Sea to Summit, Pelican nor Osprey claims its bag floats. ## Which bag for which boat On a center console or a skiff where the bag lives on deck, the **Sea to Summit Big River** is the one with a stated fabric rating, taped seams and a base made for scraping. The same bag comes in 35L and 65L versions. On a sit-on-top kayak, the **Earth Pak** or **MARCHWAY** floating bags suit a bag that could go over the side. Clip it to the kayak by its D-ring either way. A phone you want to use belongs in a pouch on a lanyard; our [waterproof phone case guide](https://saltprooflab.com/dry-storage/waterproof-phone-cases) covers the IP68 and IPX8 claims. The **Pelican ExoDry** makes sense for a bag you open all day, since you can see through the middle. The **Sea to Summit Lightweight** and **Osprey Ultralight** are organizers: put them inside a hatch, a cooler or a bigger bag, where a closure never sees standing water. ## Recalls We found no CPSC recalls of these six bags in the [CPSC recall database](https://www.cpsc.gov/Recalls) since 2023. One related recall: on March 9, 2023, YETI recalled about 1.9 million soft coolers and its SideKick Dry gear case because the magnet-lined closures can fail and detached magnets can be swallowed, per the [CPSC notice](https://www.cpsc.gov/Recalls/2023/YETI-Recalls-1-9-Million-Soft-Coolers-and-Gear-Cases-Due-to-Magnet-Ingestion-Hazard). YETI offers a refund or replacement. Other marine recalls are on our [recall page](https://saltprooflab.com/recalls). ## Frequently Asked Questions ### What does a 10,000 mm hydrostatic head mean? It is the height of a water column, in millimeters, that the fabric holds back before water gets through. Sea to Summit rates both its Big River and Lightweight bags at 10,000 mm, and in the same [FAQ](https://seatosummit.com/products/the-big-river-dry-bag) says the rating applies to the body of the bag, not to the closure. ### Why do dry bag volumes change with the roll? Because the rolled part is not usable space. Earth Pak notes on its [size chart](https://earthpak.com/products/dry-bag) that the volume of its bags varies with how many times the top is rolled down, which is why Sea to Summit quotes its sizes at three rolls. ### Will a full dry bag still float? Only if it has air in it and is not overloaded. MARCHWAY's listing says its bag floats visibly "when properly sealed and not overloaded," and Earth Pak's [FAQ](https://earthpak.com/products/dry-bag) says the air you leave in when rolling is what brings it back to the surface. A bag packed tight with metal gear may not. --- *SaltProofLab is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.* ## Sources - seatosummit.com: [Big River product page](https://seatosummit.com/products/the-big-river-dry-bag) - seatosummit.com: [Dry bags](https://seatosummit.com/collections/dry-bags) - International Electrotechnical Commission: [IEC 60529](https://www.iec.ch/ip-ratings) - en.wikipedia.org: [Wikipedia's IP code article](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IP_code) - seatosummit.com: [Lightweight Dry Bag](https://seatosummit.com/products/lightweight-dry-bag) - earthpak.com: [FAQ](https://earthpak.com/products/dry-bag) - U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission: [CPSC recall database](https://www.cpsc.gov/Recalls) - U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission: [CPSC notice](https://www.cpsc.gov/Recalls/2023/YETI-Recalls-1-9-Million-Soft-Coolers-and-Gear-Cases-Due-to-Magnet-Ingestion-Hazard) --- Last updated: 2026-09-29 Canonical URL: https://saltprooflab.com/dry-storage/best-dry-bags How to cite: "Best Dry Bags (2026): Roll-Top Closures, Denier and What 'Waterproof' Means on the Label", SaltProofLab, https://saltprooflab.com/dry-storage/best-dry-bags (checked 2026-09-29). Disclosure: as an Amazon Associate SaltProofLab earns from qualifying purchases. Safety information summarizes public guidance and is not medical advice.