6 Best Travel Packing Cubes for RV Dwellers That Maximize Every Inch
RV life demands smart storage. We review the 6 best packing cubes designed to organize your gear and maximize every inch of your compact living space.
You know the feeling: kneeling on the floor, arm-deep in a cavernous RV cabinet, rummaging past a tangle of shirts and socks just to find that one specific pair of hiking pants. This frustrating ritual is a daily reality for too many RV dwellers who treat their cabinets like bottomless pits. But what if you could turn that chaos into a clean, modular system where everything has a place?
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Why Packing Cubes Are an RV Storage Game-Changer
Organize your luggage and maximize space with these durable compression packing cubes. Made with premium 320D fabric and featuring a double zipper design, they keep clothes neat, separated, and easily accessible.
Packing cubes are often marketed for suitcase travel, but their true potential is unlocked in a small, permanent living space like an RV. They transform your oddly shaped, inefficient cabinets into a system of removable drawers. Instead of digging, you simply pull out the "T-shirt" cube or the "socks" cube, get what you need, and slide it back in.
This modularity is the key. It fundamentally changes how you interact with your space, reducing the daily friction of finding and putting away your belongings. You’re no longer fighting your storage; you’re working with it. This system also makes it incredibly easy to move items around—if you need to access a water pump behind your clothes cabinet, you just pull out three or four cubes instead of a mountain of loose clothing.
Ultimately, packing cubes impose order on chaos. They allow you to categorize your life into manageable blocks, whether it’s for clothing, electronics, or even dry goods in the pantry. In a space where a messy cabinet can make the whole vehicle feel cluttered, this level of organization isn’t a luxury; it’s essential for sanity on the road.
Eagle Creek Pack-It Isolate: Rugged Durability
Organize your luggage with the Eagle Creek Pack-It Isolate Cube Set. These lightweight cubes feature a translucent fabric for easy identification and an angled zipper for flexible packing.
When your packing cubes are used daily, not just for an annual vacation, durability becomes non-negotiable. The Eagle Creek Pack-It Isolate series is built for this kind of rigorous use. Made from a lightweight but tough ripstop poly, these cubes can handle being pulled, stuffed, and shoved into tight corners day after day without complaint.
What sets them apart for RV life is the Protx2® antimicrobial treatment. Let’s be honest, RVs can get damp and musty, especially in certain climates or if a rig is closed up for a few days. This treatment actively fights odor-causing bacteria, making these cubes perfect for storing workout clothes, damp towels, or hiking gear in a poorly ventilated space. You’re not just organizing; you’re actively managing odor and mildew.
The tradeoff here is the lack of compression. These cubes organize, but they don’t shrink your items. However, for full-timers who prioritize longevity and hygiene over squeezing in one extra shirt, the Isolate series is a bulletproof choice. They are workhorses designed for the long haul.
Peak Design Packing Cubes: Ultimate Compression
Pack efficiently with the Peak Design Packing Cube. Quickly access items via the tear-away opening or expand/compress space with the convenient zipper.
If your primary goal is to fit the absolute maximum amount of clothing into a minimal amount of space, Peak Design is in a class of its own. These aren’t your average compression cubes. They feature a unique tear-away main zipper for fast access and a secondary compression zipper on a separate track that provides significant, even pressure.
Imagine taking a bulky down jacket that normally fills half of a shallow overhead bin. With the Peak Design cube, you can compress it down to a dense, manageable brick that takes up a fraction of the space, leaving room for two more sweaters. This is game-changing for small RVs with limited closet depth, like many Class B camper vans or vintage trailers.
Of course, this level of engineering and performance comes at a premium price. These cubes are an investment, not an impulse buy. They also feature a self-healing outer fabric that adds to their longevity. For the RVer who needs to maximize every single cubic inch and is willing to pay for the best tool for the job, there is no substitute.
eBags Classic Cubes: Best Value Organization
For those just starting with cubes or needing to organize a lot of gear on a budget, the eBags Classic series is the undisputed champion of value. They are simple, well-made, and have been a traveler’s staple for years for good reason. Their defining feature is the full mesh top, which lets you see exactly what’s inside without unzipping a single thing.
Think of these less as space-savers and more as soft-sided drawers. They are perfect for items that don’t compress well, like jeans, first-aid supplies, or kitchen towels. You can color-code them—blue for tops, gray for bottoms, red for emergency gear—creating an intuitive system that anyone in the family can understand at a glance.
They offer no compression, and the fabric isn’t as technical as more expensive options. But for pure, simple, and affordable organization, they are unbeatable. If you have a large pantry or deep wardrobe in a Class A or fifth wheel, a dozen of these can bring complete order for less than the price of two premium compression cubes.
Gonex Compression Set: Versatile Sizing Options
Maximize luggage space with this 4-piece expandable compression packing cube set. Durable rip-stop nylon and double zippers efficiently compress clothes, while the quick-grab handle ensures easy access. Perfect for any trip or daily organization.
The Gonex Compression Set hits the sweet spot between value and performance. Unlike brands that sell cubes individually, Gonex typically bundles them in sets with a wide variety of sizes. This is incredibly useful in an RV, where you’re trying to fill a collection of non-standard spaces—a small gap beside the water heater, a narrow cabinet above the dinette, or a deep but short storage bay.
These cubes use the standard two-zipper system for compression: one to close the cube, and a second to cinch it down. It’s effective at reducing the volume of soft goods like shirts, underwear, and jackets. The compression isn’t quite as powerful as Peak Design’s, and you have to be a bit careful not to snag the fabric in the zipper, but the space savings are significant for the price.
This is the ideal "all-rounder" system. You get a mix of sizes to experiment with, you get functional compression, and the cost is very approachable. It’s the perfect solution for the RVer who wants to shrink down their clothing without shrinking their wallet.
Osprey Ultralight Cubes: For the Minimalist RVer
Organize your travel with this Osprey Ultralight Packing Cube Set. Featuring a J-zip opening for easy access and constructed with bluesign approved, recycled fabrics, these cubes optimize your packing for any adventure.
In an RV, weight matters. Every pound you add is a pound you have to haul up a mountain pass, impacting fuel economy and staying within your Gross Vehicle Weight Rating (GVWR). The Osprey Ultralight cubes are made for the minimalist who counts every ounce. They are tissue-thin and weigh next to nothing.
These cubes are all about organization without the penalty of added weight or bulk. The slick ripstop nylon material makes them easy to slide in and out of a packed cabinet or backpack. They are perfect for organizing items for a day hike, separating small electronics, or keeping your sock drawer from exploding without adding any noticeable heft.
The primary tradeoff is structure and durability. These are not rigid cubes; they are gossamer-light bags that take the shape of their contents. They won’t stand up to the same abuse as an Eagle Creek cube, but that’s not their purpose. For the Class B van dweller or truck camper owner where space and weight are the ultimate constraints, these are an essential tool.
Thule Compression Cube: Smart Laundry Separation
Maximize your carry-on space with this Thule Compression Cube Set. The durable zipper removes excess air from clothing, while the semitransparent fabric lets you easily identify contents. Perfect for organizing essentials and fitting neatly into most carry-on luggage.
Managing dirty laundry is a constant challenge in an RV. It usually ends up in a plastic bag or a bulky hamper that eats up valuable floor space. The Thule Compression Cube offers an elegant and brilliantly simple solution: a floating internal divider.
Here’s how it works: you start with all your clean clothes on one side of the divider. As you wear an item, you move it to the other side. The TPU-lined divider is water-resistant and odor-proof, keeping grime and smells contained. The best part? The divider moves, so as the dirty side fills up, the clean side shrinks. You’re using the exact same space for both.
This single cube can replace an entire laundry system for a solo traveler or a couple on a shorter trip. It keeps your main clothing cabinet organized and clean, and when it’s full, you know it’s time to find a laundromat. It is a fantastic example of a product that solves a specific, nagging problem of small-space living.
Choosing the Right Cube System for Your RV Layout
There is no single "best" packing cube; the right one is the one that fits your specific RV and your specific needs. Before you buy anything, grab a tape measure and get the dimensions of the cabinets, drawers, and bays you want to organize. Nothing is more frustrating than buying a set of large cubes only to find they’re two inches too tall for your overheads.
Develop a strategy based on your storage type.
- For deep, awkward cabinets: Use structured, non-compression cubes like eBags Classics. Line them up vertically or horizontally so you can slide one out like a drawer without disturbing the others.
- For shallow overhead bins: This is where Peak Design or Gonex compression cubes shine. They let you shrink bulky items to fit in spaces that would otherwise be unusable for clothing.
- For under-bed or basement storage: Durability is key. Use Eagle Creek cubes for seasonal gear or tools that you don’t access often but need to keep protected.
The most effective RV packing systems are rarely from a single brand. The reality of RV life is that you need different tools for different jobs. You might use a Thule cube for your main clothing, a few Osprey ultralights for your hiking pack, and a set of eBags for your pantry.
Don’t be afraid to mix and match. Start with a small, versatile set to see what works for your layout and your lifestyle. A well-planned cube system is a small investment that pays huge dividends in daily convenience and peace of mind on the road.
Ultimately, packing cubes are about more than just tidy closets; they are about designing a more functional and less stressful life in your mobile home. By turning chaotic voids into intentional, modular storage, you reclaim control over your space. You spend less time searching and more time enjoying the freedom that RV life is all about.
