Baggage & Airline Rules

Delta Carry-On Size, Plus Every Major Airline’s, Compared

Delta carry on size is 22 x 14 x 9 inches. Compare carry-on and personal item limits for every major US and international airline, in inches and cm.

Updated August 28, 2026 · 13 min read

Traveller wheeling a cabin-size carry-on suitcase that meets the 22 by 14 by 9 inch airline size limit

The short answer

Delta carry on size is 22 x 14 x 9 inches (56 x 35 x 23 cm), and no more than 45 linear inches including wheels and handles. Delta sets no weight limit on most routes. American, United, Alaska and JetBlue use the same 22 x 14 x 9 figure. Southwest is the outlier at 24 x 16 x 10 inches.

Most people look this up the night before a flight, with a bag already packed and a sizer they have never seen waiting at the gate. The numbers are not hard. They are just scattered across sixteen different airline pages.

This is all of them in one place, in inches and centimetres, checked against each carrier’s own published policy in August 2026. Where an airline does not publish a figure, that is stated rather than guessed.

Delta and most US carriers cap the carry-on at 22 x 14 x 9 inches and 45 linear inches combined.

What you need before you measure

Measuring correctly matters more than picking the right airline. Get this part wrong and the published limits are irrelevant.

A tape measure, not the dimensions printed on the luggage tag. Manufacturers routinely quote the internal capacity.
The bag as you will actually carry it, with wheels attached and the handle retracted.
Any expandable zip left closed. Alaska, American and Southwest all count the expanded depth.
Your fare class. Basic Economy on some carriers removes the overhead bag entirely.
Your booking reference, so you can check the operating carrier rather than the airline you booked with.

Delta carry-on size, and what 45 linear inches means

Delta publishes two limits and enforces both. The individual measurements may not exceed 22 x 14 x 9 inches (56 x 35 x 23 cm), and the combined length, width and height may not exceed 45 linear inches (114 cm).

Every passenger gets one carry-on bag and one personal item free of charge, on every fare. Delta does not publish a maximum size for the personal item, only that it must fit under the seat in front of you.

The linear rule is the one people miss. A bag can pass each individual measurement and still fail, because 22 plus 14 plus 9 is exactly 45 and leaves no margin at all.

That margin is where wheels and handles live. A case sold as 22 inches tall often measures 23 inches with its wheels, which puts it over on both tests at once.

Note: the carry-on luggage size on Delta includes wheels, handles and any external pocket. There is no allowance for a bag that is only slightly over.

Wheels and the retracted handle count. A case sold as 22 inches often measures 23 with its wheels.

Why 22 x 14 x 9 inches became the American default

The carry on luggage size 22x14x9 inches is not a regulation. It is a convention that spread because the overhead bins on the Boeing 737 and Airbus A320 families accept it, and those two aircraft dominate US domestic flying.

Delta, American, United, Alaska and JetBlue all landed on the same figure, which is why almost every case sold in the United States as “carry-on compliant” is built to it. The convention breaks down as soon as you leave the country.

Carry-on bag size for Southwest, and why it is bigger

The carry-on bag size for Southwest is 24 x 16 x 10 inches, which is meaningfully more generous than the 22 x 14 x 9 standard. Southwest states that wheels, handles and any attachments count toward those dimensions.

Southwest publishes no weight limit for carry-on bags and no published dimensions for the personal item, which must simply fit under the seat in front of you.

A bag bought to Southwest’s limit will not pass on Delta or United. The reverse is always safe, which is the practical reason to buy to 22 x 14 x 9 if you fly more than one airline.

Alaska Airlines carry-on size after the Hawaiian merger

The alaska airlines carry on size is 22 x 14 x 9 inches, matching the US standard. Alaska is explicit that wheels, handles and expandable pockets are included in the measurement.

Alaska and Hawaiian now publish a combined baggage policy under one set of pages, so the same figure applies across both brands. Alaska has also been fitting larger overhead bins, which changes how likely you are to be gate-checked but not what you may bring.

US carriers police dimensions, European carriers allow a slightly larger bag but cap the weight.

Spirit airlines carry on size, and why there is no longer an answer

Spirit Airlines ceased all flight operations on 2 May 2026 and moved into a court-supervised wind-down after its second Chapter 11 collapsed. The shutdown was reported by NPR, CNN and CNBC on the day it happened.

The practical consequence for this article is that there is no current spirit carry on size, because there are no Spirit flights. Its customer support pages now redirect to the restructuring site, so the old published dimensions cannot be verified from source and are deliberately not repeated here.

If you are searching for the spirit airlines carry on size because you were rebooked, the rules that apply are the operating carrier’s. Frontier and Allegiant absorbed much of Spirit’s network, and both charge for a carry-on bag rather than including it.

British Airways carry-on size and the European pattern

The british airways carry on size is 56 x 45 x 25 cm (22 x 18 x 10 in), plus a separate handbag or laptop bag of up to 40 x 30 x 15 cm. Each may weigh up to 23 kg, and the dimensions already include handles, pockets and wheels.

That cabin bag is wider and deeper than anything a US carrier allows, which is why a bag bought in London can fail a sizer in Atlanta. British Airways includes both bags on every fare and in every cabin.

Be careful with joint-business pages. British Airways also publishes Finnair’s 55 x 40 x 23 cm allowance on its own domain, and that figure is often quoted as BA’s own.

Every major US airline’s carry-on size

Airline	Carry-on (inches)	Carry-on (cm)	Personal item	Carry-on included
Delta	22 x 14 x 9	56 x 35 x 23	Under-seat, no published size	Yes, all fares
American	22 x 14 x 9	56 x 36 x 23	18 x 14 x 8 in	Yes, all fares
United	22 x 14 x 9	56 x 35 x 22	17 x 10 x 9 in	Not on Basic Economy
Alaska / Hawaiian	22 x 14 x 9	56 x 36 x 23	Under-seat, no published size	Yes, all fares
Southwest	24 x 16 x 10	61 x 41 x 25	Under-seat, no published size	Yes, all fares
JetBlue	22 x 14 x 9	56 x 36 x 23	17 x 13 x 8 in	Yes, including Blue Basic
Frontier	24 x 16 x 10	61 x 41 x 25	18 x 14 x 8 in	No, paid extra
Allegiant	22 x 16 x 10	56 x 41 x 25	18 x 14 x 8 in	No, paid extra

Centimetre figures are the airline’s own where published, and converted from inches where not. Southwest and Frontier share the most generous limit in the table, but only one of them includes the bag in the fare.

International carriers, where the weight limit bites

American carriers mostly ignore weight and police dimensions. Outside the United States that reverses, and a 7 kg limit will stop a bag that fits the sizer perfectly.

Airline	Carry-on (cm)	Carry-on (inches)	Weight limit	Personal item
British Airways	56 x 45 x 25	22 x 18 x 10	23 kg per bag	40 x 30 x 15 cm
Air Canada	55 x 40 x 23	21.5 x 15.5 x 9	None published	43 x 33 x 16 cm
Lufthansa	55 x 40 x 23	21.5 x 15.5 x 9	8 kg	40 x 30 x 15 cm
Emirates	55 x 38 x 22	21.5 x 15 x 8.5	7 kg, Economy	Included in allowance
Air New Zealand	55 x 40 x 23	21 x 16 x 9	7 kg, Economy	One small item
Qantas	56 x 36 x 23	22 x 14 x 9	14 kg total, domestic	Second bag permitted
Ryanair	55 x 40 x 20	21.5 x 15.5 x 8	10 kg	40 x 30 x 20 cm
easyJet	56 x 45 x 25	22 x 18 x 10	15 kg small bag	45 x 36 x 20 cm

Ryanair and easyJet only give you the overhead bag if you pay for it. Ryanair includes the 40 x 30 x 20 cm under-seat bag on every fare and sells the 55 x 40 x 20 cm bag as Priority. easyJet includes a 45 x 36 x 20 cm bag and sells the large one.

Air New Zealand also applies a 118 cm total linear limit, and allows 14 kg across two bags in premium cabins.

Outside the United States the weight limit stops more bags than the dimensions do.

What about the personal item?

The personal item is where most gate arguments start, because half the US carriers publish no dimensions for it at all. Delta, Alaska and Southwest only require that it fits under the seat in front of you.

Where a figure is published, it varies more than the carry-on does. American and Frontier allow 18 x 14 x 8 inches. JetBlue allows 17 x 13 x 8. United is tightest at 17 x 10 x 9.

Across Europe the personal item has quietly become the standard free allowance. Lufthansa’s Economy Basic fare on short and medium-haul routes includes only a 40 x 30 x 15 cm item, with the overhead bag sold separately.

Where a personal item size is published it varies by carrier; several US airlines publish none.

Do carry-on bags have a weight limit?

On US domestic flights, generally no. Delta, American, United, Alaska, Southwest and JetBlue publish no carry-on weight limit, on the reasoning that you must be able to lift the bag into the bin unaided.

Delta is the clearest about where that stops. Its policy names three airports where a weight limit does apply, and they catch travellers who never expected one.

Airport	Limit	Applies to
Singapore Changi (SIN)	7 kg (15 lb)	All Delta carry-on baggage
Beijing Capital (PEK)	10 kg	Domestic Chinese sectors, per CAAC
Shanghai Pudong (PVG)	10 kg (22 lb)	All Delta carry-on baggage

Low-cost carriers apply weight limits even in the US. Frontier caps both the carry-on and the personal item at 35 lb (16 kg).

What happens if your bag does not fit?

At the gate, an oversized bag is gate-checked. On an airline that includes the carry-on, that usually costs nothing but your bag goes into the hold and you collect it at the carousel.

On Frontier or Allegiant it costs real money, and the price is deliberately worst at the gate. Frontier declines to publish a fixed carry-on price at all, stating only that bag prices vary by travel date and by when you buy them.

Third-party trackers quote gate figures well above the booking price. No verified official number exists to reproduce here, so none is given. The reliable rule is that booking is the cheapest point and the gate is the most expensive.

Note: buy the bag online before you get to the airport. This is the single largest avoidable cost in the whole carry-on system.

Your bag was stopped at the gate

Ask which measurement failed. Depth is the usual culprit, and an expandable zip left open is the usual cause.
Empty the outer pockets. Removing a coat and a laptop can bring a soft-sided case back inside the sizer.
Move weight to the personal item if the airline polices weight rather than dimensions.
Check whether the fare included the bag. United Basic Economy and Lufthansa Economy Basic do not, and the gate agent is applying the fare rule rather than the size rule.
Pay at the gate rather than argue, then claim it back afterwards if you believe the fare included it.
Contact the airline directly with your boarding pass and the receipt. Gate decisions are reversible in writing far more often than in person.

Frontier and Allegiant price the carry-on lowest at booking and highest at the departure gate.

Frequently asked questions

Is delta airlines carry on size the same on international flights?

Yes. The delta airlines carry on size stays at 22 x 14 x 9 inches and 45 linear inches worldwide. What changes is weight. Delta applies a 7 kg limit at Singapore Changi and 10 kg at Shanghai Pudong and Beijing Capital, and none anywhere else.

Will a 22x14x9 bag fit on every airline?

It fits every major US carrier and most international ones, which is why it is the safest size to buy. It does not clear Ryanair’s 55 x 40 x 20 cm Priority bag on depth, and it exceeds the 40 x 30 x 15 cm personal item some European basic fares include.

Does the carry-on limit include wheels and handles?

Yes, on every airline listed here. Delta, Alaska, Southwest, JetBlue and British Airways all state it explicitly. This is the most common reason a bag that looks compliant fails at the sizer, because wheels typically add an inch to the stated height.

Can I still fly Spirit?

No. Spirit Airlines ceased operations on 2 May 2026 and is now selling its assets through the bankruptcy court. Refunds for tickets bought on a card are being handled through that process, and vouchers, credits and Free Spirit points are unlikely to be honoured.

Is there an EU rule making cabin bags free?

Not yet. The European Parliament backed a free 40 x 30 x 15 cm personal item plus a 100 cm, 7 kg cabin bag, but the Council rejected it and conciliation had produced no deal by mid-2026. Until it passes, each airline’s own policy applies.

What size liquids can I take in a carry-on?

The TSA limits you to containers of 3.4 ounces (100 ml) or less, all fitting inside one quart-sized bag per passenger. Formula, breast milk and juice are exempt and may exceed that in reasonable quantities. Anything larger belongs in checked baggage.

In short

The carry-on standard across US airlines is 22 x 14 x 9 inches, and Southwest and Frontier allow 24 x 16 x 10. European carriers trade a slightly larger bag for a weight limit. Buying to 22 x 14 x 9 clears almost everything, and measuring with the wheels on clears the rest.

Rules change without much notice, and this article was checked against each carrier’s published policy in August 2026. If something here no longer matches what you were told at the desk, tell us and we will correct it.

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