Many laptop backpacks are designed around an average male body. You only notice once you wear one: the bottom sits on your backside, the straps are so far apart they rub against your neck, and after half an hour on the bike the whole weight pulls backwards. A good women's laptop backpack is not necessarily smaller or pink. It simply fits better.
The short answer: look at your laptop first and the bag second. The laptop sleeve should match your laptop's size, not be much bigger. The backpack should not be longer than your back, the straps need to adjust properly, and you need to be honest about weight. Leather looks smart and lasts, but it weighs more than nylon.
Women's laptop backpack: which size fits?
A laptop size in inches is the diagonal of the screen, not the width of the device. Two 14 inch laptops can differ by a few centimetres depending on the bezels and casing. So measure your own laptop before you start looking.
As a guide:
| Screen size | Laptop outer size, roughly | Typical for |
|---|---|---|
| 13 to 13.3 inch | 30 x 21 cm | Compact laptops, many ultrabooks |
| 14 inch | 31 to 32 x 22 cm | Common work laptop |
| 15.6 inch | 36 x 24 cm | Standard office laptop |
| 16 inch | 35 to 36 x 25 cm | Larger models for photo and video |
A laptop sleeve that is far too big sounds handy but is not. The laptop slides around, the corners take knocks and the bag hangs crooked. Better a sleeve that fits snugly. More on choosing the right size in laptop bag 13, 15 or 17 inch.
Back length: the measurement people forget
This is where many backpacks go wrong. In online shops, a "women's laptop backpack" label sometimes means nothing more than a different colour or a floral lining. What really matters is the length of the back panel. A backpack should sit between your shoulder blades and your waist. If the bottom hangs down to your hips or lower, the weight pulls you backwards and you lean forward to compensate. You feel that in your lower back and neck at the end of the day.
A simple test: tighten the straps so the top of the backpack sits just below your shoulders. Where does the bottom end up? If it rests on your backside, the backpack is too long for your back. If you are shorter than average, a compact backpack with a lower back panel often fits better, even if that means going down a laptop size.
Shoulder width plays a part too. If the straps are too far apart, they slide off the outside of your shoulders. Too close to your neck and they rub. Adjustable straps you can pull tight already help a lot.
An honest look at weight
A laptop easily weighs between 1.2 and 2 kilos. Add a charger, phone, keys, a bottle of water and your lunch. Before you know it you are carrying four or five kilos, and then the weight of the bag itself matters too.
A leather backpack is heavier than a nylon or polyester one. That is simply true, and there is no point glossing over it. What you get in return: structure, a bag that stands up on its own and protects the laptop better, and a material that still looks good years later. If you walk long distances every day with a full bag, a lightweight technical backpack will serve you better. If you mostly go from home to the train or the office, you will notice the difference in weight far less.
You also carry a backpack on both shoulders, which spreads the weight much better than a bag on one side. In backpack or shoulder bag for your laptop you can read how big that difference is for your back and neck.
Leather, nylon or canvas?
Assess the material description together with the finish and construction. The words “genuine leather”, smell, weight or a photograph alone do not establish a reliable quality ranking. Ask for more product information when a detail is unclear.
If you cycle through the rain every day, look more closely. Vegetable-tanned leather can handle a shower if you let it dry slowly afterwards, but a bag that gets soaked daily needs more maintenance. Then a rain cover or a different material is an honest alternative.
Three leather laptop backpacks side by side
At Beocca, three backpacks fit this question. They differ mainly in size and back length.
| Model | Laptop up to | Size (w x h x d) | Capacity | Good for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lilith | 13 inch | 35 x 40 x 12 cm | 20 litres | Small laptop, but room for A4 and extras |
| Cleo | 14 inch | 32 x 25 x 11 cm | 20 litres | Compact, low back panel, suits a shorter back |
| Mavis | 15.6 inch | 35 x 45 x 10 cm | 23 litres | Larger laptop, A4 and a full working day |
The Cleo backpack is clearly the shortest at 25 cm high. That makes it comfortable if you are not very tall or want a bag that does not hang down to your hips. It comes in smooth black and black suede. The Mavis backpack is considerably taller at 45 cm and takes a 15.6 inch laptop. On a longer back it sits well, on a short back it may hang lower than you would like. So try it on. Mavis comes in cognac, black and green.
Lilith sits in between: not the smallest bag, but made for a 13 inch laptop. That makes sense if your laptop is small and you carry plenty of other things.
Where it usually goes wrong
The most common mistake with a women's laptop backpack (and with any laptop backpack, really) is choosing on laptop size alone. A backpack that just fits your 15.6 inch laptop but hangs down to your backside is not one you will enjoy wearing. A smaller laptop or a different bag shape might be the smarter choice. If you are torn between shapes, have a look at which backpack suits you.
The second mistake: carrying too much because it fits. A 23 litre backpack invites you to fill it. But you feel every extra kilo on the way home. If you are a student carrying books as well as a laptop, also read leather backpacks for students, because weight matters even more there.
And always try a backpack on with your own laptop inside, or something of similar weight. Almost any backpack feels fine when it is empty.
