Panel loader at a glance
- Opens
- Three sides, like a suitcase
- Weight cost
- The zip
- Common on
- Travel and day packs
The problem with a top loader
A top loader is a bucket. Whatever went in first is at the bottom, and reaching it means taking everything else out, which is fine on a backpacking trip where you unpack at camp anyway and maddening on a day hike where you want the sandwich you packed at 6am.
How a panel loader differs
A panel loader unzips around three sides and lays open flat. Everything is visible at once, nothing has to be excavated, and packing is more like packing a suitcase than filling a sack. Almost every day pack under 35 liters works this way, and it's the right choice at that size.
Why the zip is the catch
The zip is the catch. It's the heaviest single component on the pack, it's the most likely thing to fail, and a long zip is a long line for water to find its way through. That's why bigger backpacking packs still tend towards top loading with a drawcord and a lid, and why hybrid designs that add a side or bottom zip to a top loader have become common.
What this means when you're choosing
- Zip quality and size, since this is the component that fails first
- Whether a top loader has a secondary zip for reaching the bottom
- Storm flaps over the zip line if you hike anywhere wet
Panel loader vs Top loader
| Panel loader | Top loader | |
|---|---|---|
| Reaching things | Everything at once, like a suitcase | Whatever is on top, and unpack for the rest |
| Weight | Heavier, because of the zip | Lighter, a drawcord and a lid |
| Failure mode | The zip, which usually ends the trip | A drawcord, which you can field-repair |
| Overfilling | Strains the zip | Extension collar takes the extra |
Which to pick: Panel for travel and day use where access matters. Top loading for multi-day backpacking, where weight and a failure you can fix in the field matter more.
The common mistake
Overfilling one
A stuffed panel loader puts the whole load onto a zip that was never a structural component. Zips fail under lateral strain, usually at the worst moment, and a blown main zip ends a trip in a way a torn drawcord does not.
Common questions
Which is better, panel loading or top loading?
Panel loading for day hikes, top loading for multi-day carries. The dividing line is roughly whether you're going into the pack repeatedly through the day or unpacking it once at camp.
Are panel loaders less waterproof?
Slightly, yes. A zip is a seam and water finds seams, so a long front zip is more vulnerable than a rolled or drawcorded top. A pack liner solves it either way and weighs almost nothing.