Most laptop bags are bought on the strength of a single number: the inch figure. “Fits up to 15 inches” sounds like a guarantee, but it is only a rough class. Inches measure the screen diagonal, not the casing, and two 14-inch devices can differ by two centimetres in width. With leather there is a second mistake on top: a beautiful bag is confused with a safe one. Thick buffalo leather looks robust, but a laptop doesn't break on the leather, it breaks on the edge that hits the floor when the bag is set down.
This guide goes through the questions in the order they come up when buying: how do you measure your device properly? Which shape suits your journey — shoulder bag, briefcase, backpack or sleeve without handles? What does padding do, what does leather weigh, which compartments do you need, what sets women's and men's models apart, the commute and the business trip? At the end: how to care for leather, when leather is the wrong choice — and a comparison table with models from our range.
Inches are a screen diagonal: how to measure your laptop properly
The inch figure on a bag only tells you roughly which class of device the compartment is designed for. Whether your model fits is decided by three numbers you take yourself: width, depth and height of the closed casing.
Guide values for 13, 14, 15 and 16 inches
As a guide: a 13-inch device measures about 30 × 21 cm, a 14-inch device about 31 to 32 × 22 cm, a 15- or 15.6-inch device about 34 to 36 × 24 cm, a 16-inch device about 36 × 25 cm. The narrower the screen bezel, the smaller the casing for the same diagonal — which is why the classes overlap, and a modern 16-inch device can be smaller than an older 15.6-inch one. That is exactly why you compare centimetres, not inches.
Allow for sleeve and power adapter
If you carry your device in a neoprene or felt sleeve, add a centimetre on each side. The power adapter is the second space hog: bulky, stiff cable, and if in doubt it ends up exactly where it doesn't belong — underneath the laptop. Allow two to three centimetres of spare width and a separate compartment for the adapter.
Outside dimensions are not inside dimensions
The dimensions on a product page are almost always outside dimensions. On a leather bag you lose leather, lining, seams and, in a padded compartment, the padding on every side. As a rule of thumb: outside width minus four centimetres gives you the width you can rely on for the laptop compartment. Our Large Laptop Bag Daniel measures 41 × 32 × 10 cm on the outside and, according to its product page, is designed for devices up to 16 inches. The Briefcase Tom measures 36 × 27.5 × 5 cm on the outside; there is no inch figure for it, and by the rule of thumb it is the right choice for 13- and 14-inch devices — at 15 inches you should measure before you order.
Shoulder bag, briefcase, backpack or sleeve: which shape suits which journey
The shape decides more about your everyday life than the material. The four shapes differ in where the weight sits, how quickly you get at the device and how the bag comes across in a meeting.
The shoulder bag
The classic leather laptop bag: flap-over or zip, a long adjustable strap, usually a handle as well. It hangs from one shoulder, can be opened while walking and looks just as right in the office as in the café. Its weakness is the weight on one side — irrelevant for ten minutes, not any more for twice thirty minutes a day. The Laptop Bag Ben is our best-selling model of this shape: vintage buffalo leather, reinforced seams, 41 × 30 × 11 cm on the outside, according to its product page for devices up to 15 inches.
The briefcase
The briefcase is stiffer, slimmer and stands up on its own. It is carried by the handle, often with a detachable shoulder strap for the journey, and has its place in the client meeting: it stands next to the chair without tipping over, and the device sits upright rather than flat. The price for that is the hand it occupies. The Briefcase Jordan is our large model of this shape, with a padded laptop compartment, two front pockets, a back pocket and a detachable strap; the Briefcase Tom is the slim version with a carry handle for days when laptop, folder and notebook are enough.
The backpack
Two straps spread the load across both shoulders, and both hands stay free. For cyclists and for anyone who walks for more than twenty minutes a day, the backpack is the only way of carrying that doesn't make itself felt in the neck over time. Its drawback: in a meeting in a suit it is still considered less formal. The Classic Backpack Pako in buffalo leather has padded shoulder straps and a main compartment that, according to its product page, is designed for laptop, water bottle and notebook; with an outside width of 32 cm a 13- or 14-inch device fits well, at 15 inches it gets tight. You will find more models among the leather backpacks.
The sleeve without handles
A search for “laptop bag without handles” usually means a sleeve or case: a flat cover that encloses the device and disappears into another bag. It is the right choice if you already own a bag and only want to protect the laptop inside it, and the wrong one if the power adapter, documents and mouse have to come too — then you end up carrying two things. We don't stock plain sleeves, so there is no recommendation for one here.
Padding and protection: what really breaks a laptop
A laptop rarely dies from a big fall and often from small everyday knocks: the bag is set down, the bottom edge of the device hits the floor, several times a day. The second risk is pressure — a power adapter or bunch of keys pressed against the lid in the main compartment. Only then comes the knock from the side.
What helps against all three is not a soft lining but a dedicated padded compartment, in which the device doesn't sit against the outer wall and nothing slips in between. The base is decisive: a compartment that doesn't reach all the way to the bottom, or that is padded at the bottom, catches the edge that hits the floor. Check this on every bag you have in your hands — run a finger down the inside to the bottom.
In the product data for our models this is documented differently from model to model, and we state it as it stands there: the Large Laptop Bag Daniel has a padded laptop compartment, as does the Briefcase Jordan. For the Laptop Bag Ben and the Briefcase Tom nothing is stated about padding — both are described as leather bags with a well-thought-out layout, which is something different. If you want one of these models and travel a lot, put a thin sleeve in between.
Weight and compartments: what has to come along besides the laptop
Here lies the most honest disadvantage of leather: it is heavy. A bag made of sturdy buffalo leather weighs noticeably more empty than a textile bag of the same size, and on top of that come laptop, power adapter, mouse, bottle and documents. Our product pages don't state weights, so there is no figure here — but the direction is clear. If you are already at the limit of what your shoulder should carry every day, choose the smaller model or the backpack, not the biggest bag.
With compartments it is not the number that counts but the separation: one compartment for the device, one for the power adapter so that it doesn't lie underneath the laptop, a slip pocket on the outside for phone and ticket, a zip pocket for keys and small items. Everything that lies in an undivided main compartment ends up at the bottom after a day — and at the bottom lies the laptop. The Large Laptop Bag Daniel is divided along these lines: padded laptop compartment, separate compartments for charger, notebook and mouse, zip and slip pockets on the outside. If you don't need that much division, you are better served by the slim Briefcase Tom than by a half-empty large bag.
Women and men: what really differs
Searches for “women's leather laptop bag” and “men's leather laptop bag” often land on the same models, and rightly so: a 14-inch device is the same size for both. The differences lie elsewhere.
Strap and height. A strap that only adjusts between two long positions hangs at the back of the knees on smaller people. Check the adjustment range, not the looks.
What else has to come along. If you carry a wallet, cosmetics and an umbrella alongside the laptop, you want a bag that opens from the top and doesn't just have one flat compartment. The Shopper Ratschkatl is built for that: 36 × 37 × 11 cm on the outside, padded compartment for devices up to 15 inches, shoulder strap and handles, but with the room of an everyday bag. If you want a pure laptop bag in a plain shape, take the Briefcase Tom or the Laptop Bag Ben — our range isn't sorted by gender but by size.
The look. Here taste decides, not the label. The whole range for men is under men's leather bags; the laptop models themselves are grouped under leather laptop bags — regardless of who carries them.
Commuting or travelling: two different sets of demands
The daily journey to the office and the two-day business trip make opposite demands, and there is no bag that does both perfectly.
Commuting means: the same thing every day, often standing, with quick access to ticket, phone and headphones. The bag can be light, because it only carries what is needed daily. What matters is an outside pocket you can open with one hand, a strap that doesn't slip off the shoulder, and a shape that doesn't bulk out in a crowd. Here the slim briefcase and the shoulder bag have the advantage — or the backpack for a long journey.
Travelling means: laptop, power adapter, documents, chargers, headphones, perhaps a book, and all of it through security and under the seat in front. Here what counts is volume with order, a compartment the laptop comes out of without unpacking everything, and a handle that takes the full weight. The Briefcase Jordan at 46 × 31 × 16 cm and the Large Laptop Bag Daniel are built for that; the small briefcase would be overstuffed after the first day.
If you do both regularly, you are better off with two bags than with one compromise: a slim one for everyday use, a large one for the road.
Care: leather, zip and strap
A leather laptop bag stands on wet floors, rubs against your coat and carries several kilos every day. Care stays manageable if you do it regularly.
The leather. Wipe off dust and splashes now and then with a dry or slightly damp cloth. Two or three times a year, rub in a thin layer of leather grease or leather balm, let it soak in, wipe off the excess. Less is more: too much grease makes buffalo leather dark and blotchy. Never put wet leather on the radiator; let it dry at room temperature, stuffed with paper. The full instructions are in the guide Leather care: cleaning, protection and durability; they apply to bags just the same. Which type of leather ages how, and why buffalo leather reacts differently from smooth cowhide, is explained in the article Types of leather compared.
The zip. It is the first thing to give up on a laptop bag, because it is moved several times a day, often one-handed and at an angle. Pull it straight rather than round the corner, keep it free of fluff, and if it becomes stiff, a touch of candle wax on the teeth helps — not oil, which soaks into the leather.
The strap. It carries the entire weight on two seams or carabiners. If the leather ripples there or a rivet has play, that is the moment to have it fixed — not the one when the bag falls onto the platform.
When leather is the wrong choice
A guide is only worth as much as the places where it advises against. Three cases in which a leather laptop bag is not the best solution.
Constant rain every day. Leather can take a shower; it can't take twenty minutes of cycling in the rain five times a week. Then it gets blotchy, needs care, and the laptop still isn't dry. If that is your commute, take a water-repellent material and put the device in a sleeve as well. The PET bag made of recycled PET with buffalo leather is, according to its product page, water-repellent, but at 30 × 29 × 13 cm on the outside it is only suitable for compact devices. For larger laptops the Business Bag Gecko and the Business Bag BLACK — textile with leather details, padded compartments, up to 15 inches — are the alternatives, even if they aren't pure leather bags.
Every gram counts. If you walk long distances, change trains a lot or depend on a light shoulder, take an honest look at the weight of buffalo leather. A textile bag of the same size is considerably lighter, and a backpack spreads the load better than any shoulder bag.
The laptop stays in the building. If you only move between desk and meeting room, you don't need a bag but a sleeve. A leather bag that spends 95 percent of its time under the desk is a waste of good leather.
Conversely, leather is the right choice if the bag travels between two places several times a week, needs to look good in a meeting, carries more than just the device and is allowed to last for years. Over the years leather develops a patina that textile never does.
Conclusion
Measure your device in centimetres, add sleeve and power adapter, and compare with the bag's outside dimensions minus about four centimetres — not with the inch figure. Choose the shape by your journey: shoulder bag for the office and short distances, briefcase for meetings, backpack for long journeys and cycling, sleeve only if another bag is already there. Look for a dedicated padded compartment with a protected base, a separate compartment for the power adapter and a strap that suits your height. If you commute in constant rain or count every gram, you are better off with textile or a backpack; if you want a bag for years, with leather. The table above puts our models side by side, with the Large Laptop Bag Daniel and its padded compartment up to 16 inches at the front. Every leather model is handmade, as befits a family business since 1947.