Urberg Packing Cube Review

Overview

Urberg’s Packing Cube is a plain rectangular zippered bag in 100 percent polyester, sold by the Swedish budget outdoor brand mainly in a four-piece set. It is aimed at people who want to keep clothes and small gear sorted in a backpack, duffel or suitcase without paying Osprey or Eagle Creek prices. The trade-off is weight: at 57.5 g for the Standard and 70 g for the Large, these cubes sit well above what a gram-counting thru-hiker would carry for the same job.

Key Specs

Spec	Detail
Weight	57.5–70 g depending on size
Volume	6 L (reference size)
Shape	Rectangular, box-style
Material	100% polyester
Closure	YKK zipper, no roll-top
Water treatment	Fluorocarbon-free DWR; not waterproof
Compression	None
Set contents (4-pack)	Two 6 L cubes (34 × 21 × 10 cm, 61 g each), one 4 L (29 × 16 × 10 cm, 54 g), one 1 L (18 × 10 × 8 cm, 37 g)
Made in	China

Performance

Organization. The job here is simple, and the design does it without fuss. A 6 L cube measuring 34 × 21 × 10 cm is roughly the size of a folded base layer, a pair of socks and a beanie stacked together, or a day’s worth of food. The four-piece set is graduated, so the 1 L cube can swallow a first-aid kit or charging cables while the two 6 L cubes split clothing into sleep and camp layers. Because the zipper runs around the lid, the bag opens wide enough to load a rolled puffy without wrestling it.

Zipper and fabric. Urberg specifies YKK zippers, the component most likely to fail on a cheap organizer, and that choice is the main sign of intent in an otherwise basic bag. The polyester body is treated with a fluorocarbon-free water-repellent finish, which sheds surface moisture. That is a light-shower buffer, not weather protection: the cubes are not waterproof, the seams are not sealed and there is no roll-top. Anything that has to stay dry still needs a liner or a proper dry bag, and on a wet trail a cube full of down will be damp by the end of the day if the pack leaks.

Compression. There is none. No second zipper, no straps. The cubes hold their shape, which keeps a pack interior tidy, but they will not squeeze a fleece to half its volume. Hikers who want to reduce pack bulk will do better with a compression sack or a single large stuff sack for sleeping insulation.

Weight in context. The 6 L cube’s 61 g in the set is the number to weigh against alternatives. A full four-cube set comes to 213 g, which is more than many ultralight shelters’ stakes, cord and stuff sacks combined. A zipper and boxy panels cost weight that a drawstring bag or a plain zip-top bag does not carry. Where Urberg earns its keep is price and durability: the set lists at €39 and is routinely discounted to under €30 in Outnorth’s European stores, which undercuts name-brand cube sets by a wide margin.

Handle and visibility. The solid-panel 4-pack has no mesh window, so contents are hidden until opened. Urberg also sells a Mesh version of the set, listed with a narrow top handle on each cube for carrying or hanging and 4–6 g heavier per cube. Anyone who wants to see what is inside before unzipping should look at that model instead.

Choosing a Version

The Standard weighs 57.5 g and the Large weighs 70 g, a gap of 12.5 g, or about 22 percent. That extra weight buys more interior room and little else, since the fabric, zipper and construction are the same across both.

• Standard: The better fit for a 30–45 L pack, where a cube has to share space with a sleeping bag and shelter. It handles socks, base layers, electronics or a day of food, and costs less weight per use.
• Large: Better for weekend trips with bulkier clothing, for travel days, or for keeping one big “clothes” cube in a 50 L-plus pack. Hikers who already carry more than they would like should skip it, since larger cubes invite overpacking.

Pros & Cons

Pros

• YKK zippers on a budget organizer
• Graduated four-piece set covers everything from cables to a full change of clothes
• Rectangular shape stacks cleanly in a pack
• Water-repellent finish is fluorocarbon-free
• Low price, with regular discounts in Outnorth’s European stores

Cons

• 57.5–70 g per cube is heavy by ultralight standards
• Not waterproof and not sealed, so it is no substitute for a dry bag
• No compression
• Solid panels hide contents (mesh version sold separately)
• Sold mostly as a set, which means paying for sizes a hiker may not use

Who Should Buy This

Section hikers, travelers and gear-organizing types who pack for trips of a few nights and want a tidy pack at a low price will find these cubes do the job. They also suit car campers, families sharing a duffel and anyone moving between a suitcase and a pack on the same trip. Thru-hikers and anyone chasing a sub-10-pound base weight should look elsewhere: a single dry bag, a zip-top bag or a few plastic stuff sacks cover the same ground at a fraction of the weight.

Verdict

Urberg’s Packing Cube is a competent, inexpensive organizer with better zippers than its price suggests. It is a poor fit for ultralight kits, where 60-odd grams per pouch is hard to justify, but a sound buy for travel and casual backpacking.