Lightweight vs Traditional Hiking Backpacks: A Comparison Guide

Ultralight backpacking is more of a lifestyle choice than a simple set of gear purchases. Even if you buy the fanciest of fancy dyneema/titanium/gossamer woven ultralight backpack in the world—the most meaningful way to lower your pack weight is from making gear sacrifices. For ultralight hikers, these sacrifices look like leaving a stove behind and letting cold ramen marinate in your pack for hours before eating it (called cold soaking) or choosing a tarp/hiking pole system over a full on tent. The benefits from those sacrifices coupled with ultra lightweight backpacking gear are plentiful, though.

In this article, I am going to break down the main differences between an ultralight backpack and heavier traditional backpacks, help you decide if you need one, and deliver buying suggestions. I am going to base this advice on the more than two decades I have been backpacking and 25 years I have spent as a guide, outdoor industry retail employee, and professional gear tester.

Differences between lightweight multi-day backpacks and regular backpacks

I mean, the obvious answer to this question is simple: the weight of these multi day backpacks is different—butt the differences lie within how ultralight packs shave off the ounces (or pounds) in their construction. Ultralight packs use much lighter materials which have a tendency to be a little less durable than their heavier counterparts. Lightweight and ultralight packs usually have way fewer features (all those external pockets, every compression strap, and zipper adds grams!) and usually have one main compartment to place all of your gear in. Heavier duty packs are usually built from more robust materials and can handle heavy loads more comfortably with padded shoulder straps and hip belts. They also tend to have more general comfort features (or doohickies as I like to call them) like a frame that allows your hips to rotate with each step or an uber intricate mesh back that mitigates back sweat.

Source: https://www.fieldmag.com/articles/lightweight-vs-traditional-hiking-backpacks