If you have used packing cubes/packing organisers - do they really help and of so how?

[RockingMyFiftiesNot]

Have seen these mentioned many times on MN but not quite able to see how they help beyond organising packing which you could do without them anyway? I'm interested to know if they help pack more efficiently ie take up less space in the suitcase?

I use them because I only travel with hand luggage and can fit so much more in my case if I use packing cubes - my last holiday was nearly a month and I managed to fit everything I needed in a cabin sized case and small rucksack.

They’re great for keeping everything organised while you’re travelling too and makes stuff easier to find without unpacking your whole pack.

Yes they are very useful. I use them whenever I'm packing a suitcase. Great for hand luggage too. You can roll your clothing instead of folding, to get more in.

I also store winter / summer items in them and put them on the top shelf of my wardrobe until the right season.

Got them from Millets I think it's called. Also bought some cheap ones from Amazon but they were very thin and flimsy. Not as good but still usable.

I use them for touring - when you're on the road for months but only staying at any one location for a few nights. So I need to pack lots of clothes, but don't unpack entirely every place I stay - so I can have a pack of underwear or socks or tops, just take the pack out of the suitcase and shove in a drawer. I appreciate this is rather specific to my line of work, though!

Yes, I love them.

Naturally, you could squash everything into your large case or bag, but then if you wanted to get something out it'd be an eruption! Plus much more chance of things accidentally getting screwed up as more gets shoved in.

With packing cubes you're just doing the same roll and squeeze in,but in manageable sections. I tend to organise them by outfit, and put three or four outfits in each cube. That way as my trip goes on I can take the cubes out one by one and the rest of my stuff remains neat and organized.

I also travel for work a lot and have to cover 3 days on hand luggage only. If I have to unpack in front of my colleagues at security I'm very happy that my pjs and pants are neatly organised and tucked away into cubes, instead of wrapped round my laptop and toiletries!

I'm a convert. Sort clothes into right cube and then easy unpacking when you arrive. Also seems to save a lot of space but I don't quite understand how!

Great for getting more stuff in, dealing with short stays in large suitcases. Also makes unpacking easier - one bag per person per case. Then if one case goes missing, everyone has some clean pants!
I prefer slightly bigger cubes, and uf they have some sort of compression (a second zip, or vacuum valves that can be rolled, so much the better)

I pack the each child's clothes in a large packing cube. Then when we arrive kids are given their own cube to unpack. I haven't managed to sort out all of the packing into cubes yet but I'll definitely try next time!

They’re great if you’re touring as you don’t have to sift through an entire suitcase. Also on other sorts of trips you can just put the cubes into drawers or on shelves. I wouldn’t be without them. I put say underwear in one, hiking stuff in another, decent tops in another etc.

I liked how organised it was but I found I couldn’t fit as much in the suitcase as I normally can

Great thanks, sounds like it's worth a go.