Bellroy Lite Sacoche Review

Bellroy’s Lite collection offers lightweight yet durable gear with the same thoughtful organization you’re used to from their other offerings. The line continues to expand with mainstays like the Lite Daypack and Lite Sling. We’re curious to see how the Lite Sacoche holds up in testing and whether it’s as capable as other gear in the lineup. Let’s dive in!

External Components

The primary pack material on the Sacoche is a lightweight ripstop fabric. We’ve seen this on other Lite products, and it continues to look nice while maintaining durability and water resistance. Seriously, there isn’t much to scoff at here.

There are three colorways to choose from at the time of writing. There’s Chalk, which is off-white, Shadow, or black, and the one we have on hand, Copper, which is a deep orange. The logo is subtle on all three and doesn’t shout at you unless you’re close up. Once you’re nearby, it looks so lovely; you won’t mind the shouting.

The exterior has two YKK AquaGuard zippers, which add to the primary pack material’s water resistance. It’s hard for water to sneak in without user error between the two. Make sure you close those zippers tight!

The zipper pulls are a paracord-like material with heat-shrunk plastic on the end. They stay out of your way, are easy to grab onto, and make opening and closing the AquaGuard zippers quick.

There’s just one small hard plastic adjuster on the strap to make it shorter or longer. Although we didn’t find a brand on it, this little guy has worked as expected. It is so tiny you can’t feel it on your body while you’re wearing it, which we dig.

The strap attaches to the bag with a small piece of paracord. It feels durable enough; however, it’s somewhat of a safety concern. It wouldn’t be hard for someone to cut the paracord and snatch your pack. However, we think it would be hard for someone to do that without you noticing.

The bottom of the pack has a gusset which enables it to expand when you need more space without looking floppy when not packed out. It looks sleek and stylish as long as you’re reasonable about packing it. If you overpack it, the materials won’t hold their shape, and it can look bulky. However, we’d argue that’s on you for overpacking it, not on the Sacoche. Do you really need that 10,000 mAh battery bank?

Fit Notes

The strap is skinny; however, at 3.5 liters, you likely won’t fill this thing heavy enough for it to be an issue. It can dig in at times, but not in a way that makes it so uncomfortable that you won’t want to wear it. Maybe if you only put 20,000 mAh battery banks inside, but even for you, that’s a little much.

There’s no back panel to speak of, so if you’re a fan of padding and aeration, you may want to look elsewhere. The materials are comfortable but don’t hold their shape well, so whatever you stow inside becomes the back panel. A smooth item like a phone, ereader, or book will work well. Oblong things like cameras or rocks from the beach, not so much.

You can wear the Sacoche in multiple ways. First, there’s the classic on-the-shoulder option, which makes it easy to take it off when you enter a restaurant, want to slide it into your daypack, or return to the hotel.

Next, you can wear it as a crossbody sling. You can wear it on your back, side, or front, which makes this carry style dynamic. All three are comfortable and offer quick access to your gear. Wearing the Sacoche like this adds security because the strap has to go over your head to be taken off.

All four methods are comfortable and have perks, but crossbody stands out, especially while traveling. Accessing your gear’s more secure and quicker if you wear it on your front.

Inside The Sacoche

The backside pocket is the larger of the two by a narrow margin and is a large, open area with two stretchy mesh pockets. Inside, you can fit large items, like a phone, wallet, or other everyday gear. Whatever you put inside this pocket becomes the back panel, so it’s essential to pack this area smartly; otherwise, you might be uncomfortable carrying it.

The front pocket is slightly smaller and has two liner pockets. These two are crafted from non-stretchy material, so you can’t fit as much inside. They’re still large enough for a phone or wallet. Smaller items slide in nicely here because of the mesh.

There’s a key clip here, which is usually long enough to be utilized without removing the keys. If you have a high lock, you might need to remove them. It’s a nice inclusion that doesn’t get in your way if you don’t want to use it.

Both thoughtfully-designed pockets are easy to pack. At 3.5 liters, we didn’t expect much from the organization. That’s typically a size range that we expect to dump things we’d usually have in our pockets to make our pants more comfortable or to make more room. However, the segmentation on the Lite Sacoche is intuitive, and the gusset on the bottom of the bag ensures it looks stylish no matter how much you’ve stowed inside.

If you like to jam as much gear inside your bags as possible, there might be better options for you. It carries the gear fine, but it looks overstuffed from the exterior.

Honestly, how many 20,000 mAh battery banks do you think we could fit in here?