Virgin Atlantic Personal Item Size (2026)

Virgin Atlantic calls the under-seat piece an under seat bag: max 40 × 30 × 15 cm, must fit underneath the seat in front of you. Official examples: handbag, laptop bag, or small rucksack. It is available in all cabins, in addition to your hand baggage allowance (1 × 10 kg, 23 × 36 × 56 cm on Economy Light through Premium). No kg limit for the under-seat bag is printed on that table. Inches on the official page read (16in × 12in × in), with the third figure missing, so use centimetres.

Pack power banks and spare batteries in hand baggage, keep them accessible (not in the overhead locker), and follow the max rules on the power-banks article. They cannot go in checked baggage.

---

Wheels and handles: not specified for the under-seat bag. It must fit under the seat when packed.

---

There is no paid upgrade that enlarges the under-seat bag. Extra money buys hold bags (or covers an over-allowance hand bag, £65 from March 23, 2026), not a bigger personal item.
If a hand bag has to go in the hold for size or weight, pack so essentials stay in this under-seat piece or your accessible hand baggage.

---

• This is not the 23×36×56, 10 kg trolley. This page covers the under-seat bag only.

• Light still includes the cabin trolley too; this page is only about the under-seat bag.

• All cabins get one under-seat bag, including Light.

• No published under-seat kg.

• The inches on the official table are incomplete, so go by 40 × 30 × 15 cm.

• Power banks go in hand baggage, kept accessible, never in the hold; not for charging other devices onboard.

• Soft bags expand. Measure packed.

• Codeshare and partner personal-item rules may differ.

• The US 18×14×8 size does not apply to Virgin Atlantic.

• Not published: Virgin Atlantic’s hand baggage article gives no exit-row or bulkhead rule and says only that your under seat bag must fit underneath the seat in front of you.

Traveler caution: If the overhead fills or a heavy trolley has to go in the hold, this is the bag that still boards under the seat. Put the passport and the power bank here. Confirm 40 × 30 × 15 cm on virginatlantic.com before you fly.

What is the Virgin Atlantic personal item (under-seat bag) size?
Official hand-baggage article: 1 under seat bag, max 40 × 30 × 15 cm, must fit under the seat in front of you. Examples: handbag, laptop bag, or small rucksack. No kg limit is published on that table. Inches on the page are incomplete; prefer centimetres.

Is the Virgin Atlantic personal item free on Economy Light?
Yes. Light includes the under-seat bag and the 10 kg hand baggage. It excludes checked bags, not the under-seat item.

Can I take a backpack as my Virgin Atlantic personal item?
Official examples include a small rucksack. A backpack is fine if packed it fits 40 × 30 × 15 cm under the seat. Virgin Atlantic does not publish a separate larger backpack exception on that table.

What’s the difference between the Virgin Atlantic personal item and the cabin (hand) bag?
Under-seat bag: goes under the seat, 40 × 30 × 15 cm. Hand baggage: 23 × 36 × 56 cm, 10 kg on Economy to Premium (overhead). Both are free on tickets covered by the hand-baggage article.

Where should I pack my power bank on Virgin Atlantic?
Spare batteries and power banks cannot go in checked baggage; pack in hand baggage, keep accessible (not in the overhead locker). Typical limits: up to 5 spare batteries under 100Wh, max 2 power banks; higher Wh needs approval. They must fit the onboard Fire Containment Bag 37 × 28 × 10 cm. Cannot charge other devices or plug into seat power onboard.

Does Light, Classic or Delight change the personal item size?
No. The under-seat table covers all cabins, 1 bag or item, 40 × 30 × 15 cm. Fare differences are about checked bags, not under-seat centimetres.

• Virgin Atlantic cabin bag
• Virgin Atlantic baggage fees

Fees, fare bundles, and size rules change. Confirm the latest limits and live bag prices on official Virgin Atlantic pages before you travel. BagRule is an independent publisher and is not affiliated with Virgin Atlantic.