Panniers put the load on your bike instead of your back. It’s more comfortable and you’ll sweat less. They go on and off the bike quicker than bike packing bags and they carry more – up to around 50 litres for a pair of rear panniers. The only caveat is that your bike must have a rear rack, plus enough heel clearance to prevent you from kicking the panniers when pedalling. 

For most commuters, a single large pannier or a couple of small ‘front’ panniers (which will also fit a rear rack) should have ample capacity. You might even manage with a single small pannier. No bike with a single pannier is as well balanced as one with a pair but it’s nothing to worry about unless the single pannier is especially heavy. 

Panniers should ideally be waterproof for year-round use in the UK. Rain covers work pretty well but an intrinsically rainproof bag is more effective and easier to live with. Some waterproof panniers lack pockets or internal dividers, in which case you might need a laptop sleeve, tool roll, and other containers to keep your packed lunch out of USB ports or grimy tools off your work shirt. Assigning one small pannier to ‘bike stuff’ and the other to ‘work stuff’ is another option. 

Most pannier hooks fit rack rails up to 12mm or 13mm in diameter; a few fit rails up to 16mm. All good ones will have a security catch of some kind to stop the bag from leaping off the rack over a bump, as well as a lower cleat or hook to stabilise the bag. Adjustable position hooks are useful to fine-tune the pannier’s fore-aft location on the rack. 

The prices for the panniers below are RRP. Don’t forget to factor in your Cyclescheme savings. 

B’Twin Elops 500 Waterproof Pannier Rack Bike Bag 20L £24.99 each 

You don’t have to spend a lot of money to get a weatherproof pannier, as this one from the French sports superstore Decathlon shows. The fabric and seams of the 20-litre bag are waterproof and it has a roll-top closure, so rain won’t penetrate. At just 7kg, the maximum load limit is quite low but that shouldn’t matter for mono-pannier commuting. Its attachment system is fairly primitive: non-adjustable hooks with a simple latch, and a Velcro strap to prevent bag sway. Value is excellent nevertheless. There’s even a mounting point for extra rear light. 

B'Twin Elops 500 Waterproof Pannier Rack Bike Bag

Oxford Aqua V20 Single QR Pannier Bag £44.99 each 

Made from PVC tarpaulin, this 20-litre pannier is durable for a budget bag. The back panel is reinforced and the seams are welded. With a roll-top closure, it’s completely rainproof. A large external pocket with a water-resistant zip is useful for keeping tools or damp gloves separate from the main compartment’s contents. Reflective detailing all around is good for nighttime conspicuity. The hooks are adjustable and the bag tapers towards the base, so you should be able to position it to avoid heel overlap on all but the shortest bikes. 

Oxford Aqua V20 Single QR Pannier Bag

Specialized Coolcave Pannier £45 each 

Not so much a pannier as a pannier-shaped plastic box, the Coolcave will hold a carrier bag full of shopping, a shoulder bag, or anything else that will fit in its 19-litre volume. There’s no top, other than a removable cargo net to keep contents secure, so nothing to stop contents from getting wet. You’ll need to invest in the optional drybag (£65) if your own bag isn’t waterproof. There is a drain hole so it won’t fill up with water, at least. The Klickfix hooks are sturdy and adjustable, and their supporting bar could be cable-tied to your bike’s pannier rack to deter opportunistic theft of the empty Coolcave while shopping.  

Specialized Coolcave Pannier

Carradice CarraDry Front Panniers £60 pair 

Carradice is better known for its traditional waxed cotton duck luggage but also makes welded-seam PVC nylon bags. At just 10 litres each, the CarraDry Front Panniers are small even by the standard of front bags. However, closure is by drawstring and lid so they can, if necessary, be overpacked more than roll-tops. The back and base are reinforced and the adjustable hook system is easy to use and secure. Reflective patches on the sides, pointing front and rear when mounted on the bike, make you more visible at night.  

Carradice Carradry Front Pannier

Ortlieb Sport Roller City £86.50 pair 

When it comes to durable, waterproof luggage, German company Ortlieb sets the benchmark. The pricing typically reflects this. The Sport Roller City bags are uncharacteristically inexpensive, not because they’re less durable or less waterproof but because they’re simpler. There’s no shoulder strap and no pockets. Closure is a simple roll-top whose side buckles prevent any overpacking – 12.5 litres apiece is the limit. The base and back of the bags are sturdily reinforced, and there are reflective patches. The rack hooks, which use Ortlieb’s Quick-Lock1 system, are among the best of any bag. They’re strong, fit rack rails from 8-16mm in diameter, and the safety catches release when you lift the handle so the bags can be lifted off the rack one-handed.  

Ortlieb Sport Roller City

Restrap Pannier – Small £87.99 each 

Restrap luggage is handmade in Yorkshire, which accounts for higher prices compared to bags made in the Far East. You do get a lifetime warranty, however, as well as the build quality that implies. The pannier is 100% waterproof and has a roll-top closure with side buckles; the straps can be adjusted to accommodate the load. There’s a light clip and reflective detailing for extra visibility. The hooks are Klickfix ones, which can be positioned pretty much anywhere on the bag’s top rail and which will fit racks up to 16mm in diameter. There’s also a 22-litre Large version but the 13-litre Small better suits commuting.  

Restrap Pannier - Small

Altura Thunderstorm City Waterproof Cycling Pannier £100 each 

Unlike most waterproof panniers, Altura’s Thunderstorm City has a padded 13-inch laptop sleeve inside, saving you the cost of a separate one if you’ll be taking your computer by bike. There’s also an internal zipped pocket and a key loop to organise the contents further. On the outside, the pannier has the familiar seam-sealed waterproof fabric and roll-top closure. There’s all-around reflectivity, not just front and rear patches, as well as loops for an LED light. The hooks are again by Klickfix, albeit in a different design that’s not as adjustable as the ones on the Restrap or Specialized bags. The bottom of the bag is reinforced. 

Altura Thunderstorm City Waterproof Cycling Pannier

Carradice Bike Bureau £104 each 

It’s a briefcase with pannier hooks to fix it to your rear rack – at an angle so this 26-litre bag doesn’t bash your heels. It’s made not from nylon and PVC but waxed cotton duck, a durable fabric that doesn’t feel like it should be waterproof but nevertheless is. It’s better provisioned with pockets and dividers than most panniers, including a padded laptop pouch, and its shape enables it to carry A4 files without making them dog-eared. As well as a handle there’s a shoulder strap for carrying it on foot, and a drop-down flap to keep any grime from the bike side of the bag off your clothes. It uses the same simple and sturdy Carradice hooks as the CarraDry pannier. 

Carradice Bike Bureau

Thule Shield Panniers 13L £110 pair 

Car rack manufacturer Thule also makes cycle luggage. These 13-litre panniers will fit Thule’s own clamp-on Tour Rack but also any other rack with rails 8-16mm in diameter. The hooks are adjustable for position. The panniers are made from welded-seam, waterproof material and have a roll-top closure. Like other bags, they have reflective detailing and light mounts. Unlike some, however, they also have an internal organiser (three pockets) and a detachable shoulder strap. The bag’s bottom corners are well-reinforced. As well as the black colour pictured, Shield Panniers also come in blue and yellow.  

Thule Shield Panniers 13L

Ortlieb Office-Bag £140+ each 

Ortlieb’s briefcase pannier is a more modernistic take than Carradice’s, with a boxy design made from welded-seam waterproof fabric that, unusually, is PVC-free. It comes in two versions, which differ in their attachment: the QL2.1 option has familiar-looking hooks; the QL3.1 version (£160) fits protruding nodules that fix to your rack and has lower-profile attachment hardware. The bags are otherwise the same and feature reinforced corners, reflective patches, and a removable shoulder strap. The 21-litre volume is mostly one big compartment. There are internal organiser pockets on each side but you’ll want to add your own padded laptop sleeve if you’re packing one.  

Ortlieb Office Bag