The Best TSA-Approved Luggage Locks
A lock a screener can open sounds like a contradiction. The alternative is a lock a screener cuts off, leaving your bag open for the rest of its journey.
We have not tested this gear. Every figure here is compiled from published manufacturer specifications and published airline policies, and the arithmetic is public so you can check it. This page contains affiliate links — see the affiliate disclosure.
A TSA-accepted lock carries a master keyway that screeners in a published 29 countries can open, inspect and relock. That is the entire design goal. A non-TSA lock on a checked bag gets cut off, and your bag then travels unlocked for the rest of the journey with a hole where the lock was.
| # | Product | Published lock detail | Fits | Score | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Samsonite Omni PC Carry-On Spinner (20 in)A hard shell that survives being sat on by the bag above it | 100% polycarbonate | 4 of 11WN F9 G4 SY | 5.4 | Check price on Amazon#ad How we earn |
| 2 | Tortuga Travel Backpack Pro 40LReaders who want the tightest published depth in a 40 L bag | Recycled ECOPAK EPX200 with lockable YKK zippers | 11 of 11AA DL UA WN … | 4.1 | Not sold on Amazon#ad How we earn |
| 3 | Amazon Basics Hardside Spinner (21 in)One or two trips a year on Southwest, Frontier or Allegiant | Hardside | 4 of 11WN F9 G4 SY | 3.4 | Check price on Amazon#ad How we earn |
| 4 | Samsonite Winfield 3 DLX Spinner (20 in)Buyers who want polycarbonate and the smallest published overage | 100% polycarbonate | 3 of 11WN F9 SY | 3.3 | Check price on Amazon#ad How we earn |
| 5 | Master Lock 4688D TSA-Accepted Combination Luggage LockZipper pulls on a soft case, where a rigid shackle will not reach | Metal body with a vinyl-covered flexible braided steel shackle | Not published | 0.0 | Check price on Amazon#ad How we earn |
No live price is currently verified, so every button here reads Check price on Amazon rather than a number we cannot stand behind. See how we handle prices.
The trade you are actually making
Every conversation about TSA locks stalls on the same objection: if a screener can open it, so can anyone with a master key, and those keys are not hard to obtain. That objection is correct. It is also not the relevant comparison.
The comparison is against the alternatives, and there are only three:
| Option | What happens at inspection | State of your bag afterwards |
|---|---|---|
| TSA-accepted lock | Opened with a master key, inspected, relocked | Locked, undamaged, still yours |
| Non-TSA padlock | Cut off | Unlocked for the rest of the journey, and you buy another lock |
| No lock at all | Opened, inspected, closed | Unlocked, which is where you started |
| Zip ties | Cut | Open, and you have littered a screening room |
Framed that way the answer is obvious. A TSA lock is the only option that leaves your bag both inspectable and locked. It is a zip deterrent — it stops a bag being opened casually by someone who has thirty seconds and no tools — and judged as that, it works.
Cable shackle or rigid shackle
The one specification that decides whether a lock is usable on your bag, and almost nobody mentions it. The Master Lock 4688D publishes a 1/8 in (3 mm) diameter, 1-1/2 in (38 mm) long flexible braided steel shackle.
- A cable shackle threads through two zipper pulls that sit at awkward angles, which is what zipper pulls on a soft bag do. It also passes through the grab handle if you want to lock a bag to something.
- A rigid shackle is harder to cut and much fussier to fit. On a hardshell case with aligned pulls it is fine; on a duffel it frequently will not reach.
Since neither survives a determined attack with a tool, and both defeat the same opportunist, the cable wins on the only axis that separates them in practice: it fits.
Built-in locks, and who publishes one
Several cases in our ledger publish an integrated TSA lock, which removes the problem of a lock you forgot to pack. It also permanently couples the lock to the case.
| Case | Lock | Warranty | Shell |
|---|---|---|---|
| Samsonite Winfield 3 DLX 20 in | Integrated TSA lock published | 10 yr | 100% polycarbonate |
| Samsonite Omni PC 20 in | Mounted TSA lock published | 10 yr | 100% polycarbonate |
| Amazon Basics Hardside 21 in | Built-in TSA lock published | 3 yr | Not specified |
| Tortuga Travel Backpack Pro 40L | Lockable YKK zippers, lock not included | No term published | Recycled ECOPAK EPX200 |
Note the distinction on the last row. Lockable zippers means the pulls have holes and align — you supply the lock. That is the more flexible arrangement, and it is why a good cable lock outlives several bags. The hard cases in full.
Do not lock a carry-on for the flight
This trips people up. A carry-on is screened in front of you at the checkpoint, so a lock buys nothing there and costs you time if the bag is pulled for a secondary search. And if the bag is gate-checked at the door — which happens more than it used to — a locked bag going into the hold is the one case where you would want the lock, and by then you cannot get to your batteries.
The sensible pattern: lock a checked bag, leave a carry-on unlocked in transit, and use the lock at the destination, where a hotel room or a hostel locker is the actual threat environment.
What a lock does not do
- It does not stop a knife. Every soft bag on this site can be opened through the fabric in seconds by anyone willing to destroy it.
- It does not stop a determined thief with a pen. A coil zipper can be separated and re-zipped, leaving a locked bag that has been emptied.
- It does not recover a bag the airline lost. That is a completely different product. Trackers, compared.
- It does not make a claim easier. Carriers exclude valuables from checked-baggage liability regardless of whether the bag was locked.
The recommendation
- One lock for everything → the Master Lock 4688D. Cable shackle, set-your-own combination, TSA-accepted in a published 29 countries. It fits every bag on this site.
- You would rather not carry a lock → a case with an integrated TSA lock, from the two Samsonites above, both under a published 10-year warranty.
- You want to lock a bag to a fixed object → cable shackle, and accept that a cable is cuttable. It deters; it does not secure.
- You are carrying anything genuinely valuable → do not check it. No lock on this page changes that advice.
Every pick, with the working
Each entry below shows the published inputs, the four axis scores they produce, and what you give up. The order is the computed order, not a commercial one.
1 · A hard shell that survives being sat on by the bag above it
Samsonite Omni PC Carry-On Spinner (20 in)
The most widely sold polycarbonate carry-on in America, and the one whose published height actually meets the 22 in standard — the width is what fails it.
- Published size
- 22 × 15 × 9.75 in
- Weight
- 7.05 lb
- Capacity
- Not published
- Weight per liter
- Not published
- Cost per covered year
- $12.75/yr
- Published list price
- $127.49
Warranty Limited 10 year global warranty
Fits 4 of 11 US carriers: WN, F9, G4, SY. See the limits.
What it does well
- Full polycarbonate, which flexes under impact and returns rather than shattering
- $12.75 per covered year
- 22 in published height meets the standard US carry-on height exactly
What you give up
- 15 in width and 9.75 in depth are both over the 14 × 9 in standard
- 7.05 lb of the 25 lb Hawaiian cap is gone before you pack
- Published price varies by colorway, which makes the value figure a moving target
The arithmetic behind the score
- Value 7.6/10 — $127.49 ÷ 10 yr = $12.75/yr
- Airline-fit breadth 3.6/10 — Fits the published carry-on limit at 4 of 11 US carriers: WN, F9, G4, SY
- Carry efficiency not scored — No published capacity, so weight per liter cannot be computed.
- Warranty & support 4.0/10 — 10 yr (4 of 6); no published repair route (+0); airline damage not covered (+0)
Weights and breakpoints are published on how we rank. Where an input is not published, that axis is dropped and the remaining weights are re-normalized.
Specs: Samsonite published specifications and price, compiled 3 September 2026. Samsonite's own store published $101.99 to $127.49 across colorways on 3 September 2026. The higher figure is used here so the value arithmetic is not flattered.
2 · Readers who want the tightest published depth in a 40 L bag
Tortuga Travel Backpack Pro 40L
The only 40 L pack in this ledger published at 8 in deep, which is the dimension that actually decides whether a soft bag passes a sizer.
- Published size
- 22 × 14 × 8 in
- Weight
- 4.4 lb
- Capacity
- 40 L
- Weight per liter
- 0.11 lb/L
- Cost per covered year
- Not published
- Published list price
- $350
Warranty Tortuga Worldwide Warranty — no published term
Fits 11 of 11 US carriers: AA, DL, UA, WN, AS, B6, F9, G4, HA, MX, SY. See the limits.
What it does well
- 8 in published depth is an inch inside the 9 in standard, which is where soft bags usually fail
- 22 × 14 × 8 in clears the standard box on all three dimensions as published
- Weatherproof recycled ECOPAK shell with lockable zippers
What you give up
- Sold direct rather than on Amazon, and we have joined no Tortuga program — we earn nothing if you buy it
- $350 with no published warranty term
- 4.4 lb is a pound and a bit more than the Farpoint for the same 40 L
The arithmetic behind the score
- Value 0.3/10 — $350 ÷ 40 L = $8.75/L
- Airline-fit breadth 10.0/10 — Fits the published carry-on limit at 11 of 11 US carriers: AA, DL, UA, WN, AS, B6, F9, G4, HA, MX, SY
- Carry efficiency 7.6/10 — 4.4 lb ÷ 40 L = 0.110 lb/L
- Warranty & support 0.0/10 — no published term (0 of 6); no published repair route (+0); airline damage not covered (+0)
Weights and breakpoints are published on how we rank. Where an input is not published, that axis is dropped and the remaining weights are re-normalized.
Tortuga sells this direct. We have joined no Tortuga program, so we earn nothing if you buy it — which is exactly why it is still here.
Specs: Tortuga published specifications and price, compiled 3 September 2026.
3 · One or two trips a year on Southwest, Frontier or Allegiant
Amazon Basics Hardside Spinner (21 in)
Skip this one. Skip it if the lock is why you are buying. It publishes a built-in TSA lock alongside a three-year warranty - the shortest term in this ledger by seven years. A lock integrated into a case you replace in three years is a lock you buy three times.
A three-year warranty against a decade elsewhere is the whole story: this is the bag you buy when the trip is next week and the budget is fixed.
- Published size
- 21.6 × 14.9 × 10 in
- Weight
- 6.9 lb
- Capacity
- 39 L
- Weight per liter
- 0.18 lb/L
- Cost per covered year
- Not published
- Published list price
- Not published
Warranty Amazon Basics three-year limited warranty for luggage
Fits 4 of 11 US carriers: WN, F9, G4, SY. See the limits.
What it does well
- 21.6 in published height is under the 22 in standard
- 39 L published capacity at 6.9 lb, which is 0.18 lb per liter
- Built-in TSA lock on a bag at this tier
What you give up
- Three-year warranty is the shortest in this ledger by seven years
- 14.9 in width and 10 in depth both fail the standard box
- No repair route published — the remedy is replacement inside three years, then nothing
The arithmetic behind the score
- Value not scored — No manufacturer-published price, so this axis is not scored.
- Airline-fit breadth 3.6/10 — Fits the published carry-on limit at 4 of 11 US carriers: WN, F9, G4, SY
- Carry efficiency 4.9/10 — 6.9 lb ÷ 39 L = 0.177 lb/L
- Warranty & support 1.5/10 — 3 yr (1.5 of 6); no published repair route (+0); airline damage not covered (+0)
Weights and breakpoints are published on how we rank. Where an input is not published, that axis is dropped and the remaining weights are re-normalized.
Specs: Amazon Basics published product specifications, compiled 3 September 2026. Sold only through Amazon, so its price is a live retail price rather than a manufacturer list price. We do not carry a number we have not verified live — check it on the day.
4 · Buyers who want polycarbonate and the smallest published overage
Samsonite Winfield 3 DLX Spinner (20 in)
The closest any polycarbonate case in this ledger gets to the 22 × 14 × 9 in standard box, missing it by a quarter-inch of height and half an inch of width.
- Published size
- 22.25 × 14.5 × 9.5 in
- Weight
- 6.97 lb
- Capacity
- Not published
- Weight per liter
- Not published
- Cost per covered year
- Not published
- Published list price
- Not published
Warranty Limited 10 year global warranty
Fits 3 of 11 US carriers: WN, F9, SY. See the limits.
What it does well
- 22.25 × 14.5 × 9.5 in is the tightest published box of any hard case here
- Polycarbonate shell with a mounted TSA lock
- 1.5 in expansion for the return leg
What you give up
- Still fails the 22 × 14 × 9 in limit at six US carriers, by a small margin
- No manufacturer-published price on 3 September 2026, so cost per covered year cannot be computed
- No published capacity figure
The arithmetic behind the score
- Value not scored — No manufacturer-published price, so this axis is not scored.
- Airline-fit breadth 2.7/10 — Fits the published carry-on limit at 3 of 11 US carriers: WN, F9, SY
- Carry efficiency not scored — No published capacity, so weight per liter cannot be computed.
- Warranty & support 4.0/10 — 10 yr (4 of 6); no published repair route (+0); airline damage not covered (+0)
Weights and breakpoints are published on how we rank. Where an input is not published, that axis is dropped and the remaining weights are re-normalized.
Specs: Samsonite published specifications, compiled 3 September 2026. Samsonite's own store did not publish a price for the 20 in Winfield 3 DLX on 3 September 2026 — only for the large spinner in the same line. Rather than borrow a reseller's number, the Value axis is not scored for this bag.
5 · Zipper pulls on a soft case, where a rigid shackle will not reach
Master Lock 4688D TSA-Accepted Combination Luggage Lock
A set-your-own three-digit combination and a braided cable shackle, recognized as a TSA-accepted lock in a published 29 countries — which is the only specification that decides whether a screener cuts it off.
- Published size
- Not published
- Weight
- Not published
- Capacity
- Not published
- Weight per liter
- Not published
- Cost per covered year
- Not published
- Published list price
- Not published
Warranty No warranty term published on the product page
Fits No published dimensions to check.
What it does well
- TSA-accepted in a published 29 countries, so a screener opens and relocks rather than cutting
- Flexible braided steel shackle reaches zipper pulls a rigid shackle cannot
- Set-your-own combination means nothing to lose in a hotel room
What you give up
- No warranty term published on the product page
- No published price, so cost per covered year cannot be computed
- A TSA lock is by design openable with a master key — it deters, it does not secure
The arithmetic behind the score
- Value not scored — No manufacturer-published price, so this axis is not scored.
- Airline-fit breadth not scored — No published dimensions to check against carrier limits.
- Carry efficiency not scored — No published capacity, so weight per liter cannot be computed.
- Warranty & support 0.0/10 — no published term (0 of 6); no published repair route (+0); airline damage not covered (+0)
Weights and breakpoints are published on how we rank. Where an input is not published, that axis is dropped and the remaining weights are re-normalized.
Specs: Master Lock published specifications, compiled 3 September 2026. Master Lock publishes component dimensions rather than a bounding box: a 1 3/16 in (30 mm) wide body with a 1/8 in (3 mm) diameter, 1-1/2 in (38 mm) long flexible braided steel shackle. Master Lock publishes no list price for the 4688D on its own product page. The Value axis is not scored for this lock.
No live price is currently verified, so every button here reads Check price on Amazon rather than a number we cannot stand behind. See how we handle prices.