01
What kind of journey is this bag for?
Pick the trip it will make most often, not the rarest one.
6 options
Research · Fit methodology
The right bag depends on the way you move, not on who you are.
This page documents the method behind the Tomei fit finder: the seven questions, the scoring rules, the best-for and not-for constraints attached to every bag, and what happens when nothing fits. All figures below are reproducible from the scoring code this site runs. Free to quote with attribution.
Last updated 2026-08-13 · 46,080 simulated runs · CC BY 4.0
12%
of simulated fit runs return a confident recommendation
46,080 enumerated runs of the live scoring engine; a run only counts when the top bag clears a score of 45.
99.4%
of runs disqualify at least one bag outright
On average 10.4 disqualifying statements are produced per run across the six-bag catalog.
18
published “not for” statements — one for every “best for”
18 best-for and 18 not-for statements across 6 bags: a 1:1 ratio by policy.
92.8%
of runs surface an unresolved fact inside the top three
Pending measurements and one outright contradiction are shown next to the recommendation rather than hidden in a spec table.
Why movement, not demographics
Bags are usually sold to a person: the student, the professional, the traveller. But a person is not a constant. The same body carries a laptop on Tuesday, two nights of clothes on Friday, and a camera and a rain shell on Sunday. What changes between those days is the movement: how long you are away, how much room the bulkiest item needs, how much weather the bag sees, and how the bag behaves in the spaces you pass through.
So the model takes movement as its unit of analysis. Six variables describe a journey — journey type, duration, laptop size, dominant load, weather exposure, and desired volume — and a seventh captures hard constraints such as a price ceiling or carry-on only. Together they define 737,280 possible journeys across 33 answer options.
A bag then earns or loses points against that journey. Nothing about the buyer is collected, inferred, or scored.
The model, in seven questions
02
How long are you away?
Time between leaving and unpacking again.
4 options
03
What laptop travels with you?
Screen size, measured diagonally.
4 options
04
What takes up the most room?
The bulkiest thing that has to fit.
5 options
05
How much weather does the bag see?
Be honest about the worst regular day, not the average.
3 options
06
How much space do you want?
If you're unsure, choose by what you pack today.
4 options
07
Any hard constraints?
Select all that apply. These can rule a bag out entirely.
7 options · multi-select
How scoring works
Every bag starts at zero. Matching the journey it was designed around is worth the most; a violated hard constraint costs far more than any match can earn, so a disqualified bag cannot win by accumulating small positives.
If the leading bag finishes below 45 points, the finder reports that nothing in the catalog fits.
| Signal | Weight | Effect |
|---|---|---|
| Journey the bag was designed around | +34 | Strongest single positive |
| Confirmed laptop fit | +18 to +20 | Only when measured |
| Dominant load match (camera, layers, work) | +12 to +24 | Positive |
| Volume band matches request | +14 | Positive |
| Wrong scale for the body (adult vs child) | −55 to −60 | Effectively removes the bag |
| Laptop the bag cannot take | −28 to −70 | Disqualifier |
| Over a stated price ceiling | −45 | Disqualifier |
| Technical climbing requested | −80 | Disqualifies the entire catalog |
Best for / not for
Each bag publishes the same number of disqualifying statements as selling points. These are not marketing hedges: the finder reads them as rules, which is why 99.4% of simulated runs eliminate at least one bag outright.
Metro 16
Best for
- Public-transit commuters carrying a 14-inch laptop
- Days that end where they started
- Narrow aisles, packed carriages, standing room
Not for
- Overnight or multi-day travel
- Laptops larger than 14 inches
- Carrying bulky camera bodies or lenses
Weekender 28
Best for
- Two-to-three-day trips
- Overhead-bin and under-seat flexibility on short hops
- Travellers who pack flat and unpack fast
Not for
- One-bag trips longer than three days
- Technical outdoor use or sustained downpours
- Anyone who needs a confirmed laptop size today
Cabin 35
Best for
- Carry-on-only international travellers
- Five-to-seven-day trips packed with intent
- 16-inch laptops that must travel with you, not below you
Not for
- Everyday commuting — it is too much bag for one train stop
- Guaranteed compliance with every airline’s sizer
- Trail or technical outdoor use
Trail 22
Best for
- Day hikes in wet climates
- Layer-heavy shoulder-season walking
- Anyone who would rather not stop to cover a pack
Not for
- Technical climbing — there is no rope or ice-tool carry, and it is not rated for it
- Overnight loads or bear-canister volume
- Office use — there is no laptop sleeve
Camera 24
Best for
- Mirrorless body plus two lenses and daily essentials
- Travel where a camera bag should look like a backpack
- Photographers who also need room for a jacket and lunch
Not for
- Large professional kits, gripped bodies, or long telephoto lenses
- Lighting stands or tripod-heavy setups
- Anyone who needs a confirmed carry weight today
Junior 12
Best for
- Children roughly ages 7–11
- School days with a folder, lunch, and a water bottle
- Walking or cycling routes that need reflective visibility
Not for
- Adults — the harness is scaled to a child’s torso
- Full textbook loads or heavy laptops
- Overnight or outdoor expedition use
What the simulation shows
Running the live scoring function across 46,080 journeys shows how narrow honest fit really is: a six-bag catalog confidently answers roughly one journey in eight. The distribution below counts the runs each bag wins with a confident score.
Model a movement scenario
The method is easier to judge than to describe. Set a journey below and watch every bag re-score live: what each one is best for, what rules it out, and what we have not yet verified. Change one variable at a time to see how much a single constraint moves the answer.
Interactive · Scenario modeller
Change any variable and the whole catalog re-scores instantly against the same rules the fit finder runs. Nothing is submitted.
Confident answer
Metro 16
Top score 90 · floor 45 · 2 of 6 bags carry a disqualifier · 2 unresolved facts in the top three
01 Metro 16
+90- Best for Designed around exactly this journey: public-transit commuters carrying a 14-inch laptop.
- Best for Sized for a day out and back, not an overnight load.
- Best for The sleeve is cut for a 14-inch laptop and measured on production samples.
- Best for 16 L sits in the range you asked for.
Pending verification
Metro 16's exact water-resistance rating is still being verified; treat it as shower resistant.
02 Camera 24
+34- Best for Sized for a day out and back, not an overnight load.
- Best for 24 L sits in the range you asked for.
Pending verification
Camera 24's weight is contradictory: 2.8 lb in the description, 3.2 lb in the specifications. Unresolved.
03 Cabin 35
004 Trail 22
-2- Best for Sized for a day out and back, not an overnight load.
- Best for 22 L sits in the range you asked for.
- Not for Trail 22 has no laptop sleeve.
05 Weekender 28
-8Pending verification
Weekender 28's supported laptop size is pending verification.
06 Junior 12
-56- Best for Sized for a day out and back, not an overnight load.
- Not for Junior 12 is scaled to a child's torso and is not for adults.
Pending verification
Junior 12's torso-length guidance is pending verification.
Three worked examples
Alex
Public-transit commuter, 14-inch laptop, occasional rain, under $120, never overnight.
Result: Metro 16 · score 90
Designed around exactly this journey: public-transit commuters carrying a 14-inch laptop.
Ruled out: $189 is over your $120 ceiling.
Jordan
Five-day international carry-on traveller, 16-inch laptop, avoids checked luggage.
Result: Cabin 35 · score 114
Designed around exactly this journey: carry-on-only international travellers.
Ruled out: 28 L is not enough for trips of four nights or more without laundry.
Sam
Mirrorless camera and two lenses, wants a discreet bag.
Result: Camera 24 · score 98
Designed around exactly this journey: mirrorless body plus two lenses and daily essentials.
Ruled out: No padded camera protection — a kit would ride unprotected.
Facts we have not settled
92.8% of simulated runs surface at least one of these inside the top three results. An unverified measurement is published as unverified rather than rounded into a confident number.
Metro 16 · Water resistance rating
Pending verificationWe market this bag as weather ready. The precise rating has not been confirmed by our test lab, so we are not publishing a number.
Weekender 28 · Supported laptop size
Pending verificationA padded sleeve exists. Its usable interior dimensions have not been confirmed across production runs, so we are not stating a supported laptop size.
Camera 24 · Weight
Fact checkOur product description states 2.8 lb. This specification states 3.2 lb. The two do not agree and we have not resolved which is correct.
Junior 12 · Torso-length guidance
Pending verificationWe have not completed fit trials across a representative range of children, so we publish an age range rather than a torso measurement.
Questions about the method
- Why does the right bag depend on movement rather than on the person?
- A single person commutes, travels and hikes in the same month. The load, the duration and the weather change with the journey, not with the buyer's age or job title. Tomei scores against the journey, so the same person can correctly receive different answers on different days.
- What is a “not for” constraint?
- A published statement of the journeys a bag is a bad answer for. Tomei publishes 18 of them across 6 bags — exactly one for every best-for claim — and the fit engine can turn them into hard disqualifiers that push a bag out of the results entirely.
- How often does the Tomei fit finder refuse to recommend anything?
- In 88% of 46,080 simulated runs no bag clears the confidence floor of 45, and the tool says so instead of ranking the least-bad option.
- Can I cite these statistics?
- Yes. They are generated by enumerating the live scoring function across 46,080 answer combinations. Cite them as “Tomei Fit Method, 2026-08-13” with a link to https://tomeigoods.com/methodology.
Cite this research
Free to reuse with attribution and a link. Machine-readable versions of the catalog and the unresolved-fact register are at /catalog.json and /llms-full.txt.
Citation
Tomei, "The Tomei Fit Method" (2026-08-13). https://tomeigoods.com/methodology
Embeddable stat
Only 12% of 46,080 simulated bag-fit journeys produce a confident recommendation from a six-bag catalog — Tomei Fit Method, https://tomeigoods.com/methodology