Prepper Glossary
Bags and Kits Compared: EDC, Get Home Bag, Go Bag, 72-Hour Kit, INCH, and the Rest
These bags get sold as if they were one product. They are not. Everyday carry is pockets. A get-home bag is the commute. A go bag and a bug-out bag are the same 72-hour evac pack with two names. A 72-hour kit can be a bag or a closet bin. Two weeks lives at home. An INCH bag is weeks, and only with a real destination. Pick the layer you actually need.
Also called: BOB vs GHB vs INCH, go bag vs bug out bag, emergency kit comparison
FROM THE FIELD
The names sell more bags than the emergencies do. Accounts across preparedness forums and wildfire after-actions agree on this: people search "bug out bag," land on tactical gear, and spend weeks choosing between MOLLE patterns instead of putting documents and medications in any bag by the door. The comparison itself becomes the project. Every row below answers one question so you can stop shopping labels and start packing.
At a glance
Name the job and the hours. Then pack.
Every kit on this page answers one question: how many hours, for how many people, portable or stationary? Once you answer that, the packing list writes itself. Skip the question and you end up with a 70-pound duffel that fails at both jobs.
The table below stacks them from smallest (pockets) to largest (weeks away from home). Each links to its own deep page.
Quick facts
What this page is
One comparison hub for every kit URL
Rule
Name the job and the hours. Then pack.
Weight rule
Bug out bag weight: about 15–25% of body weight
Synonyms
GOOD bag and SHTF bag = bug out bag
The complete stack
The stack, small to large
Thirteen kits, sorted by duration. Each links to its own deep page.
Job
On you before you can reach a bag
Duration
Minutes to a couple of hours
Where it lives
Pockets, purse, work bag
Kit
Get home bag
Job
Reach home from work, school, or the car
Duration
Hours
Where it lives
Office, locker, trunk
Job
Breakdown and roadside, with the vehicle
Duration
Hours to overnight
Where it lives
Trunk
Kit
Bug out bag
Job
Same evac pack, prepper name (BOB, GOOD bag, SHTF bag)
Duration
About 72 hours
Where it lives
By the door
Job
Public-agency name for household disaster supplies
Duration
Usually 3 days
Where it lives
Home
Kit
Survival kit
Job
Retail name. Duration must be printed
Duration
Hours to about 3 days
Where it lives
Varies. Tins are not family kits
Job
Go bag plus masks, documents, fire routes
Duration
72 hours
Where it lives
Door, red-flag week
If the listing cannot say how many hours and how many people, it is merchandising.
Name disambiguation
Go bag vs bug out bag vs 72-hour kit
Same mission. Different audience.
| Name | Who searches it | Container |
|---|---|---|
| Go bag | Mainstream / Ready.gov adjacent | Packed backpack |
| Bug out bag | Prepper forums | Packed backpack |
| 72-hour kit | Duration shoppers | Bag or tote |
| Emergency kit | General US | Often a bin |
| Emergency / survival backpack | Retail | Pre-packed pack |
One bug out bag list feeds the portable versions. Home gallons stay in the closet.
From the field · Accounts describe the same detour: someone searches "bug out bag," buys a pack, fills it with camping gear, and never addresses the documents and prescriptions that actually matter in a US evacuation.
Two jobs
Portable vs stay-home
Portable
Stay-home
- Emergency kit bin, power outage kit, two-week kit, prepper pantry
- You must be able to find it in the dark
- Water = stored gallons
Emptying the pantry into one suitcase is how families fail both jobs: they cannot walk, and they have no ice-storm shelf.
Shell vs loaded
A bag is not a kit
A tactical backpack is an empty shell with MOLLE webbing. It is not a kit until you fill it.
A pre-packed bug out bag is a factory guess. Open it, weigh it, replace the food, add meds and papers.
A budget bug out bag is a used pack plus grocery fill. Fit still matters.
MREs and freeze-dried food are calories. Heavy vs light. Taste first.
A hip belt you will use beats extra pouches.
From the field · The same gap surfaces in account after account: calories that needed hot water nobody could boil, batteries that corroded on the shelf, gear that sat untested until the night it was needed.
Vehicle layer
The car is not the house.
- Car emergency kit: jumper method, light, blanket, regional weather
- Get-home bag may ride beside it
- BOV is the vehicle that actually starts
- Do not bake medications and a year of food in the trunk
Family
Family split
One 70-pound "family bag" is a single point of failure. Adults carry radio, documents, and pet gear. Kids carry a little. Weight guidance still applies to each carrier.
Reference
One-screen cheat sheet
- On you every day: EDC
- At work so you can walk home: get home bag
- In the trunk for the shoulder: car kit
- By the door to leave the house: go bag / BOB / 72-hour pack
- In the closet for a dark week: outage kit / two-week kit / pantry
- Weeks away with a real address: INCH
- Fire country: wildfire evac kit (still a go bag plus masks and papers)
Common questions
Frequently asked questions
Is a go bag the same as a bug out bag?
Yes for almost every US household. Go bag is the mainstream name. Bug out bag is the prepper name.
Is a 72-hour kit always a backpack?
No. It can be a tote at home. The portable version is the go bag.
Do I need an INCH bag?
Not first. You need three days you can carry and two weeks you can eat at home. INCH requires a real second place.
Can one bag do commute and evacuation?
A get-home bag is smaller and lives away from home. An evac bag lives at home. Combining them usually makes both worse.
Should I buy a pre-packed kit?
Only as a starter you will rebuild. Weigh it. Replace the food. Add your meds and IDs.
How heavy should the evac bag be?
About 15 to 25 percent of body weight, often 15 to 30 pounds for adults. Walk two miles.
Related terms
Keep reading
Last updated: August 28, 2026