Many people pack their lunches every day, whether they are heading off to school, going to work, or even going on a trip. Packed lunches are often more healthy than the lunches you can buy, especially as compared to fast-food restaurant lunches. It is also a much more economical method of having lunch, since you can pack a nutritious and tasty lunch much less expensively than you could buy lunch in a restaurant, or even at work or school in the cafeteria. However, when you pack your lunch, you need a good lunch bag to carry it in.

Lunch bags come in a variety of types, colors, sizes, and materials. There is still the simplistic and basic "brown paper lunch bag", but other than the fact that it makes it convenient to throw away the remains of the lunch without the need to carry an empty lunch bag or lunch box back home, the brown paper lunch bags are generally not the best way to go. Using a throwaway paper lunch bag is not only wasteful and at least somewhat environmentally un-friendly; there is also the fact that a brown paper lunch bag does not have the strength or insulating ability that better lunch bags do. A paper lunch bag not only can break or tear, but it can also fall apart if it gets wet, or become punctured by items such as a fork or knife. Ultimately, the traditional brown bag lunch is better off in a better lunch bag.

An insulated lunch bag is a very good choice when selecting one for packing lunches. These come in a variety of colors and styles, some of which are versatile enough to use for other things, such as a six-pack of soda. When choosing an insulated lunch bag, you will want to select one that is the appropriate size for the lunch that normally will be packed in the bag. Some insulated lunch bags resemble a paper bag in shape, with a top that folds down and is often fastened shut by means of a Velcro strip. Other times the shape is boxier, and resembles a small-insulated cooler, instead of having the traditional "lunch bag" shape and size. Many people prefer the lunch cooler style of lunch bag, since it is easier to pack lunch food items of multiple different sizes, without the need to tip the containers sideways to fit them into a tradition bag shaped container. This shape is also handier for carrying other things that you wish to keep hot or cold.

If you are choosing a lunch bag for an adult, you will want to make sure that it is large enough to hold the average adult-sized lunch. Depending on the person's appetite, this might mean a smaller, petite bag, or even a relatively large-sized cooler-shaped lunch bag. Some of these lunch bags also contain a compartment for securing a thermos, which can be a handy feature that will make carrying lunch to work much easier. Some even have separate compartments with an insulating panel between them, so that you can take a hot item and a cold item together, keeping both items at the proper temperature.

Shopping for kids lunch bags can be especially fun, considering all the designs, colors, and cartoon character styles that you can find in kids lunch bag selections. When you are shopping for a lunch bag for a child, you will need to take their age and interests into consideration, so that the one you purchase is appropriate to the child's personal preferences. Children are sometimes fairly selective and even competitive among themselves as far as their lunch bags go at school.

Make sure the one you select is appropriately sized for the child, with their normal lunch needs in mind. You will also to make sure you choose a lunch bag they personally like, since if a child is teased about their lunch bag, they are not going to want to pack their lunch. The best strategy is often to let the child choose their own lunch bag. It also can be a good idea not to buy the most expensive lunch bag for a child, since they do have a tendency to lose them from time to time.