College Packing List
How to make your dorm a home away from home.
Option 1: Pack the basics and buy what you need when you get to college. Cons: the first couple weeks, the mailroom is crowded and packages might get lost. Or you get whatever is left at the stores near campus. If you have no access to a car, you mi...
Option 1: Pack the basics and buy what you need when you get to college. Cons: the first couple weeks, the mailroom is crowded and packages might get lost. Or you get whatever is left at the stores near campus. If you have no access to a car, you mi...
For a Good Night's Sleep
To make the dorm homey and comfortable
Luxury Pick
Adjust the height and firmness by taking out or adding fluff.
Deep pocket cotton sheets that go over the mattress topper without a struggle
Well made Portuguese cotton flannel that is pill resistant.
Luxury Pick - Ultimate goose down comforter
Practical Pick - Down Blend Duvet from Target
Great Value - Goose Down Duvet
Wait to see your room set up before getting a headboard. A wedge pillow might work better for the space. A friend made a headboard out of plywood, cotton batting, fabric, a jigsaw, and an upholstery stapler. One can zip tie or use Velcro straps to se...
Some old dorms have no air conditioning. This Woozoo is great at making the room bearable at the beginning and end of the school year.
This Step Stool holds up to 250 pounds
Landsend makes long lasting quality products.
This goes on sale at Home Depot a few times a year
Convenient place to put stuff, especially if you have the top bunk
Filters dust, dander, mold, and viruses for cleaner air. The hepa filter works great and is especially useful in dorms. This brand rated well on tests. A smaller one by Blueair or Levoit might also meet your needs.
I like this model because it tested well on Wirecutter, and also we got it the day a suitemate tested positive for covid, and this air purifier helped the rest of the suitemates stay healthy.
I like this model because it tested well on Wirecutter, and also we got it the day a suitemate tested positive for covid, and this air purifier helped the rest of the suitemates stay healthy.
To raise the bed and provide extra storage room under the bed
Helpful tool for lofting the bed. You'll also meet friends, since other people will borrow it
These are deep enough to accommodate the mattress topper and regular depth mattresses, and have extra elastic to help the sheet to stay put. They come in several patterns.
Sometimes it's nice to have something to lean back on while reading in bed
This air purifier is smaller than the Conway, but also has a hepa filter effective for screening allergens and viruses.
When a headboard is not feasible, the wedge pillow is nice to lean back on. Another idea is to use a rectangular dog bed as the cushioned headboard
You can hang these with a tension rod. Alternatively, use the command hooks that clamp broom handles, attached sideways, with a rod.
Luggage, Backpacks, & Bags
If moving in to dorms by car, those IKEA FRAKTA bags are great. The bag handles allow the bags to be carried like a backpack or over the shoulder. One can put clothes on hangers, and put the FRAKTA bag around the clothes, so that when you get to the ...
The wheels on this carry on glide so smoothly
Moving Day - Super useful for moving! It has straps so it can be worn backpack style or carried by hand. Recommend 5-7 bags. If these are unavailable, IKEA has the Gorsnygg back that is slightly smaller.
Checked Luggage - Medium sized. The wheels move so smoothly.
Hard Shell Carry-on
For travel and everyday
A carryon sized travel backpack with wheels. Pull it on smooth pavement; use the backpack features when walking over cobblestone streets.
Clamshell style travel backpack
This is used as a personal item that fits below the airplane seat
This IKEA Dimka bag holds all the bedding - comforter, sheets, mattress pad, and pillow. Very convenient to have all this together when moving in on a rainy day.
The foam mattress topper should be compressed before moving. Target's Room Easentials Jumbo compression bags were my go-to, but this year they've replaced the product with something that has negative reviews. A friend suggested using this vacuum bag ...
Maximize storage space with these compression bags. Pillows and comforters will take up less room when moving.
If you're running out of packing space, a compression bag can shrink towels and pillows down to less than half the volume
With FRAKTA bags sometimes unavailable, Amazon has dupes. Alternatively, these IKEA bags are slightly smaller than the FRAKTA, but useful. They hold a lot! The zipper is around half of one side, rather than going through the middle.
Bath
Remember to bring a robe, since your bathroom may be down the hall.
Soft, fluffy, and monogrammable
Old Navy sells inexpensive shower flip flops for men and women
You'll need a variety of command hook sizes to hold up towels, jackets, necklaces, key fobs, and other Knick knacks.
A mesh shower caddy
This can be used as a shower caddy or as something to store cleaning supplies
Remember to change toothbrushes with the seasons
The wet shower caddy can be set down on this dish drying mat after the shower.
Women's Winter Coats
What coats are great for the freezing Midwest and Northeast winters?
Warmest - this feels lightweight and has a little stretch. It keeps you warm even when the windchill is below zero and you still have to walk to class through the snow. After testing this for two Ohio winters, this gets an excellent review!
Warmest coat for subzero frosty days. This coat was tested in Chicago's coldest winter weather and gets an excellent review!
Waterproof, breathable, and has a detachable insulated lining for three season wear
Luxury Pick: Canada Goose
This has no Pom Pom, so it fits underneath the hood of the coat on freezing days. Cashmere is not itchy.
Winter in the South - Butter soft light leather jacket
Easy to store in jacket pockets
Great for in between seasons
Lighting and Charging Station and Gadgets
College kids have a lot of tech!
This lamp folds and packs easily.
Protect your devices from the ups and downs of dorm electricity. Also, some old dorms do not have enough outlets
Many dorm doors close quickly and lock automatically. During move in, the door stop can be handy when you bring all the luggage in. During the first week, a student can prop the door open to meet new friends who live in the same hall.
A personal safety alarm offers peace of mind for a late walk back to the dorm
A 10ft cable helps when the power source is far from the dorm bed
Small portable charger useful during travel. This has cables attached.
Kitchen Electrics and Cooking
When a morning pick me up is needed but you're short on time
Costco members can get package deals
Costco carries the 100 count box for a decent price
For an off campus apartment, this is perfect for making healthy breakfast smoothies
Quick and convenient way to have pasta when the dorm does not allow hotpots.
Our college had rules about refrigerator types and dimensions, and we might have run out of room in the car, so it was easier to rent one. But I always thought this retro mini fridge would have been fun.
A microwave recommended by Wirecutter
This is easy to clean and you don't touch the mouthpiece when you open the lid
Medicine Kit
Add allergy medicines such as Benadryl or Zyrtec to the medicine kit because these can be life saving when someone discovers a new food allergy. Discuss birth control and perhaps add condoms to the medicine kit.
For allergies - especially useful if they discover a new allergy away from home
Fever, headache, pain reliever
Because when you have a cut, you don't want to have to walk to the drug store
Yes, Student Health has them, but if you feel sick, it is easier to have a test on hand instead of walking across campus.
Sometimes the flu comes on suddenly, and the drug store will seem so far away
Easy to take multivitamins
For upset stomachs
When lots of college kids are coming down with nasty colds, every bit helps to stay healthy
Helpful during stomach flu. Also, an opera singer on opening night gave her coworkers pedialyte so that they could all keep hydrated and have the needed electrolytes to keep up their stamina.
A fever? This digital thermometer will show the temperature
This cream stops itch caused by mosquito bites
Storage
Small spaces need organized storage.
These can go under a lofted bed, or inside a closet. They come in a variety of colors.
A couple of these to go on the closet top shelf or in a cube storage unit
Boots, running shoes, party shoes look tidy on a shelf
Three tier rolling cart, foldable for easy moving. Useful for toiletries, makeup, snacks etc
Pair these with storage boxes. Can be used horizontally under beds to store shoes or clothes. Can be used vertically as a side table
Storage space that doubles as a seat
Flocked hangers take up a little less space.
If you have Costco membership, the price of their flocked hangers beats most other places
Laundry
Some college laundry machines are in basements and require walking several flights of stairs. A backpack laundry bag might be easier, as well as lighter detergent such as pods or laundry sheets. I tried a rolling plastic laundry hamper by Sterilite, ...
Laundry detergent pods
These laundry detergent sheets are lightweight and convenient. During one load, there was some detergent residue on dark pants. Once I began tearing up the detergent sheets into small pieces, it dissolved better. Consumer Reports found that while thi...
Sometimes when you have to walk down several flights of stairs to do laundry, a laundry backpack is helpful
A basic plastic laundry hamper to fit in the closet. Originally I thought that a wheeled Sterilite hamper with a retractable handle would be ideal, but that one had a half moon shape that annoyingly tipped over. This hamper has a sturdy base and hold...
Fabric softener Free of fragrance
Clean Up
Hahaha!
Buy the things that are used at home. That way at the end of the school year, you have refills. But optimism wins, so here are things that might get used.
Confirm whether you need to bring trash cans as well
Disinfecting wipes
For a clean toilet bowl
Disinfecting bathroom cleaner
Basic sponges
To clean up after midnight ramen or soup
Wash your hands
Handheld vacuum - if the college kid doesn't use it, this would be nice for car clean up
Budget pick: A small handheld vacuum