A go bag is a pre-packed bag with enough supplies to sustain you for at least 72 hours if you need to evacuate quickly. The core contents fall into a few categories: water, food, first aid, documents, clothing, tools, and hygiene items. The goal is to grab one bag and walk out the door with everything you need to stay safe, hydrated, fed, and connected until you reach shelter or help arrives.
Water and Food
Water is the single most important item. The CDC recommends storing at least one gallon per person, per day for three days. That covers drinking, cooking, and brushing teeth. For a single person, that’s three gallons, which weighs about 25 pounds, so many people split the weight between two containers or use collapsible water jugs. Add water purification tablets or a portable filter as a backup in case you run out or need to refill from an uncertain source.
For food, pack a three-day supply of non-perishable items that don’t require cooking: granola bars, canned goods with pull-tab lids, peanut butter, dried fruit, crackers, and jerky. If you pack cans without pull tabs, include a manual can opener. Rotate these items every six to twelve months so nothing expires before you need it.
First Aid Supplies
A good first aid kit covers bleeding, pain, minor wounds, and a few less obvious situations. The American Red Cross minimum kit includes adhesive bandages in several sizes, sterile gauze pads (4×4 inch), roller bandages for securing dressings, adhesive tape, a manufactured tourniquet, a moldable splint, triangular bandages for slings, medical exam gloves, utility shears, tweezers, and saline solution for flushing eyes or wounds.
Beyond wound care, include topical antibiotic ointment, an instant cold pack, chewable aspirin, and an oral glucose tablet. These cover a surprising range of problems, from minor cuts to suspected heart events to low blood sugar. If anyone in your household takes prescription medications, keep a rotating supply in the bag and check it monthly for expiration dates. Don’t forget corrective glasses or contact lenses with solution if you wear them.
Critical Documents
In an evacuation, you may need to prove your identity, access financial accounts, or file insurance claims, all while your home is inaccessible. The U.S. Department of State recommends keeping copies of the following in a waterproof container inside your bag:
- Identity documents: passports, visas, driver’s licenses, birth certificates, marriage certificates, adoption and naturalization papers
- Financial and legal records: insurance policies, bank account information, auto registrations and titles, power of attorney, wills
- Medical records: immunization records, prescription lists, health insurance cards
- Household records: a home inventory (photos or a written list of valuables), school records, pet vaccination records
Photocopies or scans stored on an encrypted USB drive work well. Keep cash and coins in the bag too. ATMs and card readers often go down during disasters, and small bills are easier to use when businesses can’t make change.
Clothing and Shelter
Pack one complete change of clothes per person: a long-sleeved shirt, long pants, sturdy closed-toe shoes, and socks. Long sleeves protect against debris, insects, and sun exposure. If you live in a cold climate, add thermal layers, a hat, and gloves. Each person also needs a sleeping bag or a compact emergency blanket. Mylar emergency blankets weigh almost nothing and retain a surprising amount of body heat, making them a practical lightweight option.
Tools and Communication
A hand-crank or solar-powered weather radio is one of the most useful items in a go bag. NOAA weather radios broadcast continuous emergency alerts on seven dedicated frequencies, covering tornado warnings, flash flood warnings, severe thunderstorm warnings, and winter storm warnings. Models with Specific Area Message Encoding (SAME) let you program your county code so the radio only activates for alerts in your area, which saves battery life and reduces noise. Choose a model that also charges via USB so you can power a phone in a pinch.
Beyond the radio, pack a flashlight with extra batteries (or a hand-crank model), a whistle for signaling rescuers, a multi-tool or basic knife, waterproof matches or a lighter, dust masks, and a local map. Cell towers can fail during widespread disasters, so don’t rely entirely on your phone for navigation.
Hygiene and Sanitation
When running water is unavailable, sanitation becomes a real concern fast. Include toilet paper, moist towelettes, hand sanitizer, soap or liquid detergent, feminine hygiene products, a toothbrush and toothpaste, and plastic trash bags with ties. Trash bags serve double duty as waste disposal and improvised rain protection. Unscented household bleach (regular, not splashless) can be used to purify water in a pinch: roughly eight drops per gallon, left to stand for 30 minutes.
Supplies for Infants and Young Children
If you have a baby, your go bag needs a well-stocked diaper bag with at least one large pack of diapers and two packs of baby wipes. For formula-fed infants, store enough ready-to-feed formula for several days, and check the bag monthly because babies grow quickly and their intake changes. Include an infant thermometer, infant pain reliever with acetaminophen, a bulb syringe, bottles, and a pacifier if your child uses one. Pre-mixed, shelf-stable formula is easier to manage during an emergency than powder that requires clean water.
Supplies for Pets
Pets need their own kit. The CDC recommends packing a two-week supply of food and water for each animal in waterproof containers, along with non-spill food and water dishes, feeding instructions, and a two-week supply of any medications. Include a one-month supply of flea, tick, and heartworm preventive, since veterinary care may be hard to access.
On the documentation side, pack photocopied veterinary records (rabies certificate, vaccination history, medical summary, heartworm or FeLV/FIV test results), proof of ownership or adoption, microchip information, and recent photos of each pet. A photo of you with your pet can help prove ownership if you’re separated. Don’t forget a leash, collar with ID tags, a harness, and an appropriately sized carrier with a familiar blanket or towel inside. For cats, add a small bag of litter and a disposable litter box.
Keeping Your Go Bag Ready
A go bag is only useful if it’s packed before the emergency. Store it somewhere easy to grab on the way out, like a front closet or near the door to the garage. Review the contents every six months: replace expired food, medications, and batteries, swap out children’s clothing for the right size, and update documents. Keep the bag light enough to carry if you have to walk. If it’s too heavy for one bag, split it into a main bag and a smaller secondary bag so a second person can share the load.
Some people keep a smaller version in their car with water, a blanket, a flashlight, snacks, and basic first aid supplies. This covers situations where you can’t get home before evacuating.