Ask five people what to call an emergency kit and you will hear five names. Some are the same thing under another label; some really are different kits, built for different situations. The difference comes down to two questions: are you leaving or staying, and for how long?
The short answer
For most people, a go bag, a bug-out bag and a 72-hour kit are one idea: a bag you can grab to leave home fast and live out of for about three days. The names come from different places. Emergency managers say go bag or go kit, preppers say bug-out bag, and 72-hour kit is the name of many government campaigns. What really differs is a get-home bag, which lives in your car or at work, and a home emergency kit, which is not a bag at all.
Side by side
| Kit | What it is for | Lasts | Kept |
|---|---|---|---|
| Go bag | Leaving home quickly in an evacuation | About 3 days | By the door |
| Bug-out bag | Leaving and getting by on your own, often away from towns | 3 days or more | At home or in the car |
| 72-hour kit | The official name for the same three days | 3 days | At home |
| Get-home bag | Getting back home when transport stops | About a day | Car, office |
| Home emergency kit | Staying put without power, water or shops | 2 weeks | Pantry, storage |
| Everyday carry | What is always in your pockets | Hours | On you |
Go bag: out of the door in ten minutes
The go bag is built for an evacuation: a wildfire on the ridge, a river rising, an order to leave. You are heading for a shelter, a hotel or a relative's house, somewhere with a roof, so the bag carries what keeps you fed, healthy and identifiable on the way and in the first days there. Water, food, medicine, document copies, light, a phone charger, cash and a change of clothes. The go bag checklist lists it item by item.
Bug-out bag: the prepper's version
A bug-out bag starts from the same list and assumes less help along the way. It tends to add shelter (a tarp or a small tent), a stove, more ways to make water safe, navigation and fire-starting, which makes it heavier. That is the right kit if you live far from towns or expect to be on foot for days. For most households, a go bag you can actually carry is worth more than a heavy pack you would leave behind.
72-hour kit: why three days
The first days after a disaster are when help is stretched thinnest: rescuers go to the most urgent cases first, and supplies take time to arrive. That is why emergency agencies plan around households lasting three days on their own. The American Red Cross counts a three-day supply for an evacuation, and in 2025 the European Commission's Preparedness Union Strategy set a target of at least 72 hours of self-sufficiency for the population.
Get-home bag: for when you are not at home
Emergencies do not wait until you are home. A get-home bag sits in the car or under your desk and is built to get you back: water and snacks, comfortable walking shoes, a rain poncho, a flashlight, a power bank, a little cash, a paper map, basic first aid and any medicine you take daily. Ready.gov suggests being ready to shelter at work for at least 24 hours, and keeping a kit in the car in case you are stranded.
Home emergency kit: for when you stay
Most emergencies do not send you anywhere. A storm cuts the power for days, a boil-water notice runs for a week, roads close. Then what counts is what you already have at home. The Red Cross recommends a two-week supply of water and food for home; the emergency water and food guide works out how much that is for your household.
Which ones do you need?
- Every household: a go bag for each person, and a home supply for two weeks.
- If you commute or drive a lot: add a get-home bag in the car or at work.
- If you live far from towns, or in wildfire or flood country: build your go bags out toward a bug-out bag, with shelter and water treatment.
In GoBag+, go bags and the home reserve sit side by side: a bag for each person or car, and your supplies at home with minimum stock levels for your household size. The free plan includes one go bag; with Premium you can keep as many as you need.