The short answer
Ready-made grab bags are sold online, for example on Amazon UK, where we saw 72-hour kits from about £29 to £117 on 2 November 2026. A kit can save time, but no kit is the official standard and the government doesn't approve any. Judge any kit against GOV.UK's Be Ready checklist, which is built for 3 days at home: 3 litres of drinking water per person per day, food that needs no cooking, a torch, an FM radio, a charged power bank, cash, copies of documents, a first aid kit and your own medicines. Every kit leaves out the personal items (medicines, documents, cash) and most carry far less water than Be Ready asks for. For most homes, building your own from what you already own, then filling the gaps, gives more for the money.
Prints the checklist without the menus.
Do this now
- Before you buy anything, check your cupboards. Be Ready says this is the first step.
- Write down your gaps using the scorecard below. For most homes they are water, an FM radio, a charged power bank, cash and paper copies of documents.
- Get water first: 3 litres per person per day for 3 days (Be Ready). No grab-bag kit carries that much for a family.
- If you still want a kit, print the scorecard and hold any listing up against it. A kit that fails on water, radio and first aid isn't worth its price.
- Add what no kit can: your medicines, documents, phone numbers on paper and cash.
Free: the Alert Action Card
The first six steps for a nuclear or radiation alert, a missile or air attack alert, no water from the tap and a power cut, on one page for the fridge, plus a phone version you can open offline. Every step checked against GOV.UK, UKHSA and Be Ready on 3 November 2026. No sign-up needed.
Print card (A4 PDF, light) Phone version (PDF)
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Where to buy a ready-made grab bag
Ready-made grab bags and 72-hour kits are sold online. These are examples we saw in Amazon UK search results on 2 November 2026. We only saw the listing title and price, not the full contents, and we haven't tested any of them. Prices change often.
| What it was sold as | Price seen (Amazon UK, 2 Nov 2026) |
|---|---|
| 1-person 72-hour emergency backpack kit (Blue Seventy-Two Pro Series) | £117.46 |
| 22-in-1 outdoor survival kit in a pouch (pocket survival type) | £45.69 |
| Grab bag holdall sold as a home evacuation and car safety kit | £28.99 to £32.95 |
| 1-person 72-hour compact food box (EVAQ8) | £22.95 |
| Empty grab bag (drawstring or shoulder bag, no contents) | £12.99 to £14.99 |
High street shops. We tried the websites of Argos, Tesco, Boots, Wilko, Sainsbury's and Screwfix on 3 November 2026. All of them blocked our check, so we can't say what they stock or charge. Look in store, or check their sites yourself.
Before you buy, read the seller's own contents list and hold it up against the scorecard further down this page.
Build your own: a costed list
Most homes already own some of these. Tick off what you have, then price the gaps. This list is for one person and follows the GOV.UK Be Ready checklist and the British Red Cross kit list.
| Item | Amazon UK, seen 2 Nov 2026 | High street |
|---|---|---|
| Bag you can carry (empty grab bag) | £14.99 | Check in store |
| Torch (rechargeable head torch) | £11.99 | Check in store |
| FM radio (wind-up and solar, AM/FM) | £12.98 | Check in store |
| First aid kit (compact, 175 pieces) | £16.95 | Check in store |
| Foil blankets (pack of 6) | £9.99 | Check in store |
| Whistle | £5.99 | Check in store |
| Charged power bank | Not in our search | Check in store |
| Bottled water, 9 litres (3 litres a day for 3 days) | Not in our search | Check in store |
| Food that needs no cooking, for 3 days | Not in our search | Check in store |
| Manual tin opener | Not in our search | Check in store |
| Waterproof document wallet or zip bags | Not in our search | Check in store |
| Cash, copies of documents, your medicines | You already have these | — |
Total of the items we could price: £72.89, before water, food, a power bank, a tin opener and a document wallet. If you already own a torch, a first aid kit or a radio, take those off.
When to buy ready-made, and when to build your own
These are our judgements, not official advice.
| Buy ready-made if... | Build your own if... |
|---|---|
| You're setting up a bag for someone else, such as an older parent, and want it done in one go | You already own a torch, a radio or a first aid kit |
| You want a bag by the door today and will add the personal items yourself | You want to choose the quality of each item, such as the radio or first aid kit |
| The kit's contents list is clear and passes most of the scorecard below | Your household has needs a kit won't cover: medicines, baby items, pets, special diets |
Either way, you still need to add your own medicines, copies of documents, phone numbers on paper and cash. Our how to make a go bag guide goes through packing it.
The yardstick: what the official list asks for
GOV.UK's Be Ready checklist is built for 3 days at home. It asks for:
| Area | What Be Ready lists |
|---|---|
| Water | Bottled water, 3 litres per person per day for drinking, more for cooking and washing |
| Food | Non-perishable food that needs no fridge or cooking, ideally food you normally eat |
| Hygiene | Hand sanitiser, wet wipes, bathroom products |
| Light and warmth | Torch and spare batteries; blankets, sleeping bags, warm clothes |
| Information | Battery or wind-up FM radio; charged power bank |
| Money and documents | Cash (coins and notes) and cards; printed copies of ID and documents; written contacts and medication lists |
| Health | First aid kit; essential medicines |
| Babies and pets | Ready-to-feed formula, nappies, wipes; pet food and water |
The British Red Cross list adds a tin opener, pen and paper, spare home and car keys, and as extras a whistle, duct tape, spare glasses and waterproof bags.
Kit types compared
We haven't tested any kit, and we don't rank brands. This compares types of kit sold in the UK against the list above. The judgements are ours.
| Kit type | What it's built for | Good at | Usually missing (check the listing) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pocket survival tin | A walker lost outdoors | Small, cheap, fits a pocket | Water, light you'd use at home, radio, power bank, first aid beyond plasters. Some contain blades: check the knife rule below |
| 72-hour grab bag kit (1 or 2 people) | Leaving home quickly | A packed bag by the door; foil blankets, ponchos, ration bars | Enough water (often pouches, not litres), an FM radio, a power bank, your medicines, documents, cash |
| Home "emergency box" | Sheltering at home | Covers more of the list in one go | Usually the same personal gaps; check if water and food dates suit a six-month check |
| First aid kit | Cuts, burns, sprains | Easy to compare: kits list their contents | Large wound and burns dressings; your own medicines |
| Month-long food kit (freeze-dried tins or buckets) | A long store | Long shelf life | Water to make it up, and a way to boil it. Much dearer than tins you already eat |
Our honest read: a grab-bag kit can be a fair starting point for a bag by the door. It is rarely the best way to build a home kit, which is where most UK emergencies are spent.
Questions that catch a weak kit
Water
- How many litres per person? Be Ready's figure is 9 litres each for 3 days. Water pouches in kits are often small, so do the maths.
- If it's short (it usually is), where will you keep the rest? Supermarket bottled water is fine.
Dates
- Does the listing give expiry dates for food, water and first aid items?
- Will they last past your next six-monthly check? Be Ready suggests a reminder every six months.
Light, radio and power
- Is there an FM radio? Be Ready names one. A torch alone won't give you news.
- What powers the torch and radio: standard batteries, wind-up, solar or a built-in battery? Can you replace the batteries yourself?
- Is there a power bank, and does it arrive charged?
First aid
- Is there a contents list or just "first aid kit"?
- Be Ready suggests waterproof plasters, bandages, a thermometer, antiseptic, eyewash, sterile dressings, gloves, medical tape and tweezers.
Blades and the law
- GOV.UK says it's illegal to carry most knives in public without a good reason. The exception is a folding pocketknife with a cutting edge of 3 inches or less that doesn't lock. If a kit includes a bigger or locking blade, it's for home, not a bag you carry about.
Selling tactics
- Skip anything sold with a countdown, a 'last chance' or a promise that it will keep you safe. No kit can promise that.
Printable kit scorecard
Tick each line the kit covers. Anything left blank, you'll need to add.
- Water: litres per person stated, and close to 9 litres each (or I'll store the rest at home)
- Food that needs no cooking, with dates given
- Manual tin opener (if the food is tinned)
- Torch, with spare batteries or a way to recharge
- FM radio (battery or wind-up)
- Power bank, charged
- First aid kit with a contents list
- Large wound dressing
- Foil blankets or warm layers for each person
- Hand sanitiser and wet wipes
- Whistle
- Waterproof bag for documents
- Knife rule met (folding, non-locking, 3 inches or less) or no blade
- Clear seller, UK returns policy
Always add yourself:
- Your medicines and a written list
- Copies of ID and insurance
- Phone numbers on paper
- Cash in coins and notes
- Baby, pet and special-diet items
- Spare glasses and keys
What to buy
About these links: plain links to ordinary retailer pages. We may earn from some links in future; we don't now. We haven’t tested these and we don’t rank them: they are examples that were in stock when we checked. Prices change. Check what you already own first. Full kit list
A bag you can carry
Look for: Comfortable for a long walk, with room for medicines, documents, water, a torch and warm waterproof clothes.
First aid kit
Look for: Waterproof plasters, bandages, a thermometer, antiseptic, eyewash, sterile dressings, gloves, medical tape and tweezers.
- St John Ambulance Home First Aid Kit · St John Ambulance shop · £10.50 (price on 3 November 2026) Shop
- Lifesystems Adventurer First Aid Kit · Lifesystems (UK brand store) · £26.99 (price on 1 November 2026) Shop
- Lifesystems Mountain First Aid Kit · Lifesystems (UK brand store) · £42.99 (price on 1 November 2026) Shop
Large wound and burns dressings
Look for: A large pressure dressing for heavy bleeding, and a gel burns dressing. Learn how to use them.
Torch or head torch, plus spare batteries
Look for: Runs on the same AA or AAA batteries as your other kit, so one spare pack covers everything. A head torch leaves both hands free.
- Alpkit Ionic 350 Lumen Head Torch · Alpkit · £15.99 (price on 1 November 2026) Shop
- Lifesystems Intensity 155 LED Head Torch · Lifesystems (UK brand store) · £19.99 (price on 1 November 2026) Shop
- Alpkit Kula 550 Lumen Head Torch · Alpkit · £19.99 (price on 1 November 2026) Shop
- Lifesystems Intensity 480 LED Hand Torch · Lifesystems (UK brand store) · £29.99 (price on 1 November 2026) Shop
- Dynamo Powered Wind-Up Pocket LED Torch · EVAQ8 · £3.60 (price on 1 November 2026) Shop
Battery or wind-up FM radio
Look for: FM (Be Ready asks for FM; DAB as well is fine). Both a crank and ordinary batteries, so you have two ways to power it.
Power bank
Look for: From a seller you know. Check the capacity (mAh) against your phone, and that you have the right cable for each phone. Keep it charged.
Foil blankets and emergency bivvy bags
Look for: Individually sealed; one per person. A bivvy bag is warmer than a flat blanket.
- Emergency Foil Blanket Individually Sealed · EVAQ8 · £0.72 (price on 1 November 2026) Shop
- Lifesystems Heatshield Thermal Blanket · Lifesystems (UK brand store) · £5.99 (price on 1 November 2026) Shop
- SOL Emergency Bivvy Bag with Rescue Whistle · MilitaryKit.com · £17.45 (price on 1 November 2026) Shop
Waterproof document wallet or resealable bags
Look for: Big enough for copies of passports, insurance details and medicine lists.
- Waterproof Document Pouch - Translucent PVC · EVAQ8 · £5.11 (price on 1 November 2026) Shop
What we couldn't check
- High street prices: Argos, Tesco, Boots, Wilko, Sainsbury's and Screwfix blocked our check on 3 November 2026, so those cells say "check in store".
- Amazon UK prices come from a search we ran on 2 November 2026. We saw titles and prices only, not full contents lists.
- We tried to open the product pages of the main UK maker of ready-made 72-hour kits on 2 November 2026 and were blocked by its bot check. So the comparison below is by kit type, and the named examples above are from Amazon UK search results only.
- Kit contents and prices change often. Read the seller's own current contents list before you buy.
- The government does not endorse any kit or shop.
Last checked
Kit lists checked against GOV.UK Be Ready and the British Red Cross on 3 November 2026. Amazon UK prices seen on 2 November 2026. Prices and contents change, so check the seller's current listing before you buy. The government does not endorse any kit or shop.
Frequently asked questions
Where can I buy a ready-made grab bag in the UK?
Online retailers such as Amazon UK sell them. On 2 November 2026 we saw 72-hour grab bag kits on Amazon UK from £28.99 to £117.46, and empty grab bags from £12.99. We couldn't check high street prices because the retailers' websites blocked our check, so look in store. The government doesn't endorse any kit or shop.
Is it cheaper to build your own grab bag?
Often it costs about the same, but you get exactly what you need. The bag, head torch, wind-up radio, first aid kit, foil blankets and whistle we priced on Amazon UK came to £72.89 on 2 November 2026, before water, food and a power bank. Most homes already own some of these, which brings the cost down.
Are ready-made survival kits worth it in the UK?
Sometimes. They save time if you're setting up a kit for someone else or want a packed bag by the door. But no kit includes your medicines, documents or cash, and most hold much less water than Be Ready's 3 litres per person per day. Check what you already own first; Be Ready's first step is to look in your cupboards.
Does any survival kit meet the government's checklist?
The government doesn't approve or endorse kits. The only way to know is to compare a kit's full contents list with the Be Ready checklist yourself, line by line. Use the scorecard on this page.
What is the best survival kit in the UK?
We don't rank kits and we haven't tested any. The best kit for you is the one that fills the gaps in what you already own. For most homes the gaps are water, an FM radio, a charged power bank, cash and paper copies of documents.
How much water should a 72-hour kit have?
Be Ready says 3 litres per person per day for drinking: 9 litres each for 3 days. A bag can't carry that much for a family, so keep most of it at home as bottled water.
Do I need a pocket survival tin?
Probably not first. Small tins are made for walkers lost outdoors. They don't cover the things UK emergencies usually need at home: water, light, a radio, power for your phone and your medicines.
Sources
We opened each page on the date shown. Official advice changes: if a source says something different now, follow the source.
- GOV.UK Be Ready: be ready for emergencies (3-day checklist and grab bag) (read 3 November 2026)
- GOV.UK Be Ready: Checklist PDF (October 2026) (read 3 November 2026)
- British Red Cross: Prepare an emergency kit (read 3 November 2026)
- Environment Agency (GOV.UK): Personal flood plan (flood kit list) (read 2 November 2026)
- GOV.UK: Buying and carrying knives (read 2 November 2026)
Related guides
- Prepper kits in the UK: how to judge a ready-made emergency kit
- UK emergency kit checklist (printable)
- The Be Ready checklist, explained for your home
- Home first aid kit and medicine cabinet: a UK checklist
- Grab bag list UK: what to pack if you have to leave home
Free tools
- Be Ready kit: tick off what you already own
- Emergency supplies calculator (water and food for your household)
We're an independent UK site, not the government. We check guides against official sources and link to them. In an emergency call 999.
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