For international travel, choose the lightest suitcase that still fits the operating airline’s current size rules, survives transfers, and carries your planned load. Confirm both dimensions and weight limits for every flight segment; international cabin limits are often stricter than familiar domestic rules.

There is no universal industry cutoff. A practical benchmark is to compare empty weight within the same size class: many genuinely light carry-ons fall near 5–7 pounds, medium checked cases near 7–9 pounds, and large checked cases near 8–11 pounds. Dimensions, capacity and construction must be compared with weight.