Drawstring vs Zipper Dice Bag: Which One to Pick

Short answer: a zipper is safer in a backpack, a drawstring is faster at the table. If your bag lives in a bag, buy the zipper. If it sits open next to your character sheet for four hours, buy the drawstring. Most players who own both end up using a large drawstring bag at home and a zippered one for travel.

Players ask this regularly, usually after a bag opened in a backpack and a d4 disappeared into the lining of the bag forever. It is a real trade-off, not a matter of taste, so here is what actually differs.

The trade-off in one table

	Drawstring	Zipper
Stays shut upside down	Only with a clip or toggle	Yes
Opens one-handed mid-session	Yes	Usually two hands
Stands open on the table	Yes, with a structured bottom	Rarely
Works when overfilled	Yes, the top just gathers	No, the zip has to close
Typical capacity	120 to 300+ dice	30 to 120+ dice
Parts that can fail	Cord, clip, eyelets	Zip teeth, slider

How each one actually fails

A drawstring loosens. Not on its own, but when the bag is squeezed between a laptop and a rulebook, the cord can work its way open. A plastic clip or a cord lock solves most of it. A bag with a wide mouth and no clip is the one that spills.

A zipper catches. On cheap bags the slider chews the lining, and once teeth separate the bag is done, because a zip is not repairable at home the way a cord is. A zip also sets a hard ceiling: when the bag is full, it will not close, while a drawstring bag simply gathers looser.

Neither closure protects dice by itself. What protects dice is the lining and the sorting. A metal set rolling loose against a resin set will chip the resin whether the bag zips or ties.

Pick by how you play

You carry your dice everywhere. Zipper. Conventions, game stores, a bag that also holds a laptop. The closure doing its job matters more than the second you lose opening it.

You play at one table, with a hoard. Drawstring, on a bag with a square structured bottom, so it stands open and you can reach in without lifting it. This is where 300+ dice capacity is usable rather than theoretical.

You run the game. Drawstring with pockets. A DM reaches for dice more often than anyone at the table and sorts them by purpose: one pocket for the boss, one for the party, one for whatever the NPCs are doing.

You own metal or gemstone dice. Either closure, but the set needs its own compartment. Pockets or a separate small pouch per set, and a soft lining. That is what stops the chipping.

You want the dice visible. Zipper, on a display bag with a clear window. Pin collectors and convention-goers usually end up here.

What we make, so you know the bias

GameFancy is a handmade shop, so both closures are on the table and we sew whichever the design calls for.

• Zippered: plush creature bags in fleece with a lined interior, 100 to 120+ dice, $39 to $46, some with a long strap; and ITA display bags with a clear vinyl window, 30+ dice, $36, or $41 with a carry handle. All of them are on the Zippered Dice Bags page.
• Drawstring: gabardine bags with a cotton lining and a square bottom that stands upright, 300+ dice, $32 plain, $41 with six pockets that hold six to seven full sets each, $47 for the colour-coded rainbow version. Those are in Dice Bags with Pockets. Velvet bags hold 120+ dice with three sets per pocket, $41.

Across 2,300+ reviews the phrase customers repeat most about our bags is "well made", and the complaints we do get are never about the closure type. They are about capacity, which is why the capacity numbers above are honest ones rather than round marketing figures.

Frequently asked questions

Why are most dice bags drawstring?

Because a drawstring is cheaper and faster to sew, it fits any amount of fabric, and it has no hard parts to fail. It also suits the bucket shape that stands open on a table. A zipper needs a flat, even seam and a closure that matches the bag exactly, so it costs more in both material and labour.

Is a zipper better for travel?

Yes. In a backpack, a zipper is the only closure that is genuinely sealed. If you prefer a drawstring bag for travel, choose one with a locking clip and keep it upright inside the bag.

Will a zipper scratch my dice?

Not if the bag is lined. The dice sit against the fabric, not the teeth. The real scratch risk is dice grinding against each other, especially metal against resin, which is solved by pockets or by giving each set its own pouch.

Which closure holds more dice?

Drawstring, in practice. A gathered top can close over a fuller bag, and the bucket shape adds volume. Our largest drawstring bags hold 300+ dice; the zippered ones stop at 120+.

What about a dice tray, does the closure matter there?

No. A fold-flat tray uses snap buttons at the corners instead, 5.5 by 5.5 in, $21.70. It travels flat next to either kind of bag.

Can a zipper be repaired?

Rarely at home. A slider can sometimes be replaced, but separated teeth usually mean a new bag. A drawstring cord, by contrast, can be threaded back or swapped with a shoelace in five minutes. If you are hard on your gear, that is worth weighing.

Related reading: what size dice bag you actually need · dice bag materials · dice bag brands compared · travel dice bags

Published 24 September 2026. Prices and capacities checked on the same date.