City Livin’: The 11 Best Urban EDC Sling Essentials

Serving as a versatile pocket to keep everything you need at arm’s reach without weighing you down, a quality sling allows you to head out the door with a complete system so you can tackle city life with ease, from navigating crowded streets, running errands, or finding a flight of hidden stairs from yesteryear. These packs also make it easier to remember all your most important gear between wardrobe changes. But first, you have to figure out what you want to bring with you to begin with. That’s why we’ve compiled this guide to the best urban EDC sling essentials, where we’ve tested out our favorite pieces.

How We Tested

The right gear can make all the difference when it comes to staying efficient and adaptable in a fast-paced urban environment. An EDC loadout becomes more than just a convenience but an extension of your pockets and what you value as essential. To help you with your every city adventure, we first compiled a shortlist based on our years of experience in the EDC space, whether we had specific items in mind for each category or needed to put several products head-to-head to see which was best.

From there, we sourced our units for testing and got hands-on with products from each category below. We ultimately settled on the best of the best according to specific criteria for each product type. However, our core principles had to be present: blending form with function. The results are detailed below.

What to Look For

Function: If it’s taking up real estate in your sling, it should have a justified function in your loadout. This goes for both daytime and nighttime use. Note that we chose both a flashlight with wide-ranging lumen levels and a watch with a highly legible dial. Likewise, make sure you know how to use each piece you bring along with you prior to heading out on your adventure so you’re not having to learn on the fly.

Aesthetic: It’s not the primary factor when selecting gear, but a given piece’s aesthetic appeal can make or break whether or not it’s selected. This will be up to personal preference and might hinge on what else you have in your sling (i.e., you may or may not care about matching up your gear).

Weight: Of course, anything you carry around on your person when navigating an urban environment for a day should be light enough that it won’t weigh you down. For fabric, lean on nylon or polyester. For metal, titanium and aluminum will be your best bets, but that’s not a strict rule by any means. 

Gerber Savvy Custom

Best Knife: As one of our favorite EDC brands, Gerber has crafted an heirloom-quality pocket knife capable of being passed down to your grandkids. Made right here in the USA, the Savvy is available with either aluminum or carbon fiber scales, and a top-shelf CPM 20CV powder metallurgy steel for its 3.5-inch blade. Measuring 8” overall, the Savvy is one of Gerber’s most high-end options and even has a customization program so you can personalize it according to your loadout.

For our own custom Savvy, we opted for a minimalist look, with a “drab red” aluminum handle that evoked the desert-like colorways found right in our own backyard here in southern California. The sleek design is understated, blending into an urban EDC setup with ease yet still standing out in the right ways. We paired the brownish handle with a black oxide blade, adding a tactical presence to the neutral tones for a sophisticated feel with both everyday tasks and rugged outings. Lastly, we went with a custom clip, coyote brown barrel spacers, and a coyote brown thumb stud.

Aer City Sling 2 Ultra

Best Sling: A sling for all your EDC gear is just as important as the pants you have on when traversing the urban jungle. For our money, we love the City Sling 2 Ultra from Aer. It’s versatile, compact, and designed expressly for urban environments. Offering a 2.5-liter capacity that’s perfect for housing your most frequently-used items without feeling bulky, the bag weighs just 0.9lbs, and measures 13” x 4.75” x 3.5” altogether.

A special edition of the legendary City Sling 2, the Ultra is enhanced for durability with a shell made from Challenge Sailcloth’s weather-resistant Ultra400X and a ripstop nylon for the interior lining. The stowaway sling strap is also given a Fidlock magnetic V-BUCKLE rather than a standard fastener. You still get the aircraft-grade aluminum tension locks and reliable YKK zippers and overall design from the standard CS2, which glide open with ease to reveal a deceptively spacious and well-organized interior. The main compartment has a clamshell opening to make it easy to access gear without rummaging around, while also having a compartment in the rear. Some might not want to shell out the extra $40 for the Ultra edition, but if you’ll be enduring the city elements, we’d recommend the upgrade.

Sharge Flow Mini Portable Charger

Best Charger: Your portable charger is always a unique case. In one regard, you want a unit that can provide you with a meaningful function to last the whole day. However, this device will also be part of your total loadout and should probably look pretty stylish on some level. Luckily, the Sharge Flow Mini does both. The transparent aesthetic pairs with a sleek metallic gloss on the outside so that it looks modern and can even stand out in your pocket dump.

Despite being just a little bigger than a film canister, the 5,000mAh power bank is capable of fully charging up your iPhone 1.5 times over with its 12W of output. On the other hand, it weighs just 3.52oz and can easily slip into any pouch without adding a lick of bulk. Our favorite aspect is the LED readout that serves as a battery life readout. The Flow Mini also supports both USB-C and Lightning connections and can charge two devices at the same time.

Pioneer Zen Zips

Best Pouch: Inevitably, there are items in your EDC assortment that get lost more than others. We’re talking about wireless earbuds, spare keys, and some ancillary items you may not use as often. Pioneer happened to make an attachable pouch that’s designed for smaller items but can attach to your bag or belt really easily with its rear strap. Coming in a set of 2, the Zen Zips are built from the brand’s strongest proprietary fabric, 10XD, which combines ultra-high-molecular-weight-polyethylene (20%) with high-density nylon (80%) to make it 10x stronger than steel. The interior lining uses their luxe 3XD, a three-ply nylon fabric. 

Incredibly lightweight and durable, the water-resistant pouches are also sealed up with YKK AquaGuard zippers for an extra layer of protection. We love YKK for its extra aesthetic along with performance. Despite the minimalist design, these pouches are thoughtfully designed to maximize utility while keeping a clean aesthetic. Measuring 2.76” x 2.76” x 0.79”, the Zen Zips are the perfect size for smaller items without taking up too much space.

Field Notes Index Edition

Best Notebook: If you’re looking for your next favorite EDC pocket notebook, Field Notes is a safe bet. Not only do they have the best array of aesthetic designs to choose from, especially with their quarterly special editions, but the company crafts each notebook right here in the United States, tapping local companies to help with everything from printing to binding, all of which are detailed on the brand’s website as well as inside the back cover of the notebook. For this sling essentials guide, we’re looking at the Index Edition notebook, which favors more logging and planning than your typical Field Notes notebook.

We got hands-on with the Log Book variant (there’s also a Ledger & Date version) of the Index Edition, simply for its wide-ranging usability. You can use this to log movies, restaurants, albums, hiking trails, etc. Measuring 3.5” x 5.5”, the 56-page book can fit nearly anywhere and has a simple cover that still exudes a level of style with its gray stock and colored foil lettering. For the first time ever, the Index features a fourth staple, due to a bonus pocket built into the back cover for smaller items like ticket stubs. We loved the texture of the covers — although they can rip easily — and found the paper inside to have a perfect thickness for any type of pen. Also, these are limited to 30,000 units, adding to the appeal of the set.

Tudor Ranger

Best Watch: Earning its place among the best everyday watches, the Tudor Ranger is arguably the Swiss watchmaker’s most popular tool watch thanks to its simplicity, durability, and accessible sizing. Measuring 39mm across with a 12mm thickness, the timepiece is inspired by the version of the watches from the 1960s. Sitting nicely on the wrist, it remained perfectly sized for visibility, but without it being too showy. Our tester had a wrist size of 7” for reference. With 100m of water resistance, the stainless steel case houses a COSC-certified MT5402 automatic chronometer with an impressive 70 hours of power reserve for extended trips. There’s also a silicon hairspring for enhanced resistance to magnetic fields.

We loved the legibility of the dial, which features a matte black finish and cream numerals at 3, 6, 9, and 12, which are easy to read and evenly spaced for clarity. This is even more impressive considering the sub-40mm size. However, the moderate bezel width optimizes the surface area of the dial for such a task. Lastly, the watch comes with a stainless steel bracelet with a timeless design and a rounded design that minimizes pinching (a woven jacquard fabric strap and a hybrid rubber and leather strap are also available).

For a deeper dive, check out our full-length review of the Tudor Ranger watch.

Bellroy Apex Slim Sleeve

Best Wallet: Bellroy is one of our favorite everyday carry brands for how they imbue a modern sensibility and intuition into classic items like wallets and card sleeves. Combining sleek functionality with a compact design, the Bellroy Apex Slim Sleeve is a fantastic addition to any urban EDC sling loadout. Built with pre-molded leather in three different colors that can develop a patina over time, the wallet can fit seamlessly into your pocket or bag without adding any bulk. It features an innovative magnetic closure that snaps shut effortlessly.

Slim at just 14mm, the unit holds anywhere from 6 to 8 cards, plus a few loose bills. However, unlike the brand’s Hide & Seek bifold, which can be stuffed past the quoted limit, the Apex doesn’t have quite the same leniency. We noticed the magnetic closure didn’t seal when it was overstuffed. On the other hand, this wallet is RFID protected, meaning scammers can’t steal your info when they’re nearby. We loved the futuristic approach to the classic leather wallet with the seamless bonded design instead of traditional stitching, allowing it to have a sleek, minimalist look to showcase the cutting-edge craftsmanship.

Master & Dynamic MW09

Best Earbuds: With the advent of the wireless earbud, these audio listening devices have increasingly become part of the everyday carry assortment, and for good reason. Whether you’re listening to podcasts, music, or calls, the cordless buds just look much cooler than anything with wires — regardless of any audial deficiencies. We opted for Master & Dynamic’s MW09, which fit the bill of both style and substance. Combining luxury aesthetics, durability, and premium sound quality, the earbuds are crafted with ceramic housing, stainless steel accents, and sapphire glass inlays to precipitate both a sophisticated look and supreme acoustics.

We loved how comfortable the MW09s fit in our ears, even during extended use, making them ideal for all-day wear in the bustling city environment. You can expect anything from Master & Dynamic to have solid audio performance, and these are no different. Featuring 11mm beryllium drivers, these earbuds deliver a rich, well-balanced, and immersive sound profile, from deep, resonant bass to crisp, detailed highs. However, our favorite feature is the advanced hybrid active noise cancelation tech, using a pair of customizable ANC modes that can adapt to noisy environments. We wore these around our busy Los Angeles office and were quite impressed, especially when it came to the ambient sound transparency, which kept us safely aware of our surroundings without needing to pause our music. The IP54 waterproof rating isn’t the best around, especially for commuting, but these should be fine for most light rain.

Persol Renzo 

Best Sunglasses: If you’re traversing the cityscape, a pair of sunglasses is one of the most crucial essentials you can take with you. If you’re looking for a perfect blend of craftsmanship and timeless style, check out the Persol Renzo, with Italian handcrafted frames made from premium acetate derived from a mix of cotton and powdery pigments so that each pair is slightly different from the others. In terms of comfort, the shades boast Persol’s Meflecto system, which features flexible stems designed to enhance comfort while eliminating pressure against your temples. These managed to adapt to our face shape so that the experience with the sunglasses felt more personal.

Inside the black frames are the polar green lenses, which are polarized to reduce glare yet offer great clarity that isn’t too dark outdoors. In terms of design, the Arrow symbol on the stems takes inspiration from the swords of ancient warriors, becoming a hallmark of the brand. The Renzo in particular has a classic aesthetic that goes just as sharp with a well-tailored suit as it does with a t-shirt and jeans.

Nitecore T4K

Best Flashlight: Nitecore sure knows how to execute outdoor tech solutions, from uber-durable power banks to insanely lightweight headlamps. For the EDC realm, their T4K packs a whopping 4,000 lumens into a highly portable structure. Billed by the brand as the world’s brightest keychain flashlight, this tiny unit features five brightness modes activated via the button on top. There’s also a Turbo mode for the full power when holding the button down, albeit only in short bursts. This is great for quick checks or emergency lighting when you need serious illumination and fast. We’re also fond of the ability to lock the flashlight by pressing the power and mode buttons simultaneously.

Measuring just 3.24” in length, the absolute power of the T4K is deceptive, but it also benefits from these bonus features that are awesome in their own right. We’re talking about the 66-pound rating of the keyring itself and the small OLED display that indicates its current brightness and charge levels. Meanwhile, the IP54 weather resistance allows it to be a viable option in light rain. 

Leica Q3

Best Camera: Not everyone will need a camera as part of their EDC ensemble but chances are, if you’re frequenting an urban environment, it’s at least a consideration. For our money (and lots of it), we went with the Leica Q3, a standout model from one of the world’s greatest camera makers, offering professional-grade performance in a compact yet robust package. Employing a newly developed 60-MP full-frame BSI CMOS sensor capable of delivering stunning image quality with exceptional detail and dynamic range, the unit also provides rapid performance and seamless operation thanks to the Maestro IV processor — ideal for capturing fleeting moments in the city.

The high resolution (36MP and 18MP are also available) allows you the option to either crop images to your heart’s content or select the full frame instead. You can’t go wrong with the quality of these images, which are literally unparalleled in quality. Even in low-light conditions, you can capture amazing, clear images without all the fuss thanks to the wide aperture. It comes with a fixed Summilux 28mm f/1.7 ASPH lens, which is a technical marvel, offering sharpness, clarity, and beautiful depth of field, while also functioning with optical image stabilization, adding another layer of reliability by reducing blur caused by hand movement. As for durability, the Q3 is constructed from solid magnesium alloy and aluminum, making it both lightweight and tough. While both the IP52 waterproof rating won’t be as good as, say, a GoPro, you can still get some good usage in slightly damp weather.

Tested: The Best Adventure EDC Essentials

If the wilderness is more your speed, check out our guide to the best EDC essentials for an adventurous lifestyle.