Finding yourself far from home without the tools you need is tough. Being weighed down or left without enough space to carry everything you need because of just one or two bulky items is equally frustrating. You can end up feeling like a pack mule — a feeling made all the worse when you don’t even need to use what you’re carrying around with you.

But sometimes, with a little planning and some smart shopping, being caught short or having too little room in your bag or pockets can actually be avoided. If you know where to look, there are some great foldable, small, and portable gadgets, gizmos, and tools out there that you can toss into your backpack or slide into your pocket and pretty much forget about until you need them.

You might be surprised by just how many options Harbor Freight offers that fit the bill for compact, foldable tools. The retailer stocks a wide range of foldable lights, knives, multi-tools, and more to help ensure you’re equipped with whatever you need, without taking up too much space in your bag, pocket, or rucksack. Some of these items also have remarkably high user reviews, with high customer recommendation rates to boot.

Strictly speaking, if you carry a smartphone, then you already have a torch with you. However, as useful as that may be, it won’t work in any situation — and finding a way to prop or balance your phone certainly isn’t convenient. A handheld rechargeable work light is a much better alternative thanks to its brightness, ease of use, and versatility. 

When it comes to work lights, Harbor Freight has a few for you to choose from. The LSBR800 range from the Icon tool series is a popular choice, offering 800 lumens of light in a small, slimline case. As well as being a fairly compact gadget to begin with — it weighs less than a pound and maxes out at 12 inches in length — it also comes with an adjustable, folding head, allowing you to tuck it away in the corner of your backpack or pocket. Plus, you can swivel and move the head around a 180-degree angle, so you can switch up how you’re using it to illuminate the exact area you need to see better.

The Icon folding work light runs on a rechargeable lithium-ion battery that, when used optimally, can last up to eight-and-a-half hours. You can recharge it with a USB-C cable, so you can easily charge it in your car while you’re on the move or plug it into a portable power bank in your backpack. But don’t fret if you don’t have one. Many user reviews praise its long battery life, so you shouldn’t have to worry about recharging it too often.

Harbor Freight offers a very wide range of utility knives across several product lines, with a few folding down to even more compact sizes. The Pittsburgh utility knife really takes the cake when it comes to size, though, with a weight of 0.15 pounds and a handle length of just 2.5 inches. You could easily fit it into a pocket or backpack with room to spare for any other tools and gadgets you want to slip alongside it. Alternatively, you could hang it on your belt loop or bag zipper using its built-in keychain.

If the idea of carrying a blade in your bag is (understandably) worrying to you, it’s worth noting that this one offers a couple of safety features. The blades can fold into the handle, keeping them out of harm’s way and reducing the risk of snagging your bag or ripping anything when you’re putting it away. It also uses a button-operated quick-release system to remove old blades, making it easier to switch them out once you’ve worn them down. The knife takes universal mini utility blades, which are about an inch long, so it shouldn’t be too difficult to buy replacements.

At the time of writing, the tiny utility knife has a 4.8 out of 5 user average based on more than 750 reviews. Moreover, 97% of those customers reported that they would recommend the knife to others. A good chunk of those reviews are praising just how small and convenient the tool is, with many mentioning they’re comfortable keeping it in their pocket, handbag, or on their keychain.

It may sound cliché, but you really don’t know what life’s going to throw at you — or what you might want to have to hand to throw right back at it. That’s exactly what makes do-it-all multi-tool sets so appealing, and as a result, seriously useful pieces of kit to keep in your bag. Harbor Freight’s Gordon 20-in-1 multi-tool makes it easy to fold away an arsenal of pocket-sized tools in a single device, including needle-nose pliers, files, knives, scissors, drivers, and more. It also comes with a protective polyester sheath and a belt clip, in case you don’t want to spend too much time fishing around in your backpack to find it.

Despite how many tools it packs into its stainless steel frame, the multi-tool isn’t all that big. It’s around four inches long and an inch-and-a-half wide. If you’re struggling for space in your backpack, you might want to opt for a smaller alternative, but generally speaking, many users in the reviews commend how compact, space-efficient, and light it is. That makes it a pretty solid choice to throw in your backpack and forget about until you need it.

While most users seem to be happy with the Gordon 20-in-1 — it has a 4.5-star average based on 600 reviews at the time of writing — not everyone has had so much luck. A couple of users noted that certain tools were less reliable than others, with a few reporting that the pliers or knife snapped under pressure. Although those reviews are in the minority, it’s worth bearing in mind that larger jobs might require more robust tools.

If you work on your car, bike, or electronics often, keeping a set of Torx keys close by can really come in handy. The Pittsburgh Pro Torx key set is a small, foldable set of seven keys in varying sizes, with a very high average user rating. It has a 4.7-star average out of 5 based on almost 600 reviews, with 97% of customers confirming they would recommend the product at the time of writing.

A good number of those reviews praise the set for being compact, easy to use, and good value for the price. Considering the set is $5.99, it’s not hard to imagine that at least part of why so many users are satisfied is that it’s a bargain, but that isn’t the full picture. Many reviews mention that the keys are durable and don’t have a cheap feel. Given that the keys are made of S2 alloy steel, it’s not surprising they feel robust despite the low price. 

The Torx keys fold away into the anodized aluminum handle when you aren’t using them, making it easy to fit them in your pocket or bag for safekeeping. The whole set also weighs only about a quarter of a pound, so you don’t need to worry about it weighing you down. Just be sure to check that the sizes they have on offer are actually relevant to what you want to work on — they range from T10 up to T40 — otherwise you might be lugging around dead weight for no good reason.

Flip knives are foldable by design: the blades “flip” open from the handle with a quick flick. Harbor Freight’s Doyle flip knife is no different, but it is a particularly useful choice if you’re looking for one to keep in your bag, pocket, or as one of the tools to keep in your car in case of emergency. That’s because of its lightweight design, safety liner lock, and built-in belt clip and lanyard hole. It also has a high user rating, with 95% of users stating that they would recommend it to others.

One way this flip knife differs a little from others is its hawkbill design. A hawkbill or pruner knife has a curved blade, designed for cutting through thick materials and foliage. As you might’ve guessed, it’s named for the blade’s beak shape. Another key part of the blade is that, unlike with utility knives, the corrosion-resistant stainless steel blade is an integral part of the knife, meaning it can’t be removed or replaced. So you’ll need to remember to take it out of your backpack to sharpen it sometimes. A couple of user reviews noted that they needed to sharpen the knife more often than they expected, so it’s worth considering that.

On the other hand, something that a lot of customers who bought the knife are happy about lies in the guarantee. The highly rated Harbor Freight tool comes with a lifetime warranty, courtesy of its status as part of the Doyle range. That means that on the off-chance it breaks while you’re trying to cut your way through something especially tough, you can easily replace it without too much fuss.

We kept a few things in mind to ensure we were carefully selecting products that fit the bill. The first two things we looked for were exactly what you would expect: foldable tools and gadgets from Harbor Freight. Similarly, we made sure the items were small and lightweight enough to fit in a jacket pocket, backpack, or other bag without taking up a ridiculous amount of space.

We also reviewed user ratings to ensure the products were generally well regarded by buyers. As a result, we made sure not to include any products rated below 4 out of 5 stars at the time of writing. With that in mind, we also checked how many reviews were left to make sure any high averages weren’t based on just a couple of reviews. We also narrowed our selection down to only items that at least 80% of customers would recommend if asked. In fact, on publication, the lowest figure was 89%.

One final criterion we kept in mind was to ensure we didn’t include multiple products that were essentially the same. So, for example, we didn’t include multiple hex key sets or foldable work lights. The closest exception to this was the two knives. Since one is a utility knife with replaceable blades and the other is a flip knife with an integral blade, they’re generally fit for different enough purposes to both be worth consideration.