You've probably heard several terms for an emergency kit. Go bag. Bug out bag. Earthquake kit. 72-hour kit. They all describe the same essential idea: a bag packed with everything you'd need — and stay reasonably comfortable — for the first three days after a disaster.
Here's the uncomfortable truth: most people who have one have it wrong. It's buried in a garage. It was packed years ago and never refreshed or updated. The food has expired. The flashlight needs batteries nobody bought. And there's a solid chance it's in the last place you'd reach for in a fast-moving emergency (most people store them in a distant closet or garage).
Preppi is about fixing that. Whether you're starting from scratch, purchasing a Preppi Kit, or reassessing what you already have, we'll walk you through exactly what a proper go bag should contain, how to pack it, where to keep it, and what most people forget.
What Is a Go Bag, Exactly?
A go bag — also called an earthquake kit, bug out bag, or 72-hour kit — is a pre-packed bag containing enough food, water, first-aid supplies, and essential gear to sustain you for 72 hours after an emergency.
The 72-hour window is intentional. Government emergency services and FEMA both operate on the assumption that in a major disaster, professional help may not reach you for up to three days. That first window — when roads are blocked, power is out, and communication is disrupted — is entirely on you.
The Department of Homeland Security's Ready.gov calls a go bag a "disaster supply kit" and recommends every household have one. The California Governor's Office of Emergency Services says the same. And yet surveys consistently show that fewer than most Americans are not prepared for even a 72-hour disruption.
The gap isn't awareness. People know they should have one. The gap is activation — Preppi's goal is to do everything possible to help encourage more of the world to get prepared by making kits appealing enough that it actually gets done.
The Five Pillars of a 72-Hour Emergency Kit
Every go bag, no matter how minimal or comprehensive, should be built around five core categories.
1. Water
Water is the most critical item in any emergency kit — and the most commonly underestimated. The standard recommendation is one gallon per person per day for drinking and sanitation. For a 72-hour kit, that's three gallons per person.
That's a lot of weight, which is why most well-designed kits like Preppi's use sealed water ration pouches — compact, Coast Guard-approved, and built to a 5-year shelf life. They're stackable, lightweight, and don't leak. If you're planning to supplement with tap water from a disrupted supply, a water purification option (tablets or a filter straw) should also be in your bag.
What to include:
- Water ration pouches (at least 12 for one person, 24 for two)
- Water purification tablets or a portable filter
- A collapsible water container for refilling
2. Food
Emergency food gets a bad reputation — and honestly, some of it deserves it. But a good kit doesn't require freeze-dried meals that taste like cardboard. Modern emergency rations are calorie-dense, compact, and shelf-stable for 3–5 years.
Look for options that don't require cooking or extra water to prepare. In an earthquake or wildfire scenario, you may not have access to either.
What to include:
- 72-hour food rations (Preppi 3-Day kits always include 2400 calorie bars)
- High-calorie energy bars
- Any specific dietary or medical requirements for your household
- A manual can opener if you include canned goods
3. First Aid
Hospitals will be overwhelmed in a major disaster. A well-stocked first-aid kit isn't a backup plan — it's a primary one.
Your kit should go beyond bandages. Think: wound cleaning and closure, pain management, blister care, any prescription medications (with at minimum a 7-day supply), and if relevant to your household, items like an EpiPen or blood pressure medication.
What to include:
- Adhesive bandages in multiple sizes
- Gauze pads and medical tape
- Antiseptic wipes and antibiotic ointment
- Tweezers, scissors, and a digital thermometer
- Nitrile gloves (at least 4 pairs)
- Prescription medications (7-day supply minimum)
- An N95 or air respirator mask — critical for wildfire smoke and poor air quality
4. Light and power
Your phone's flashlight will drain the battery in hours. A proper emergency kit includes redundant lighting — and a way to keep your phone charged when the grid is down.
What to include:
- A hand-crank or LED flashlight (ideally both)
- Extra batteries
- Candles and a lighter or waterproof matches
- A solar or hand-crank phone charger with USB output, Preppi's is highly rated
- An emergency weather radio — this is how you receive evacuation orders when cell service is down
5. Communication and Documents
When the power is out most likely the internet will be out too, having tools to stay connected via satellite communicator or the latest iPhone (which now can text via satellite). In an emergency, you may not have time to gather what matters most. A physical copy of your critical documents in your bag and also digital copies in a secure cloud backup — can be the difference between recovering your life and starting over.
What to include:
- Copies of IDs, passports, insurance cards, and financial documents
- A list of emergency contacts written on paper (phones die)
- Cash in small bills (ATMs won't work without power)
- A physical map of your area
What Most People Forget
Beyond the five pillars, there are items that consistently get left out of go bags — but Preppi makes sure you have.
An air respirator mask. Not a surgical mask. N95 or better. If you're in California, Oregon, or anywhere prone to wildfires, this is non-negotiable. Wildfire smoke is far more dangerous than most people realize — it contains particulates that bypass the upper respiratory tract entirely and go directly into lung tissue.
A whistle. If you're trapped under debris, a 120-decibel emergency whistle is far more effective than shouting and will work when your voice won't.
A rain poncho. Compact, light, and essential if you're evacuating on foot or waiting outside for extended periods.
Comfort items for children and pets. A small toy or familiar item can make an enormous difference to a frightened child. Pet food and any medications your animals need are equally easy to overlook.
A hand-crank or satellite communicator. Cell networks are among the first things to fail in major disasters — either because of infrastructure damage or because millions of people are trying to call simultaneously. A satellite messenger (like the SPOT X) lets you send and receive messages from anywhere on earth, independent of cell coverage.
A warm layer. Nighttime temperatures can drop significantly. A compact emergency blanket is a minimum; a lightweight fleece or down jacket is better.
Where You Keep It Matters as Much as What's in It
Here's where most go bag advice goes wrong: it tells you what to pack, but not where to put it.
A bag buried in a garage closet under a decade of camping gear is not an emergency kit. It's a box of good intentions. In a real emergency — an earthquake, a fast-moving wildfire, a gas leak — you have minutes, not hours. You'll grab what's in reach, not what requires excavation.
The most effective emergency kit is one you'll actually grab. That means:
At home: Keep your kit somewhere visible and accessible — a front closet, near the door, or even as part of your living room or home office. Preppi makes their kits well-designed so leaving it out isn't an eye sore. An emergency bag shouldn't look out of place. It should look intentional!
At work: A compact kit (such as the Preppi GoBox or Preppi Essentials Kit) at your desk or in your car ensures you're covered wherever you are when something happens.
In your car: An additional vehicle kit for roadside and transit emergencies is worth keeping distinct from your primary emergency bag.
How to Choose the Right Emergency Go Bag for Your Household
The right kit depends on who you're preparing for.
One person, urban environment: A compact, pre-packed kit with a 3-day supply and a lightweight footprint. You want something you can grab and move fast, like the Preppi GoBox.
Two people: A full-sized kit with doubled supplies — or two individual bags that split the load between you. The Prepster Bag or two Prepster Backpacks would work great in this scenario.
Family with children or pets: A larger primary bag plus compact supplemental kits for each member. Children old enough to carry their own bag should have one — it gives them agency and reduces parental load.
Maintaining Your Kit: The Part Nobody Talks About
A go bag is not a one-time purchase. It's an ongoing system.
Check your kit twice a year — we recommend using daylight saving time changes as a reminder. At each check:
- Rotate food and water rations (replace anything within 6 months of expiration)
- Test batteries and replace if needed
- Update document copies if anything has changed
- Reassess for life changes: a new baby, a new pet, a new prescription medication
The goal is a kit that's always current and ready for the next 6 months or more.
Preppi offers refresh kits to make keeping your kit updated and ready!
The Bottom Line
An emergency go bag isn't a prepper statement. It's a practical acknowledgment that emergencies are real, they happen to real people, and the 72 hours after one are yours to manage before help arrives.
The best earthquake kit is the one that's packed, current, and in a place you'll actually reach for. Everything else is secondary.
Preppi makes emergency kits designed to live where you actually live — not buried in a closet. From the compact GoBox (a complete 3-day kit in a briefcase-sized form) to The Prepster, our award-winning two-person kit featured in the New York Times and Oprah's Favorite Things, every Preppi kit is built around a military-grade 3-day supply of food, water, and first aid — with the design sensibility to sit on your bookshelf rather than gather dust in a garage.
All Preppi kits come with a lifetime warranty.
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Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between a go bag and a bug out bag? The terms are used interchangeably, but "bug out bag" (or BOB) typically implies a longer-duration or more tactical kit used by survival enthusiasts, while "go bag" is the more everyday term for a household emergency bag covering the first 72 hours of a disaster.
Is an earthquake kit the same as a 72-hour kit? Yes. An earthquake kit, go bag, and 72-hour kit all describe the same thing: a bag with enough supplies to sustain you for three days after any emergency. The name changes based on your region and the disaster type you're most likely to face.
Where should I store my go bag? In rooms you spend the most time such as living room, bedroom, office, dorm room, etc. Avoid garages (hard to access in structural damage), attic or basement storage, or anywhere that would slow your exit.
What documents should be in my emergency kit? Copies of: government-issued ID, passport, health insurance cards, homeowner's or renter's insurance policy, vehicle registration, bank account information, a list of prescriptions, and a written list of important phone numbers. Keep originals in a fireproof safe or document bag and copies — or scanned PDFs — in your kit.