Behind every Hermès bag there is a story, a waitlist, or both. Hermès offers much more than the two bags everyone recognizes. In this guide you will find the different Hermès bag names, what each style does best, approximate prices, and which models you can realistically buy in store.
Already know which model you are after? Skip straight to it below. If you are starting from zero, read in order — the styles are grouped by how hard they are to get.
The Quota Bags: Birkin and Kelly
Each year, Hermès restricts how many of its two flagship bags any client can purchase. Collectors call these the quota bags. You cannot just walk in and order one. Boutiques offer them to established clients, which is why the resale market for both runs well above retail.
Hermès Birkin Bag
The Birkin is the most famous handbag in the world. The design is a structured top-handle tote: two straps, a turn-lock closure, no shoulder strap. Common sizes are the Birkin 25, 30, and 35.
Retail Hermès Birkin bag prices begin near $11,000–$12,000 for a Togo leather 25 and rise sharply for exotic skins. Pre-owned, popular sizes and colors command $20,000 and up. The most expensive Hermès bags ever sold are diamond-set crocodile Birkins, with auction results in the hundreds of thousands.
Hermès Kelly Bag
Older and more refined, the Hermès Kelly bag pairs a single top handle with a sculpted flap and a removable shoulder strap. You can choose between two builds — the rigid Sellier and the softer Retourne. The bag shot to fame with Grace Kelly in 1956, and the house eventually named it after her.
Pricing lands close to the Birkin: about $10,000–$11,500 retail, depending on size and leather. The mini Kelly bag (the Kelly 20) is currently the hardest of all to get, and resale prices often double retail.
The Kelly vs Birkin question in one line: the Kelly is the dressy, fully-closing option; the Birkin is the casual, roomy, easy-access one.
reddit -Quota Styles You Can Realistically Buy
Busy boutiques may test your patience, but these styles carry no yearly cap. For many buyers, this is where the smart money goes.
Hermès Constance Bag
A structured shoulder bag with the big "H" clasp — the closest thing Hermès has to a logo bag. It transitions from day to night and retains value nearly as well as the quota bags. The Constance 18 starts at roughly $8,500 retail.
Hermès Evelyne Bag
The Evelyne is the maison's laid-back crossbody bag. The design includes a perforated "H" on the front, an open top secured by a tab, and a wide canvas strap. Its original job was hauling equestrian grooming kit, which is why the holes are there. At roughly $3,500–$4,000, it is one of the most attainable everyday Hermès bags.
Hermès Lindy Bag
A slouchy double-zip design, the Lindy works both handheld and over the shoulder. The soft silhouette has made it a go-to for travel. In recent years the Mini Lindy has turned into the line's trend piece.
Hermès Picotin Bag
The Picotin takes its shape from a horse's feed bag — a small, open bucket design. It skips lining and hardware complications in favor of a simple lock-through closure. When people search for a Hermès bucket bag, this is the one they mean. Starting near $3,000, it is often cited as the cheapest Hermès bag in leather.
Hermès Garden Party Bag
A practical canvas-and-leather tote for daily errands. The Garden Party serves as the range's workhorse and is one of the simplest styles to locate in a boutique. The all-leather versions cost more; the canvas mix keeps the entry price lower.
More Hermès Bag Names Worth Knowing
The catalog goes deeper than most realize. These names surface again and again in boutiques and across the resale market:
Bolide — a rounded zip-top design and one of the first zippered handbags in history.
Roulis — a compact shoulder bag with a distinctive metal clasp; a quieter alternative to the Constance.
Herbag — canvas construction topped with a Kelly-style leather flap; the bags swap on one frame.
Geta — a petite curved crossbody in Swift leather that debuted in 2022 and remains in demand.
Victoria — an unstructured, soft tote suited to travel and everyday carry.
Della Cavalleria — the house's saddle bag silhouette, with a clasp drawn from equestrian hardware.
In-the-Loop — a contemporary bucket shape, especially popular pre-owned in the 18 size.
24/24, Halzan, Jypsière, Kelly Danse — adaptable shoulder and crossbody designs that switch between carry modes.
For men, the Haut à Courroies (the Birkin's ancestor), the Steve messenger bag, and the Cityback line lead the Hermès men's bag range.
Hermès Bag Prices: How Much Is a Hermès Bag?
The short answer: anywhere from roughly $3,000 to well over $100,000. A realistic ladder looks like this:
Entry (canvas and small leather): Herbag, Garden Party canvas, Picotin — roughly $3,000–$4,500
Everyday leather styles: Evelyne, Lindy, Bolide — about $3,500–$9,000
The structured icons: Constance, Kelly, Birkin — around $8,500–$13,000+ at retail
Exotic skins and rarities: crocodile, ostrich, and limited runs — from $30,000 into six figures
Expect price increases most years; on the secondary market, quota bags usually trade at 1.5–2x retail.
How to Get a Hermès Bag
Walk-in stock exists for Evelyne, Picotin, Garden Party, and similar styles, especially at larger boutiques. To land a Birkin or Kelly, your realistic options are building purchase history with a sales associate or going pre-owned through a reputable reseller.
If you go pre-owned, authentication is everything. Know how to tell if a Hermès bag is real before parting with money: examine the heat stamp, the hand-sewn saddle stitch (slightly angled), the hardware engravings, and the blind stamp. Machine-perfect stitching and lightweight hardware usually give a fake Hermès bag away. Unsure? A professional authentication service costs a fraction of what the bag does.
Vintage Hermès bags reward buyers in their own way. Older Kellys and Bolides frequently cost less than new non-quota styles, with patina no new bag can imitate.
What Should Your First Hermès Bag Be?
If you want one answer: the Evelyne for casual daily use, the Constance if you dress up more often, and the Picotin if you want the lowest-cost entry into Hermès leather. Save the Birkin or Kelly for when you know the house — or choose authenticated pre-owned and bypass the waitlist completely.
More on this topic: our Hermès leather guide plus Birkin vs Kelly deep dive.