Sizes & Bags

simplehuman liner alternatives

The can was a one-off purchase. The liners are not - and that is by design. Here is what else fits a coded simplehuman can, and the one thing you lose by switching.

By Ryder M. · Last reviewed November 10, 2026

Caddy bin being lifted out of a kitchen cabinet

Lid & Liner is reader-supported. If you buy through a link on this page we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. It never changes which product we rank first — how we pick and how we make money.

The short answer

For a Code J can, buy Plasticplace Custom Fit Trash Bags Compatible with simplehuman Code J, 50 Count. They are cut to the same 21 by 28 inch pattern, so the bag still sits in the liner pocket and under the rim the way the branded one does. For a Code K can, the Reli. Code K 225-count is the bulk route. If you are willing to give up the perfect fit entirely, Glad ForceFlexPlus 13 Gallon works in most 45 to 50 liter cans, and the budget pick is Hefty Ultra Strong 13 Gallon, the cheapest box here that will do the job.

#	Product	Best for	Price
01	Plasticplace Custom Fit Trash Bags Compatible with simplehuman Code J, 50 CountA third-party Code J liner at a fraction of the cost per bag, which is the honest answer for anyone who likes the fit and resents the refill price.	Best third-party Code J	$16.29 · View on Amazon Price as of November 14, 2026. #ad How we make money
02	Reli. Code K Trash Bags Compatible with simplehuman Code K, 225 CountThe bulk version of the same idea: 225 Code K liners, stated to the same 35-45 liter fit as the branded bag.	Best third-party bulk	$49.99 · View on Amazon Price as of November 14, 2026. #ad How we make money
03	Glad ForceFlexPlus Tall Kitchen Drawstring Trash Bags, 13 GallonThe 13-gallon bag to buy if yours keep splitting: two layers of stretch film, double side seams and a reinforced bottom.	Best overall bag	$34.88 · View on Amazon Price as of November 14, 2026. #ad How we make money
04	Hefty Ultra Strong Tall Kitchen Trash Bags, 13 GallonThe main alternative to Glad, with odor control worked into the film rather than added as a scent strip.	Best for odor	$15.47 · View on Amazon $17.99 · 14% off · Price as of November 14, 2026. #ad How we make money

Check your code before you buy anything. It is printed inside the can, usually on the liner pocket or on a label under the lid, and the letter - not the capacity - is what you are matching.

What the branded liner actually does

Three things, and only the first is hard to replicate.

It is cut to the can. simplehuman's custom-fit liners are sized to each code so the bag reaches the rim, tucks under it and does not slip. A generic bag in a 50-liter can either hangs out or falls in. Third-party liners cut to the same codes solve this; generic drawstring bags do not.
It dispenses from the liner pocket. The pocket in the back of the can holds a pack, so the next bag is where you need it. A third-party pack sits in the pocket perfectly well - this is not a lock-in.
Some codes carry an Odorsorb pod option, which is a carbon component rather than a bag feature. If that is what you are buying the branded liners for, the pod is sold separately and you can keep it while changing bag - which is the arbitrage most people miss.

The honest caveat on every third-party coded liner: the cut is matched, the plastic is not necessarily. Thickness and drawstring quality vary, and a cheaper liner is more likely to stretch when you lift a heavy bag. That is the trade, and for most households it is a good one.

Who each alternative is for

Pick	Who it is for	Fit	Count
Plasticplace Code J Compatible	A Code J can, keeping the exact fit	Cut to Code J, 21 x 28 in	50
Reli. Code K Compatible	A Code K can, bought in bulk	Cut to Code K, 35-45 L	225
Glad ForceFlexPlus 13 Gallon	Giving up the exact fit for a stronger bag	Standard 13 gal	Box count varies
Hefty Ultra Strong 13 Gallon	The budget pick - cheapest box that works	Standard 13 gal	Box count varies

Code sizing is simplehuman's own; third-party cuts are the manufacturers' stated compatibility.

The picks in full

01 — Best third-party Code J

Plasticplace Custom Fit Trash Bags Compatible with simplehuman Code J, 50 Count

A third-party Code J liner at a fraction of the cost per bag, which is the honest answer for anyone who likes the fit and resents the refill price.

Fits: simplehuman Code J cans, stated 10-10.5 gallons
Flat size: 21 x 28 inches
Count: 50 liners
Film: Tear-resistant LLDPE
Brand: Third-party, not simplehuman

The thing you are paying simplehuman for is a bag dimensioned to your can, and that is a shape, not a secret. Plasticplace sells the Code J shape directly and - unusually - prints the actual flat size, 21 by 28 inches, alongside a 10-10.5 gallon fit. simplehuman publishes neither number for its own liners, so this is the only Code J bag on the market you can check with a tape measure before you buy a case.

What we'd flag: it is not a simplehuman product, and simplehuman's warranty terms exclude damage attributed to non-simplehuman parts and accessories - in practice more of a concern on a sensor can than a step can. The film is also plainer than the branded liner: no carbon infusion, no recycled-content claim, and no one-by-one dispensing from the box.

$16.29 · View on Amazon

Price as of November 14, 2026. #ad How we make money

02 — Best third-party bulk

Reli. Code K Trash Bags Compatible with simplehuman Code K, 225 Count

The bulk version of the same idea: 225 Code K liners, stated to the same 35-45 liter fit as the branded bag.

Fits: simplehuman Code K cans, 35-45 liter / 9-12 gallon
Count: 225 liners
Closure: Drawstring
Brand: Third-party, not simplehuman

At two liner changes a week a 100-count box is a year's supply, so a 225-count is two years of not thinking about it - and the cost per bag at this count is the lowest coded-liner figure we found. Reli. states the same 35-45 liter and 9-12 gallon fit range simplehuman publishes for Code K, which is the number that has to match.

What we'd flag: the same warranty caveat applies, and buying 225 of anything before you have checked the fit is a mistake - buy a small pack of the branded liner or the Plasticplace first, confirm it sits right in your can, then order the case. Film stored more than a couple of years, especially somewhere warm, does not improve.

$49.99 · View on Amazon

Price as of November 14, 2026. #ad How we make money

03 — Best overall bag

Glad ForceFlexPlus Tall Kitchen Drawstring Trash Bags, 13 Gallon

The 13-gallon bag to buy if yours keep splitting: two layers of stretch film, double side seams and a reinforced bottom.

Nominal size: 13 gallons
Closure: Heavy-duty drawstring
Construction: Two-layer film, double side seams, reinforced bottom
Leak protection: 2X (manufacturer claim)
Scent: Fragrance-free and scented versions sold

Bags do not usually tear in the middle, they fail at a seam or at the bottom corner under the weight of something wet. ForceFlexPlus reinforces exactly those two places and adds a second layer of film, which is why it survives a bag of bones or a broken jar. The drawstring is heavy enough to actually carry the load.

What we'd flag: stretch film stretches, which is the point — but it also means the bag sags further down inside the can as it fills, and on a can with a plain rim rather than a retaining ring it will slide off the lip.

$34.88 · View on Amazon

Price as of November 14, 2026. #ad How we make money

04 — Best for odor

Hefty Ultra Strong Tall Kitchen Trash Bags, 13 Gallon

The main alternative to Glad, with odor control worked into the film rather than added as a scent strip.

Nominal size: 13 gallons
Closure: Drawstring
Resistance: Leak, puncture and tear resistant
Odor control: Continuous, built into the film

Hefty's Ultra Strong line resists leaks, punctures and rips and carries odor control across the whole bag rather than in one strip. If your problem is a can that smells within a day rather than bags that split, this is the more useful of the two big brands.

What we'd flag: scented bags mask rather than remove, and plenty of people find the scent worse than the smell it covers. Try one box before you buy a case.

$15.47 · View on Amazon

$17.99 · 14% off · Price as of November 14, 2026. #ad How we make money

Matching the code

Code G is for 30 liter / 8 gallon cans - typically under-counter pull-outs.
Code J covers roughly 38-45 liter / 10-12 gallon cans and is the most common code on rectangular step cans.
Code K covers 35-45 liter / 9-12 gallon cans.
Code M and N cover the 40-50 liter bodies.
Code Q is the large one, 50-65 liter / 13-17 gallon.

If the bag you are using slips into the can or bunches at the rim, the code is wrong rather than the brand - why your trash bag does not fit walks through the diagnosis. For the wider question of liners against ordinary bags, trash can liners vs trash bags is the background page, and the best bulk trash bags covers buying any of these in volume.

And if the liner cost has made you reconsider the can itself, alternatives to simplehuman trash cans lists six cans that take ordinary bags.

The two coded alternatives worth ordering: Plasticplace for Code J, Reli. for Code K in bulk.

Best third-party Code J

Plasticplace Custom Fit Trash Bags Compatible with simplehuman Code J, 50 Count

A third-party Code J liner at a fraction of the cost per bag, which is the honest answer for anyone who likes the fit and resents the refill price.

$16.29 · View on Amazon

Price as of November 14, 2026. #ad How we make money

Best third-party bulk

Reli. Code K Trash Bags Compatible with simplehuman Code K, 225 Count

The bulk version of the same idea: 225 Code K liners, stated to the same 35-45 liter fit as the branded bag.

$49.99 · View on Amazon

Price as of November 14, 2026. #ad How we make money

Common questions

What can you use instead of simplehuman liners?

Third-party bags cut to the same codes. Plasticplace makes a Code J compatible liner and Reli. makes a Code K compatible liner in bulk counts, both at a much lower cost per bag.

Will ordinary 13-gallon bags fit a simplehuman can?

Usually, in the 45 to 50 liter bodies, but they do not reach and tuck under the rim the way a coded liner does, so the bag shows and can slip.

Where do you find the liner code on a simplehuman can?

Printed inside the can, generally on the liner pocket or a label under the lid. It is the letter you match, not the gallon capacity.

Are third-party simplehuman liners any good?

The cut is matched; the plastic is not necessarily the same. Expect more stretch under a heavy load. For most households that is an acceptable trade for the saving.

Can you still use the liner pocket with third-party bags?

Yes. The pocket holds any pack of the right size, so dispensing works exactly as before.

What is the cheapest way to buy coded liners?

In bulk. The 225-count Code K box on this page is dramatically cheaper per bag than branded dispenser packs, which typically come in counts of 20.

Sources

Every specification on this page traces to one of these, checked at the time of writing. Where a manufacturer does not publish a figure, the page says so rather than estimating it.

The short answer

What the branded liner actually does

Who each alternative is for

The picks in full

Plasticplace Custom Fit Trash Bags Compatible with simplehuman Code J, 50 Count

Reli. Code K Trash Bags Compatible with simplehuman Code K, 225 Count

Glad ForceFlexPlus Tall Kitchen Drawstring Trash Bags, 13 Gallon

Hefty Ultra Strong Tall Kitchen Trash Bags, 13 Gallon

Matching the code

Plasticplace Custom Fit Trash Bags Compatible with simplehuman Code J, 50 Count

Reli. Code K Trash Bags Compatible with simplehuman Code K, 225 Count

Common questions

What can you use instead of simplehuman liners?

Will ordinary 13-gallon bags fit a simplehuman can?

Where do you find the liner code on a simplehuman can?

Are third-party simplehuman liners any good?

Can you still use the liner pocket with third-party bags?

What is the cheapest way to buy coded liners?

Sources

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