Bags matter more than most beginners expect — fill and fabric change how a bag lands, slides, and stops. Here's what's regulation and what's just preference.
A regulation cornhole bag measures 6 by 6 inches and weighs between 15 and 16 ounces. A full set is eight bags: four of one color per side. Traditional bags are filled with whole corn, while most modern bags — including all tournament-level ones — use plastic resin pellets, which don't rot, absorb water, or shrink over time.
| Size | 6 in × 6 in |
| Weight | 15–16 oz (about 1 lb) |
| Bags per set | 8 total — 4 per side |
| Modern fill | Plastic resin pellets |
| Traditional fill | Whole feed corn |
| Fabric | Duck cloth, often dual-sided |
Six inches square, 15 to 16 ounces. That weight is the reason a cornhole bag behaves the way it does — heavy enough to resist wind and stay put where it lands, light enough to throw underhand 27 feet without effort.
Bags that drift far outside that range change the game. Light bags skate and blow around; heavy ones land dead and won't slide toward the hole.
Whole feed corn is the original fill and where the game gets its name. Corn bags have a soft, dead landing that many people like, but corn is organic: it absorbs moisture, can mildew, attracts pests, and slowly grinds itself down, so bags shrink and lighten over a season.
Resin pellets solve all of that. They don't rot, don't swell in humidity, and hold their weight for years, which is why every sanctioned league requires them. If your set lives in a garage or gets left out after a cookout, resin is the practical choice.
Most competitive bags are dual-sided: one face is a slicker fabric that slides, the other is grippier and stops fast. Same bag, two behaviors, chosen by which side you land on.
The practical use is straightforward. Throw the slick side down when you need a bag to slide up and into the hole, especially past a blocker. Throw the stick side down when you want a bag to stop where it lands — setting a blocker of your own, or protecting a lead.
Basic backyard bags are single-sided, and that's fine. It's one less thing to think about while you're still working on landing bags on the board at all.
Keep bags dry and store them out of direct sun; UV breaks down fabric and stitching faster than play does. Brush off dirt rather than soaking them, and let a damp bag air-dry flat.
Replace bags when seams start to open, when the fill has clearly settled or lightened, or when the slick side has worn grippy. Mismatched bags within a set are worse than old bags — every throw should feel the same.
Between 15 and 16 ounces — about one pound. That's the regulation range, and bags outside it noticeably change how the game plays.
Traditionally whole feed corn, which is where the game's name comes from. Modern bags — and all tournament bags — use plastic resin pellets instead, because they don't rot, absorb water, or lose weight over time.
Eight: four bags in each of two colors, so each side throws four per frame. Two colors keeps it obvious whose bag is whose when scoring.
Dual-sided bags have one slicker face that slides toward the hole and one grippier face that stops quickly. Land the slick side down to slide a bag in, and the stick side down when you want it to stay put — for example when setting a blocker.
This page answers one question. The setup & equipment guide covers the whole subject end to end.