The plastic bag has a nasty reputation, and not without reason. It’s ugly and overly abundant, and tends to end up everywhere but where it should. But although banning plastic bags might seem like the right decision, the alternatives are not necessarily more climate-friendly.

Depending on how plastic bags are handled, reused, and recycled, they can actually have a less severe climate impact than paper, cotton, and bioplastic bags. In fact, the carbon footprint of a one-time use plastic bag is smaller than a one-time use paper bag or bioplastic bag, according to several studies. Plastic bags are also relatively sturdy and can be reused several times (although they might not be particularly pretty after a while).

Despite their name, bioplastic bags do not biodegrade very easily. Bioplastics usually require industrial composters to process and cannot be mixed with other materials, meaning recycling plants need to set up separate facilities for bioplastics. They also often have a higher carbon footprint than regular plastics because of the energy needed for production, from machinery-assisted harvesting to raw material processing.

Cloth bags, meanwhile, are usually made from cotton. Due to the water-intense production process, a cotton bag needs to be used 131 times to break even with its plastic brethren’s one-time use climate impact, according to the UK’s Environment Agency. A better alternative is the reusable nonwoven polypropylene plastic bag, since producing this bag is less carbon-intensive.

Paper bags are easier to recycle than plastic bags. They are also biodegradable, making them easy to compost. But paper bag production requires a lot of water, fuel, and wood. As such, a paper bag needs to be reused three times to have the same climate impact as a one-time use regular plastic bag. Unfortunately, paper bags easily break in humid and rainy weather conditions.

In short, it’s difficult to determine which type of bag is the most sustainable. Plastic bags have greater negative effects after being used, while paper and reusable bags have significant upfront environmental costs. But before you go out to buy a new sustainable bag, remember that the most sustainable option is the bag you already have, whether it is made of plastic, paper, or any other material. Regardless of the bag you choose, using it as many times as possible and properly recycling it is by far the most climate-friendly option.