Putting together a great outfit has a lot of moving parts. The right shoes can keep you on the move. The right shirt can grab attention. But the unspoken workhorse of the outfit is the pants. They can be subtle and keep you looking dignified. Or they can be bright and eye-catching to send a message. Whether you want to blend into the crowd or let the pants do the talking for you, there are many kinds of pants to choose from. But in the over-saturated market of pants, we scoured our extensive pant collection and picked out the best pants for men.
Travel pants
These are the do-everything go-anywhere pants that ensure supreme ease of movement without sacrificing their look. Whether you’re working at the office, taking a flight to another city, or riding a bike, your travel pants will come in handy. Most of these are known for being non-iron and wrinkle-resistant. They also will be quite stretchy to allow you to shove yourself into the airline seats…at least your bottom half will be comfortable.
Rhone Altitude Pant
Rhone prides itself in creating collections that keep you on the move while still looking great. They took the next step in this modern marvel of masculine utility by giving it a soft-brushed interior with a water-resistant exterior.
Ministry of Supply Kinetic Pant
Ministry of Supply has never been shy about being the closest thing to a real-life Q Branch. If they were going to give 007 James Bond anything that wasn’t a fancy watch, it would be this pair of pants. They look like dress pants and feel like athletic pants.
Sweatpants
The truth is, we know you can’t get out of them — and neither can we. Sweatpants are probably the single most comfortable thing in a man’s closet. From those rainy days spent gaming on the couch to those afternoons on the court, these are sweats that won’t make you overheat. And not just for casual lazing but also perfect for sculpting that killer summer-ready body in the gym.
Richer Poorer Recycled Sweatpants Mirage Wash
Made with 60% cotton and 40% recycled polyester, Richer Poorer offers some of the best classic-fitting sweats out on the market. This mirage wash colorway is captured through a hand-dying technique — making each pair unique in design from one another. Each pair of these sweats also saves about 40 plastic bottles from landfills.
American Giant Classic Sweatpants
American Giant is dedicated to providing their customers with cozy quality. Just because you want to be comfortable and cozy doesn’t mean you have to sacrifice style. These fleece sweats are great for the couch, the gym, or the street. Your biggest problem with wearing these will be finding the motivation to wear anything else.
Joggers
There’s a fine line between sweats and joggers. We take the stance that if a pair of woven pants has an elastic cuff at the bottom, that makes them a jogger. Knit pants with a drawstring? Still sweats, even if they’re cashmere. The best thing about these pants is they are slightly elevated from sweatpants, giving you the comfort of sweats combined with the style of denim.
NOBULL Men’s Jogger
If you are a gym rat then you are no stranger to living in your workout clothes. They are comfortable. They are functional. And if you do it right, they are stylish. These joggers from NOBULL are the perfect mix of all three.
Fabletics The One Jogger
There are few names that are bigger in the workout world than Fabletics. But only a handful of these brands look just as good in the street as they do in the gym. The One melds functional gym features with stylish streetwear, making these pants one of the best choices you can have in your closet.
Jeans
Speaking of denim, it’s probably a given that the next best thing in your wardrobe is going to be a great pair of broken-in jeans. You’ll want a clean, dark-washed pair to dress up with a crisp button-down, as well as a light-washed pair to go with your timeless white tee. We’ve got a more in-depth selection of jeans and denim brands for you here, but below are a couple to round out your trouser wardrobe.
Duer Performance Denim
When you are looking for denim, there are a thousand brands to try, and only a few rise above the rest. Duer does so by using eco-friendly recycled materials and integrating stretchy fabric. Of course, they are known best for their signature gusset. Do you know what a gusset is? All you need to know is it is what makes these jeans more comfortable than the ones you’re wearing now.
Mugsy Toasties Flannel-lined jeans
Do you remember when the baggy jeans of Party of Five went out of style, and the slim-fit jeans were starting to gain steam? Getting used to tight jeans was dreadful, so Mugsy started making the stretchiest jeans on the market. Step it up this winter with the flannel-lined option, keeping you toasty all day.
Trousers
As much as we are big supporters of owning your own tuxedo, black tie affairs are pretty few and far between these days. Since most affairs are “black tie optional,” we suggest owning one great pair of terribly formal black or charcoal trousers that can easily be mixed and matched.
State & Liberty Athletic Fit Stretch
Dressing up can make many men uncomfortable. When you are used to sweats, joggers, and jeans, the prospect of putting on dress pants is one of the least desirable parts of the day. But when you have a brand like State & Liberty making pants stretchy enough to do backflips, your office daywear can feel just as good as your joggers.
Alton Lane custom dress pants
You can try to find the best of the best off the rack. Or you can do what the best of the best men do and get yourself a bespoke dress pant made specifically for you. Alton Lane is the best in the world at getting the best out of their customers, and their stylish dress pants are how they keep attention on you.
Chinos
There are those of us who live in these pants. The chino or khaki has its roots in military uniforms, but they really busted into the mainstream with 1950s casual suburban dads who suddenly had weekend leisure time. By the 1990s, casual Fridays brought them into the office, and they’re now the uniform for a new American workforce. We wouldn’t blame you for wearing these almost every day of the week.
Goodfellow Hennepin Chino Pants
Getting khakis at a low price is nothing to laugh at these days. Grab multiple colors of these on your next cruise through Target.
Y. Chroma Skyline Pant
Most people tend to believe that your shirt is the garment that draws all the attention. Of course, your pants can tell a story all by themselves. While the world wants most men to fade into the background and blend in, Y. Chroma’s Max Israel has made it a point to convince men to use color to stand out. The Skyline Pant is one of the best ways to do that.
Linen pants
What fabric reminds people of summer more than linen? Flowing, cooling, and dangerously soft, there’s nothing better when you want a pant that avoids heat at all costs. It is light, breathable, and will keep you cool when others are sweltering. Don’t worry about the wrinkles, it is a part of the game.
Dandy Del Mar Brisa Linen pant
Vintage style is hard to nail down. If you do it wrong, you look out of date. However, if you do it right, you can revitalize styles people used to love. The best way to ensure you’re part of the latter camp? Let professionals do it for you. Professionals like Dandy Del Mar have the best vintage beach looks in the world. These linen pants will look just as good on the beach as they will on the back porch.
Tommy Bahama Latigo Beach Linen pants
Linen pants can go as casual as the above Dandy Del Mar, or they can be elevated for more formal occasions like this from the legendary Tommy Bahama. Whether you are working in the hot weather or going to a beach wedding, these pants will look better than anything else in the crowd.
Corduroy pants
While linen is the perfect pant for summer, corduroy is the perfect antithesis. It is a heavier version of your chinos and adds a little depth to your pants. They come in every color and can make any outfit the best it can be in the colder months of the year. Unfortunately, these are the unsung heroes of the pant world, as they may be the most underrated in your closet.
DEVIL DOG Carbon Corduroy
DEVIL DOG may be best known for having the best jeans on the market, but that doesn’t mean their talents stop there. Corduroys often come in your standard browns, but their carbon version adds a bit of a unique style to the classic. Add to that they are stretchy, and you can bet these will be your go-to this winter.
Todd Snyder Gurkha
Todd Snyder is one of the most stylish masculine brands, and they continued with corduroy pants inspired by the British military and sporting a cummerbund-style waist and pleats to give you a classic that will have you looking like the legendary Don Draper.
Your pants are going to be the workhorse of your outfit. There are all sorts of styles you should grab, but you should absolutely start with one from each of these categories.
