How Should Dress Pants Fit (Men's Guide)

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Dress pants are a core component of men’s business casual wardrobe. In order to look sharp and well dressed at your workplace you need to make sure you get the perfect fit. Here is a guide on how men’s dress pants should fit.

How Dress Pants Should NOT Fit

Too Tight

Too Big!

How Should Men’s Dress Pants Fit?

Dress pants should fit slim without being tight. The waist should be snug so that you don’t need a belt. The seat and thigh should be comfortable with 1 to 2 inches of excess fabric. The dress pant leg should have a straight modern fit and the length should be long enough to hit the top of your shoes.

Waist

You want the waist to be snug and comfortable. You shouldn’t need a belt to hold your pants on. Also, you should be able to walk around without your pants slowly sliding down your waist.

At the same time, the waist shouldn’t be so tight that it becomes uncomfortable especially when you sit down.

Where should dress pants fall on waist?

Since these are dress pants and not jeans, the pants should sit at your natural waist which is usually 1 to 2 inches below the belly button.

Seat and thigh

Dress pants usually have a slightly higher rise which makes them more comfortable than jeans.

How should dress pants fit in the thighs?

For the seat and thigh area, you want to look for dress pants that are well fitted but have 1 to 2 inches of extra fabric. This will make them look professional and help you stay comfortable.

You want to avoid dress pants that are skin tight because they are incredibly uncomfortable and they also look unprofessional. Also avoid baggy dress pants with tones of excess fabric in this area.

Leg and knee

A well fitting pair of dress pants should have a straight fit silhouette through the leg and knee. They should gently conform to your body but not have any pulling or creasing.

If you see fabric that shows stretching or pulling then that means the pants are too tight. If you can pinch more than 2 inches of fabric around your leg and knee, then that means they are too big.

Ankle

Go for a modern look when it comes to dress pants which means looking for a slight taper. This makes the complete outfit more sharp. A slight taper doesn’t mean a skinny leg opening which you should avoid at all costs.

And yes, your dress pants should be long enough that they touch the top of your shoes. Avoid cropped pants, it looks trendy and cheap. You also don’t want dress pants that are so long that they start bunching on top of your shoes. That looks unprofessional.

Hips

Dress pants are part of professional attire which means they should look decent and sharp. For that you want to look for dress pants that gently hug your hips but are not tight.

You don’t want to offend people at work with skin tight pants. Also avoid the baggy look which makes you look like you are wearing grandpa pants.