Men’s Dress Codes: All 10 Explained + What To Wear

How do you build a wardrobe?

Have you walked into a store and been overwhelmed at the options that are available?

Or maybe you look in your closet and you want to know if you have everything you need? How can you tell if your wardrobe is good?

In the spirit of maximizing time, let’s quickly go over a few looks you should know.

Specifically, there are 10 men’s dress codes you should be able to pull off, running from ultra casual all the way up to white tie. Shop with these in mind — or run a wardrobe assessment with the goal of building every one of them out of clothes you already own.

Let’s discuss the looks below!

1. Business Professional

Professional attire is the look that gentlemen wear in very professional environments. It’s the uniform of lawyers, bankers, professors, Wall Street traders, and other business environments where decorum and professionalism are woven into the culture and fabric of the organization.

As such, the first step to mastering this look is to know your environment. Most businesses are explicit in saying that the dress code is professional attire so there is no second-guessing.

When a gentleman is dressed in professional attire, he’s communicating that he is about taking care of some serious business. His outfit says that his focus is sharp, that he’s intellectually capable, and he’s intent about the work that needs to be accomplished. There is a high level of respect that comes with this look.

Recommendations

• Suit: Navy is the power color and charcoal gray is right behind it. Skip the black suit here — under office light it reads funeral or head waiter, and that hard black-against-white contrast washes out most complexions in daylight. Black has a home, and it’s evening formalwear, not the boardroom.
• White shirt: Plain white shirt is always a great option but you can spice it up with textured shirts or inconspicuous designs like window pane stripes or gingham print
• Neckties: Blue, gray, black are standard business colors for ties. Don’t feel limited as there are varying shades of blue and grey and designs such as polka dots, stripes, and paisley are great ways to add more style.
• Pocket Square: White, straight fold handkerchiefs adds a crisp and classic element to the overall look. Colored pocket squares can work depending on the environment.
• Oxford shoes: Shoes should be the same color as your belt; brown or black. Again, shades of brown vary so there is still a lot of variety available.
• Socks: Trouser socks that that matches the pant leg of the suit. It’s the safest bet to stay with solid socks.

2. Business Casual

If you are unsure how to dress for a job in a creative industry or wondering what to wear as a teacher then this may well be what you’re looking for.

Business casual is exactly what is implied in the name. It’s a casual look made for the professional environment. Just because this look is more comfortable, it’s still supposed to illustrate a high level of professionalism.  A traditional business casual look is no suit jacket. It has now evolved to “no suit and no tie required.”

Business casual has been expanded to trousers and a nice button up or even slacks and a polo style shirt. Workplace environment is everything when it comes to professional attire so make sure that your version of business casual is in line with the culture of the office.

Recommendations

• Moccasins – Wear with or without socks if the work culture supports it.
• Loafers
• Oxford shoes
• Double Monk Straps
• Colored buttoned down shirts are acceptable
• Suits with no tie can be spiced up with a lapel pin and colorfully patterned pocket square.

The key to this look is no neckwear. The collar can be open or the top button can be buttoned up. Either way, there should not be a tie. Also the polo can be worn with the top button fastened as well. It’s personal preference.

If you’re not going to button up the top button, make sure you have magnetic collar stays in the collar of your shirt. This will keep the collar upright and keep the look sharp

3. Smart Casual

Smart casual trips up more men than any other code on this list, and it’s because the name sounds like a contradiction. Here’s the deal: smart casual is casual clothing with one dressed-up element that pulls the whole outfit up a level.

Picture dark denim, a knit polo, and clean leather sneakers. That’s casual. Now add an unstructured navy sport coat. That jacket is doing all the work — same three pieces underneath, but now you can walk into a good restaurant, a first date, or a Friday at an office that gave up ties years ago.

Most guys get this wrong by treating smart casual as business casual with the tie pulled off. It isn’t. Business casual is a work code — it starts at the office and relaxes downward. Smart casual is a social code — it starts at your weekend clothes and sharpens them upward. Same middle ground, opposite directions.

Recommendations:

• Sport coat: Unstructured, in navy or a textured brown. Don’t orphan a suit jacket from its trousers and call it a sport coat — the fabric gives it away every time.
• Dark denim or chinos: No rips, no heavy fading, no cargo pockets.
• Knit polo, OCBD, or fine-gauge merino: All three work under a jacket. The knit polo is the easiest of the bunch.
• Leather sneakers, loafers, or chukka boots: Keep them clean. Scuffed shoes sink this look faster than anything else you could do to it.
• No tie. If you’re reaching for one, you’re building business casual by mistake.

One rule here has never failed me. If the invitation says smart casual and you’re still not sure, wear the jacket. You can always take it off at the table. You can’t put on the one hanging in your closet at home.

4. Casual Attire

Casual doesn’t mean careless. Baggy dad jeans and a stretched-out tee are not an outfit — and yes, denim has relaxed again over the last few years, but a looser jean still has to fit you through the seat and break clean at the shoe.  Also, sporty doesn’t mean a jersey and gym shorts -although they definitely have their place. There is a way to be sporty and still be stylish. Think of it as weekend attire. It’s comfortable, fun, and flexible.

This look can be a pair of well-fitting raw denim jeans, a t-shirt, and some stylish sneakers. Another option would be a henley, khakis, and a pair of boots.  It is the undefined look when you don’t really know what you are doing for the day but you want to be comfortably sharp.

Recommendations:

• Chinos: Casual pants that can be dressed up with blazers
• Polo shirts: These shirts were originally for athletes and are a stylishly comfortable option that can be paired with jeans, chinos, or shorts
• Shorts: Jean shorts or chino shorts are acceptable.
• Casual deck sneakers: These are sneakers that are not for competing. They are usually made of canvas material with a rubber sole.
• Casual t-shirts: Solid colored or patterned t-shirts that can be dressed up with a blazer. They are versatile and comfortable. Do not confuse a casual t-shirt with a screened tee. An example of screened t-shirt is your favorite childhood marvel comic t-shirt.

The line between casual and sloppy is fit, and nothing else. Same t-shirt, same jeans — cut them right and you look deliberate, cut them wrong and you look like you gave up. Get your casual clothes tailored too. Most men never think to, and it’s the cheapest upgrade in this entire article.

5. Ultra Casual

Admittedly, this type of look is the simplest to pull off. It’s for style and comfort. The Ultra casual look is a spring and summer go-to look as it’s for warm weather and functionality. That being said, there is still a way to stylishly pull it off.

Recommendations:

• T-shirt: The type of t-shirt is totally depending on your preference. Whether it’s  a crew neck or  v-neck is not as important as the fit and quality of the shirt. Make sure that both are stellar
• Shorts: Shorts should be funtional and worn above the knee. When shorts are worn below the knee it makes you look shorter (regardless of your height) and disproportionate.
• Shoe: Sneakers or moccasin/loafer. Wear either shoe with no socks or “no show” socks if your feet sweat. Socks with these kind of shoes are an absolute no-no.
• Accessories: Watches and bracelets are great additions to this look. They will stand out because of the outfit’s simplicity. Both classic and sporty watches will work well and leave a strong, fashionable statement.

Gents, grooming will play a big part in this look as well. There is a lot of skin showing so make sure that you are well lotioned. Shorts and ashy legs are not a good look.

6. Cocktail Attire (Semi-Formal)

From here on we’re into evening wear, and this is where invitations start using words most men have never had to decode. There are five of them and they climb in a straight line: cocktail, black tie optional, creative black tie, black tie, white tie. Get those five straight and you’ll never again have to text the host asking what they meant.

Cocktail is the one you’ll actually get invited to. Weddings, holiday parties, fundraisers, the rehearsal dinner. You’ll also see it written as semi-formal, and for a man the two mean the same thing — a dark suit and a tie.

Notice what that is not. It is not a tuxedo — if a tux were welcome, the invitation would say black tie optional. And it is not your Tuesday office suit either. Cocktail is a social code, not a business one, so the suit goes darker and the details get to have some life in them.

The simplest way to build it: take your best business suit, drop the mid-gray, go navy or charcoal, and let the accessories do something your boss wouldn’t.

Recommendations:

• Suit: Navy or charcoal, cut close. Midnight blue if you own it — under evening light it reads richer than black.
• Shirt: White or light blue, with a collar stiff enough to hold a tie knot properly.
• Tie: Required. Silk. A grenadine or a quiet pattern beats a novelty print in every room you’ll ever wear this in.
• Shoes: Black or dark brown leather — oxfords, or a clean derby. Polished. People look down more than you think.
• Pocket square: This is where your personality goes. Cocktail is the first code on this list that invites it.

One timing note, gents. If the party starts after six, lean darker and lean sharper. Daylight forgives a lighter suit. Evening doesn’t.

7. Black Tie Optional

Black tie optional is the code men argue about most, and the argument is unnecessary. The host is telling you exactly two things: this is a formal evening, and you get to pick your level.

Option one is a tuxedo. Option two is a dark suit — navy, charcoal, or midnight blue — with a white shirt and a conservative tie. Both are correct. Neither one is a mistake, and nobody at that event is keeping score the way you’re afraid they are.

Now, if you own a tuxedo, wear it. The only reason a host writes “optional” instead of “black tie” is that they didn’t want to force every guest into a rental. They are not discouraging the tux. You’ll be one of many.

And if you don’t own one, don’t rent a bad one. A navy suit that actually fits you beats a rented tuxedo with the shoulders in the wrong place every single time. Fit is what people read from across a room — not the satin on your lapels.

Recommendations:

• The tuxedo route: The standard black tie kit laid out in section 9 below. Nothing changes.
• The suit route: Navy, charcoal, or midnight blue. Leave the black suit for the funeral.
• Shirt: White, always. This is not the night for a pattern.
• Tie: Required either way — a black bow tie with the tux, a silk necktie with the suit.
• Shoes: Black leather oxfords, polished until they’re boring.

Still on the fence? Look at the venue and the hour. A ballroom at eight o’clock leans tuxedo. A winery at five leans suit.

8. Creative Black Tie

This can be considered the least formal aesthetic in the formal wear category. It’s a new school twist on traditional formal wear. It’s seen most often at Hollywood events such as red carpets and award shows.

The creative black tie look has a playful element that intelligently substitutes bold colors on subtle pieces for a bit of pizzazz.

Formal wear is a uniform, and creative black tie is the sanctioned way to stand out inside it. The key word is one. One deviation — a deep green velvet dinner jacket, a patterned bow tie, an unexpected shoe — sitting on an otherwise correct black tie foundation. Take two liberties and you’ve left the dress code altogether.

Recommendations: The looks almost identical to traditional black tie with colored accessories such as:

• Vest
• Cummerbund
• Bow tie

9. Black Tie Dress Code

Less formal than white tie, but more formal than creative black tie – it is reserved for social functions and evening events. It is less regulated than white tie dress so more latitude for variations is given for this aesthetic.

Black Tie Recommendations:

• A jacket with ribbed silk facings on a shawl collar or peaked lapel
• Trousers with a single silk or satin braid covering the outer seams
• A black cummerbund or a low-cut waistcoat
• A white dress shirt, French cuffs and cufflinks, and a turn-down or detachable wing collar
• A black ribbed silk bow tie matching the lapel facings
• Optional shirt studs and cufflinks
• Black dress socks
• Black shoes—highly polished or patent leather Oxfords, or patent leather court shoes

10. White Tie Dress Code

White tie is the most formal style of dress and is usually reserved for high society events such as state dinners, formal balls and evening weddings. It is typically considered only appropriate after 6 p.m., but it has been extended to anytime after dark.

White Tie Recommendations

• Black or midnight blue dress coat with silk facings, horizontally cut-away at the front
• Trousers of matching fabric with one single wide stripe or two narrow stripes of satin or braid and are worn with suspenders
• White plain stiff-fronted cotton shirt
• White stiff wing collar, preferably detachable
• White bow tie
• White low-cut waistcoat matching the bow tie and shirt
• Black silk socks or stockings
• Black court shoes

What To Do When The Invitation Doesn’t Say

You’ve got all ten codes now. Here’s how to use them on the nights when nobody tells you which one applies.

Most invitations never name a dress code at all, and that’s when men freeze. You don’t need to guess. Three questions get you there every time.

What time does it start? Before six, lighter colors and softer fabrics are fine. After six, go darker. That one rule sorts more outfits than anything else on this page.

Where is it? A backyard is not a ballroom and a steakhouse is not a bistro. Look the venue up — thirty seconds on their website shows you the room and what the people in the photos are wearing.

Who’s hosting? Your brother-in-law’s barbecue and your CEO’s retirement dinner are different obligations, even at the same hour in the same restaurant. Dress for the man who invited you.

And if all three leave you stuck, default to smart casual with a jacket you can take off. It’s the most forgiving spot on this entire ladder — one step from casual, one step from business casual, and no man has ever been turned away from anywhere for wearing a sport coat.

Men’s Dress Codes: Common Questions

What are the men’s dress codes in order?

From least to most formal: ultra casual, casual, smart casual, business casual, business professional, cocktail (semi-formal), black tie optional, creative black tie, black tie, and white tie. The table near the top of this article lays all ten out side by side.

What’s the difference between smart casual and business casual?

Direction. Business casual is a work code that starts with office clothes and relaxes them — trousers, a button-down, no tie. Smart casual is a social code that starts with your weekend clothes and sharpens them — dark denim, a knit polo, a sport coat on top. They land in a similar place from opposite ends.

Does black tie optional mean I have to wear a tuxedo?

No. A tuxedo and a dark suit with a white shirt and conservative tie are both correct. The host wrote “optional” so guests without a tux wouldn’t have to rent one. If you own a tuxedo, wear it — you’ll have plenty of company.

What does semi-formal mean for a man?

The same thing cocktail does — a dark suit, a dress shirt, and a tie. It sits above business casual and below black tie optional. It does not mean a tuxedo, and it doesn’t mean half a suit either, which is how most men misread the word.

Pick the code, build the outfit, and stop thinking about it. That’s the whole point of knowing all ten — a man who can read a dress code spends the evening on the conversation instead of on what he’s wearing.

Click Here For A Full Infographic On A Social Guide To Dress Codes For Men

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