13 Best Men's Linen Shirts 2026, Tested and Reviewed by GQ

The Best Linen Shirts for Men Look Ice Cold in the SummertimeIf one of these easy, elegant buttons-up doesn't land you on a summer mood board, we might have bigger problems.Courtesy of GQThe best men's linen shirts are a refreshing summer treat, like an Aperol Spritz you can store in your closet. Here at GQ, we’ve long maintained that linen shirts aren’t exclusively seasonal—their texture-heavy vibe and breezy feel come in handy year-round in our age of terrifying, topsy-turvy weather turbulence—but when the mercury soars and layering opportunities are negligible, they’re no longer nice-to-haves: they’re essentials.It’s not just linen’s physical properties that excel in the summer, either. The fabric’s preternaturally relaxed appearance—those telltale wrinkles very much included—compliments the season’s laid-back energy like a fresh orange wedge in your wine glass.Nowadays, brands are rolling out entire collections focused on linen (why stop at shirts when there are also linen pants and linen suits?) and hardly a day goes by that we don’t spot a nubby linen shirt we’d do unspeakable things to get our hands on. So to help you flex your flax this season, we aggregated the very best of them below, each vetted, tested, and (barely) sweated in by us.The Best Men’s Linen Shirts, According to GQThe Best Linen Shirt OverallBanana Republic Standard-Fit Textured Cotton-Linen ShirtRead moreThe Best Budget Linen ShirtUniqlo Premium Linen ShirtRead moreThe Best Casual Linen ShirtJ.Crew Slim Baird McNutt Irish linen point-collar shirtRead moreThe Best Upgrade Linen ShirtDrake's Light Blue Linen Spread Collar ShirtRead moreThe Best Linen Polo ShirtAlex Crane Knit PoloRead moreBest Overall: Banana Republic Standard-Fit Linen ShirtBanana RepublicStandard-Fit Textured Cotton-Linen ShirtProsAlso available in a tall cutClassic straight fitWide range of patterns and colorsConsTexture won't be for everyoneWhat we want out of a linen shirt isn’t crazy, yet it feels so difficult to find. We want a shirt that fits well, is roomy enough to let a breeze blow through (not to mention a sultry billow), and made in a quality linen. Banana Republic checks all the boxes for a price we can really get behind, and then adds a bonus detail worth celebrating in the form a lightly-textured pattern. The fit is a classic, slightly roomy one that looks great untucked. It’s got a nice collar that’s not completely dinky like so many other shirts, and the buttons feel and look premium. Even better, it comes in both a standard and tall silhouette.Best Budget: Uniqlo Premium Linen ShirtUniqloPremium Linen ShirtProsSuper affordableLightweightClassic silhouetteCons“Premium” linen quality could be betterIf you’re on a budget, you’d do well to roll up to Uniqlo, the Japanese megabrand that’s made its bag on affordable and timeless basics. Its linen shirts are no exception. They’re made of European linen, feature a nice spread collar, and are cut with a slightly tailored but classic silhouette. The length is great for tucking into some dress pants for the office or a wedding, but also short enough to leave untucked without looking sloppy. Though Uniqlo’s linen does have a nice luster, it admittedly doesn’t feel nearly as nice as the other shirts we tested, but for less than fifty bucks, who’s complaining?Best Casual: J.Crew Baird McNutt Irish Linen ShirtJ.CrewSlim Baird McNutt Irish linen point-collar shirtProsSolid qualityGood variety of colorways, patterns, and fitsFun to say “Baird McNutt”ConsOnly comes in button-down collarsThe best linen shirts should be as easy to wear as an oxford—and about twice as comfortable when the temps turn sinister. This one from J.Crew doesn’t just check every box, it adds a few more to the list. For starters, it’s made with an Irish linen fabric—said to be the finest linen in the world—sourced from the Baird McNutt mill, one the finest linen mills in Ireland. Easy math there. It also has a Goldilocks fit—not too boxy, not too slim—that’s amenable to any breeze, big or small. It looks great rumpled or crisp, can deftly slide in under a suit and also plays well with some jeans or shorts. Oh, and it’s under $120. I probably should've led with that.“J.Crew’s linen shirts return every spring and summer for a reason,” says GQ style commerce writer Gerald Ortiz. “The fabric is top-notch, they come in a variety of silhouettes that fit just about everyone, and they're available in a gang of great colors and patterns.” Ortiz says that the linen fabric feels especially cool to the touch and silky smooth. “For the price, quality, and variety, why would you go anywhere else?”Best Upgrade: Drake’s Linen Spread Collar ShirtDrake'sLight Blue Linen Spread Collar ShirtProsHigh-quality construction and linenMother of pearl buttonsA real, damn collar!ConsExplaining a random $300 purchase to your sig otherDrake’s remains a stalwart in the sartorial field. We love the British label’s sharp suits, shaggy sweaters, and meticulously crafted button-ups. Naturally, its linen shirts are top tier as well. Unlike many cheaper linens, they’re made with a thicker, more substantial linen that achieves that elusive rumple—not wrinkle—indicative of a higher-quality linen. With an impeccably clean, yet still airy fit, mother of pearl buttons, and flawless single-needle construction, the quality is, unsurprisingly, very impressive. What also sets the Drake’s shirt apart is something you won’t even see, and that’s what's under the collar. It’s constructed with a floating interlining which gives it structure and prevents it from going unattractively limp. Because while the charm of a linen shirt is its wrinkles, nobody likes a floppy fabric failing to frame their neck.Best Polo Shirt: Alex Crane Knit PoloAlex CraneKnit PoloProsAiry, soft, lightweightWide size range and colorway offeringConsCosts more than your average poloWe're not going pretend like there’s anything wrong with wearing a plain-Jane cotton polo shirt in the summer—the more threadbare the better. Compared to linen, though, cotton isn’t actually all that breathable, and it dries like paint. Which is precisely where Alex Crane's perfectly nubby pure linen joint comes in. It’s made with 100% sustainably-grown linen, which adapts to rising temperatures faster than you ever will, and is washed with biodegradable softeners to help it feel like a beat-up tee you already know and love. Just, y'know, better.“To keep it a buck, I never thought I'd recommend a linen polo,” our Senior Commerce Editor Avidan Grossman confesses. “But enough of my shirt-averse buddies keep asking how to handle the heat, so I did my due diligence.” Polos are notoriously difficult to perfect, but Alex Crane nails the details. Loose, but not so loose that you have excess fabric making you hotter, this is exactly how a polo should fit when you're sweating through your fifth park hang in as many weeks.More Linen Shirts We LoveAlex MillMill Striped Shirt In LinenIf you’re keeping linen confined to the poolside, you’re missing out. Alex Mill's elegant, vintage-inflected joint is ready for any fancy dinner you have in the calendar.BatherBrine Linen Leisure ShirtI'm a sucker for a linen shirt that looks like a chambray.KnickerbockerMar Cotton & Linen ShirtIt's giving Elvis' military service era—in a very good way.BrioniButton-Down Collar Linen ShirtBrioni inhabits rarified air in the sartorial space, and this handmade linen shirt is just the tip of the iceberg. The linen is cool, crisp, and luxurious. The stitching is super tight and flawless. And the hidden button-down collar gives the collar an elegant shape you can't find anywhere else.Polo Ralph LaurenLinen ShirtA green shade so nice, it practically gives you a tan. The fabric's light sheen also gives the shirt a pleasing extra quality.FahertySunwashed Linen Shirt100% linen in a date-night worthy shade of dark navy? We'll be taking two, thanks.Kartik ResearchPataudi Checked Linen ShirtHandloomed linen, hand-embroidered details, mother-of-pearl buttons, and no electricity involved in its making, Kartik Research's shirt is already a work of art before we talk about that incredible pattern.Portuguese FlannelCamp-Collar Linen ShirtWe’re not saying you need a yellow linen shirt for summer, but we are saying that your friends will smile whenever you show up in it.What to Look for in a Linen ShirtPrice: Like all fabrics, there’s a spectrum when it comes to linen quality, and most of the time, the good stuff is going to cost you. It’s worth it—not only will it last longer, but high-quality linen tends to wear better as well. That being said, be wary of the super pricey: expensive doesn't necessarily mean better, and affordable doesn't always mean bad. During our testing, there were $70 shirts that surprised us and $500 shirts that let us down—but for the most part, the best of the bunch landed squarely between those two extremes.Fabric: For this guide, we chose to prioritize shirts that were either 100% linen or those that had other natural fibers blended in, like cotton or hemp. A “linen blend,” for instance, means it has more than just linen in it, which can be great for a number reasons—it can lower the costs, make it a touch more amenable to a washing machine, and won’t wrinkle as much as 100% linen shirts will—but it also means that the benefits of linen will be tamped down a bit too. If you’re looking for something a bit more familiar or a bit easier to care for, a blend is great. If you’re looking for the unadulterated linen experience, the pure, uncut variety is the way to go.Fit: When choosing the size and silhouette, it’s important to remember that linen is a less-forgiving fabric than cotton, which means it won’t stretch nearly as much. And while we love, and recommend, a sized-up, breezy linen shirt, you don’t need to go full ‘90s Armani to make it work. Just make sure the shirt isn’t pulling at the chest, for instance, or super tight around the arms. Not only will they not stretch the same way cotton will, you’ll also be putting more stress on the seams, fabric and buttons.How We Make These PicksWe make every effort to cast as wide of a net as possible, with an eye on identifying the best options across three key categories: quality, fit, and price.To kick off the process, we enlist the GQ Recommends braintrust to vote on our contenders. Some of the folks involved have worked in retail, slinging clothes to the masses; others have toiled for small-batch menswear labels; all spend way too much time thinking about what hangs in their closets.We lean on that collective experience to guide our search, culling a mix of household names, indie favorites, and the artisanal imprints on the bleeding-edge of the genre. Then we narrow down the assortment to the picks that scored the highest across quality, fit, and price.Across the majority of our buying guides, our team boasts firsthand experience with the bulk of our selects, but a handful are totally new to us. So after several months of intense debate, we tally the votes, collate the anecdotal evidence, and emerge with a list of what we believe to be the absolute best of the category right now, from the tried-and-true stalwarts to the modern disruptors, the affordable beaters to the wildly expensive (but wildly worth-it) designer riffs.Whatever your preferences, whatever your style, there's bound to be a superlative version on this list for you. (Read more about GQ's testing process here.)Linen Shirt FAQsWhy is linen better for hotter weather?Both the weave and the physical properties of the fibers: when individual linen fibers get hot, they expand and allow more airflow. They also have a slightly rougher texture and a dryer hand, which keeps it from clinging to sweaty skin like cotton does—a combination also makes for a fabric that dries much faster. And if that’s not enough, know that humans have been relying on linen to beat the heat for thousands of years, and haven’t found many replacements.Is linen a year-round fabric?Absolutely. Long-sleeve linen shirts will keep you sufficiently warm through light jacket weather so long as it's not too blustery. And just as a linen shirt will get more airy the warmer it gets, it also contracts in the cold, which means that the same properties that keep you cool in the summer will also help you when it cools down. From a dress code perspective, linen shirts are on the more casual end of the business casual spectrum unless they're teamed up with a suit or blazer, or you're living in a humidity hotspot like Miami or New Orleans.Linen-blend shirts, which weave in cotton, trade a little breathability for added crispness and breeze-blocking. Though in chillier weather, the best linen shirts can turn into underrated layering heroes, too, under a thick sweater or cardigan. If you run hot even in colder months, swapping a linen shirt for a denser, less-breathable cotton shirt might make life more bearable.The short answer: yes, at least a little bit. Or it will, if you treat it like a t-shirt. But that being said, if you wash it on cold and line-dry your shirts, they should maintain their original dimensions for as long as you do (and remember, it does air-dry more quickly than most clothing will). If you accidentally put it in the dryer, linen tends to shrink slightly both horizontally and vertically, depending on weave, but a bit less than cotton will, due to fibers with less natural elasticity.Again, the short answer is yes. BUT, be super careful if you feel like rejecting the natural wrinkles—again, we do recommend leaning into those. Anyways, if you’re ironing a linen shirt, make sure it’s damp, for starters. Linen is very sturdy and the moisture will soften the fibers a bit. Also make sure you have a pressing cloth between the iron and the fabric, and a solid ironing board underneath. But, one more time, rumpled linen looks good.Our TestersGerald Ortiz, GQ Style Commerce WriterReed Nelson, GQ ContributorAvidan Grossman, GQ Senior Commerce EditorReed Nelson is a freelance writer for GQ Recommends covering menswear and gear. Before writing full time, he spent years working retail at Unionmade Goods, Gant Rugger, J.Crew, and Nike—experience that sharpened his eye for what’s actually worth buying. He’s also worked as an in-house copywriter for brands big and ... Read More