The 11 Best Pearl Snap Shirts for Men

Every product was carefully curated by an Esquire editor. We may earn a commission from these links. Here’s how we test products and why you should trust us.ralph lauren / j crewThe list could start and stop here. I say a version of this line about every Wrangler Cowboy Cut product I write about: there are fancier shirts on the list, but there are not many better. The denim is a classic, but the twill is a reliable workhorse that can camouflage in environments where pearl snaps should be approached with more caution. Or throw that all to the wind and go full ’90s country with this Coors collab version. There’s no wrong way to Wrangler.Allow me an exception that proves the rule here. A shirt that has the spirit of a pearl snap without the titular closing component. The only challenge with Buck Mason’s western shirts is catching them while they’re in stock. I missed out on the linen rancher in an espresso-tinted dark brown with a full set of traditional pearl buttons and figured this 100 percent rayon option isn’t a shabby second place. It wasn’t until I received it that I saw it has regular buttons. Whatever. We’ll count this as the exception that proves the rule. Buck Mason nails the essential combo of louche and sturdy, creating a combination of drape and silhouette. Pair with the brand’s Full Saddle jean for the complete effect.Advertisement - Continue Reading BelowBilly Reid trades the pearls for genuine brass, but still makes the list here since it elevates the spirit of the pearl snap rather than overshadowing it. The 100 percent cotton shirt is perfectly soft out of the box, worn in like a vintage pair of 501s without the lack of structural integrity. Its details read Western and Southern at the same time, like much of the brand’s pieces. And it wears in well—I own two of these, one I’ve put through the wringer over a couple years, and the second, brand new, using the brand’s custom chainstitching add-on to stitch my wife’s name over the left chest pocket. She’s going to steal it anyway; might as well bow to the inevitable.We can’t really talk westerns and pearl snaps without talking Ralph and RRL. Vintage-inspired, like everything else at RRL, this shirt is replete with small, telling details if you know where to look—Western yoke, pointed pockets, and some incredibly subtle threaded embroidery. RRL makes a pearl snap that doesn’t feel showy, but does look better than anything else on the market. As the man has taught us over the years, all those little details add up.Advertisement - Continue Reading BelowI would say that RRL walked so Wythe could run, but both are in top form currently, so perhaps the better metaphor is that RRL blazed a trail that brands like Wythe are currently steaming down. The N.Y.C. brand was founded by former RL veteran and Austin, Texas–residing Peter Middleton, who brings an obsessive eye to vintage recreation and fabric appreciation to his whole brand. But the pearl snaps are where I really see it shine, and the flannel ones in particular. It’s a dangerous line between vintage-inspired and cowboy lumberjack cosplay in the world of buffalo plaid, and it takes a virtuoso to stay on the right side of it. Middleton is that virtuoso, and a new shirt from Wythe feels like an heirloom you pulled out of some prairie cabin’s chimney. But smells much, much better.In Snyder we trust. Especially if we luck out and get him on sale, like this excellent pearl snap in linen. Striped like a railroad worker, pearl snapped like a cowboy, and cut like only Snyder can cut a shirt—seemingly straightforward, but somehow more flattering than anything else in your closet. I recently wore the brand’s double-breasted Wythe suit and I’m kicking myself for not buying this shirt first. There’s nothing like offsetting some formalwear with a little bit of western flair.Advertisement - Continue Reading BelowLee continues to stun on a historic collaboration run from Buck Mason to Walmart. You can debate the merits of farming out your most iconic, history-defining silhouettes to other brands (I would), but as a lover of classic Americana menswear, I’m just happy there’s a chance to buy a great shirt from Lee that isn’t ridiculously priced from some vintage collector. Bonus points for naming it the Western Oxford, which hits that cowboy x prep zeitgeist we’re enjoying.If I could only wear one western shirting/pearl snap brand for the rest of my life, it would be Richter Goods. The San Antonio brand is one of the last remaining shirt makers doing it all in the U.S.A., let alone in Texas, leading to some fun features in both Popeye’s annual U.S.A. edition and the Crafted with Pride U.S.A.-made directory. More importantly though, Richter makes a damn good shirt. I wore this red duck canvas one on a four-day motorcycle trip up California’s coast, but I have half a dozen from the brand’s catalog, including its first run collaboration with imogene + willie. Though Richter cuts and sews in San Antonio, they specialize in deadstock and heritage fabrics sourced worldwide. The throughline is its expert attention to detail and defined western details like sawtooth or smile pockets. The only thing to be wary of is sizing; the brand skews slimmer, so check the measurements and, if in doubt, size up.Advertisement - Continue Reading BelowI’ve spent all morning brainstorming spaghetti western jokes, but I’m just going to go with the earnest approach here. Sometimes the best take on American styles comes from Italy. No surprises there, from Sergio Leone film scores to Fortela’s take on the Western shirt, this one in such a brilliant cobalt it almost reads purple. At ~ $400 you’re paying for the Mediterranean tailoring reinterpretation, and expertise doesn’t come cheap. But for a certain set of us, it’s worth it.Depending on what Internet you’re on and what history of the Western shirt you’re reading, Rockmount Ranch’s Colorado founder Jack Weil (AKA “Papa Jack”) is often credited with inventing and popularizing the pearl snap. Some folks credit the bolo tie to him too. The brand’s catalog makes a strong argument for both, with everything from a Porter Wagoner version commissioned by the Autry museum complete with palm tree embroidery to regular ol’ denim shirts with sawtooth pockets and a western yoke. I like this ranchhand version of the businessman’s classic striped shirt, though for those of us not in Merle Haggard cover bands.Advertisement - Continue Reading BelowI couldn’t make a list of pearl snaps without going full Rhinestone Cowboy on one of them. So here we are, with really the greatest showman of the bunch, H-Bar C Ranchwear. Let’s take the “ranchwear” part of the brand name with a grain of salt, since it’s mostly known for elaborately embroidered shirts worn in Hollywood’s golden age of cowboy films and Nashville’s golden age of elaborate record covers. I like this brown embroidered Durango shirt, which showcases some flair while avoiding totally looking like an extra in a Hallmark movie about two-stepping.