The Best Denim Trends for Fall 2026

Jeans have been around in some form or another for more than 150 years, a time span that has given designers plenty of time to tweak the formula. The result is a denim landscape populated by a seemingly infinite variety of options, from 3sixteen’s old-school raw selvedge dungarees to Our Legacy’s postmodern Third Cut Jeans, whose surfaces are digitally printed with a trompe l'oeil of whiskering, tears, and abrasions. Between those two poles are every imaginable variation of cut, color, fit, fade, and fabric, with just about every clothing brand on the planet adding its own take.And that’s to say nothing of the question of what’s in this season. Are skinny jeans back? Is the ‘90s mall jean revival the way forward? And what about stretch denim? For anyone contemplating a new jeans purchase, this panoply of choice makes things complicated, to say the least. To cut through the noise, we consulted a panel of dedicated denim-heads and industry insiders to advise on the way forward.’90s Vibes Are Still VibingWhether or not you’re carrying a point-and-shoot film camera or listening to Stone Roses on repeat, the ’90s revival continues to gain momentum on all fronts, including jeans. According to Gerald Ortiz, GQ’s resident denim connoisseur, they’re here for the foreseeable future. “Though there's undoubtedly a small but growing sect of slim-jean proselytizers/doomsdayers, the masses are still deep in the so-called ‘mall jeans’ of the ’90s, with their forgivingly relaxed silhouettes and uniformly faded light-wash denim,” says Ortiz. “We still haven’t gotten over that era of fashion, and it’s hard to imagine that we ever will.”MadewellThe 1991 Loose Straight JeanSkinny Jeans Are Back (For Some)The rumors are true: skinny jeans are indeed making a comeback. But does that mean you should run out and buy a pair of slim tapers like it’s 2005? It does not. What was true of skinny jeans in the indie sleaze era remains true today: they don’t look great on all bodies. But don’t sweat it. "Finding a good-fitting pair of jeans is mostly about understanding and accepting your body,” says Johan Lam, co-founder of 3Sixteen denim. “For a select few, many fits ranging from wide to slim can look good. For some guys, a pair of skinny jeans will never look right, and that's okay." Go ahead and try them out, by all means, but when in doubt, just opt for another style, lest you end up looking like the dog in that meme.A.P.C.Petit New Standard Jeans -Nudie JeansTight Terry EverblackSelvedge LiteSelvedge jeans—whether from Uniqlo or an artisanal Japanese label—have been going strong for decades and remain the gold standard for serious denim fanatics. Even if you don’t want to go full ’90s-core, wider silhouettes are still the order of the day, according to Jeremy Smith, an inveterate denim obsessive and the co-founder of Standard & Strange. “With summer stretching well into October, my ideal pair for fall is a wider fit in a lighter-weight fabric,” he says. “The Freenote Modesto in 11oz Memphis Blue is my top choice.” He also invites anyone looking for an alternative to the standard shades of blue to consider an edgier, yet equally classic, choice: the straight-fit Indigofera Kirk in 14oz Gunpowder black. “I’ve been wearing a lot more black denim in recent years,” he says. “It adds some variety to a denim wardrobe, and I still think it’s a category a lot of people sleep on.”FreenoteModesto Straight FitIndigoferaKirk Straight FitTechnical Fabrics That Feel Like the Real McCoyFortunately for those who don’t haunt the threads of r/rawdenim (and appreciate a bit of stretch in their jeans), we’re living in a golden age of performance denim, says DU/ER co-founder and technical denim guru Gary Lenett. Fit-wise, he recommends a Goldilocks-worthy straight cut—neither skinny nor baggy—with room through the thighs and seat. “Fabric's probably the biggest shift nobody talks about,” he says, referencing his brand’s midweight fabric options built with stretch yarns that still offer the rigid, structured look of old-school cotton denim. “A few years ago you had to choose between comfort and that classic denim hand-feel. That's no longer the case.” Lenett also suggests expanding your palette beyond the standards to earthy tones of brown and beige. “These tones offer the guy who's tired of indigo and black a way to look different without going full bold, bright color,” he says. “Indigo hasn't gone anywhere, mind you.”Flint & TinderAll-American Stretch DenimTodd SnyderStraight Fit Japanese Selvedge Stretch JeanThe Pleasures of VintageThere are several obvious upsides—sustainability! Authenticity! Supporting local businesses!—to spending your denim dollars on a pair of gently used vintage jeans, not to mention the vagaries of vintage sizing. The trade-off is that it takes a bit more legwork (so to speak!) to track down the perfect pair. For Julian Colucci, the owner of Ebreo Vintage in Williamsburg, the results are more than worth the effort. “I’m generally a ’90s guy, because beyond the very billowy, baloon-y stuff, it’s timeless, and doesn’t feel as stuffy as your more form-fitting contemporary cuts,” he says. “You also naturally get fades and texture that look lived-in, because they were.” While Ebreo specializes in Italian labels like Armani and Missoni, Colucci’s favorites right now are Calvin Klein and Marithé + François Girbaud, a Parisian brand that was all the rage in the ‘90s. He also steers customers towards one of the decade’s best-kept secrets: Dockers. “Honestly, the most slept-on stuff is Dockers stuff from the ’90s,” he says. “Super coarse, chunky textiles that fade well and great silhouettes.”Of course, like every vintage denim conversation, there’s no escaping the granddaddy of them all: the Levi’s 501. According to Lawrence Schlossman, co-host of the podcast Throwing Fits, the 501 (and its close cousin, the slightly roomier 505) is the GOAT and always will be. “I don't buy new jeans. Period. End of story; I mainly buy vintage Levi's, and we're primarily talking 501s,” he says. “Jeans are the ultimate trend-proof pants, with the ultimate trend-proof silhouette, which, in my opinion, is a classic straight jean like the Levi's 501.” Given the mind-boggling selection of denim available to prospective buyers, it’s useful to remember that sometimes the most obvious answer is the correct answer.Marithe + Francois GirbaudNOS 90s Baggy Jeans