How Long Should a Dress Shirt Be

The length of your dress shirt is not arbitrary

It's easy to pay no attention at all to the length of a dress shirt. As long as you can tuck it in, it's good, right? Wrong. There is a perfect length that both allows you to effortlessly tuck it in to your pants, but also allow for untucked wear and a more casual look. Dress shirts should have this versatility as their usage goes far beyond just at the office or a formal event.

 

The proper length of a dress shirt

There are two good ways to check the length of your dress shirt. First things first, go ahead and put one on then follow the simple steps below.

Step 1. Leave it untucked for now. Use a mirror to see where the "tail" or back of the dress shirt falls on your pants. Note we say pants and not jeans, as guys tend to wear jeans a little low on their hips. The bottom of the dress shirt should fall right in the middle of the pockets on the back of your pants. Not above the pockets, nor below them. This is a great dress shirt length.

Step 2. Go ahead and tuck your shirt in now. Raise both arms high above your head and check to see if the tail of your shirt pops out the back. It's OK if the sides come out a bit, but the tail should remain tucked in. This is a perfect dress shirt length.