13 Best Flannel Shirts for Men 2024, According to GQ Editors | GQ

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You probably have a bunch of button-downs in your closet, but the best flannel shirts for men offer something that few others can match: sheer coziness. No shade to your trusty bengal-stripe poplins and pinpoint Oxfords, but thanks to the buttery softness of its namesake brushed cotton fabric, a great flannel shirt is going to be one of the most comfortable layers you own, and the shirt you reach for more than any other this time of year. Better still, while there are plenty of boxy, oversized flannels ready-made for fall layering, you’ll also find more refined options that’ll look right with your nattiest suits and butteriest loafers. Which means you could actually wear flannel every day of the week if you wanted to. Who, pray tell, wouldn’t want that?

Take Me To: More Flannel Shirts We Love | How We Review Products | How We Make These Picks | Why Buy a Flannel Shirt in 2024?

Wythe

Huckberry

You could spend a lot of time combing vintage stores for the perfect flannel shirt and still not come up with anything as nice as this one. That’s how Wythe New York’s Peter Wythe describes the inspiration for this gem, which is the result of hundreds of hours spent scouring vintage sellers and historical photos for something that would evoke the great flannels made for miners, cowboys, and hippies in the American West. The result features a midweight cotton flannel that’s brushed on both sides for ultimate softness, with triple-needle chain stitching for superlative durability, and custom Corozo nut buttons for an authentic 1940s feel.

L.L.Bean

L.L.Bean

When we talk about flannel shirts, we’re usually talking about the colorful plaid variety beloved by ‘90s grunge rockers, suburban dads, and off-grid survivalists alike. As indisputably classic as these tartans are, however, they’re not your only option when it comes to a great flannel shirt. New England outfitter L.L.Bean knows a thing or two about buffalo plaid, but they also understand that some folks might be inclined to reach for something more understated. Hence this absolute unit of a shirt made from heavy-duty chamois in a dark shade of navy that’s a perfect complement to your fall roster of corduroy, denim, and canvas.

Sid Mashburn

Sid Mashburn

Just because you wear a suit to work instead of jeans and a barn coat doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy the soft embrace of flannel all day long. You can thank Sid Mashburn for that revelation, and make this spread collar button-down an essential part of your 9-to-5 wardrobe this season. A version of Mashburn’s signature button-down, it’s chock-full of thoughtful details like trocas shell buttons, a rounded chest pocket, and a barrel cuff with a higher button placement to make room for your watch. Not to be confused with heavier versions that can double as outerwear (Mashburn is from the South, after all) a lightweight Italian flannel makes it thin enough to fit comfortably under a suit coat, blazer, or cardigan.

Pendleton

Backcountry

If you’re looking for a flannel with impeccable vintage credibility and zero thrift store mustiness, there’s only one name to know. Pendleton flannels have been woven in the company’s Washington mills for more than a century, and have been worn by some of the most stylish dudes of the last 100 years, including California surfers in the 1960s. Thanks to their blend of easy-wearing comfort and rugged western style, Pendleton’s button-downs acquired a loyal following on beaches from Big Sur to Zuma (including The Beach Boys, originally known as the Pendletones). The Board Shirt channels the laid-back style of that era, with a soft, midweight fabric and a straight cut that’s perfect for layering.

Abercrombie & Fitch

Abercrombie & Fitch

You won’t get very far in any conversation about the legacy of flannel shirts without mention of Kurt Cobain, the Nirvana frontman who personified Seattle’s grunge scene in the ‘90s and helped to establish its signature DIY look. If you’re after a similar vibe, fellow ‘90s style legend Abercrombie & Fitch has the goods, complete with an array of washed-out colors and a slouchy, oversized fit. This one’ll look right with a wide range of casual staples, but if you really want to nail the Cobain look, layer it over your artsiest white tee with a pair of shredded jeans, bashed-up Chuck Taylors, and bug-eyed sunglasses.

Bottega Veneta

Nordstrom

For those who only know this Italian fashion house for its sumptuous woven leather accessories, welcome to the party. This covetable button-down, courtesy of designer Matthieu Blazy, follows the themes of Bottega’s Winter ‘24 drop in its combination of lush Italian fabrics in earthy grays, greens, and browns and its breezy minimalist silhouettes. With buttons hidden behind a large placket and Bottega’s triangle motif subtly added to the pocket and the yolk, it blends Italian futurism with quiet luxury, particularly when paired with the matching flannel trousers. On its own, though, it’s a statement piece that’ll set off a pair of wide black pants and chunky loafers like nobody’s business.

Buck Mason

Buck Mason

You can think of this quintessential flannel as the laidback step-sibling to your family of 9-to-5 button-downs. Like everything in the Buck Mason lineup, it’s made from top-shelf materials like lightweight 4 oz. cotton twill and shell buttons, with a rugged, relaxed cut that’s just the thing for weekends. Thanks to its uncannily soft feel, however, you may find yourself tempted to wear it to the office, too.

Portugese Flannel

Mr Porter

If the word “flannel” is in a company’s name, you’d better believe they know a thing or two about making a great shirt. That turns out to be true in the case of Portuguese Flannel, a brand built on the proud textile traditions of Southern Europe and responsible for some of the nicest shirts and chore coats you’ll find. This one is a characteristic example, with a relaxed fit and a '70s-inspired color scheme that’ll do justice to your autumn cords and denims.

Beams Plus

Mr Porter

As with pretty much every great piece of American clothing from selvedge jeans to varsity jackets, a trip across the Pacific did wonders for the flannel shirt. In the hands of Beams Plus’s designers, this Japanese take on the classic flannel is all about subtle details and baked-in quality, with a boxy cut that’s just right for throwing on over a white tee.

Warehouse

Standard & Strange

If painstakingly recreated workwear is your thing, you’re probably familiar with the Osaka 5, the quintet of brands—including Evisu and Studio D’Artisan—that put Japanese denim on the map in the ‘90s. Founded by twin brothers Kenji and Kenichi Shiotani (formerly of Evisu and Full Count, respectively), Warehouse is known for a similarly dialed-in approach to details and quality across everything they make, including this punchy black and red flannel.

Needles

Canoe Club

Hot take: sometimes the best flannel shirt is actually seven of them. For proof, have a gander at Japanese designer (and Nepenthes founder) Keizo Shimizu’s contribution to the genre, which combines an upcycled septet of vintage flannels into one Voltron-like supershirt. Part of the Needles' Rebuild collection, a range of shirts and jackets crafted from discarded vintage basketball jerseys, tees, and tweed blazers, it takes the idea of layering to freaky new heights.

Thom Browne

Nordstrom

In addition to the tricolor grosgrain ribbons sewn, barbershop quartet-style, onto each sleeve, a muted palette of grays and browns gives this the unmistakable look of a Thom Browne joint. Like the designer’s era-defining shrunken gray suits and lug-soled derbies, Browne’s take on the flannel shirt combines traditional American influences with the luxury of Italian craftsmanship for a look that any devout menswear nerd will appreciate.

Drake's

Drake's

Few brands on either side of the pond do shirting with the same level of finesse as Drake’s. Like the London-based haberdasher’s dress shirts, this one is made in Somerset, England, with classy details like mother-of-pearl buttons and a spread collar. It’s not flannel, per se, but given Drake’s reputation for top-shelf fabrics, its slubby red, blue, and ecru cotton is more or less guaranteed to look and feel spectacular.

How We Test and Review Products

Style is subjective, we know—that’s the fun of it. But we’re serious about helping our audience get dressed. Whether it’s the best white sneakers, the flyest affordable suits, or the need-to-know menswear drops of the week, GQ Recommends’ perspective is built on years of hands-on experience, an insider awareness of what’s in and what’s next, and a mission to find the best version of everything out there, at every price point.

Our staffers aren’t able to try on every single piece of clothing you read about on GQ.com (fashion moves fast these days), but we have an intimate knowledge of each brand’s strengths and know the hallmarks of quality clothing—from materials and sourcing, to craftsmanship, to sustainability efforts that aren’t just greenwashing. GQ Recommends heavily emphasizes our own editorial experience with those brands, how they make their clothes, and how those clothes have been reviewed by customers. Bottom line: GQ wouldn’t tell you to wear it if we wouldn’t.

How We Make These Picks

We 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.)

Why Buy a Flannel Shirt Today, In the year of Our Lord 2024?

Flannel shirts aren’t exactly a secret, of course. As a go-to for generations of ranchers, loggers, and other hardworking dudes across the American West in the first half of the 20th century, the flannel shirt earned its place in the canon of great American workwear alongside denim dungarees and engineer boots. The romance of those early days is still a big part of the flannel shirt’s appeal, and combined with endorsements from surfers, skaters, punks, streetwear kids, and a bunch of other impeccably turned-out subcultures in subsequent decades, its allure has only grown.