The question of appropriate length for men’s pants came up at work (I have no idea how or why), so I thought I would illustrate my opinion through written word and, hopefully, some good pictures.

When discussing length of pants, I truly believe in the same two rules whether I am covered in dress pants, jeans or chinos. These two guidelines can help in assuring pants are never too long or, perhaps worse, too short.

1. Pant legs should be straight through the leg and only “break” once above the shoe, no more than about an inch and a half. Here is what I mean:

Picture from Saksfifthavenue.com

Notice the “break” about an inch and a half above the right foot. There is no bunching at the bottom and the pants are not folding over the shoes. It stops at just the right place, about halfway down the laces.

2. Typically, I like the back of my pants to stop just above the heel of my shoe. This guarantees that I will not be stepping on them on the back side, and assists in the proper length in the front.

Picture from bananarepublic.com

These are about a quarter to a half inch above the heel, which is just about right.

And as you might have noticed, slim dress pants add to the perception that they fit well. Slimmer pants don’t give off the impression of bagginess and bunchiness like looser fitting pants can.  Ususally, the same holds true for jeans and chinos, but the issue often with those two types of pants is that they are typically designed and made baggier and looser to provide comfort in a versatile pant.

Affordable options I recommend at the moment are the Gap 1969 Authentic fit jeans and J. Crew’s slim-fit broken-in chino.