The 8 Very Best Jean Shorts for Women

Sizes: 22–34 | Rise: 11.25 inches | Inseam: 2.5 inches | Stretch: Non-stretch (100 percent cotton) | Price: $$

If you hear the words jean shorts, you might imagine a pair like Agolde’s Parker short. It’s the Goldilocks ideal of a cutoff — well fitting and short but not too short — that has even earned a place in our Womenswear 100. They have a loyal following, including Caroline Maguire, senior fashion director at Shopbop, and Hallie Abrams, a.k.a the Wardrobe Consultant. Abrams credits this to their shape, which isn’t too tight through the hips and allows the kind of easy movement (and breathing room) you’ll want on hot days. Business student Laura Naparstek agrees, adding that she hasn’t been able to re-create the shorts’ triangular silhouette when trying (vainly) to DIY her own cutoffs for years.

These shorts are made from a non-stretch denim that takes a few wears to break in but then will “get better (and softer) with each wear,” says Kate Sokolov, co-founder of Social Goods. At almost $150, they’re not exactly cheap for a pair of jean shorts, but Strategist senior editor Hilary Reid, who bought her pair four years ago, says they’re worth every penny. “I spent probably twice as much of the cost of these trying out other pairs of jean shorts that I hated after a few wears,” she says. “These were absolutely worth the splurge — they’re really the only pair of denim shorts you’ll ever need.” The Parker is available in a whole host of washes, and there’s a “long” version of the shorts with a four-inch inseam.

Sizes: 23–34 (plus sizes 14–24 here) | Rise: 10.5 inches | Inseam: 7.5 inches | Stretch: Non-stretch (100 percent cotton) | Price: $

Those who love their Levi’s will usually turn the jeans into jean shorts. Catbird’s Rony Vardi cuts up her Ribcages, while editor Mallory Rice sources some secondhand from a Minnesota shop and designer Susan Alexandra buys them off eBay two sizes too big to “emanate insouciance.” You don’t have to go through all that trouble, though, as Levi’s makes many shorts inspired by its jeans. The ’90s edition of the 501s — the first true-blue jean — is one of them. It’s meant to look loose, and it has a longer inseam. Café Forgot co-founder Lucy Weisner likes the fit on them more than the original 501s. “They’re definitely a little looser in the legs,” she says, and suggests sizing up for something even slouchier. “They’re great for strolling around the city on a hot summer day,” Weisner tells me.

Sizes: 22–33 | Rise: 11.5 inches | Inseam: five inches | Stretch: Non-stretch (100 percent cotton) | Price: $$$

When you’re shopping for shorts as a petite person, it’s all about the inseam. I’m petite myself, and I’d say a two- to three-inch inseam gets you a pair of proper shortie-shorts. But if you’re looking for a short that’s on the longer — but not too long — side, the Clove shorts from AG (another denim-maker seen all over our archives) won’t fall past your knees. The five-inch inseam is just right on Strategist writer Arielle Avila’s five-foot-one frame. Avila told me the shorts hit right about mid-thigh, and even as she has retired most of her jorts, these jorts “look relaxed without trying to be a trendy Bermuda.” They’re baggier than the tight-fitting jean shorts of her past, yet they “don’t get bunched up in the crotch,” she adds. “I feel like I’ve always had to sacrifice comfort when I wear jorts, but these are broken-in out of the box.” The pair are the priciest I heard about, but details like distressed edges, a frayed hem, and fading on the denim make them worth the price.

Sizes: 23–34 | Rise: 11.25 inches | Inseam: 4.5 inches | Stretch: Non-stretch (100 percent cotton) | Price: $$$

The advice that artist Melly Wirtes — who’s six-foot-two — gives when shopping for shorts as an especially tall woman is to find a four-inch (or close to that) inseam. “For me, under four inches leads to wedgies and the not-oft-discussed phenomenon of bare butt contact on scorching-hot park benches and café chairs and sweating on hot taxi seats,” she explains. The Annabelle short from Citizens of Humanity clocks in at close to four inches and is long enough for Wirtes’s legs. It’s one of the only jean shorts she has worn for two summers in a row now, a staple of her hot-weather wardrobe. These “old-faithful cutoffs are as classic a summer pastime as baseball,” she says.

Sizes: 23–37 | Rise: Not listed | Inseam: five inches | Stretch: Stretch (99 percent cotton, 1 percent elastane) | Price: $

Abercrombie’s Curve Love cuts (which are separate from its “straight” sizes) are designed with room through the hips and thighs so there’s less chance of waist gapping. The line’s Dad Short has some stretch (thanks to elastane) that gives them a good looseness, according to content creator Marielle Elizabeth. As someone with thicker thighs, she says the longer length helps her with thigh chafing and ensures that she doesn’t have to constantly tug these down while she’s out and about. Elizabeth told me she sized up so the shorts would be more comfortable, and they are just that. “I’m talking going on an all-day road trip comfortable,” she says. After purchasing her first pair last summer, she picked up a second and third this year. Abercrombie also sells a non-curve version, which former Strategist writer Latifah Miles dedicated an ode to. At five-foot-ten, Miles was “able to confidently sit down and stand up without worrying about a rogue butt cheek peeking out from the bottom.”

Sizes: 23–34 | Rise: 11.8 inches | Inseam: 6.7 inches | Stretch: Stretch (79 percent cotton, 21 percent Lyocell) | Price: $$

The Super Mirage Short from Rolla’s — an Australian brand known for making butt-hugging jeans — has the highest rise, at almost 12 inches, of any of the jean shorts here. (For reference: The Ribcages, our pick for the best super-high-waisted jeans, have a rise of 12 inches.) The pair cinches in Strategist writer Katherine Gillespie’s waist and then widens comfortably around the thighs. Lengthwise, “they’re definitely not participating in the Zoomer jort trend, nor are they a Daisy Duke short-short.” There’s a ’70s, “very Birkin” quality to them, she says. Gillespie even wore them on a recent vacation to Marseille, where they were ideal for beach days.

Another short of note that has some flare: & Other Stories High-Waist Denim Shorts. Elizabeth Cardinal Tamkin, author of the newsletter Corner Booth and content director at Kule, likes how nondescript they are with no label or much detailing on the pocket. “People always ask me where I got them, assuming I scored a vintage prize,” she says.

Sizes: 24–35 | Rise: 10.375 inches | Inseam: four inches | Stretch: Non-stretch (95 percent cotton, 5 percent recycled cotton) | Price: $

Another pair Wirtes recommends is the Low Rise Stride from Gap. This style sits slightly lower on the waist than others on this list, though at 10.375 inches, the rise is still higher than what I would technically call low rise. That said, they’re an “unfussy cutoff that has a cool, downtown, not-trying-too-hard” look,” she says. Wirtes went for the shorts in the “tall” fit, with the inseam the same across the board. She sized up for a fit that sits right at her hips.

Sizes: 23–37 | Rise: 11.25 inches | Inseam: nine inches | Stretch: Non-stretch (100 percent cotton) | Price: $

The longest shorts on this list, this J.Crew pair has a nine-inch inseam, which means the hem hits closer to the knee than on most pairs. For stylist Leah Adicoff, who is six feet tall, the pair falls a little longer than mid-thigh, and she describes it as having “a little kick-out, and an A-line shape, which is really flattering.” The shorts also have front pleating, reminiscent of what you would see on a traditional trouser, which makes them feel dressed up. The denim has some give, and the shorts are “structured and sturdy enough to hold their shape,” Adicoff adds.

[Editor’s note: Some sizes are currently sold out, but you can sign up to be emailed when yours is back in stock.]