It doesn’t matter whether you need to suit up every day for work, or just a few times a year for special occasions:
Finding a comfortable suit that both looks good and moves well is crucial.
We live in a (much) more casual world than our fathers and grandfathers. For them, pairing a traditional suit with a crisp white shirt and a windsor tie knot was fairly common practice.
For men of our generation, the good news is that wearing a suit instantly makes you look more sophisticated and refined than just about any other guy in the room.
But the bad news is that even the best suits tend to limit your natural movement, which can make them feel restrictive and uncomfortable.
Making matters worse, most off-the-rack models, like the heavy cotton suits you see at a lot of department stores, are made from traditional suit fabrics.
They might work fine for the winter months, but they’re often so thick they make moderately warm weather feel like suffocatingly extreme temperatures.
(I’ve honestly lost count of how many dress shirts I’ve sweated through after choosing the wrong wedding suit, and dancing my ass off on the dance floor.)
Fortunately, in recent years a number of brands have introduced soft, stretchy and lightweight suits in a wide range of interesting fabrics and synthetic materials, making it considerably easier to find a comfortable suit that works for everything from special occasions to business travel.
In this post we’ll round up some of the most stretchy, comfortable and (this part is crucial) stylish suits on the market, and breakd down what makes each one work so well.
Top Picks↓
You can learn (a lot) more about each suit below, but here’s a quick run down of our favorites:
- Overall Best Blend of Stretch, Style & Comfort: State & Liberty
- Most Comfortable Custom Suit: Indochino
- Best “Normal” Suit with a Bit of Stretch: Bonobos
- Most Comfortable Cheap Suit: Braveman Suits
Overall Best Blend of Stretch, Style & Comfort:
State & Liberty
Most Comfortable Custom Suit:
Indochino
Best “Normal” Suit with a Bit of Stretch:
Bonobos
Most Comfortable Cheap Suit:
Braveman Suits
Who Wrote This Article
Irreverent Gent Founder and Editor-in-Chief Dave Bowden has been a service journalist for more than a decade. His style advice and menswear recommendations have been featured in The Wall Street Journal, New York Magazine, and Men’s Health, among many other outlets.
How We Created This List
Fabric Composition
& Stretch
Style, Aesthetics & Visual Appeal
In-Person & Online Reviews
In order to assess each suit’s level of comfort, Dave first and foremost drew from his two decades of experience wearing suits of various fabric compositions, including some of the specific suit models listed below.
He looked at three main areas to assess which suits provide the highest levels of both comfort and style.
First was the fabric, where he favored blends that offer the right combination of good stretch and visual appeal.
Second was the rest of the suits’ aesthetics, which includes everything from the cut and button stance to the lapel style and number of color options available.
Finally, he did a deep dive into user reviews, and combined it with his own personal experience to get a sense for how each suit feels, stretches and performs in the real world.
To learn more about how we rate and review products, check out our product review and round up policy here.
The Most Stylish, Stretchy & Comfortable Men’s Suits
Breaking Down the Best Men’s Stretch Suits on the Market
Overall Best Blend of Stretch, Style & Comfort ↓
State & Liberty Athletic Fit Stretch Suit
Notable Features:
- Fabric Blend: Rayon, Nylon, Polyester, Spandex
- Colors/Patterns Available: 44
- Athletic tapered fit
Why We Like It:
State & Liberty is easily one of the best options for comfortable suits because they combine the stretchy, soft fabrics of athleisure clothes with the sophisticated, modern look you’d expect from a well made suit.
Their suits are available in a broad range of solid colors and patterns, from standard dark suits that work well for formal occasions to a lightweight “heathered bamboo” that would make a perfect summer suit.
Each suit includes a notched lapel two-button jacket with double vents and lightly padded shoulders, and a tapered pair of matching pants that’s both stretchy and wrinkle-free.
(You can also buy a separate vest to make it a three-piece suit, but the vest isn’t available in quite as many colors.)
They’re made from a blend of performance fabrics like polyester, rayon and spandex, which you usually find in high-end athletic wear from brands like Lululemon.
But S&L has cut them into a suit with a timeless, sharp look that’s as sophisticated as sharp as anything you’d find from more traditional suit brands like Suitsupply.
Why Some Might Not:
State & Liberty markets their suits as “athletic fit,” which may deter some guys, but personally I think that’s a misnomer.
Speaking as a middle-aged dad whose body type screams, well, “middle-aged-dad,” I can tell you that you do not have to be an athlete to pull these off.
I wore mine to a summer wedding in lieu of the slim fit linen suit that I normally wear in warmer weather.
And in addition to the (rather helpful) sweat-wicking, I actually found the cut to be both slimming and flattering, so I think these would work well for most guys.
Most Comfortable Custom/Made-to-Measure Suit ↓
Indochino Stretch Suits
Notable Features:
- Fabric Blend: 97% Wool, 3% Spandex
- Colors/Patterns Available: 25
- Suits are made-to-measure and customizable
Why We Like It:
Indochino originally made its name by offering affordable made-to-measure suits in a wide range of different fabrics, colors and patterns, giving you a lot of the advantages of working with a professional clothier, at a much more attainable price tag.
Their offerings have continued to expand over the years, and today they offer a pretty great selection of suits that blend traditional wool with a bit of spandex.
While not quite as flexible as State & Liberty’s suits, they have enough stretch to move with you when you’re speed walking to work or hauling it through an airport to catch a flight.
(And enough wrinkle-resistance that you can probably get away with just throwing it in your suitcase and dressing comfy on the plane.)
But with Indochino, the big advantage is that all of their suits come in both off-the-rack and made-to-measure options.
I’ve been through their fitting process twice and found that it really does result in a closer, more flattering fit. (You can check out my full Indochino review here if you’re curious.)
In addition to getting a custom fit (which is obviously helpful if you have a broad shoulder, longer legs or any other unique physical attribute), you can also customize just about every other aspect of the suit.
You can opt for peak lapels instead of a notch, go for two side vents instead of one center vent, and even choose the size, shape and angle of your pocket vents, among (many) other customizations.
Why Some Might Not:
If you’re buying your very first suit then the sheer number of choices might be a bit overwhelming.
But if you’ve already got a few in your closet and you’re looking for something that will stand out, then turning to Indochino would be a good idea.
A Quick Note on Indochino’s (Annoying) Links:
Indochino made a (really annoying) change to their website, so unfortunately I can’t send you to a single page that displays all of their stretch suits.
The best I can do is send you to a page where they display all of their suits, then walk you through how to find the stretch models:
1. Click this link or the button above.
2. On Indochino’s website, type “stretch” into the search bar in the top right.
3. Using the filters on the search results page, click on “Gender” and select “Men,” then click on “Category” and select “Suits.”
Sorry about the annoying extra steps. Please know that I will do everything in my power to have someone in Indochino’s IT department fired – and if possible, imprisoned for life – for the inconvenience.
Best “Normal” Suit with a Bit of Stretch ↓
Bonobos Jettsetter Stretch Suit
Notable Features:
- Fabric Blend: All suits in the Jetsetter line contain 1% to 3% stretch fabrics, but exact blends vary
- Colors/Patterns Available: 25
- “Blazers available in slim, athletic or standard fit
- Pants available in tailored, slim or athletic fit “
Why We Like It:
Bonobos’ Jetsetter suits mix traditional suit fabrics like worsted wool with a bit of performance fabric, to give you more stretch and comfort than a traditional suit.
This suit is actually a great way to split the difference between the stretchy-but-standard State & Liberty suits and the fully-customizable Indochino options above:
Like State & Liberty, Bonobos sells off-the-rack suits in a range of different color options, so they’re not fully custom and made-to-measure.
But while they don’t offer nearly as many customization options as Indochino, they do give you a number of choices that provide plenty of opportunities for optimization.
Once you pick your suit size, you can then select your preferred cut.
If you’re choosing from their standard suit sizes, you can select a slim, athletic or standard fitting blazer, which means there’s a lot less alteration work for tailors or dry cleaners to do later.
But they also have “extended” (aka Big & Tall) sizes. If you opt for an extended size, you can choose between a standard extended fit or a “prominent” fit, for guys who need a little extra room.
Why Some Might Not:
As noted, these are more or less normal suits that only contain a bit of stretch fabric.
So if you’re looking for a suit that will fit nice and snug but not feel too tight when you’re sitting down or getting out of a chair, it’s a great option.
But if you’re looking for enough stretch to engange in some James Bond-level stunts, State & Liberty is probably a better bet.
Most Comfortable Cheap Suit ↓
Braveman Suits
Notable Features:
- Fabric Blend: 100% Polyester
- Colors/Patterns Available: 52
- Most colors available in either 2- or 3-piece suit
Why We Like It:
Braveman’s suits are all 100% polyester, so they don’t have the same stretch as the ones above that include spandex or elastane.
But polyester tends to move better than cotton (there’s a reason why they use it in a lot of gym clothes), so it’s still quite comfortable.
I was also pleasantly surprised how lightweight the suit was, which also helps contribute to the overall level of comfort.
Of course, the biggest advantage with Braveman is the price:
The suits on this list carry an average price tag of about $550. But at less than 100 bucks, Braveman suits are less than one-fifth of that, easily making them the best budget option.
Why Some Might Not:
This is a rare case where the biggest benefit is also the biggest drawback, because while the price is certainly right, you get what you pay for.
For a suit that costs less than most sweaters, Braveman’s suits provide a pretty sharp look. But they’re nowhere near the quality you can expect to get from State & Liberty, Indochino or Bonobos.
If you’re on a tight budget and want something comfortable and stylish for semi-formal events or a business-casual lunch meeting, then the sub-100 price is a (very) good thing.
But if your business is a little more upmarket, or you want something more sophisticated for full-on formal events, then I’d definitely recommend the brands above, which provide a better combination of comfort and quality.
The Best of the Rest ↓
The suits above earned top marks for their combination of stretch, style, comfort and value-for-money, but they’re hardly the only good options on the market.
The models featured below all make for good alternatives, and are worth considering if none of the comfy suits above are quite what you’re looking for.
Tomasso Black Tailor’s Stretch Blend Suit
Notable Features:
- Fabric Blend: 65% Polyester, 35% Rayon
- Colors/Patterns Available: 11
- Available in slim or modern fit
Spier & McKay Bi-Stretch Suit
Notable Features:
- Fabric Blend: 97% Wool, 3% Elastane
- Colors/Patterns Available: 2
- Available in slim or contemporary fit
Brooks Brothers Regent Fit Cotton Stretch Suit
Notable Features:
- Fabric Blend: 95% Cotton, 5% Elastane
- Colors/Patterns Available: 2
- Sold as suit separates
Banana Republic Signature Italian Hopsack Suit
Notable Features:
- Fabric Blend:
- Shell: 99% responsible wool standard (RWS) wool, 1% elastane.
- Lining: 95% polyester, 5% spandex. Sleeves: 55% polyester, 45% cupro rayon.
- Colors/Patterns Available: 3
- Sold as suit separates
J.Crew Ludlow in Italian Stretch Wool
Notable Features:
- Fabric Blend: 100% Worsted wool
- Colors/Patterns Available: 4
- Sold as suit separates
More Resources ↓
More Men’s Suits and Style Advice Irreverent Gent:
- The 19 Best Leather Jacket Brands for Quality and Style
- How to Buy Your First Suit
- How to Shop for Men’s Clothes
- The Definitive Guide to Semi Formal Attire for Men
- The Best Suit Brands for Men of Every Shape, Size & Budget
- How to Look More Handsome and Attractive
- The (Absolute) Best Athletic Fit & Machine Washable Dress Shirts for Muscular Guys
- The Best Athletic Fit Dress Pants for Men
- The Quickest, Most Effective Way to Measure Your Sleeve Length
- How to Create a Personal Style Profile
- How to Measure Your Pants Inseam
- In Review: Alain Dupetit’s (Suspiciously Affordable) Suits
- The 21 Best Shoes to Wear with Shorts
- From Alexander McQueen to Ermenegildo Zegna: The Most Expensive Fashion Brands in the World
- The Best Peaky Blinders Suits for Sale Online
- Where to Buy Your Wedding Tux
- The Best Athletic Fit Suits for Muscular Men