Navy chinos are an incredibly versatile type of pants. They’re not quite jeans, not quite slacks, which means they are suitable for everything from relaxing at the weekend to wearing in the office.
The darker shade means you can match them with a larger variety of outfits. In my opinion, it’s much easier to wear navy chinos than khaki pants or beige chinos, even though though they are very similar in all but color.
In this article, we’ll go through some basic rules for wearing navy chinos, as well as highlight 13 great navy chino outfits you can use as inspiration for your own style.
Breaking it Down: What Do You Wear With Navy Chinos?
The beauty of navy chinos is that they go with a lot of different items. Pair them with canvas shoes and a t-shirt to stay sharp at the weekend, or with loafers and a shirt when hitting the town in the evening. Experiment with textures by pairing them with denim jackets and complete the rugged look by adding a pair of chunky boots.
How to Choose the Right Type of Chinos To Try
Consider the vast variety of chinos that are out there. You can wear a light pair to stay cool in the summer, or a heavier pair to keep the heat in during winter.
Some brands sell “vintage” style chinos with jean-like embellishments, while others have a slicker design and could almost be mistaken for suit slacks. My personal favorites are those somewhere in the middle. These are the most flexible and the ones that go with the widest variety of outfits.
13 Stylish Navy Chino Outfit Ideas
Here are 13 navy chino outfit ideas to inspire your next fit. Copy the ideas exactly or head to your wardrobe and put together your own outfit based on the fundamentals mentioned below.
Outfit One: With a Shirt, Blazer, and Dress Shoes
Why it Works: Pairing navy chinos with a shirt, blazer, and dress shoes results in the most formal look on this list. Upon first glance, you may think the model in the image above is wearing a full suit. For this type of outfit, you should keep the cut of the chinos slim without being too skinny to match the formal vibes. This outfit avoids being too over the top by forgoing a tie and choosing a relatively casual shirt.
Outfit Two: With an Oxford Shirt and Sneakers
Why it Works: Keeping things smart, this next outfit pairs navy chinos with a white oxford shirt and sneakers. This is the kind of outfit that can easily see you go from the office to an evening on the town.
The Boardwalk Style Tip 👇
To make this look slightly more formal, simply tuck in the shirt and switch out the sneakers for a pair of shoes.
Outfit Three: With a Check Shirt and Sneakers
Why it Works: If you favor a bit of character in your shirts, then pairing navy chinos with a check shirt could be the way to go. This outfit works in a very similar way to the one above and could also easily be paired with shoes to up the level of formality. The key thing with the pattern is that it is fairly light and the colors go well with the darker shades of the chinos.
Outfit Four: With a Grey Sweater and Brown Loafers
Why it Works: If the weather doesn’t quite favor shirts, then keep warm by pairing your navy chinos with a grey jumper. Add loafers to keep things smart, or boat shoes, sneakers, or canvas shoes to stay casual. In winter, go with a heavier jumper and books for a similar look.
The Boardwalk Style Tip 👇
Gray and navy look amazing when paired together. It’s probably one of the most flexible and easy-to-pull-off combinations there is. Find out more about what goes with gray clothes here.
Outfit Five: With a Shirt and a Maroon Blazer
Why it Works: Navy chinos pair well with darker tones, especially if you’re crafting a formal ensemble. Ryan Reynolds’ attempt at it is a burgundy blazer topped over a patterned button shirt, making a safe formal and cool ratio. Ditch the tie and belt altogether for a more casual approach towards the fit.
Outfit Six: With a Casual Short Sleeved Shirt and Sneakers
Why it Works: Now we are really starting to enter casual territory. Pairing navy chinos with a loud shirt results in an outfit that is sure to stand out wherever you go. You should also note that the chinos in the image above are a slightly lighter shade than some of the ones above, which adds to the casual vibes.
The Boardwalk Style Tip 👇
Casual shirts and chinos are two items with very similar levels of formality, making them great options to pair together. If you want more casual shirt inspiration, then check out our articles on some of the best cuban collar shirts, why printed shirts should be a key part of your summer wardrobe, and how to wear flannel in modern ways.
Outfit Seven: With a navy polo shirt and brown shoes
Why it Works: Monochrome fits are pretty much foolproof at all times. And this pairing of modernly tailored chino pants with a polo shirt in the same shade proves just that. Make the outfit pop by wearing brown oxford shoes or keep it low-key with black ones, as you fancy.
The Boardwalk Style Tip 👇
Wearing dress shoes with navy chino requires you to follow many of the same rules as wearing dress shoes with jeans. Hit the link to discover how to do it right.
Outfit Eight: With Boots and a Denim Shirt
Why it Works: While chinos are often associated with a clean preppy look, pairing yours with heavy boots and a denim shirt adds some rock-and-roll flavor to your outfit. Chinos are the perfect trousers to wear with a denim shirt as you avoid the trappings of double denim (although, I’m actually a big fan of denim jackets and jeans). I’d avoid having the shades of the denim too closely match the trousers, however.
Outfit Nine: With Canvas Shoes, Plain T-Shirt, and a Denim Jacket
Why it Works: This outfit of navy chinos with a simple t-shirt, denim jacket, sunglasses, and canvas shoes has similar rugged vibes to the one above. The chinos here have a loser, high-cut modern fit which we like. If it gets too hot, you can easily remove the jacket and still be left with a great-looking outfit.
Outfit Ten: With a Denim Jacket and Sneakers
Why it Works: A black denim jacket is a great item to pair with navy chinos. The black color provides more contrast than the regular blue denim jacket in the outfit above does. Meanwhile, the white striped Breton shirt and the white sneakers break up the darker shades of the pants and jacket.
Outfit Eleven: With a Sweater, Jacket, and Sneakers
Why it Works: Pairing navy chinos with a sweater is a casual outfit perfect for wearing around campus. The chinos in the above image work perfectly because they have a wider fit and jean like stitching. You can also try turning up your hems for some extra embellishment.
Outfit Twelve: With a Plain T-Shirt and Canvas Shoes
Why it Works: And here it is, the proof that navy chinos look good with everything. If you don’t have the time to put together an A-list outfit, simply throw on your chinos, a plain t-shirt, and some canvas shoes for a dependable look that you know is going to work. In the image above the model pairs navy chinos with a plain white shirt, but they are going to well with pretty much any color.
Outift Thirteen: With a Shirt and Knit Sweater
Why it Works: Pairing navy chinos with a casual shirt and a knit sweater is a good business casual outfit. You could easily wear this to many offices and then to the bar for after-work drinks without anyone batting an eyelid. I wore shoes with the outfit to keep the style smart, but you could easily wear a pair of casual sneakers for a more casual look.
More Navy Chino Styling Tips
Still not 100% sure how to wear navy chinos? Then check out these final two styling tips to finish your look.
How Should Navy Chinos Fit
Loser-fitting pants provide a more comfortable, casual look, while those tailored close to the leg are typically more formal. Think about getting a pair that falls just above your shoes for a modern look. As an example of this check out the pictures in looks one and two below.
What Colors Go With Navy Chinos?
You can wear most colors with navy chinos. Shirts, t-shirts, and jumpers in grey, white, and pastel go especially well with the darker pants. Blues are also ok although you should avoid anything that too closely matches the colors of the trousers. The exception to this would be if it is a pattern (see image above) or if the navy is a different texture (outfit seven), or if the navy is a jacket or blazer that can be broken up with a lighter shirt (outfit one).
What Shoes to Wear With Navy Chinos?
Canvas shoes go really well with navy chinos, as do casual shoes like loafers and boat shoes. You can pair them with smarter shoes too if the rest of your outfit calls for it. In winter I love wearing mine with heavy leather boots and a thick jacket. You can see examples of all the above shoes styles in the outfits below.
