The Best Blazers Make Every Fit Stronger (2024)

Below you'll find the absolute best blazers for men on the market right now, from capital-D designer versions to fresh-vibed options from undersung menswear upstarts. It's time to blaze up, baby.

The Best All-Around Blazer: Sid Mashburn Kincaid No. 3 Jacket

We've extolled the virtues of Sid Mashburn's tailoring at length for years now, and the Atlanta haberdasher's signature Kincaid blazer is exactly why. No design flourishes or distracting aesthetic tics—it's built with the kind of sartorial details that quietly demonstrate tailoring mastery, like full canvassing, pick stitching, spalla camicia sleeves. (And the Italian fabric—mamma mia!)

The Kincaid No. 3 is slightly less structured than the other jackets in the Sid Mashburn repertoire, and that more natural-shouldered fit lends itself towards easy mixing and matching. A Kincaid No. 3 in navy English high-twist wool is the kind of does-it-all blazer that belongs in every man's closet (though Mashburn also makes it in flannel and mohair). Most importantly, its timeless design and quality construction means it'll look just as good tomorrow as it will ten years from now—and ten years from then, too.

The Best Budget Blazer: Uniqlo AirSense Jacket

Your buddy's wedding is this weekend and the “semi-casual” dress code (what even does that mean) requires you to do more than chinos and an Oxford. Or you get the call back for that in-person job interview and…it's tomorrow. You need some respectability in blazer form. Rather than speedrun the mall and drop $300 or more on a sport coat of dubious quality and debatable future utility, do the smart thing and hit up Uniqlo. Problem solved in 20 minutes, max. The Japanese retailer's sport coat is made with a lightweight polyester that is by no means Italian-made wool, but does read as more expensive than it is. The classic—but not frumpy—silhouette and broad sizing range means you can probably avoid a tailoring rush job (though it wouldn't hurt if you've got the cash or the time). For less than $100, it's the rare quick fix you'll actually reach for again (and again) in the months that follow.

The Best Casual Blazer: Alex Mills “Mill” Blazer

Okay, you might be thinking to yourself.I get it. I need a blazer I can wear with more than just dizzying geometric ties and pebble-grain brogues.But I’m still struggling to wrap my head around this whole “casual tailoring” thing. We hear you and we see you, friend—and that’s exactly where Alex Mill’s rough-and-tumble riff on the sport coat comes in. The Mill blazer's silhouette skews closer to a chore coat than a tux, particularly because it's cut from the same garment-dyed cotton that the brand uses to make its famous chinos. The fabric is crisp but soft, the fit is structured but not stuffy, and the Mill comes in a duo of easy-wearing colors that could become the bedrock of your casual tailoring rotation. Think of it as putting a little bit of workwear in your work wear.

The Best Travel Blazer: Bonobos Jetsetter Blazer

Bonobos' tailoring has always been a noble go-to pick for the office, and its best-selling Jetsetter suits and blazers show off what the brand does best: value-priced clothes with thoughtful specs and no-funny-business style. As the Jetsetter's name suggests, it's especially well-fashioned for frequent flyers who need to feel comfortable on the plane and still look presentable when the wheels touch the tarmac.

The jacket's Unstructured version—available in three fits—is our favorite of the group, since the natural shoulders and lack of lining keep things light and spry. The button sits right at the natural waist (as it should), and the 3.25" lapel is trend-proof—neither too wide nor too narrow, so the jacket should last for years. (Whether you'll still fit into the same jacket in a few years is another question.)

The Best “Technically a Sport Coat” Blazer: J.Crew Kenmare Blazer

For well over a decade, J.Crew's Ludlow suit defined—and reigned over—the affordable suiting category, and for good reason. The fabrics well-sourced (shoutout mall-brand economies of scale), the fit impeccable, the construction impressive, the price point just right. GQ editors spent an entire decade telling their suit-needing buddies to just get a Ludlow.

But as tailoring proportions gradually swung away from slim-and-snipped, the Ludlow lost some luster. Wisely J.Crew quietly introduced the Kenmare, a few seasons ago as a response. Its looser, more relaxed silhouette appeals to anyone who both needs to wear a suit and wants to wear a suit. The cut is still trends preppy enough to pair with an Oxford-cloth shirt and brogues (c'mon, this is still J.Crew we're talking about), but its less-tailored shape and ever-rotating roster of high-energy herringbones and plaids naturally lends the Kenware jacket to solo duty, paired with a faded pair of jeans and cowboy boots or a scuzzy mohair cardigan and derbies. As with the Ludlow in its heyday, the Kenmare's price-to-quality ratio is only matched by its panache.

The Best Double-Breasted Blazer: Ralph Lauren Doeskin Blazer

In the finger-wagging parlance of classic menswear, a blazer is a specific thing, defined by two distinguishing details: a solid-colored cloth, often in navy, and contrasting metal buttons, often in brass. Ralph Lauren's expertly-crafted wool blazer, as per usual, is both the platonic ideal and a subtle departure. Cut with soft shoulders and brash peak lapels, the brand's double-breasted blazer also features a lower button stance that makes for a universally flattering shape, no matter your build. It's a high-quality riff on an enduring American silhouette that'll anchor your most formal fits just as ably as it'll elevate your most casual ones. In other words, it's quintessential Ralph.

The Best Linen Blazer: Todd Snyder Sutton Jacket

Todd Snyder's top-notch tailoring is like watching your favorite band play all the hits. You've got the classic starter suit, the glitzy red carpet tux, the endless variations on a sport coat, and a set list that keeps heating up. And when things are literally heating up, you'll be grateful that Todd Snyder's linen take on its stalwart Sutton is available. The breathable all-linen fabric is woven in Italy and cut into an unstructured jacket that pairs with some billowy vacation pants, jeans, shorts, or the matching pants to class up your warm-weather outfits while making sure you don't boil. It's yet another banger from Snyder.

The Best Blazer for a Big Night Out: Gucci GG Formal Jacket

It’s a balmy evening and you’re staring at a closet jammed haphazardly with the clothes that helped you survive winter. The Aperol’s flowing freely, Robyn’s wailing balefully about her ex on the speaker, and the air is sweaty with opportunity…to get a really big fit off. When that time comes, Gucci's got what you need: a tour de force of sexed-up tailoring doused in the brand’s signature ‘70s glamour—all somehow channeled through the comfortable, airy fabric of our lives. The pitch-black cotton canvas is covered in a tonal GG motif that’s just iridescent enough to catch the club's lighting. Those broad, roped shoulders and nipped waist give the wearer (you!) the unbridled power of a disco icon, all gyrating hips and groovy moves. Just don't leave Gucci's blazer out on the dance floor alone: this thing's crying out for flared trousers and sleek boots—and a “night's not over until the sun rises” attitude.

Plus 9 More Blazers We Love

All the Questions You Have About Blazers, Answered

Glad you asked. If you posed the question above to five different people, you'd get six definitions—none of them all that helpful. The terms tend to be used interchangeably—though, as the most knowledgeable and/or pedantic menswear obsessives will point out, that's not technically the case. Here's the historical breakdown.