The number-one rule of getting dressed is to wear what makes you feel good. If you feel a million bucks wearing a hot-pink blazer and fluorescent green slacks, then hey, you do you. That being said, most people will agree that certain colour combinations work better together than others, and knowing how to use this to your advantage can help elevate your style to the next level.
Like it or not, bad colour-matching signals to people that you either don’t know how to dress or don’t care. That may not bother you, which is fine, but if it is, this guide will help get you on the right track fast. Think of the page below as a sort of menswear colour-matching cheat sheet – a selection of go-to combinations that you can fall back on again and again, safe in the knowledge they’ll always look good.
We’ve deliberately chosen colour pairings that are difficult to get wrong, so it doesn’t matter how you decide to style them – they’ll still work.Â
Black And White
Let’s start with the ultimate: the mother of all colour combos. Successfully matching colours almost always comes down to creating contrast, and straight black and white dials it up to the maximum. It’s a proven combination that always works, and it’s great for creating high-impact outfits while keeping things simple.
To maximise its potential, we suggest keeping the ratio around 70/30, whichever way you do it. Avoid going zebra mode (black hat, white top, black pants, white shoes, etc.) and instead pick one black/white piece while keeping the rest of the outfit the opposing colour.
For example, you can make a black jacket, black pants, and black shoes pop simply by throwing a crisp white tee into the mix.
Navy And Cream
Black and white is great, but it’s not for everyone. It’s a bold and striking colour combination that demands attention, and if you’re the type of person who likes to keep things a little more subdued, then navy and cream might be a better option.
Navy and cream offer all the high-contrast benefits of black and white while feeling more subtle. It works great for any setting, but we’re particularly fond of it for styling smart-casual outfits.
Just throw an unstructured navy blazer on with a pair of cream chinos and tell us we’re wrong.
Brown And Beige
Contrast doesn’t have to be bold to work well. Another way to play it is to lean in the opposite direction and go tonal. Brown and beige heads in this direction while maintaining enough contrast to keep the separation between garments clean and crisp. It’s a lovely earthy option that works perfectly in the fall and winter.
Our favourite way of styling this tried-and-tested colour combo is to pair brown outerwear with beige legwear. From there, you can throw in some white accents like a shirt or a pair of sneakers or lean even further into the tonal look and bring things back to earth with some subtle green and burnt orange.
Green And Black
Up until now, all of our suggestions have revolved around marrying light and dark, but that’s not a prerequisite for a pleasing colour combination. Case in point: green and black.
These two dark colours bring out the best in each other. They work well casually, but we particularly love how they look in tailored outfits. Next time you see ‘cocktail attire‘ on a wedding invite, try wearing a dark green blazer with a black roll-neck sweater and black dress shoes.
Olive And White
Again, olive and white play on the winning formula of creating a striking contrast. It’s softer than black and white and more summery than navy and cream, and we find it works equally well for tailored and casual outfits.
For dressy occasions like summer weddings, an olive tailored jacket with white pants will work well. Team them up with a beige linen shirt to really stick it to the hot weather. Or, for a casual spin, wear a white T-shirt with olive cargo pants and white canvas sneakers – a foolproof off-duty look that’ll work summer after summer.
Brown And Green
If you like brown and beige, brown and green will probably be up your street, too. It’s slightly darker and heavier, which makes it better suited to fall and winter, but it’s similarly earthy and tonal. Sneakerheads often give the colourway the nickname ‘beef and broccoli’.
There’s a danger of falling into geography teacher territory here, so to make sure that doesn’t happen, we’d suggest throwing in some hits of white to keep things fresh. Think brown coat, green hoodie, indigo jeans and white sneakers.
Grey And Grey
If this sounds vanilla, you clearly haven’t read 50 Shades Of Grey. In truth, we haven’t either, but we can only assume from its success that it’s about how well mixing different shades of grey can work in menswear.
Tonal outfits can be tricky to get right, but options for grey take the guesswork out of it. Team a few different shades up, and you can rest assured that the end result will be an aesthetically pleasing one.
If you’re stuck for somewhere to start, we’d suggest pairing dark charcoal and light grey.
Pink And Blue
At the complete opposite end of the spectrum is pink and blue. This eye-catching combo works every bit as well as some of the more toned-down suggestions on this list, but rather than attempting to blend in, it’s unashamedly bold, bright and attention-grabbing. This makes it great for casual outfits in the summer and spring.
As great as it can look, pink and blue can go wrong. The best way to avoid this is to steer clear of the boldest shades of each and instead opt for light shades and pastels. A light pink linen shirt with some pale blue shorts is a great example.
