The Best Hiking Pants for Men of 2025

The REI Trailmade Pants ($69) are one of the best-fitting pants in this review. We really like the slender (not slim) fit and how the pants look and feel. They are extremely comfortable, and we were equally cozy hiking all day in them or lounging around the house in a pair of slippers.

One of the first things we noticed when these pants showed up in the mail was the sharp-looking accent pocket. The teal pocket zip on the darker blue pants gave the thigh a nice pop of color that looks great. The pocket is just the right size for a fat wallet, cellphone, or energy bar.

We also appreciate the internal drawcord’s simplicity as an effective way to make micro-adjustments to the waist without adding a belt.

We hiked high peaks in Colorado, along the beach in Mexico, through flower-filled fields in the Tetons, and along the coast in Alaska to discover that pants don’t have to cost a ton to function well, look good, and provide protection from the wind, light rain, mosquitoes, and sun.

Note that while these do have a DWR coating, if you live in a wet climate like the Pacific Northwest, where hiking in the rain is a regular part of most hikes, these might not be a great option. On a couple of hikes in Alaska and the Tetons, where it was pouring, these pants soaked through pretty quickly, unlike a couple of others on the list, like the OR Ferrosi Pants, which are more waterproof.

The Trailmades did, however, dry extremely quickly once the sun came out. So, if your main goal is to provide some sun protection along with an additional layer to protect your legs from the occasional bit of bushwhacking, then this is a solid choice.

If you hike in warmer climates and want a lightweight, simple, but well-designed pair of pants without many extra features to complicate the design, then take a look at the REI Trailmade Pants. Plus, with a price tag of only $69, you’ll be able to spend more time outside and less time working!

If you are looking for an incredibly durable pair of hiking pants that will last for a long time, then look no further than the Fjällräven Vidda Pro Ventilated Trousers ($180).

When these pants arrived in the mail, the first thing we noticed was the very heavy-duty look and feel. Along with the pants was a letter from Martin Axelhed, Fjällräven CEO. This line from the letter stood out: “They are designed to last for decades of use, to be passed on to the next generation or re-sold on the secondhand market. This way, fewer products need to be produced, less energy needs to be consumed, and fewer products will end up as waste.”

Although we haven’t had a chance to test these pants for decades, we suspect they’ll still be going strong many years from now with little signs of wear.

Based on the heavy-duty fabric, we were initially a bit skeptical of the breathability. Every time we hiked in warmer conditions or days when the humidity was a bit up, we expected to overheat quickly, but were pleasantly surprised. The side vent half-zippers and the ventilated, stretch crotch make a big difference. While we don’t think these should be your go-to hiking pants for desert backpacking trips, they do well in most other conditions and will shine in colder weather.

The Vidda Pro Ventilated Pants are packed with a lot of extra features that are practical and improve the overall quality. For hikers that live in the mountains or on the East Coast or the Pacific Northwest when late spring and early summer hiking often involve snow and mud, the strap adjustment at the leg to tighten up the fit around the top of your hiking boots and the laces keeper hook are a nice feature — particularly if you don’t feel like wearing gaiters every time you go out for a short hike.

The three oversized pockets and the smaller knife pocket are also nice additions. Even when we filled the pockets with a cellphone, car keys, and snacks, the pants still fit well.

Finally, it’s worth noting that every single time we wore these pants, we received positive comments from passersby on the trail. Whether we were deep in the backcountry or walking to the local pizza restaurant after a hike, we regularly got comments like, “Wow, those are cool-looking pants. Who makes those?” or “Those look really durable. Do you like them?” Fjällräven makes a quality-looking pair of pants, and folks notice them.

If you are an ultralight purist and have spreadsheets of the weight of every piece of gear you take on a backpacking trip, then these probably aren’t the first pair of hiking pants you’ll choose; you’ll prefer to go with an ultralight option like the Rab Incline Light Pants.

But if you want a beefy pair of pants that will last for many years and have a number of thoughtful features that improve rather than detract from the overall quality, then take a look at the Vidda Pros.

Read Review: Hiking Pants That Do It All: Patagonia Quandary Pants Review

The Patagonia Quandary Pants ($99) are a popular, affordable workhorse that has been a staple in the hiking and travel community for a while. And, for good reason. They’re a solid crossover piece for backcountry performance and front-country style alike. But, don’t let the low price tag and relatively thin fabric fool you — these pants can throw down and hold up well to some serious torture on long hikes.

This model boasts some of our favorite features for hiking pants, with articulated knees, a gusseted crotch, breathable fabric, and a DWR coating with a 40+ UPF rating. For hot, big-mile days in the sun, the Quandary Pants crush it. But, they’re also sturdy enough for winter. Wear them with a baselayer underneath for total adaptability across seasons.

We appreciate the flexibility they offer, but the fit was a bit tight around the waist and thighs. If you’ve been focusing on leg day in the gym, see if you can try these on first before whipping out your wallet, or try another more generous-fitting pair of pants like the Outdoor Research Ferrosi Pants.

Though the Quandary Pants don’t have many venting features, the light, thin fabric felt more breathable than many of the pants we tried, so the lack of venting wasn’t an issue. A moisture-absorbing mesh liner at the waistband helps keep sweat buildup at bay. A zippered pocket on the back and a small zippered thigh pocket help you safely stash essentials, but we would appreciate another bigger zippered front pocket for keeping a phone or other essentials handy while hiking or climbing.

Whether you’re seeking comfort for a big day in the mountains, durability for an off-trail slog, or style for a casual stroll around town, the Quandary Pants are a great versatile option for a variety of adventures.

Black Diamond’s roots are in technical climbing gear. They’ve taken what they’ve learned on the mountain to make some of the finest outdoor apparel available. The Alpine Light ($125) speaks to its years of experience, and the overall merits are in its restrained design.

Instead of a belt, the pants fasten with a G-hook that sits off-center and catches on ladder webbing sewn into the waist. Both Arc’teryx and Seadon use a similar G-hook belt closure, but Black Diamond’s solution is the most secure implementation of the three.

The drawcord around the ankles locks into a slot, pinching the elastic cord. Unlike other pants with drawcords, you can’t pull it with one hand, but the concept is light and the most minimal setup we tested, significantly reducing bulk around the ankles.

For stretch and durability, the material is a combination of nylon and elastane, whose qualities start to shine once you veer off the map. Beyond the trail, you need pants that move with you, deflecting rock and scrub. That’s what terrain Black Diamond feels most comfortable in, and that’s where the Alpine Light delivers.

They have a four-way stretch woven fabric that is water resistant, lightweight, and incredibly durable for its weight. After months of testing, it looks nearly new.

The pants have five pockets (two hand and two rear drop-in pockets, with a fifth pocket on the lower right leg). The front pockets aren’t very deep, and the thigh pocket sits low against the knee. This is designed to stay clear of a climbing harness.

If you like to carry lots of items in your pant pockets — particularly a phone in that thigh pocket — this could be a dealbreaker, and you’ll want to look at the Vidda Pro Ventilated Pants instead. If the thigh pocket were better positioned, we would have awarded the Alpine Light our choice for the best hiking pants overall.

The Alpine Light is available in general sizes (S, M, L, and XL), with inseams scaling from 31.5 to 33.5 inches. The waist sizing trends small, so if you’re between sizes, we recommend sizing up.

Cramming down to roughly the size of a softball, the slim-fitting, mega-stretchy Rab Incline Light Pants ($95) should snag some real estate in any pack you load up for an adventure. At 7.9 ounces and under $100, why wouldn’t you bring ’em along? But their allure doesn’t stop at weight and price. Boasting stellar mobility, phenomenal next-to-skin comfort, and a thoughtful design, these pants are ready for any number of wild escapades.

The long-length gusseted crotch affords more freedom of movement than most pants we tested and has a unique design extending down to just above the knee. Articulated knees contribute to these pants’ mobility, and we had little issue tackling technical terrain on long hikes or light bushwhacks.

We love a slim fit in our hiking pants, but these are just a tad too slim in a few areas for our preference, namely around the thighs and hips. For folks with larger legs, we’d recommend sizing up.

We love how packable the Incline Lights are. They roll up to a minuscule size and have consequently become some of our favorite “just in case” pants to throw in on any trip we find ourselves on. This isn’t to say they don’t rise to the task as standalone hiking pants in the backcountry; however, their ultralight nature does dock some durability points. They won’t hold up to the same level of torture as beefier softshell models like the Helly Hansen Blaze listed below.

Two zippered side pockets, one zippered back pocket, and a single zippered thigh pocket round out its simple feature set, which is just about perfect for us. We appreciate having zippers on each pocket, as it means any trinket we tote around will stay secure while we wander about. We do wish that there were drawcord cuff adjustments, but Rab had to cut weight somehow.

As some of the lightest pants on this roundup, the Incline Lights will hold up to miles of wear and tear without weighing you down. They’ll disappear in your luggage as backup pants for longer trips, or serve you well as standalone workhorses on ultralight backpacking missions. Trust us — you won’t be disappointed.

We love the utility of a good pair of convertible pants, particularly when hiking in places where the weather might change from sunny and 70s to windy and 40s in a short period of time. On one of our first outings in the REI Co-op Sahara Convertible Pants ($79), we went on a long hiking/backcountry fishing trip at a high alpine lake in the Colorado Rockies located at almost 13,000 feet.

Over the course of the day, from the hike in the morning to the hike out late in the afternoon, the temperature changed significantly, and we found ourselves changing from pants to shorts and back to pants a number of times. The convenience of this option, while providing a bit of extra sun and wind protection, was much appreciated.

Unfortunately, after 20 (?) years, it seems that the curse of convertible pants — dorky fit and style — still hasn’t been sorted out. Although we love the versatility of zip-off pants, they always seem to fit awkwardly in the thighs where the pant legs zip on/off.

The shorts portion of the Sahara looks great, but once the pant legs are added to the mix, the fit just looks a bit odd. We hope REI or someone else will figure out how to make a pair of convertible pants that look great as both shorts and pants one day. We thought Kuhl had it figured out with the Renegade Convertible, but in 2025, they changed their design and removed the zipper at the bottom of the pants, so you have to take off your boots to turn them into shorts.

Setting aside our ego and how we look, we did appreciate the ease of attaching and detaching the pant legs, particularly when doing it in inclement weather or when it’s windy. In the past, this often involved a lot of awkward hopping around on one leg and a good bit of frustration.

REI simplified this with color-coded thigh zippers to differentiate the right leg from the left, and they also added full side zips on the legs to make them just a little easier to get on and off.

If you have limited space and want a single pair of hiking pants or shorts for a backpacking trip or overseas travel, we highly recommend the Sahara Convertibles.