Best Buys for Chinos for Different Body Shapes

The right chino comes down to three things: the rise, the leg opening, and the fabric weight. Get those matched to your build and almost any brand will work. Get them wrong and even a £400 pair will make you look like you've borrowed someone else's trousers. Below is what actually works for each body shape, and the brands I'd genuinely put my name to.

First, the three measurements that matter

Forget the name on the label for a moment. Every chino you'll ever try on is defined by a handful of variables, and once you know which ones suit you, shopping becomes a two-minute job rather than a Saturday afternoon.

The rise — the distance from the crotch seam to the top of the waistband. Low rise (under 9 inches) shortens the leg and lengthens the torso. Mid to high rise (10–12 inches) does the opposite. This is the single most powerful lever you have.
The leg opening — measured flat across the hem. Anything under 6.5 inches is genuinely slim; 7–7.5 inches is a modern straight; above 8 inches you're into relaxed territory.
The fabric weight — lightweight twill (7–8oz) clings and creases. Mid-weight (9–11oz) holds a line and drapes cleanly. Heavy cotton drill (12oz+) stands away from the body entirely.

I learned the rise lesson the hard way. Years ago I bought a pair of very low-rise chinos for a wedding because they looked sharp on the mannequin. I'm 5'9". By the second glass of champagne I looked like I'd been folded in half. The trousers weren't the problem — the rise was.

Slim or rectangular build

Narrow hips, straight waist, not much taper from shoulder to hip. Your enemy is looking swamped, not looking tight.

Go for a mid rise, slim-straight leg with a 6.5–7 inch opening. Genuinely skinny chinos will emphasise how narrow you already are.
Choose mid-weight twill. Heavier cotton gives your leg some visual substance and stops the fabric collapsing around the calf.
Lighter shades — stone, ecru, pale olive — add bulk. Black and navy will slim you further, which you don't need.
Cuff the hem once, about an inch, and let the trouser break just slightly on the shoe. A full break drowns a slim leg.

Athletic build

Broad shoulders, developed quads, smaller waist. The classic problem: the thigh fits, the waist gapes by two inches.

Look for the words "tapered" or "athletic fit" — a roomier thigh and seat with a narrowing knee-to-hem.
Buy for the thigh, tailor the waist. A waistband take-in costs around £15 and takes a good alterations tailor twenty minutes. It's the best money in menswear.
Two to three per cent elastane in the fabric blend makes an enormous difference to comfort here. Any more than five and it starts to look like activewear.
Avoid a low rise. It drops the crotch seam and gives you that pulled-taut look across the front of the thigh.

Broad or stocky build

Substantial through the chest, waist and thigh, often shorter in the leg. The goal is a long, clean vertical line.

Mid to high rise, straight leg, 7.5–8 inch opening. A straight leg from the knee down keeps the silhouette uninterrupted.
Match your belt to your shoes, and keep both in the same tonal family as the trouser. A contrasting belt visually chops you in half.
Stick to structured, mid-weight fabrics. Anything clingy will map every contour.
No cuffs. A cuff draws a horizontal line at the ankle and shortens the leg.

Tall and lean

You have the easiest job and the hardest sizing problem. Most brands' 34-inch inseams are the first to sell out.

You can carry a wider leg than anyone else — 8 inches at the hem looks intentional rather than baggy on a long frame.
Horizontal detail is your friend: a cuffed hem, a contrast belt, a tucked shirt with a visible waistband. All of these break up the vertical.
Check the rise carefully. A tall man in a low rise ends up with a very long torso and a very short-looking leg, which is the reverse of what you want.

Fuller through the middle

The most common shape and the most badly served by the high street, largely because too many men buy a size down out of stubbornness.

High rise, always. The waistband should sit at your natural waist — roughly at your navel — not underneath your stomach. Sitting it below is what creates the overhang.
A straight or gently tapered leg balances the upper body. A slim leg creates an inverted triangle that emphasises the middle.
Flat-front, no pleats, and check the pockets sit flat when you stand. Gaping side pockets are a sign the hip is too tight.
Darker, matte shades — charcoal, navy, deep olive — over anything with sheen.

The brands I'd actually recommend

High street

Uniqlo — the Smart Ankle and Slim Fit chinos are the best value in Britain, full stop. Cotton-blend with a touch of stretch, and the range of inseams is unusually generous for the price.
Marks & Spencer (Autograph) — quietly excellent for broader and fuller builds. Their higher-rise straight-leg chinos are cut for real bodies rather than showroom mannequins, and the fabric weight is honest.
Arket — Scandinavian restraint, mid-weight organic cotton, and a regular fit that flatters a tall, lean frame without any fuss.

Independent and boutique

Percival — a London label doing genuinely interesting things with colour and cut. Their tailored chinos have a slightly raised rise that works beautifully on shorter, stockier men.
Oliver Spencer — for anyone with an athletic build who's tired of gapping waistbands. The Fishtail trouser has a proper high rise and a roomy thigh, and it drapes like something twice the price.
Universal Works — Nottingham-based, workwear-influenced, and reliably good on heavier cotton drill. The Aston pant is the one to try if you want volume without looking sloppy.

Designer and luxury

Incotex — trouser specialists, and it shows. If you have an unusual proportion between waist and thigh, Incotex's Slim Fit Chinolino is the pair that will finally make sense of it.
Brunello Cucinelli — the fabric is the whole argument. Their garment-dyed cotton has a softness and a drape that flatters a fuller midsection more effectively than any amount of "slimming" cut.
Loro Piana — for a tall, lean man who wants a wide leg to look deliberate rather than accidental. Extraordinary cloth, and the hem hangs exactly as intended.

Three styling rules that survive every trend

Break your hem once, or not at all. Two folds of fabric pooling on the shoe is the fastest way to look scruffy in an otherwise good outfit.
Chinos want a shoe with some weight. Loafers, derbies, a chunky trainer. Thin-soled plimsolls make the trouser look like it's floating.
Buy two colours before you buy two fits. Stone and navy will cover ninety per cent of what you need. Once you know the fit works, then experiment.

Trend-wise, we're firmly in a wider, higher-rise moment. Leg openings across the market have grown by nearly an inch in three years. If you've been buying slim chinos since 2015, this is a good year to try a straight leg — but only if the rise comes up with it. A wide leg on a low rise is the worst of both worlds.

How to Get the Size Right Before You Buy

Every brand above cuts its waistband differently. A 32 at Uniqlo is not a 32 at Incotex, and no amount of styling advice will save a pair of chinos that simply don't fit.

Tellar is the UK's leading free sizing tool. Measure once and your body is matched instantly to over 1,500 brands — so you never have to squint at a size guide again.

Measure once using your waist, hip or an existing brand size you already trust.
Use the Store Size Lookup to get your precise size in any brand — COS, Reiss, Everlane, Arket and more. Find your size here.
Not sure how to measure? Our step-by-step men's guide takes two minutes: How to measure.
Shop with confidence — no guesswork, fewer returns, better-fitting purchases.
Always free. No downloads, no sign-up, works straight in your browser.

Alongside the tool sits the Tellar Fashion Hub — a growing library of free posts from our stylists covering every fashion question worth asking. Honest, unbiased, independent and always free.