As an adult man, you are probably used to wearing a belt. In fact, you may even wear a few different kinds, but you also probably haven’t given a ton of thought into what types of belts you should have or even what different kinds are available. We’re here to help with a quick guide to men’s belts.
When did we start wearing belts anyway?
It seems to be back around the 1920s where men in the U.S. started wearing belts with their pants. Initially, it might have been just a cut of cowhide with a few holes punched out and attached to a metal buckle. A big improvement over suspenders or overalls!
But, over the last 100ish years belts have come a long way, Today, guys have a lot of choices when it comes to what type of belt they want to wear, based on activity or style of dress. So, let’s break down some of the most common and popular types of belts.
Leather Belt
We’ll kick off with the belt that draws the most from those originals back in the 1920s. A good smooth leather belt (often brown or black, but some other colors as well) is pretty much an essential part of any guy’s belt collection. You can wear it casually with a pair of jeans, or something a little nicer. They work with a shirt that is tucked or untucked. You can decide to follow fashion rules about mixing belt and show color or just ignore it. Your call.
If the belt is a little smoother with a cleaner buckle, it may lend itself to being a bit dressier. Alternatively, a belt that is just a little rougher and has a more primitive buckle can lean to the more casual side. But, the old standby leather belt is a mainstay. You may even want a couple of them.
And for many guys, this is where the belt collection stops. Maybe one brown and one black belt, which are nice enough to put with a pair of khakis and casual enough for jeans. But, you can go in a few other directions if you want to explore some more nuanced options or specific use belts.
Dress Belts
These are probably the next most popular as they are designed to go with a suit or slacks and a sports jacket, etc. They are typically made of high-quality leather and may be a tiny bit narrower than a standard leather belt. Although you may want to avoid ones that are overly skinny.
Apparently, they are out of style. The buckles lay flat, so they don’t bulge out into a suit jacket, and colors tend to stick with brown and black. Don’t get me started on which color goes with which color suit. LOL!
You really only need a dress belt if you wear a suit or nicer slacks. So, they aren’t quite as essential as the standard leather belt. But, if you want to make a good impression in your suit, a proper dress belt is key.
Casual Belt
So, this is a wide category, but we’ll stick to just a couple of main options. A casual belt is just that, something you can wear around casually. Many of them offer some flexibility to make them ideal for hiking or other active endeavors, where a leather belt may be a bit restrictive.
A typical casual belt is made of nylon or another light, but strong material. They can also come in a type of heavy canvas or a mix of elastic and other materials. They often have sturdy plastic or polymer buckles, that snap together rather than having the belt feed through.
While they go great with jeans or any casual pants, they are well-paired with hiking pants, tactical pants, or even shorts. The idea is that you want to be able to move around just a bit more freely with these belts. Other than that, they can range from highly flexible (with some elastic) or soft, but without the flex (nylon). Today, these casual belts are chipping away at the standard leather belt arena with good reason.
Tactical Belt
Another belt to consider is the tactical belt. This is where we start to get into specific use-style belts. A tactical belt is designed to help carry some gear around your waist. That can range from hiking essentials like a knife, EMS equipment, or firearms (for police, military, hunters, or competition shooters, etc.).
They can be fairly flexible or a bit more rigid, depending on the specific use case. Some of the more rigid ones use a ratchet system which allows the belt to be finely adjusted to fit at just the right level of tightness for each person.
Tactical belts are generally built to last, even with heavy use. So, if you buy one, you can expect it to remain useful for years.
Other Types of Belts
We won’t get into all of them, but you can also finds belts in a bunch of other categores and design styles.
Braided Belts - Another style of casual belt
Braided Leather Belts - Very much a personal style choice
D-Ring Belts - Very casual… maybe too casual for a lot of folks
Suede Belts - A slightly different take on the leather belt, but we’re splitting hairs
Rock-N-Roll Belt - A studded leather biker belt. Probably not for everyone.
