Best Hiking Shorts for Men of 2026

These sit at the top of the price range here, and the honest question we ask about a familiar brand name is whether it buys anything on the trail. In this case it does, mostly in drying. The fabric is light enough that a hand wash at night comes back dry by morning, which is the whole game on a trip where you're carrying one or two pairs instead of three.

Fit asks something of you. They run small, consistently enough that going up a size is the safer call, and the hem finishes just above the knee — shorter than a lot of what's on this page. On a hot day that's a gift; if you like a longer short, it isn't.

What the premium buys is range: plain enough to pass at dinner, quick enough to wear again the next morning, and light enough that packing two costs you almost nothing. The cargo and zip pockets lie flat instead of flapping, and the ones you'd want closed are closed. If drying speed and packability matter more to you than saving money, this is the pair we point to over the top pick.

The waistband is the first thing to sort out. There's elastic through it, which is why the shorts stay comfortable after hours of climbing and sitting, and it's also why they can come up roomier than the number on the tag. If you're between sizes, take the smaller one.

Comfort is the reason these made the list. The fabric is soft rather than crisp, it breathes on a hot climb, and it doesn't stiffen when it's damp — of everything here, this is the pair we noticed least. The six pockets are genuinely deep: a phone sits down in the thigh pocket instead of riding the seam, and the zips stay shut over rough ground.

The cut helps too. The leg openings aren't wide, so they don't flap on a descent, and the hem lands above the knee for most builds, which keeps the stride free when you're moving quickly. It's a quiet pair of shorts, and after a long day that's exactly what you want from them.

Pick your length is not a sentence you can usually write about hiking shorts. Pudolla sells these in 9-inch, 7-inch, and 11-inch inseams, and the long one is why they're here: if you're tall, or you just don't want a hem sitting high on the thigh, this is the only pair on this page that goes that far. Having the choice laid out plainly, instead of buried in a size chart, is worth more than it sounds.

Five zippered pockets is more closures than most people need, and it's also why nothing ends up in the dirt. The fabric is light and cool in heat, the waist has some give without needing a belt, and the cut is slim enough that they don't read as bulky cargo shorts. Shorter hikers will do fine with the 7-inch, which keeps the hem clear of the knee.

Choose these when length is the deciding factor, or when you want a short that looks a little dressier than gym gear with a phone pocket that actually zips. They're a warm-weather and travel pair rather than a workhorse, and at this price that's a fair trade.

A belt comes in the bag, which usually signals a shortcut rather than a feature. This one is nylon webbing with a plastic buckle, and it holds the shorts where you set them; the buckle lets go if something knocks it, so thread on a webbing belt of your own if you'll spend the day under a pack strap.

The fabric is the real reason to pick them. It's nylon rather than polyester, so it doesn't crackle or cling, and it's treated to resist water — a light shower beads and rolls, and a soaking dries fast. Four zippered pockets, one of them big enough for a large phone, and elastic in the waist keeps everything up when the pockets are loaded.

Fit is snug without being tight, which is what you want with a hip belt pressing on it, and the 10-inch length keeps the hem clear of your knee on a long descent. Wet brush and a light shower are where these pull ahead: the fabric stays light instead of turning heavy for the rest of the day. That's a narrow advantage, but on the right trip it's the only one that matters.

Thin fabric is the honest description here, and on a hot day it's a feature: airy, fast to dry, and almost nothing in a pack. At this price you get the quick-dry behavior of the pricier shorts on this page without the finish, which is a trade most people will happily make for a second or third pair — the ones you throw in a bag and don't think about.

Pockets are better than the price suggests: zippered cargo pockets, a secure spot for a phone, and room for a day's essentials. In lighter colors the fabric is thin enough that you'll want to think about what's underneath — that's the part of the saving you actually notice.

Sizing runs small, and this is a pair to order up rather than hope. The waist has elastic through the sides, which helps over a long day, and the 10-inch option keeps the hem where you'd expect. Get the size right and these are the shorts you stop thinking about halfway up a climb.

Plain is the point with these. They look like ordinary cargo shorts — no contrast stitching, no panels, no logo across the thigh — so they pass at a casual office or a restaurant without announcing that you've come off a trail. The technical part is hidden in the fabric.

That fabric is quick-drying, light, and stretchy, and there's no liner, so they work as a swim-and-walk short in a way a lined running short can't. The waist is elastic with a drawstring, and the drawstring is what keeps them from sliding down when the pockets are full. We liked that the waistband doesn't look like activewear.

Five pockets, including a cargo pocket on the side of the leg and a rear pocket deep enough for a wallet, and they lie flat instead of ballooning when they're empty. The leg is cut loose enough to clear a knee without looking like a skirt, which is a harder balance than it sounds.

For the money these are a strong travel pair: they pack flat, dry fast, and don't look like gear. Sizing runs small, so order up and check the chart in the listing rather than trusting the tag on your usual pair.

The waist expands, and that single detail is why these made the list. If your size moves around — a heavier winter, a belt on some days and not others, a waist that sits between two numbers — you get a waistband that meets you where you are instead of one that has already decided. The size run is broad, too, which is not nothing.

The rest is standard-issue quick-dry nylon: light, cool, quick to dry, with deep zippered pockets that hold a phone and a wallet without bulging. They're cut full through the leg and finish around the knee, so they read as cargo shorts rather than athletic ones.

Small things add up in the wrong direction. The included belt runs long, and the front belt loops are set wide enough that a belt bunches between them; a belt of your own fixes both. Otherwise the details are ordinary — a zip fly, flapped cargo pockets, nothing you'll think about on the trail.

Buy these when an expandable waist is the thing you actually need, or when you're shopping a size that's hard to find elsewhere. For day hikes, hot weather, and travel they do the job; for rough country, spend more.