Best Men’s Hiking Shirts

OUR TOP PICK

As passionate about the outdoors as you are, Columbia makes clothes to keep you comfortable whatever the weather and regardless of the conditions that you find yourself hiking in.

The Lite version of Columbia’s popular Silver Ridge, is a polyester, soft fabric shirt with shoulder vents that are designed to let air flow around your body and keep you cool when it’s warm and regulate your body temperature when things get a little colder.

With a UPF rating of forty and Columbia’s patented Omni-Shade technology, which involves the clever application and of chromium dots liberally spaced throughout the material of the shirt, the Silver Ridge is designed to protect you from the worst that the sun can throw at you on those Summer days when you just have to hit the trails. 

A lightweight button shirt that comes with all the bells and whistles, like a brace of breast pockets and sleeve ties that’ll hold your cuffs in place when you roll them up on those blazing hot hiking days, the Silver Ridge is a hiking buddy that no serious stroller can afford to be without.

Pros

• The Omni-Shade technology and UPF rating is a blessing in disguise that you won’t even know is there, but will be more than appreciated when you’re out in the wilderness.
• It’s light, so it’s comfortable enough to wear under a jumper or jacket when the rain clouds are gathering and is ideal for summer camping trips.
• The Silver Ridge is made using anti-microbial fabric, so even if you do build up a healthy sweat and have no deodorant on hand, it’ll help to keep any unwanted odor in check.

Cons

• The Silver Ridge Lite, according to some reviews, isn’t the most durable hiking shirt that you’ll hang in your wardrobe.
• It looks good, comes in a range of different colors, and does everything that Columbia says it will. It just doesn’t last as long as you hope it will or want it too.

EDITORS CHOICE

Wherever you want to go, ExOfficio makes the clothes that you’ll want to wear both on your journey, and when you get there.

For the last thirty years, they’ve been one of the foremost brands in travel clothing and put everything that they learned during that time into every item of clothing that they manufacture. 

Featuring velcro fasten chest pockets,  and a hidden zipper fastening on the right pocket which makes it doubly secure, mesh panels under each arm and three-position mesh panel (so that it can be fully adjusted between closed and open) on the back, the Air Strip is made to keep you cool, calm and focused on whatever you’re doing while you’re wearing it. 

Fast drying with a UPF of 30 and three-position sun collar to stop your skin from sizzling in the noon-day sun, the Air Strip is a custom-tailored, desert hikers shirt of choice that’ll keep the heat at bay, and hold it close, when you need it too.

It even has a loop over the left pocket to hold onto the things, like sunglasses, that you’ll need in the trail and are all too often left behind when you need them the most.

Pros

• Light and airy, the Air Strip is made to keep you safe from the sun and warm when the winter weather gathers and that’s exactly what it does. 
• If you’re hiking in the desert, you’ll whisper an additional prayer of thanks to ExOfficio for the three-position panel on the back and the mesh under-arm panels. If you’ve been out in the desert heat, you’ll know exactly what we mean. 
• Then there’s the additional protection that the collar gives your neck - it’ll stop it frying like a well-done steak in the afternoon sun. And that alone is worth the Air Strip’s price tag.
• And it doesn’t just come in one color. Or one style. There’s a color for everyone, and if you prefer your sleeves a little shorter, the Air Strip is also available as a short-sleeve shirt.

Cons

• The fit doesn’t suit everyone. Some reviews complain about it being too baggy and others moan about it being too tight.
• It’s a shirt that you’re either going to love or hate and there’s no way to tell which camp you’ll fall in until you wear it. The Air Strip is definitely a suck it and see hiking shirt.

BEST VALUE

Mountain Hardwear creates, in their own words “performance apparel and equipment to empower outdoor athletes to live boldly”.

Performance is everything for Mountain Hardware and all of their clothing is rigorously tested and made to endure the harshest of conditions. 

Made from lightweight polyester, the Canyon Longsleeve has side and rear vents and a UPF of fifty which makes it one of the most comfortable shirts you’ll ever wear on a warm hiking trip.  But that’s not all, as it’s also fashioned from anti-microbial material and has a reinforced sun collar, because Mountain Hardwear knows that you can’t be too careful out there. 

And for those of you who like to look sharp straight from the tumble dryer, the Canyon is also made from wrinkle-free material, so you can save time on ironing and pull it straight out of your rucksack confident in the knowledge that you’ll look like a million dollars as soon as you put it on. 

Pros

• With a UPF of fifty, rear and side vents, and a sun-proof collar that’ll protect you from the harshest of rays, the Canyon serves up all the protection that you’ll need from the midday heat whether you’re out in the mountains or the woods. 
• It’s made by Mountain Hardwear. They know what it means to be out there and they make their clothing accordingly. It’s an all-weather, all-purpose hiking shirt that’ll put a smile on any hikers face.

Cons

• It’s not the best fitting shirt you’ll ever buy. For some reason, the sizes seem to be off, so you’d be better getting a bigger size, which will almost certainly fit. Go big and you should be fine.

RUNNER UP

Craghoppers have a simple ethos. Go prepared and get the most from your adventure.

For over fifty years they’ve designed and manufactured the most rugged and ready clothing for any, and all, outdoor pursuits, and they don’t take what they do lightly. The Kiwi Classic is a hiker’s favorite, and while it only comes in one color, it’s the only shirt that you’ll ever need.

The polyamide fabric that it’s made from is tough, comfortable, and durable and able to stand up to the rigors of humping a backpack around all day, and it’s UPF of thirty means that it'll stand up to a beating from the sun too.

It’s also the only shirt on our list to feature built-in insect repellent, which will make sure that all the creepy crawlies and flying bugs that you’ll meet on your travels will keep their distance.

Tailored using Craghoppers SolarDry technology, that’ll make sure you stay dry as long as the sun is in the sky, and with enough pockets and loops and functional hiking accessories to keep the most ardent weekend warrior going, the Kiwi Classic is exactly what its name says it is. A classic. 

Pros

• Made for the outdoors, the Kiwi Classic is fashioned to keep you warm, or cool, whatever the weather you head out in. 
• The insect repellent that’s built into the fabric lasts for around seventy conventional washes and should last almost as long as the shirt does. 
• Fifty years of outdoor clothing innovation is nothing to be sniffed at or ignored. Craghopper knows what they’re doing and they do it well.

Cons

• The Kiwi Classic is plagued by the same issue that seems to weigh heavily on the shoulders of almost every hiking shirt. It’s sized too small.  
• If you want a shirt that you're sure will fit, get a size, or if you’re the overly cautious type two sizes, bigger than you need and your Kiki Classic should feel as though it was made to fit you, and you alone. 

RUNNER UP

Icebreaker believes that there’s a better way to do everything and that nature has all the answers that we need, which is why sustainability isn’t just a slogan they use and blithely throw away, it lies at the core of everything that they do. 

And it’s also why the Tech Lite is the only short-sleeved hiking tee-shirt on our list. Because it’s the only tee shirt that you’ll ever want to wear in the blistering hot sun.

Made from a combination of Merino wool and nylon, the Tech Lite provides all of the breathability, odor resistance, durability, and quick-drying performance that you’ll need, whatever the conditions that you find yourself in. Machine washable, the Tech Lite is designed to keep you safe from chafing and won’t rub you raw when you need it to keep you warm and dry, or cool in the afternoon sun. 

Available in a rainbow assortment of colors, the Tech Lite has both crew and V neck options, so whatever your preferred style, this shirt has it, and you, covered. If you want a shirt that you can depend on in the most arduous of circumstances, you don’t need to look any further.

Pros

• The merino wool and nylon combination that Icebreaker uses to make the Tech Lite make it breathable when you need it to be and warm when the cold sets in. It’s an all conditions hiking shirt that won’t let you down.
• With a staggering list of colors and styles available, whatever your taste in shirts is, there’s a Tech Lite that’s been made to suit you.

Cons

• All of the technology and breathability that’s built into every single one of these shirts? It comes at a price and that price is durability. According to a worrying amount of reviews, Icebreaker’s Tech Lite’s don’t last anywhere near as long as they should. Which given the jaw-dropping price that you’ll pay for one, isn’t exactly reassuring.