What Color Suit to Wear to a Wedding? (2024)

FAQs

What Color Suit to Wear to a Wedding? ›

The most appropriate suit colors for a formal wedding include charcoal grey, black, and midnight blue. A good rule of thumb, a dark suit is always the safest choice. If you're looking to add a bit of personality to your formal suit, consider your accessories.

If it is a day/early afternoon wedding feel free to wear a medium grey or blue suit. If the wedding is an evening or nighttime event it is best to stay in the darker realm of suit colors like black or charcoal. Now, this is still a great time to play with fashion, try our green suit or a dark patterned tie.

If you're looking for something classic and timeless, dark colors like navy blue or black are always appropriate. For a more glamorous look, pastels such as lavender, light pink, or pale blue will add a touch of elegance to your outfit.

Leave all white, ivory, and champagne-hued shades alone, unless the invitation specifically designates an all-white dress code. "White and ivory are such a stark, prominent color that when you are the only one, as the bride, wearing it, all eyes are on you," says Avrumson.

Basically, wedding guests are off the hook if they absolutely cannot wear a tuxedo. A dark suit and tie would be acceptable black tie optional wedding attire for men, but wear a tux if you can. Prefer to dress it down? Try a black satin necktie or a black and white bow tie in a pattern.

co*cktail attire is a smidge more formal than semiformal attire, and is often for weddings held later in the day, while semiformal is usually for afternoon weddings. Avoid a tuxedo and go for a well-tailored suit with a solid shirt—tie optional but encouraged.

Navy suits

Navy is the most popular men's suit color, hands down, making up 50% of all suits. It makes sense, as the colour navy represents power and authority — both traits one wants to feel when they wear a suit. That's why navy is known as the presidential suit color.

Stick to a matching suit rather than mixing colors. Wear it with a white dress shirt, dark leather shoes, and a black bow tie or necktie. Like black tie, if you choose to wear a pocket square go for a subtle white one.

Black is generally regarded as the most formal color, as it's been used throughout history by wealthy and noble people for all their get-togethers and grand occasions. It's a straightforward color – simply add a crisp, white dress shirt and some lace-up shoes, and you're good to go.

There is nothing against wearing a white suit, however, it's best to stick to classic colours, like navy, grey or brown, as you don't want to pull attention away from the bride and groom. This is especially true if the best men have decided to wear light grey or white suits and you're not part of the bridal party.

Is it OK to wear black to a wedding? ›

Luckily, times have changed, and given the fact that wedding fashion etiquette norms have shifted over the years, we now have good news for fans of coal-colored ensembles. “It is absolutely acceptable for a female to wear a black dress to a wedding,” Swann advises.

And while you might see rumors floating around the web that wearing red means you had a fling with the groom, ignore those. There are no hidden meanings to any colors of wedding guest attire.

White: You don't wear white to a wedding. Sure, you're not going to be confused for the bride, but just don't. Not casual, not formal, just never. Boutonnieres: These are also typically for the wedding party only, so opt for items like lapel pins and pocket squares for interest instead.

Turns out, wearing red to a wedding means to some that “you've slept with the groom.” “Old Wives' Tale, but yeah,” Mitchell explained. However, both wedding planners agreed on a more modern reason for not wearing red: It could be seen as a way to grab the attention away from the bride.

Denim is mostly going to be a no-go unless you're attending a Western-themed wedding. Shorts are seldom going to be acceptable, save for the case of destination weddings with very, very relaxed dress codes. And speaking of pants, pantsuits are often a great alternative to dresses.

If you're worried about being disrespectful, don't sweat it in the 21st century. “Yes, it's absolutely okay to wear black to a wedding,” says wedding planner Matthew Oliver. “If you're not sure, most invitations will actually mention the dress code, but you can never go wrong with a classic black tux and a white shirt.

Women should embrace wrap dresses, midi dresses or elegant jumpsuits. For men, if it's a daytime wedding, a light sport jacket, button-down shirt and relaxed chinos fit the bill. In the evening, go for darker colors, as later weddings tend to be more formal.