The 18 Best Men’s Hiking Shirts For 2024

Time and time again, I’ve watched it happen: Anything short of a perfect, sun shining, ideal temperature day, and people will say they can’t go hiking. But I call BS. The weather is never going to cooperate exactly how we want it to—which means it’s up to us to make sure we’re ready to hit the trail no matter what the forecast says is in store.

To do that, it pays to be prepared. And on the shirt front, that means having a solid selection of weights, fabrics, and sleeve lengths to accommodate everything from a scorching summer day to a dreary fall afternoon to a frigid winter morning. Putting our combined decades of experience on the trails together, we’ve collected 18 of the best men’s hiking shirts around to fill every niche in 2024. And that means more trail time, every season, every year.

The North Face Wander Long-Sleeve Shirt

I’ve learned through the years that with North Face, you can always trust you’re getting sturdy, sport-friendly, and high-quality athletic gear.

The Wander Long-Sleeve Shirt lives up to expectations: it’s lightweight and incredibly breathable, with moisture-wicking properties, a heat transfer logo that keeps you cool, and forward-set, friction-free shoulder seams that make it a great base layer under a heavy coat. Though tough, it feels beautifully soft and is great for even guys with sensitive skin.

• Price: $55
• Material: 94% recycled polyester, 6% elastane
• Notable Features: FlashDry materials maximize moisture-wicking and quick-drying properties, and heat transfer logo allows excess body heat to escape.

Orvis Drirelease Long-Sleeved Crew

Looking for something budget-friendly but reliable? The Orvis Drirelease Long-Sleeved Crew is just the thing. The fabric is comfortable and breathable, with natural odor-blocking and moisture management properties that’ll keep you fresh and cool even if worn as a base layer beneath bulky coats. No matter how hard or often you wear it, the colors will never run, fade, or bleed. Its eye-catching colorways and patterns make it a stylish choice you’ll be proud to show off anywhere and everywhere. 

• Price: $39
• Material: Polyester/Cotton Blend
• Notable Features: All-natural odor-blocking properties prevent stinky shirts even if you’re a heavy sweater (like me).

Mountain Hardwear Canyon Long Sleeve Shirt

The Mountain Hardwear Canyon Long Sleeve Shirt is built to take you from brunch straight to the hiking trails. The sun collar looks crisp and sharp while also providing extra neck coverage against sunburn, while the button-down style and buttoned roll-up sleeves maximize the “sharp” look.

Two zippered chest pockets give it the classic button-down look you love, but double as both extra storage space and chest vents to let out excess body heat. Plus, the shirt is wrinkle-resistant and quick-drying so you’ll look and feel fresh if you’re heading out for a social evening with friends without needing to stop at home and change. 

• Price: $70
• Material: 100% Polyester
• Notable Features: UPF50 solar protection and sun collar shield your skin from sunburn.

Arc’Teryx RHO LT Crew Neck Shirt

Whether you take the Arc’Teryx RHO LT Crew Neck Shirt hiking, hunting, or snowboarding, you’ll feel comfortable and fresh all day long. The shirt makes for an excellent base layer, thanks to its light weight, high thermal efficiency, and moisture management, but is tough and sturdy enough you’ll be comfortable wearing it alone for warm-weather hikes.

The fabric’s natural moisture-wicking, quick-drying, and stretching properties make it great for every athletic activity, and its crewneck style makes it a shirt you can wear with quite literally every outfit. 

• Price: $110
• Material: 84% Polyester, 16% Elastane
• Notable Features: Polyester fleece is light enough for summer use but offers impressive thermoregulation to wear as a base layer in cold weather.

Howler Brothers Stockman Stretch Snapshirt

Blend an iconic cowboy-inspired style with highly advanced tech fabric, and the result is a hiking shirt you can wear anywhere, anytime. The Howler Brothers Stockman Stretch Snapshirt looks like your favorite Western button-down shirt—the ideal companion for the rodeo, church, or a day out on the town—but wears like a sport-friendly hiking shirt.

The polyester, rayon, and Spandex fabric blend features a no-friction, super-soft brushed finish and is built to keep you cool even in the worst Texas summer heat. Hike farther while still looking ready for anything in this classic button-down. 

• Price: $95
• Material: 63% Polyester, 33% Rayon, 4% Spandex
• Notable Features: Microfiber fabric integrated into the shirt’s hem for easy cleaning of your sunglasses.

Public Rec Elevate Crew Shirt

A basic t-shirt can build the foundation for a shoulder season hiking outfit, or act as the sole top for a summertime trek. But what you want out of a t-shirt for casual wear shouldn’t be the same as what you look for in an activewear top. Public Rec’s Elevate Crew Shirt is an excellent example of the latter, with a moisture-wicking and odor-resistant polyester performance fabric that’s extra breathable. That’s paired with soft and clean half-shoulder seams that won’t rub while you’re wearing your pack, too.

• Price: $58
• Material: 87% PROTX2 Polyester, 13% Spandex
• Notable Features: Moisture-wicking, odor-resistant, highly-breathable proprietary polyester for longer treks.

Rhone Reign Short Sleeve T-Shirt

When the sun is really beating down on you, staying hydrated isn’t the only thing you need to be concerned about. You should also limit your sun exposure as much as possible to prevent sunburns and long-term skin damage.

Unfortunately, common shirt materials like cotton don’t do much at all to block the UV rays that can wreck your skin. Rhone’s Reign Short Sleeve T-shirt, with its UPF 50 nylon and polyester blend, will do a great job of protecting you while maintaining a casual look. The no-itch straddle stitching seams and moisture-wicking qualities of the shirt are a nice bonus, too.

• Price: $68
• Material: Nylon/Polyester Jersey Blend
• Notable Features: GoldFusion technology helps keep odors at bay, UPF 50+ protection, and raglan sleeves for improved range of motion.

Proof 72-Hour Merino Tee Shirt

The design nerds over at Proof weren’t kidding when they named this the 72-hour Tee Shirt—they actually wore the original prototypes of the shirts for three straight days on a hiking adventure to prove their capabilities.

It should come as no surprise how durable, utilitarian, and stink-resistant they are, though; the wool and nylon blend is perfectly suited to the longest-term use you can imagine. The fit on these is more casual than the Ten Thousand shirts featured above, making Proof a better option for seamlessly transitioning from your day job to an afternoon hike and back again, all in one shirt.

• Price: $88
• Material: 87% 16.5 micron merino wool, 13% nylon
• Notable Features: The 72-Hour Tee is sustainably sourced from New Zealand farms, moisture-wicking, extremely odor resistant, and, as one of the thinner shirts on this list, super comfortable for extended wear.

Under Armour Iso-Chill Polo Shirt

If you run hot, Under Armour’s Iso-Chill line of clothing should be your first stop. Every garment in the series is made with a ventilated fit, and then sewn with a nylon and elastane blend that actively draws heat away from the body. That provides a one-two punch of cooling power, making their Iso-Chill Polo an easy go-to choice for summertime hikes.

The reinforced shoulder tops give it added durability while carrying a backpack, and four-way stretch in the fabric lets it move with you no matter how you need to get around.

• Price: $75
• Material: 91% Nylon, 9% Elastane
• Notable Features: The low profile collar and 4-way stretch material both provide superior range of motion, while Under Armour’s Iso-Chill fabric disperses body heat to make the shirt itself feel cooler than most other shirts.

Free Fly Bamboo Flex Henley

Bamboo is one of nature’s most renewable resources—and one of its most versatile fibers, as well. Free Fly proves this handily with their Bamboo Flex Henley, made from bamboo viscose mixed with polyester and spandex for shape retention and flexibility.

The bamboo gives this shirt excellent odor-repelling and quick-drying properties, similar to wool but with a supple feel and greater stretchiness. Add in UPF 50+ sun protection, and you get a perfect lightweight long sleeve shirt for wearing any time of year.

• Price: $74
• Material: 46% Bamboo Viscose, 46% Polyester, 8% Spandex
• Notable Features: The addition of bamboo makes the Flex Henley both antibacterial and protected from harmful UV sunlight during the warmer months.

Smartwool Merino 250 Base Layer Quarter-Zip Top

Once you get into the neighborhood of 250 gsm and above for wool layers, you can expect some seriously warm and cozy hikes. Smartwool’s heavyweight Quarter-Zip Top is about as beefy as a base layer gets, offering fabric that’s soft to the skin while providing maximum warmth when layered.

Flatlock seam construction makes an appearance here too, preventing the heavy stitching from chafing or rubbing on your skin while you’re carrying a heavy pack or hiking hard and fast. Something like this is a must-have for hiking and camping in the depths of winter.

• Price: $120
• Material: Merino Wool
• Notable Features: An interlock-knit merino wool construction is more comfortable, breathable, and thermoregulating while while naturally fighting odors.

Columbia Silver Ridge Utility Lite Long-Sleeve Shirt

Columbia’s lightweight, long sleeve Silver Ridge shirt is a cult classic pick amongst hiker and outdoorsy types. Its specialized fabric helps to actively pull moisture away from your body, speeding up the cooling process on hot days. And where the sun is really beating down on you, you’ll remain fully protected thanks to the UPF 40 rating for this shirt’s fabric.

That’s all paired with an antimicrobial treatment for stink blocking power, and extra venting at the back to keep you cool and comfortable. Pair it with one of the merino t-shirts above, and you’ll be set for hiking and camping all summer long.

• Price: $60
• Material: 100% Polyester
• Notable Features:  UPF 40 protection and hidden back vents for improved ventilation.

BN3TH Merino Wool Crew Neck Long Sleeve Shirt

Every winter, I look forward to breaking out my long sleeve merino wool layers. It’s a clear signal that the warmth of summer has passed, fall is on its way out, and I’m about to spend the season in cozy contemplation.

BN3TH’s Merino Wool Long Sleeve Shirt is one of my favorites in this category, as its small additions of polyamide and spandex to a mainly merino wool shirt make it soft to the skin and perfectly flexible. Best of all, it’s length is cut to fit even taller guys, and thumb holes on the sleeves are positioned where you can cuff them back if you don’t need to use them.

• Price: $115
• Material: 83% Merino Wool, 3% Polyamide, 4% Spandex
• Notable Features: Low profile thumb holes for a more technical feel while hiking, temperature regulation, breathable, and odor-resistant.

Tracksmith NDO Wind-Block Turtleneck Shirt

Tracksmith’s focus on run-ready clothing puts them ahead of the game when it comes to any gear made for long-distance hiking. Take their NDO Wind-Block Turtleneck, for example: It’s made from a merino wool base for warmth and temperature control, given a tall collar for maximum coverage, then double-layered in front to prevent gusts of wind from robbing your body of its heat. It works great as a solo layer on mild days, or as a base layer that you can pair with a jacket for hikes on even the coldest of days.

• Price: $99
• Material: Body: 65% Merino Wool, 35% Polyester, Windblock Overlay: 67% Polyamide, 24% Elastane Lycra, 9% Polyurethane
• Notable Features: A unique wind-blocking overlay provides extra protection against the elements, while the Merino wool build is naturally thermoregulating, antibacterial & odor-resistant.

Outerknown Blanket Shirt

For short hikes and walks around the city, you may not even need to go as far as layering a full jacket come wintertime. Going for a medium to heavy shirt jacket paired with one of the previous shirts as a base layer will usually do the trick.

And Outerknown’s Blanket Shirt is exactly the sort of shirt jacket that you’ll want for weekend trips, as it will easily take you from the comfort of your living room to the outdoors and back. It’s made from 100 percent organic heavyweight cotton too, and the 30 some odd colors doesn’t hurt anything either.

• Price: $168
• Material: 100% organic cotton
• Notable Features: Organic cotton construction wrinkle resistant, and about as comfortable as a shirt can get based on customer reviews.

Columbia Men’s Tech Trail Long Sleeve II Crew Shirt

Columbia is a sportsman’s best friend, a brand renowned for producing hard-wearing, ultra-comfortable clothing for every outdoor activity. The Tech Trail Midlayer Crew Shirt is the ideal cool-weather garment, warm enough to wear during the early spring and late autumn, but cool enough that you won’t overheat in summer.

When the weather turns really cold, it serves as an excellent mid-layer beneath a sweater or jacket, or as a base-layer to pull moisture away from your skin. The polyester fabric is sturdy and soft to the touch, and you can sweat away knowing the shirt will never lose its color or sag even after years of use.

• Price: $45
• Material: 88% Polyester, 12% Elastane
• Notable Features: Omni-Wick technology pulls moisture away from your skin and dries quickly.

L.L. Bean Bean’s Quick Dry Trail Tee 1/4 Zip

L.L. Bean isn’t a name you’d expect to see on this list, but one hike wearing the Quick Dry Trail Tee 1/4 Zip, and you’ll agree that it’s well-deserved. This lightweight long-sleeved tee is made using cutting-edge technical fabrics, a blend of regular and recycled polyester fibers that not only make it a “greener” product, but also a more durable one.

It feels soft as cotton but performs like any sport-friendly tee to wick away moisture and dry quickly. If you’re hiking or walking after dark, the reflective detailing will make you fully visible to passing vehicles and fellow trekkers. 

• Price: $40
• Material: 50% Repreve polyester, 50% polyester
• Notable Features: Quick-drying anti-microbial fabric keeps you dry and smelling pretty all day long.

KUIU Ultra Merino 145 Zip-T Hunting Shirt

The KUIU Ultra Merino 145 Zip-T Hunting Shirt is made using Merino NuYarn, a fabric that blends ultra-sturdy nylon into Merino wool to make it more versatile and durable than wool could ever be on its own. The yarn has also had the twists removed, which increases its elasticity, moisture-wicking properties, and insulation capabilities.

It’s an amazing base layer that’s also warm enough to be a mid-layer in winter and sturdy enough to serve as an outer layer when the rain falls. It even includes UPF50+ sun protection to keep the sun off your skin all summer long. 

• Price: $109
• Material: 90% Merino Wool, 10% Nylon
• Notable Features: As sturdy and reliable as Merino wool, but with modern technical fabric to maximize wearability.

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