This is not an exhaustive list of everything that we tested, just what’s still available.
Under $100
Wide-leg jeans
The Uniqlo Wide Straight Jeans are made from good-quality, 100% cotton denim, and Uniqlo offers free inseam alterations for them. But our testers—including those bestowed with thick thighs as well as those with “french fry legs”—found them unflattering.
Straight-leg jeans
As promised, the TikTok-famous Abercrombie & Fitch Ultra High Rise 90s Straight Jean—also available in a Curve Love fit—made my tush look great. But these jeans were pouchy and unflattering in front, and the wash looked cheap.
The Gap High Rise Cheeky Straight Jeans—available in five inseams—are cute, comfy, and inexpensive. The 98% cotton, 2% elastane fabric feels pleasantly substantial. Alas, it tends to lose its shape and get baggy in the seat by day’s end.
The Good American Good Legs Straight Jeans were ultra-stretchy and thin—more like lightweight jeggings than jeans.
Oddly, the H&M Straight Regular Jeans had excess fabric at the inner thigh.
Though cute, the easy, ankle-length Levi’s Premium Ribcage Straight Ankle Women’s Jeans aren’t as classic as our Levi’s straight-leg picks, so we opted not to panel-test them.
The lower, 8.75-inch rise on the Lucky Brand Mid Rise Sweet Straight jeans felt too early-aughts for our taste.
The Old Navy High-Waisted OG Straight Ankle Jeans are typically priced around $50 and come in sizes 00-30. But the long, low back pockets were unflattering, and the flimsy zipper jammed.
$100 to $200
Wide-leg jeans
The Madewell Low Slung Baggy Jeans are made from a substantial 100% cotton denim. But none of our panelists found their extra-wide shape and low rise remotely flattering.
Testers had serious fit issues with the Reformation Cary High Rise Slouchy Wide Leg Jeans. Among the complaints: “camel toe,” “long pancake butt,” “upsettingly tight waist,” and “bursting thighs.”
Straight-leg jeans
The Agolde 90’s Mid Rise Straight pair’s cut is comfy and relaxed—it’s just not as elongating and waist-cinching as the cut of our 90’s Pinch Waist pick.
The relaxed-fit Ética Tyler High Rise Vintage Straight jeans felt cheap, with thin denim and a jangly button.
Everlane’s The Way-High Jean—also available in a Way-High Hourglass version—offers great quality. Unfortunately, the loose fit in the seat and thigh made my butt look long and featureless.
The Lucky Brand High Rise Zoe Straight jeans’ dirty-looking fade was unappealing.
The Madewell Stovepipe Jeans were so stretchy that they were bagging out in the seat after just a few hours.
With uneven stitching and a zipper that didn’t lock properly, the Mott & Bow Slim Straight Ridge Jeans felt cheap and flimsy.
The Reformation Cynthia High Rise Straight jeans lifted and flattered my tush. But the stretch style didn’t have good elastic recovery, and the button fly on the rigid version was hard to use.
The top button on the Sézane Brut Sexy jeans popped off during testing.
The Universal Standard Etta High Rise Straight Leg Jeans—which run extremely large—are available in sizes up to US 40 (7X). They had a sticky zipper and loose threads; testers also disliked the “frumpy” cut and dark blue wash.
Over $200
Wide-leg jeans
The Agolde Dame High Rise Wide Leg pair has a cool, cuffed rigid-denim style, but we think that most people will find the length and volume overwhelming. On my 5-foot-6 frame, this pair was at least 4 to 5 inches too long.
I tried the Citizens of Humanity Ayla Baggy jeans in a store and liked them—they have a modern, subtle barrel leg, and the 100% cotton denim feels soft and broken-in. We opted to panel-test the brand’s Annina style instead, since the silhouette felt more timeless.
The DL1961 Hepburn Wide Leg High Rise pair is made from the brand’s ridiculous “DL Softwear” fabric, a 98% cotton, 2% spandex knit that mimics the look of denim but feels like pajamas.
Favorite Daughter’s The Masha Super High Rise pair received lukewarm scores. Plus, we weren’t crazy about the embroidered logo on the back of the waistband.
Frame’s Le Slim Palazzo has a high rise and a slim top block. Its super-stretchy denim was an immediate turnoff, creating sausage rolls at the hips when I sat down.
When I put on the low-slung, ultra-baggy Mother The Ditcher Roller Sneak jeans, my partner did a double-take and asked if I wanted to meet him at Hot Topic. (They do, indeed, look like mall-rat garb.)
The Paige Sasha Wide Leg pair is made from comfy stretch denim that hugs your tush. But we couldn’t get past the ugly whiskering, which makes these $260 jeans look cheap.
The Veronica Beard Taylor Cuffed Wide Leg Jean was the priciest pair I tested, and I was not impressed. The rigid denim is stiff and unforgiving, and the jeans—which run small—are available up to a size 32 only.
Straight-leg jeans
The lightweight AG Saige High-Rise Straight Leg Denim pair didn’t feel premium enough, and the button was difficult to use.
Though the well-constructed Citizens of Humanity Charlotte High Rise Straight jeans were a favorite of mine, other panelists weren’t fans. Most complained that the zero-stretch style felt too tight in the thigh or gapped at the waist.
The DL1961 Patti Straight High Rise jeans look similar to our AYR The LaLa pick, except the material is thinner and not as soft.
The Mother Mid Rise Dazzler Ankle—a stretchy pair with a similar cut to the Paige Cindy—failed to dazzle with its glitchy zipper, itchy tag, and insubstantial fabric.
The saggy, booty-flattening backsides of the Paige Stella Straight and the Rag & Bone Harlow Full Length Straight jeans both served up cases of pancake butt.
The Re/Done High Rise Loose jeans have a cool, relaxed fit and a longer, 32-inch inseam. But the hips were overly balloony, and the button fly was tricky.
This article was edited by Ingela Ratledge Amundson and Jennifer Hunter.
