The 9 Pairs of Leggings We Think Are Really, Truly, the Greatest of All Time
Many of the tops and tees for your activewear cloth cabinet are doubtlessly replaceable—you aquire something fresh, wear it for a pair of years, and within the extinguish it winds up for your donation pile. It used to be colorful and it did the job, but it’s not going that you’d aquire it again.
Now leggings—oh, boy, leggings: These are the items we fabricate deep, lasting attachments to. Presumably you are going to love several of the equivalent vogue (you wear and relish them that principal) or you refuse to let trudge of one pair from years within the past, literally hanging on by a thread, that your favourite model no longer makes. You wear leggings to figure out, you wear leggings to bustle errands, you wear leggings to see a movie or spruce up around the condominium. (Let’s upright negate it: You wear them for…all the pieces.) And while you are going to love your few trudge-tos, it’s laborious to accumulate something fresh that’s upright as factual, one other Ideally suited Pair.
We discover it—and that’s why we’re going aid to basics for the 2024 SELF Activewear Awards: With a more selective assignment and smaller winner checklist than ever before, we’re awarding upright 17 items this year to present aid to hunt the cream of the sever. Below, take a look at out the 9 pairs of leggings we’re officially deeming this day’s finest.
Soar to the winners.
How We Picked the Most efficient Leggings
For this year’s Activewear Awards, we asked SELF editors and a team of handpicked skilled judges (read more about them below!) to appoint their favourite leggings of all time. The single rule? The share must nonetheless be available within the market for aquire.
Simultaneously, we revisited the splashiest fresh releases from the past year. We combed via these, alongside the editor and skilled mediate submissions, retaining an discover about out for items that had been nominated greater than once. We also did some extra research: Is the product properly-reviewed on-line? Is it available within the market in a immense sequence of sizes? Does it suit more than one body styles? Is it an affordable label?
Then we got down to accumulate our first-ever Reader’s Alternative Award winners. We sent a leer to SELF readers and followers, asking them to appoint their picks, and we dug via thousands of responses. The most-nominated leggings are the Reader’s Alternative Award winner you’ll glimpse below.
There are a pair of technical components that create a pair of leggings broad. We asked our editors, judges, and readers to care for in mind the following when nominating their picks:
Waistband Fit and Comfort
- Low-upward push leggings are inclined to be impractical for the length of a exercise (they’re going to transfer or high-tail down)—enact these leggings like a elevated-waisted match? Elevate out they take a seat at a insist for your waist that’s satisfied and non-restrictive?
- Does the waistband roll down? (It shouldn’t!)
Cloth Quality and Moisture Administration
- Elevate out they trudge the squat take a look at? Here’s how to discover: Positioned on the leggings, bend into a deep squat, and tell whether the fabric around your glutes remains opaque.
- Does the fabric (or colorway) tell sweat? Elevate out they feel heavy and moist for folks that sweat in them, or enact they dry rapidly and remain unobstructive to your exercise?
Size
- Leggings blueprint in a bunch of lengths (e.g. cropped, 7/8, ankle/paunchy-dimension), and the dimension you prefer will likely blueprint down to your high and what feels simplest for your trudge-to kinds of assignment.
Added Facets
- For any other folks, pockets on a pair of leggings is nonnegotiable—they may maybe well maybe mitigate the need for a waistpack or arm belt on a bustle.
- Heaps of added parts may maybe well maybe contain reflective itsy-bitsy print, a built-in drawstring at the waist, or a cloth that helps you can very properly be feeling more satisfied doing a utter assignment (admire extra stretchy leggings for yoga, or warmth-tech leggings for winter sports).
How You In reality feel
- Above all, a broad pair of leggings may maybe well like to nonetheless create you can very properly be feeling confident and prepared to transfer. They wish to nonetheless be no-fuss and satisfied passable that you don’t must mediate them all around the day or for the length of your exercise, but flattering and sublime passable that you ride what they insist to your outfit.
The Most efficient Leggings for Pretty Much The rest: Athleta Salutation Stash Tight
Why we relish them: Thick and relaxed passable for winter walks but nonetheless relaxed, graceful, and flexible for sweaty fitness heart workouts, the Athleta Salutation Stash Tight is a prolonged-standing trudge-to for reasonably a pair of our judges. The wide waistband never rolls down, the pockets are graciously deep (but rather principal undetectable—they add zero bulk to the feel of the legging), and they also’ll final years for your closet, even in heavy rotation.
One mediate mentioned: “These are my all the pieces leggings! I if truth be told had been shopping the Stash from Athleta for years, and they also extend. I educate barre, grab weights, hike trails, and browse the aisles of Vendor Joe’s in them constantly.”
Accessible in sizes XXS–3X.
The Most efficient Leggings for Health membership Workouts: Superfit Hero Pocket Ankle Leggings
Why we relish them: These leggings gained SELF Activewear Awards in 2022, 2023, and now 2024. Could we ship a stronger message? The Pocket Ankle leggings are thick and ultra-compressive with a no-hasten excessive waistband, and judges negate they’re broad to wear for all the pieces from weight lifting to yoga.
One mediate mentioned: “I relish Superfit Hero thanks to their mission to be dimension inclusive. There’s an absence of that in exercise wear, and it makes it complex for folks in all bodies to tell up after they don’t like what they need. These leggings are sturdy, not glimpse-via, like a pocket, and blueprint in a bunch of dimension alternatives.”
Accessible in sizes L–7X.
The Softest Leggings: Beyond Yoga Spacedye Out Of Pocket Excessive Waisted Midi Legging
Why we relish them: Don’t be fooled by their pajama-level consolation: Beyond Yoga’s hallmark Spacedye leggings are properly-suited for a bunch of activities, though at ease passable to aid on prolonged after you’re done. Particularly, they don’t sacrifice shape and fabricate for stretch. A pair of judges pointed out that, unlike other supersoft leggings, these nonetheless give a tender take a look at to your decrease half of.
One mediate mentioned: “I reach for these most usually due to they’re SO at ease to wear, and they also work for most activities I enact. I care for the dimension fluctuate—not only enact they trudge as a lot as 4X, but they’re factual plus sizes and don’t bustle itsy-bitsy. They’re repeatedly coming out with fresh colours in seasonal collections, and no subject how principal I wash and dry these, they extend properly!”
Honorable mention: Our judges also relish the maternity model of these leggings—they’re not available within the market within the equivalent dimension fluctuate, but they’re a broad aquire for folks who’re awaiting.
Accessible in sizes XXS–4X.
The Most efficient Leggings for Working: Lululemon Hasty and Free Excessive-Upward thrust Tight
Why we relish them: Light and breezy, Lululemon’s Hasty and Free tight feels admire a 2d pores and skin. Reflective itsy-bitsy print down the leg give them a sporty take a look at (and are if fact be told actually useful—safety is critical!) and a nylon-meets-Lycra sweat-wicking cloth will care for you feeling dry for miles…and miles…and miles.
One mediate mentioned: “I relish these for runs—especially prolonged ones. The pocket wretchedness is broad on these—two immense tumble-in facet pockets and 5 (!) on the waistband. The cloth is also incredible—it feels so tender and cooling.”
Accessible in sizes 0–20.
The Most efficient Luxe Leggings: Vuori Evolve Legging
Why we relish them: Yes, the Vuori Evolve leggings clock in at a total of $118 per pair, but we mediate they’re value it. For one, they feel costly: The cloth quality is unmatched (breathable, satisfied to sweat in, relaxed, stretchy, and graceful) and the match is, properly, excellent. The waistband is compressive but nonetheless upright as thin and flexible as the comfort of the pant; these leggings care for set, transfer on the opposite hand your body wants to transfer, and create you take a look at admire a million bucks.
One mediate mentioned: “These are the most compressive leggings I’ve. They like got the excellent excessive-elevate waist for me (my belly button is lined but there may maybe be nonetheless some set between the waistband and backside of my sports bra). Beyond that, the most eminent feature about them is definitely their lack of parts—they are so streamlined, tender, and supportive. They in actuality stand out for his or her simplicity.”
Accessible in sizes XXS–XXL.
The Most efficient Leggings for Yoga: Lululemon Align Excessive-Upward thrust Pant
Why we relish them: Lululemon started as a yoga model, and while it’s since expanded to contain many kinds of activities, the enduring affect of the Align leggings tell these roots remain solid. That mentioned, we’d be remiss not to negate that every mediate who nominated these pointed out their versatility—so while they’re the excellent yoga pants, they’re factual for upright about all the pieces else too. They blueprint in four assorted lengths (23, 25, 28, and 31 inches) and a bunch of classic colours.
Our judges mentioned: “I relish these for upright about all the pieces, whether I’m throwing them on with a sweater or sweatshirt to bustle to the park with my youngsters, happening a prolonged trudge with my fresh child, doing a yoga class at home, or merely laying on the couch searching at a movie. They’re my holy grail, like-in-every-color fabricate of product. Plus they’re immense stretchy, so I was ready to wear them up unless halfway via my third trimester and straight away after giving birth.”
“I if truth be told like repeatedly HATED tight clothing—in conjunction with leggings—which is why I wear sweats lots of the time. On the opposite hand, the Lululemon Aligns are the exception. I lately started training for the 2025 NYC Marathon, and these are my trudge-to over any other joggers or running tights I’ve purchased. It if truth be told doesn’t feel admire you’re wearing pants, and they also never reason chafing. I’ve bustle 5Ks in these, I’ve done sizzling yoga in these, and I’ve extinct these out to lunch with a beautiful sweater—they are immense versatile.”
Accessible in sizes 0–20.
The Most efficient Leggings for Low-Impact Workouts: Neatly-liked Long-established Subsequent-to-Naked Cropped Legging
Why we relish them: The Subsequent-to-Naked leggings gained a SELF Activewear Award final year too. Ideally suited for Pilates, barre, walking, and yoga, they’re light-weight, stretchy, and blueprint in a model with pockets, if that’s your thing.
One mediate mentioned: “They match in actuality properly on my 3X body. It feels admire Neatly-liked Long-established match assessments on right plus dimension other folks, reasonably than upright scaling up the pattern. The cloth and construction feel excessive quality and extend properly via years of washing and drying.”
Accessible in sizes 4XS–4XL.
Reader’s Alternative Award: Feeble Navy Excessive-Waisted PowerSoft Leggings
Why readers relish them: It’s possible you’ll maybe maybe presumably’t beat the value on these—certain. But you can even’t beat the everyday…. Especially at this label. The PowerSoft leggings are lightly compressive and upright for any exercise—even prolonged, laborious runs.
SELF readers mentioned: “POCKETS. THEY HAVE POCKETS! They’re satisfied AF, slimming, and they also actually watch for the length of runs! And they’re a share of the value of other brands too. I literally like 25 pairs, and they also’re the single bottoms I’ll enact races in. The facet pockets are so broad, I don’t even must wear running belts for the length of my training runs to aid my phone, gum, and keys to hand.”
“These are particularly factual for folks that sweat. I wear them for my prolonged runs on the treadmill and they also don’t tell sweat stains, they’ve satisfied compression, extend via hundreds washes, blueprint in a bunch of colours, and they also’re immense affordable.”
Accessible in sizes XS–4X.
Reader’s Alternative Award: Fabletics Account for PowerHold Excessive-Waisted 7/8 Legging
Why readers relish them: The PowerHold leggings are designed to be smoothing, body-hugging, and stable—and the consensus looks to be that they actually, if truth be told are. They’re immense compressive and intensely just correct for HIIT or energy workouts where you’ll be doing fleet and though-provoking actions.
SELF readers mentioned: “These are the very top leggings I’ve ever tried—I if truth be told like over 25 pairs. I wear them all over. They’re very affordable and immense flattering.”
“These are the single leggings I wear. I wear them to figure out, relax, bustle errands—all the pieces. They’re flattering basically since the compression is unmatched—you can very properly be feeling locked in, with all the pieces staying in insist, but not to the purpose of discomfort. I’ve tried leggings that create equivalent claims but they’ve never blueprint end with regards to how they actually feel. I if truth be told had been wearing these for years and like them in all assorted colours and patterns.”
Accessible in sizes XXS–4X.
Credits
Pictures: Ryan Segedi
Dresser styling: Kat Thomas
Hair: Chika Nishiyama
Make-up: Monica Alvarez
Editor in Chief: Rachel Wilkerson Miller
Accomplice Director, Special Initiatives: Hannah Pasternak
Inventive Director: Amber Mature
Producer: Melissa Kramer