The Best Running Shorts of 2024

The 73% nylon and 27% spandex shell is remarkably light and airy with excellent mobility. Not once was the stretchy fabric confining. The shorts pretty much felt unnoticeable, and the brief-style liner was comfortable, offering a good amount of support without feeling restrictive.

A wide but comfortable waistband securely anchors the shorts around your waist. The rear zip pocket on the waistband is capable of holding a smartphone, and two drop-in side pockets can hold snacks or keys — all bounce-free.

If we had to nitpick, one concern is their long-term durability. Take this with a grain of salt, as we haven’t put them through a long-term durability test yet. We only mention this because the shell fabric is really thin — much thinner than most of the shorts tested — and they softened up a bit with each wash cycle.

We’d also like to see the rear zippered pocket have a slightly larger opening. Stuffing a large Samsung smartphone in the pocket took a little force, and we could certainly imagine busting a seam trying to fit it in if you’re not careful.

It’s clear REI put a lot of thought into the Co-op Swiftland running shorts. No matter what type of running you do, whether it’s road, trail, or track, everything about these is designed for comfort and functionality — you’ll put them on and forget about them. They’ll work for beginners and elite runners alike, and we’re confident you’ll appreciate having them in your drawer.

The shell is extremely lightweight with a moderate amount of stretch, and the liner provides a moderate amount of support and adequate comfort for short outings. The rear-zip pocket was one of the largest tested, easily fitting a super-large smartphone, but it did bounce a bit more than other shorts.

We could go down a long list of features we’d like to see, but for under 20 bucks, we wouldn’t expect them anyway. The biggest knock is fit. They size extremely large and baggy, nearly two sizes too big.

If you’re typically a large, go at least to a medium — maybe even a small. If you struggle to find running shorts with enough volume, these should work really well for you.

If you’re doing any amount of volume, we’d steer toward other shorts listed here. But if you’re not picky on the finer details and just need a pair of treadmill shorts, or shorts for quick, hassle-free runs, the Baleaf 5″ Running Athletic Shorts are for you.

The lightweight four-way stretch nylon and elastane blend shell is freaking amazing. Beyond running, these are the type of shorts ideal for lounging around the house in. As a bonus, they’re Polygiene anti-odor, antimicrobial treated.

While these are one of the most comfortable running shorts we’ve tested, we wouldn’t wear them on race day or on a big mountain run. Instead, we’d want something that’s more lightweight and with better pockets. Speaking of pockets, while the rear pocket will fit a phone, it takes a little work to shove it through the small zippered opening, which we wish was a little larger.

Still, the Tracksmith Session Shorts have a place in every runner’s rotation based on comfort alone. If you ever find yourself with a social event after a run or workout, these are the perfect shorts for the occasion. With eight colors to choose from, you’re bound to find a pair to match your shirt.

For comfort and functionality from the track to the pub, these are some of the best running shorts available.

When we don’t feel like being bogged down wearing a vest or belt, but still need to carry the typical items like water, fuel, an emergency shell, and phone, these are our go-to shorts. The thick but well-vented waistband with a drawstring provides a secure foundation for five pockets: three drop-in pockets and two rear zipper pockets.

These shorts can easily carry a phone, 500mL soft flask, emergency wind shell, and enough fuel for over 3 hours with a dedicated pocket for trash. We were highly impressed with how supportive and comfortable the polyester liner felt, even when the waist pockets were stuffed.

While the stretch nylon plain-weave face shell is durable as hell, it’s terrible at wicking and retaining moisture. On really hot days the DWR-treated shell became absolutely drenched with sweat, retaining the moisture and feeling a bit like heavy swim trunks.

You may want to opt for shorts with better breathability on steamy runs. But on chilly, windy days, the DWR-treated shell acted much like a wind shell, blocking the wind better than any other shorts we’ve tested. With exceptional storage and wind protection, the Black Diamond Distance Short is ideal for high alpine mountain running.

We’re pleased to report that Patagonia has once again updated its flagship running shorts, and we can confidently say that this is their best version yet. Patagonia replaced the tough, non-stretchy DWR coated 100% recycled polyester with 90% recycled polyester blended with 10% four-way stretch spandex. That little bit of spandex and dropping the DWR made all the difference. The new shell is soft and offers excellent mobility. These shorts are night and day compared to the previous version. 

The waist belt remains largely unchanged, with four drop-in pockets and one rear zipper. It’s not too thin or thick and maintains comfort when the drawcord is tight. In the previous version, we couldn’t fit our phone in the rear zip, but we were pleased to find out an iPhone 14 Pro just fit with a little work getting it in and out. 

In terms of sizing, we found the Patagonia Strider Pro Shorts fit larger, as our one lead tester wore a medium in the previous version, but the small seemed to fit better and offer better support in the HeiQ Pure odor control brief.

Adidas absolutely nails the perfect half-tight with the Adizero Control Short Tights ($100), which have some pretty cool added tech built in. Of all the tights we tested, these provided the best support and compression. Not once did they start to ride up, and they offered a good amount of warmth and protection during a longer, cold, rainy run. 

At its most basic level, the tights provide compression that hugs your body, moisture-wicking AEROREADY fabric, and strategically placed perforations for enhanced breathability. For added support to aid your muscles during intense runs, Adidas incorporated Adizero control featuring RHEON technology. RHEON technology works by optimizing your running performance by minimizing unnecessary muscle movements, commonly referred to as shearing, thus allowing them to conserve energy effectively. 

Did it work? It’s impossible to tell, but we can say with certainty that we noticed the extra support, especially in the quads. Tech aside, if you’re an avid runner who doesn’t let the weather hold you back, give the Adidas Adizero Control Short Tights a try.

Crafted from a robust 100% polyester outer shell, the Super Light shorts incorporate Diadora’s Coolcore technology, delivering dynamic heat regulation, quick sweat evaporation, and fast drying times. Although not as lightweight as some alternatives, our trials along the sunny beach paths of Santa Barbara, Calif., substantiated these assertions. The best part is that all this is achieved through technology without chemical additives.

A standout feature rarely found in most running shorts is the addition of side hand pockets. Although not particularly practical for running, we found the Diadora Super Light Shorts incredibly useful when wearing the shorts for general athletic activities or in the gym. Moreover, one of the pockets even includes a full-length zipper for added security for your belongings.

The Hightail 2-in-1 ($68) basically takes their award-winning underwear and wraps a moisture-wicking polyester stretch running shell on top. The Ballpark Pouch design works especially well when running. It’s more supportive than any other brief or liner, and it layers in extra prevention around your male parts.

Overall, we would have liked to see better pockets in these shorts. There’s one rear drop-in pocket that’s large enough to hold a few gels and a key, but not a phone. One really smart feature is the built-in key string to prevent your key from accidentally falling out when accessing items. We wish more companies would do this.

If you struggle with any kind of chafing, whether it be between the legs or around your male anatomy, or if you’re simply looking for a more supportive hold, the Hightail 2-in-1 is by far one of the best-fitting running shorts we’ve tested.

Offered in both a three and five-inch inseam, our tester found them to run on the shorter side of five-inch running shorts. Still, thanks to a mild amount of stretch, they never felt constricting. The brief liner offers a decent amount of support and hold for such a lightweight pair of shorts. 

The Janji AFO Middle Shorts come with two pockets, a rear-zip pocket that barely fits an iPhone 14 Pro, and an internal drop-in pocket along the waist for cards, cash, or keys. One of the more brilliant features is the bungee cord that allows you to store your keys securely, so it’s impossible to lose them while running. 

If you’re looking for a comfortable, lightweight pair of running shorts for hot, humid weather, you’re not going to find too many as good as these.

The Talus Trail Shorts ($100) feature Matrix Aero, the lightest, fastest-drying version of Matrix. On the trails, the high-stretch fabric felt virtually unnoticeable. 

The waist belt is one of the most comfortable we tested. It’s thick with mild compression and tons of space to carry fuel and an emergency layer. There’s an extra large front mesh drop-in pocket for easy access with the ability to carry long items that don’t fit in most running shorts. 

While we prefer a brief style liner, the boxer brief was comfortable and features silicone grip dots to prevent it from riding up. The Trail Talus Light is a shorter inseam version with a brief liner. 

That said, there are a couple of areas where we think the Talus Trail Shorts could be improved. For starters, while we found the waist belt extremely comfortable, it doesn’t have a drawcord. This caused a lot of bouncing around when carrying multiple items in the waist belt pockets, especially heavier items like a phone.

In general, we don’t recommend buying these if you want to carry your phone in your shorts. Like most European companies, the fit is much slimmer than US apparel. Our slim 5’8″ tester with a 29-inch waist fell between a small and medium, but ultimately sized up.

While the 100% polyester shell isn’t stretchy, they offer superb freedom of movement thanks to a generous side split. Offered in six sizes, from extra small to extra extra large, we found they fit on the larger side compared to other split shorts we tested. Our tester regularly wears a men’s small and would want an extra small.

For under $40, the durability these shorts boast is somewhat astounding. While they aren’t necessarily designed for long-distance hiking, one of our editor gravitates to these for his thru-hiking exploits due to their ultralight, barely-there feel, and funky colorways. Three pairs of these shorts lasted over 5,000 miles of torture on a recent trek back and forth across the country, with only the liner showing true signs of deterioration. Pretty impressive for any short at this price point.

The elastic waistband with drawstring wasn’t the most comfortable and breathable, but it displayed enough holding power to avoid sliding down. We found the 100% polyester crepe brief mesh liner was comfortable and offered decent hold. The shorts only feature one drop-in internal pocket that’s relatively small and suitable for a key, card/cash, and maybe two GU gels.

The best part is the massive selection of colors and printed styles the BOA split shorts offer, such as red flannel, American flag, and Hawaiian print. Bottom line — if you run every day and split shorts are your go-to, having a few of these in your rotation is the investment.

We found the flat elastic waistbelt with internal drawstring comfortable — but wished it had a little more stretch. Still, even with the draw cord fully cinched tight around our waist, there weren’t any hot spots or irritation. As a bonus, the waistbelt has a loop in the rear to hang dry when not in use. 

Regarding storage on the Salomon Cross 3”, one rear zip pocket is large enough to fit our iPhone 14 Pro and maybe a few gels. If you’re going out for a long run that requires fuel, you’ll need to bring a hydration vest or waist belt to carry it. We highly recommend the Surf the Web blue colorway we tested, as we got a number of compliments as we trotted around town.