Best motorcycle trousers | Expert guide to legwear you should wear on a bike, tested by our team

Just like any other part of your motorcycle riding gear, choosing the best motorcycle trousers is crucial and should be given as much consideration as when you buy a motorcycle jacket or helmet, to make sure that you are properly protected but also, are as comfortable as possible. As we all know, concentration is so vital when riding a motorcycle that you don’t want to find yourself distracted by trousers that don’t fit, bunching up or digging in.

If you get it wrong, you can end up really uncomfortable, very hot or soaking wet, depending on the conditions. So you need to get the choice right.

Jump to:

• What to consider
• Types of trousers
• Motorcycle jeans
• Textile trousers
• Leather trousers
• Ladies trousers
• FAQs
• How we test kit

What to consider when buying motorcycle trousers

As with any motorcycle gear it is really important to understand what safety ratings there are and what they mean. When it comes to the overall rating of the garments for things like abrasion resistance, this is depicted by a letter system; B, A, AA and AAA, with the latter being the highest rating for protection.

With the armour, this will be either be CE Level-1 or Level-2, Level 2 being the more protective of the two. This means it absorbs more energy during in an impact than Level 1, and therefore protects you better. Ideally you are looking for hip protectors and knee armour in the trousers

Ensure that the trousers are high enough at the back that there won’t be a gap between your motorcycle jacket and trousers, as this leaves your skin exposed to the tarmac if you take a tumble, but also allows water to run into your trousers when rain hits. Similarly, think about if you want to tuck your trousers into boots or not, as you will need to check that the leg hem is wide enough if that is the case.

Types of motorcycle trousers

The garment you choose will depend on the type of bike you ride and the kind of riding that you do. For instance if you commute or spend a lot of time riding in all weather conditions, you will probably lean more towards trousers that offer good waterproofing and flexibility with thermal liners, so a pair of textile trousers will likely suit this type of rider best. If however you are more of a fair weather rider who likes to take a windy back road ride to a pub or to get fish and chips, then you might prefer a pair of motorcycle jeans. For those that like to test their cornering skills on their sportsbike, a pair of sporty leathers with a matching leather jacket might be more your bag.

Jeans

Jeans have always been a popular choice among motorcyclists, and now modern fabric innovations have meant that you can now wear them as they offer safety and protection like any other class of motorcycle trousers. With some jeans achieving AAA CE ratings and featuring level 2 armour, whilst still managing to look like regular jeans.

Textiles

With textile trousers you will likely want to ensure that you choose trousers that have a waterproof membrane of some kind to keep you dry when the weather is not so kind, but also air vents for when the sun is shining. A removable thermal lining will help to make your textile trousers as versatile as possible, covering you across many differing conditions.

Waist adjusters are really handy for helping to get the best fit for you and a pair of braces will help to ensure you don’t have to keep adjusting your trousers and also ensures you won’t have any unpleasant drafts or alternatively look for joining zips to pair them with a jacket and what pockets are there; hand warmers are useful but then so are cargo pockets on the thigh. Consider the ankle fastenings – are they big enough to go over your chosen boots and how do they close – zips, Velcro or poppers or a combination? 

Leather

Leather trousers tend to be more aimed at sport and track riding, with knee sliders for when the motorcycle is banked over enough for the rider to get their knee down. They will likely have a full connection zip to join to a matching sporty leather jacket. They are tight fitting and flexible in key areas, usually with small hip pockets and tight zipped ankle closures. Some riders will opt for a full one piece leather suit if they ride on track regularly, however a two piece set of trousers and jacket offer more flexibility.

Ladies

Ladies trousers are exactly what they sound like, they are motorcycle trousers that are fitted and cut in a way that suits the female shape. There are usually the same options of textile, jeans, leathers or the addition of leggings. Leggings are a much more stretchy option, particularly comfortable with their wide waistbands and flexible fabrics.

Frequently asked questions

Do I have to get the matching trousers to my jacket?

No, not necessarily, it is easier and probably looks nicest if you have the matching set of textiles make a suit but as long as you check that any connection zips are the same, there is no reason why you can’t choose an entirely different jacket to your trousers. Choose whichever combination works best for the way you ride and your personal taste.

Are regular jeans okay for summer motorcycle riding?

Although they may look tough on the surface, regular jeans aren’t strong enough to protect you in the event of a motorcycle crash. Even during a low speed slide in a pair of denim jeans, the road will eat them up in less than a second, leaving you up a creek with no paddle in sight.

By contrast, motorcycle jeans are much stronger. They’re made by mixing the denim with other, tougher materials, which earns them rated abrasion resistance. They can also feature impact armour, and extra abrasion resistant linings, for a higher rated level of safety.

This combination of safety features will help significantly reduce the risk of injury, should you be involved in a crash. You don’t have to spend a fortune to get a good pair of motorcycle jeans, and compared to a pair of denim jeans it’s absolutely no contest which is safest.

What fit should I be looking for with my trousers?

It depends on what style of trousers you are buying, but all trousers should be comfortable, so loose enough to allow movement but not restrictive, and tight enough that there is minimum excess of fabric to catch on the bike, flap in the wind or ruck up and become distracting. Consider if you want the trouser legs to go over motorcycle boots or tuck into them.

How MCN tests motorcycle trousers

At MCN, our team of expert journalists have decades of experience gained over hundreds of thousands of miles in order to provide you with opinions and evaluations you can trust, alongside news of the most significant developments in motorcycling safety gear. We want you to stay safe, enjoy your riding and hopefully look great while doing so! 

We don’t test our kit to destruction; we use it exactly how you do, in the real world and in all conditions.

That means we can deliver impartial buying advice you can rely on. To make it onto this list, motorcycle trousers must have been worn for hundreds or thousands of miles by our team of experienced testers, show no major flaws, and meet modern safety standards as well as offering decent value for money. 

Each of our expert reviewers tests their trousers for a variety of things, both subjective and objective. Factors assessed include the level of safety rating, what armour is fitted, how breathable they are, do they look good and do they have any additional features like waterproofing or removal linings.

However, we also assess how they fit, their perceived quality, how we feel wearing them and how comfortable they are both on and off the bike.

We cover thousands of miles in these trousers and regularly compare them with one another in the office, so collectively we’ve built the sort of knowledge base you can trust.

If you can’t see a review against a pair of trousers on this page, it’s because we haven’t tested it yet. These will only be included if we think they’re important and relevant in the market, and rest assured, we will be working on bringing you a review as soon as we’ve done the miles.

Here’s a brief run-down of the star rating system we use, and what each score means:

• 1 star – Poor performance in this category or overall. A pair of trousers with a single star rating has fallen below the expected standard and should be avoided.
• 2 stars – Basic performance in this area or overall. A pair of trousers with a two-star rating has managed to perform to a barely acceptable level and there is room for improvement. It might be lacking safety features, be poorly built or far too expensive to recommend.
• 3 stars – An average performance in this area or overall. A pair of trousers with a three-star rating has achieved a basic level of performance and is deemed adequate.
• 4 stars – A product has performed over and above the accepted averaged in this category or overall. A pair of trousers with a four-star rating has surpassed expectation and delivered in a particularly impressive way.
• 5 stars – A pair of trousers has performed at the highest possible level in a particular category or overall. A product with a five-star rating has delivered to the highest possible level, impressing the tester with its performance. We would happily spend our own money on it.

To find out more about our kit testing, head to our dedicated page explaining how we test motorcycle products.

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