Men's Swim Trunks

Swim trunks combine three things: a fully elastic waistband with a drawcord through it, an inseam of 5 to 7 inches finishing above mid thigh, and a liner sewn into the waist so nothing goes underneath. No other swim style carries all three at once. Together they are why trunks are the pair you can put on without thinking about it.

Elastic is the part that matters once the suit is wet. Water roughly doubles the weight of the shell, and a gathered elastic band keeps gripping as that weight arrives where a flat waistband slides. Test the elastic on its own while the trunks are dry and treat the drawcord as backup. Shells are polyester or nylon at a very light weight, usually under 4 ounces per square yard, so they drain and dry in ten to twenty minutes. Pockets need a drain, meaning a metal grommet or a mesh panel at the base, because a trapped cup of water tugs the trunks down with every step out of the pool.

Board shorts stretch to the knee on a flat lace-up front built for lying on a board, which means no elastic to dig in and no quick way in or out. Hybrid shorts swap the elastic for belt loops and a fly so they pass as regular shorts on land, and most arrive unlined. Swim briefs and jammers are fitted racing shapes that swim far better and read as equipment on a family beach. Trunks are the compromise most swimmers actually want, because an hour of swimming and lounging is the exact use they were built for.

Pools, hotel beaches and anyone whose water time is measured in an hour rather than a session should stop here. A 5 inch inseam suits shorter legs and hot weather, while 7 inches covers more thigh and looks less athletic on a taller frame. Lap swimmers should read the jammers or briefs guides instead, since loose fabric balloons on every push off a wall. Long surf sessions are the other exclusion, where a stitched inner thigh seam rubs raw over hours.

Inside out on the rack is the only way to settle the liner question, and makers change it without changing the description. Some trunks now use a soft knit brief, which is far more comfortable than traditional mesh, and some ship with no liner at all. The liner's leg openings deserve a fingertip check for exposed or scratchy elastic, which ends a beach day faster than anything else in the suit. Fresh water within the hour does more for a pair than anything you do later, since salt dries into the weave and chlorine keeps working on the elastane after you leave. Squeeze the water out flat and dry them out of direct sun.