I wasn’t expecting much when I ordered the viral Ruti pants…I mean, they are just black pants, and I already have a closet full of black pants. But our TME Group Chat had been on fire about them. Readers were raving, posting selfies, and even ordering second pairs in additional colors…they were apparently that good. Scotti even declared them as the foundation of her new airport travel outfit.
So out of curiosity (and a touch of FOMO after seeing the rest of the internet going wild over them too), I ordered three different sizes of the Ruti pants (officially called the Ruti On The Loose Work Pants).
**Bonus…Ruti is giving our readers 15% off with code THEMOMEDIT right now — woohoo! But keep reading for my full review of pros, cons, and what to know before buying. **
pants (8p) | tank (similar) | bag | Birks
They arrived while I was packing for a big trip, so I started trying them on with my closet workhorses to see if they were worth bringing…a striped tank, a denim shirt, Birks, my wear-on-repeat gauze button-down. And somewhere around the sixth no-thought-required Ruti pants outfit, I understood the hype.
Every single outfit just…worked. The unique, minimalist, modern shape of the Ruti pants made even my easiest outfit formulas feel more intentional. And they were somehow foolproof to style…like, I truly couldn’t mess them up, no matter what I paired with them. Which is huge for me, since if a piece in my closet takes effort, I’m definitely not reaching for it.
So I figured I’d share the outfits I put together with the viral Ruti pants, followed by my full review, including pros, cons, fit details, and sizing notes. If you’d rather see how these pants move, I also did a quick video review of these Ruti pants (showing them in three different sizes), if that’s helpful!
6 Easy Outfits With The Viral Ruti Pants
If you’re wondering how to style the viral Ruti pants, these easy Ruti pants outfits are the ones I’ll be reaching for all spring and summer. Casual outfits, work outfits, dressy outfits, travel outfits, even lounge-y outfits…these pants can kind of do it all. Which is why (I’m now figuring out) the Ruti pants have become so popular.
I figured I’d share some of the pieces I played around with while deciding if these pants were worth bringing on vacation. Spoiler alert: I did end up bringing the Ruti pants on my trip, and they were total MVPs of my suitcase…handling long travel days with ease (cars, planes, trains), city exploring, desert and mountain settings, and were also rockstars during lounge-y afternoons and cozy evenings with the fam.
1. Out & About: Denim Layer + Birkenstocks
pants (8p) | cami (s) | denim shirt (s) | bag | Birks
One of my go-to easy outfit formulas year round is wear all black and then add in at least 2 different shades of blue. Depending on the temperatures for layering, you can do a lightweight denim button-down shirt, a heavier denim jacket, or any shade of blue cardigan. All work with this formula. Just add in a blue bag and outfit = done.
2. Travel Day Outfit: Sneakers & A Hoodie
pants (8p) | similar hoodie (s) | backpack | sneaks
I’d love to say I’m a travel-in-a-blazer kind of gal (Scotti looks so put together in her post here), but I’m not. I’m a total cozy cardigan or a zip hoodie gal for travel. And these pants work for either. Add sneaks and your backpack or tote and you’re good to go.
3. Summer Outfit: Striped Tanks + Straw Bags
pants (8p) | tank (similar) | bag | Birks
I live in striped tanks in the summer and tried on several different lengths and shapes of my tanks with these pants. As I said before, I kind of couldn’t go wrong with anything I paired with them…the pants worked with them all. You can see me wearing a more fitted navy and white stripe tank in this video here.
4. Vacation Outfit: Gauze Button-Down + Birkenstocks
pants (8p) | shirt (s) | bag | Birks
This combination got worn on TOTAL repeat during my vacation. I end up packing several colors of these gauze shirts for every single warm-weather vacation. They take up no space, weigh nothing, and are a great hot-weather layer when you want your skin to be covered. And yes…they work BEAUTIFULLY with these pants. On my recent trip, I wore this combo repeatedly with neutral, colored, and striped tanks and with both dark and light gauze shirts. I also threw this easy combo over my swimsuit. So easy.
5. Office Outfit: Blazer + Mary Janes
pants (8p) | blazer (6) | flats
So…I hardly ever get dressed for an office setting these days, but I do for some reason find it important to always have an office-ready look at the ready just in case. I mean…you never know when someone might invite me to lead a big important meeting in a big important conference room, right? And these pants are ideal for blazer and ballet flat combos (my typical “office look”). The modern shape gives any office look a fresher feel for sure, but they aren’t so “fashion-y” or statement-making that they’re distracting.
6. Evening Outfit: A Sexy Cami + Statement Bag
pants (8p) | cami (s) | bag | Birks
Okay…you have to do a little imagining for this one. This is my travel cami but folded under to show just the tiniest glimpse of skin, worn with big hoops and a pretty bag, and of course “sexy” Birkenstocks (ha!). We can imagine what a “sexy-ish” look could be like with these pants for a night out, right? As I was continuing to try these pants on with various items in my closet, I definitely loved the pants with short boxy black tanks as well as fitted black strappy or lace camis…the pants easily can lean dressier with the silky-ish fabric, movement, and drape.
Ruti Pants Review: Pros & Cons
Okay, so now after trying these pants on with a bazillion things in my closet and traveling with them for over a week, I’ve got a pretty good understanding of why everyone has gone so wild for these pants and some potential negatives. Hope this pro/con review helps.
What I Love (The Pros)
- Modern shape makes even simple outfits feel intentional
- Drapey movement gives them a unique silhouette
- Minimalist design (not too fussy)
- Versatile for casual or dressy outfits
- Comfortable, stretchy, silky-soft fabric (feels like loungewear)
- Easy, pull-on style with forgiving sizing and fit
- Hold their shape
- Wrinkle-resistant and easy to spot clean (especially great for travel)
- Available in black, coffee, graphite, beige, and navy
What’s Not Perfect (The Cons)
- Expensive (though they go on sale sometimes)
- Shape is modern & fresh, but may feel dated at some point
- Elastic shows in the back (if you’re tucking shirts in)
- If you prefer structured pants, these aren’t for you (they’re very drapey)
- Fabric is lightweight, so might be cold in winter
Ruti Pants Sizing Info: I Tried 3 Sizes
Although I had been hearing rave reviews about the Ruti pants, I had been hearing mixed information about the sizing. Some people said they ran big, some people said the waist ran small, so I decided to order three different sizes to compare.
size 6 | size 8 | size 8 petite
For reference, I’m 5’2, 130-ish lbs and typically wear a 29 in MOTHER jeans or a size 6-8 in pants depending on the brand. At 5’2, I sometimes wear petite and sometimes regular length for pants.
As you can see from the photos above, all three sizes technically “fit”. I ended up keeping the ones on the far right (size 8 petite) because I liked the combination of the oversized generous fit/drape combined with the petite length that hits right at the top of my ankle. Note that the waist is elastic and stretchy, but if you carry your weight in the middle I would definitely size up if you’re between sizes. Also, I did find it useful that the waist is elastic and pull-on, so I could easily adjust where they sat at my waist and wear them higher or lower depending on my shirt length/style as well as shoes.
Ruti Pants From All Angles: Front, Side, & Back Views
pants (8p) | tank (similar) | Birks
As you can see, the fit of the Ruti pants is relaxed and drapey with lots of movement (you can see the movement in this video as well). Even though they’re drapey with lots of movement, the minimalist barrel shape does make the style still feel clean and intentional and not at all sloppy (which can sometimes happen for me with “flow-y pants”).
pants (8p) | tank (similar) | bag | Birks
Final Thoughts: Are Ruti Pants Worth It?
Ugh…this question is always so hard. Whether or not something is truly “worth it” of course depends on so many factors. For the Ruti pants, my final thoughts are…if you’re looking for an easy, versatile pair of black pants that you can style a bunch of different ways, are amazing for travel, and feel fresh and modern, these are fantastic. And if they’re in your budget, and you wear black pants on repeat, then they’re worth the price. As I mentioned, I brought them on a recent vacation where we had extremely varied days, and these were the pants I reached for on the daily…spot cleaning them and dusting them off to wear day after day.
Helps that Ruti is giving our readers 15% off with code THEMOMEDIT right now, for sure.
But…if you don’t wear black pants a ton, I’d say take a pass on these. By the time you get a solid “price-per-wear” balance years from now, they might not feel as fresh and modern.
Note that there are definitely MUCH less expensive Ruti pants dupes out there (Old Navy has a Ruti dupe pair on sale for $19.99 right now and of course you can find a bazillion dupes of everything on Amazon), but I haven’t checked any of them out in person. I have to think there’s a reason people keep buying the “real thing”, and the fabric and exact cut of the “real Ruti pants” are really good.
Let us know if you’d like to see a comparison of the Ruti pants with any specific other pairs of similar pants…my guess is there’s someone on the team that would be up for the comparison research challenge (several of us have them now).
-Linzi
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I’d love to see Amy doing a styling sesh with these for all the long legged ladies! I have them too and love them, but I’m 5’8″ so they are more of a crop on me.
Linzi, I really appreciate your deep dive reviews and especially how to style things many ways. I was influenced by the discord group to try the Ruti pants during one of the sales. I’ve worn them with a J. Crew ribbed button front top, a Madewell scarf and Birkenstock big buckles. I also like them with a 3/4 sleeve Eileen Fisher striped linen tee and ballet flats. Another favorite outfit is a black tee and olive green Rails jacket with pointed toe flats. They are somehow not boring with a plain white tee and Vejas too. I don’t think I could wear them to the office just because it’s a Federal Government office in DC (conservative) and no one would understand them. You, Scotti and the TME discord group have given me lots of new ideas to try. I was on the fence about keeping them because for the price I needed to love them, but they are turning into a hero piece lately.
Ooooh — You had me at Eileen Fisher striped linen tee!!! This is so helpful! Thanks for sharing how you’re wearing them. And glad to hear they’ve been “worth it” for you.
How’s the breathability? Would these work in DC in August?
Hmmm….DC in August is a whole other level for sure. These pants are definitely extremely lightweight, but I haven’t been able to assess their true breathability in swampy weather yet. On my recent trip (where I wore them on repeat) it was warm weather, but not that humid thick hot of DC summers. That being said…I was never super sweaty in them…even when sitting in them in the sun. Has anyone reading tried them in SUPER hot/sticky weather??
I really appreciate this review – especially the size comparisons. I bought a pair in petite sizing – and wish I had gone with the regular. I am 5’3″ – but I have long legs. So good to see how these fit in good photos. Thanks!
I have the Old Navy dupes and also caved and bought the Ruti. Being totally honest, I think the Old Navy dupe more than holds its own. I can’t find almost $200 worth of difference with the Ruti ones. But I’m sure that’s a matter of opinion and people will disagree with me.
Great to hear — Thanks for sharing this!
I bought the Amazon dupe
EGOCKAL Womens Elastic Waist Ankle Pants Baggy Curved Tapered Leg Barrel Travel Pants with Pockets Black
They are fabulous! They are drapey, soft, comfy- the shape and silhoette are exact dupes (although I haven’t tried the Ruti)
I can’t justify the cost but the Amazon ones are worth it!
I would love to see a comparison. I have the Old Navy dupes and like them very much. I’m tall (6’0″) and was happy to be able to order the tall size at ON. Ruti doesn’t have a tall size, which is my biggest hesitation there.
HI, I was wondering if the Ruti pants are similar to the Nili Lotan Shon pant?
I bought the Ruti pants for a vacation I took last week. Ordered the 4 and the 6 based on reviewers saying they ran small (I’m 5’7″, 135-140lb, pear-shaped, 28 in jeans). The 4 was too small and I thought the 6 looked good, but I went into the store to try the 8 for comparison. The associate had me try the 8 as well as the 8P (too short). She felt the 8 was a better fit, they were a bit looser in the butt and front (didn’t hug cheeks as much as the 6s) but maybe didn’t have as streamlined/slimming of a look through the hips from the front. I kept the 8s and wore them to/from Europe on my travel days, as well as one day there when the weather didn’t cooperate as planned. I always felt super stylish and comfortable, though I can’t help but wonder if the 6s would have looked better in photos? I’m not sure. I got them for $184 on sale and think I would order more if that price comes around again, and also try their linen version (though I would definitely get the 6 in those since linen stretches out). Would love to try the Old Navy dupes, but since Gap Inc. contracted with TRE on returns monitoring I’m no longer welcome to shop there, so Ruti gets my business instead. Hope all this info is helpful for people! (Also, be warned – you will get 8 million Ruti ads in your social media feed after browsing them. It’s really annoying.)
Haha so true – those algorithms are relentless. This was a super helpful comment, btw. I find myself happier when sizing up these days, although I feel you on the ‘looks better in photos’ angle. I also wonder if my eye just needs to shift to this bigger silhouette (at least in photos).
I tried them on in store in Santa Monica and they look huge and awkward on me sadly! Im 49 years old, 5’6″ and 118 lbs. They aren’t made for lean women with no hips haha