How to Look Taller (for Men): 17 Awesome Clothing Tips for Short Men

If you’re short, you must have thought that tall men have it easier & better.

Whether it’s about attracting women, getting a better job, or high-status, you blame your height.

Many vertically challenged men wish they could magically increase their height.

But, there is nothing that can make you look taller. That’s the truth. If someone says they know, they’re lying.

Yet, I know some tips and habits (and clothing adjustments), that will prevent you to look shorter.

1. Stand In a Way That Makes You Look Taller Automatically

Not only short men but taller men are also doing it wrong. I notice that every day.

Body language. It matters. Big time.

Standing and sitting straight is the key to add the illusion of length and height. While walking/standing — keep your chest up, shoulders back and back straight — to look natural.

Stand in front of a full-size mirror to correct your body posture. Or ask someone to correct your posture.

Also, people with good posture generally have:

• Stronger bones
• Stronger muscles
• Better functioning of the nervous system

Without good posture, your overall health and total efficiency may be compromised.

2. Avoid Baggy Clothes to Reduce the Bulk Out of Your Body

One of the primary principles is to avoid big, baggy and oversized clothes. They will make you look smaller and younger than you actually are.

It’s also kind of funny. Like you couldn’t find anything good, so you’re wearing your dad’s big old clothes.

Wear and see, one by one, which clothing items you have in your wardrobe that is too loose. If they have too much excess fabric, they’re too big for you.

See? That’s a big difference.

This applies to both formal and casual clothes. Irrespective of body shape, big and baggy clothes will make you look short and less stylish.

Better avoid wearing them.

3. Find a Good Tailor & Know Him by His Name

If you don’t want to completely abandon your big and baggy clothes (nobody does), get them altered.

Take them to a good tailor. He’ll note your size and after he’s done, you’ll have well-fitted clothes. Like they’re exclusively made for you.

Hence, getting your clothes altered is not optional, but crucial.

Buying off the rack clothes may not necessarily be well fitted. Your size will not always be the best fit. One size small is sometimes too small.

Knowing that you can take it to the tailor is better than wearing something you like, which does not fit well.

He’ll make you look like a million bucks, for a few bucks.

4. Get the Right Shirt Size

Wear a shirt that is short enough. If it comes past the midpoint of your crotch, the shirt is too long.

This makes your lower body look broad and short.

On the other side, shorter shirts expose more of your legs, creating the illusion of both leg length and overall height. This rule goes for all button ups, tee shirts, polo shirts and sweaters/jumpers.

Like in this picture, the left one looks too long and baggy whereas right one is the right length of a shirt.

5. V-Necks are Better Than Crew Necks

Because a V-neck elongates the neck and gives the illusion of length.

Opt for V-neck shirts and sweaters (also try Henley) to help you look taller, but don’t go crazy deep.

Also, this does not mean you stop wearing crew necks at all. Just wear them less or do layering (will get on that in a moment).

6. Wear More of Long-Sleeves to Lessen the Exposure of Short Arms

Short men have short limbs.

Short-sleeve shirts expose the short limbs creating an overall visual of shortness and smallness. Instead, wear long-sleeved shirts.

Long-sleeved shirts help appear longer your overall appearance.

If it’s not too cold out there, you can roll those sleeves up to give a more stylish look. Roll them up near or above the elbow, especially if you have thin arms.

If you still want to rock short-sleeves, make sure the sleeves are not too lengthy or big. Doing so will also help to show off your guns — biceps and triceps.

7. Tuck Your Shirt In

Most shirts are too long for a short man. You can get the formal shirts shortened, but not the casual ones.

An easier and cheaper solution would be to tuck them in.

Doing so raises your perceived waistline, which is also sweet for men with a long torso and short legs.

Often these shirts have sleeves that are too long. Along with tucking your shirt in, you can roll up those sleeves to make any shirt fit you better.

Pretty cool, right?

8. Get the Pant Rise Right

Like I said before, you need to avoid big, baggy and lengthy clothes. Pants are no different.

There are three areas of a pant that you should consider:

• Crotch
• Width of the pant
• Pant length

Too long crotch (too much extra fabric), wide pants, and too long pants — they’re all going to make your legs look shorter.

At the bottom, there should not be a bunch of fabric and also avoid rolling your pants. Keep your pants hemmed for little or no break.

Try wearing trousers at your waist, not on your hips. Low-rise pants are trendy, but they lower your perceived waistline.

Stick with the normal rise or short rise pants. Unlike low-rise pants, short rise pants are meant to be worn at the waist, and they still have a shorter distance from the button and the crotch.

They’re good for short men.

9. Two Points About Your Shoes You Need to Know

First thing:

With the idea of creating a visual streamline from the neck, down to the toe, you need a shoe that’s going to help you elongate the visual.

Big and bulky shoes are going to make you look shorter.

You need a shoe with an elongated toe box and a gradual taper, pointy but not too boxy.

Second thing:

You need a shoe that does not contrast too heavily with trousers.

Keeping your pants the same color as your shoes will make it more difficult for the eye to distinguish where the leg ends and the foot begins. As a result, making your legs look longer.

For example, black sneakers work great with dark wash jeans.

The same applies for summer wear as well.

If you’re wearing shorts, find shoes that match your skin color as closely as possible.

10. Get Your Suit & Jacket Details Right

Some points to remember while buying/wearing a suit:

Jacket

Go for a single-breasted jacket with one or two buttons. Also, position your waist button higher, making you appear taller.

Generally, jackets cover the butt. But as a short man, go for shorter jackets, that barely covers your butt. It will give the illusion of height by exposing the legs more.

The jacket size should be cut close to the body to show chest larger than waist.

Narrow notch/peak lapels are good for short men that avoid the shoulders from looking wide.

Make sure the sleeves are not too big. Slimmer sleeve widths will help you look leaner and longer.

Also, show shirt cuffs, about 1/4 to 1/2 inch.

Trouser

Like I said earlier, medium or short rise pants work best for short men. If they low rise pants, they will make your legs look shorter.

Also, match the color of the jacket and trouser (will tell you why in a moment).

Fitting

Again, invest in tailoring because tailoring can seriously transform a just fine suit to a great suit. Your suit should be slim, not baggy/bulky.

11. Lifting Weights Also Has its Benefit in Making You Look Taller

When it comes to the benefits of taking care of your health, height is no different.

If you are fat, you will look short. Start burning that fat.

Because burning fat will remove that unnecessary width from your body, making you look slimmer. And slimmer guys tend to look taller.

When talking about losing fat and building muscle, it all comes down to two equally important steps:

1. Work out and do cardio.
2. Eat good food.

The basic principle is to burn more calories than you take in.

Junk food and processed foods are high in calories. Instead, go for fruits, green vegetables, and salad to fill your belly.

They say — what you eat is what you become — for no reason.

12. Small Patterns are Better than Big Ones

If you’re looking to elongate your physique then try to stay away from patterns and especially big, bold and robust patterns.

Whether it’s stripes, gingham, checks, plaid or Tattersall – keep them small in size and scale. Big patterns are fine for big men, but not short men.

Go for vertical patterns instead of horizontal ones.

Thin vertical patterns and other small scale patterns look much better than thick stripes. Broad horizontal makes you look wider, vertical ones elongate your appearance.

Either way, choose thin stripes. Or better yet, wear solid colors.

13. Dark Colors are Good for Short Men

Dark colors are slimming and also lengthening which is going to make you look taller and slimmer.

This is true for every body type. Because they hide shadows and little details.

It is better to avoid shiny fabrics. Matte is better.

Go dark with your selection, but not always black.

Wearing black may completely shrink you down and make you appear smaller. Instead, go for colors like charcoal gray, dark blue, brown, etc.

Muted and subdued hues are better than vibrant, rich colors.

14. Dress Monochromatically

Wearing different colors divides a person’s body into separate segments.

But, wearing the same color, or tones that are within the same range creates one solid line for an observer’s eye to pick up.

Having your body divided into fewer segments creates the illusion of height.

You don’t always have to stick with a single color (like black), rather try different shades of colors. This goes for both dark and light colors.

Either way, keep the contrast low. Like wearing different shades of gray, blue or brown.

15. Give Your Hair a Little Height

You can add a few inches by updating your hairstyle.

You can make the sides real tight, keeping the hair neatly trimmed, but leave plenty of hair on top.

The extra volume on top, when matched to the decreased volume on the side, adds inches to your overall height. This trick works especially well if you use gel to create a spiky style.

16. Accessories for Short Men

Little details to your outfit have the ability to take it to the next level.

But for short men, the key is to not wear too big accessories. You have to be strategic about it.

Here are some accessories that work great:

Hats

Accessorize yourself by using hats and caps that help you give extra height to make you appear longer. They’re cool.

Glasses

A perfect pair of glasses or sunglasses can also make your face appear longer.

Socks

Match your socks with trousers. Keeping it as close as possible will help elongate the appearance.

It is better to not go sockless because it can segment and break the appearance.

Bags

Avoid over-sized bulky shoulder bags and fanny bags that cause you to look wider at the waist and hip.

Ties

Skinny ties can help you look taller drawing the eye up and down.

Vests & Belts

Vests and belts can make you look shorter by drawing attention to the middle section of your body, and away from the overall long lines of your frame.

It is best to avoid wearing them. But still, if you want to wear a belt, keep it slim. Something that’s the same color or pattern as the rest of your outfit.

17. Lessen the Bulk Off Your Shoulders

Bulky clothes are shortening.

Coats, jackets, vests, and other winter wear items make you look bulkier. Sometimes they have oversized details like buttons and wide lapels.

It is best to avoid them as much as possible. Instead, go for synthetic or other thinner options which are available for winters.

During winters, you can wear an undershirt, button-up shirt, sweater and then a lightweight jacket. Also, add a light scarf (not too big), hat and gloves.

Get better with layering your clothes. Like, you can wear a dark jacket over a light shirt, which further creates a more vertical line and extends your upper body.

Experiment with vertical patterns and add articles like a V-neck sweater or a jacket over a vest.

Conclusion

Understanding that there’s nothing with you and your height should be the most important take away from this post.

History has proven many times that height has nothing to do with success. You can be famous and successful irrespective of your height and looks, in general.

That’s why I picked the picture of Tom Cruise for this post. He’s 5’7″ and man, he’s one of the most popular actors in the world.

If you’re well-dressed and confident enough, you will command respect, no matter how short or tall you may be.