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The Best Ties for Tying (Pun Intended) an Outfit Together

From silken stunners to bold Bolos, these are the best ties for men.

collage of three ties Courtesy

By Evan Malachosky

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In this metaphorical sartorial sundae, the tie is the cherry on top — an optional add-on, sure, but essential to any great sundae. Don’t think of your tie as a burden, but rather an opportunity. Your tie can be anything you want it to be, especially now that suits are more relaxed than ever. Pick one that suits your, well, suit, but also your personal style.

Products in the Guide

  • Bonobos Premium Necktie

    Best Overall Tie

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  • Todd Snyder Pheasant Tie

    Best Upgrade Tie

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  • Tie Bar Solid Wool Navy Tie

    Best Affordable Tie

    Read more
  • Tie Your Tie Silk Seven-Fold Tie

    Best Silk Tie

    Read more
  • American Trench American Woolen Co. Ties

    Best Wool Tie

    Read more
  • Hawes and Curtis 2 Tone Squares Print Tie

    Best Affordable Silk Tie

    Read more

Types of Ties

Styles

Traditional Ties

Generally speaking, there are four types of traditional tie, and they’re named based on how they’re made. A Three-Fold Untipped Tie, for example, is fabric folded three times without a weighted tip, which helps keep the tie down. Seven-Fold Ties are pieces of fabric folded seven times, meaning it’s heavier but more natural looking than a tipped tie.

  • Three-Fold Untipped Tie
  • Three-Fold Self-Tipped Tie
  • Five-Fold Tie
  • Seven-Fold Tie

Bolo Ties

Bolo Ties are made from a piece of cord or leather finished with decorative metal tips (aka aiguillettes). A medallion serves as the knot, tying a shirt together (pun intended) with similar effect.

Knit Ties

Knit ties, whether made by your mother or an acclaimed Savile Row tailor, typically come as one piece. They’re not folded or tipped, simply one long string you swing together, forming your preferred knot.

Materials

Silk

Silk ties are much lighter and far more breathable than polyester ties. They’re also harder to take care of, though, and typically much more expensive.

Wool

Although long banned from formal business settings, wool ties now work pretty much anywhere, whether you’re at, well, work or attending a winter wedding.

Cotton (And Corduroy)

Cotton ties, whether they’re corduroy or not, typically add texture. They’re not as smooth as silk or polyester ties.

Polyester

Polyester ties typically come with their own sheen, a shiny finish a lot of people associate with formal attire. (Look at politicians, for example.)

How to Pair a Tie with a Shirt

  • Consider the size: If you plan on wearing a blazer, match the width of your tie to the width of the jacket’s lapels.
  • Feel the fabric: Ties come in a range of materials — cotton, silk, wool, cashmere — and each have a different feel and texture.
  • Pick a color: Though most tie colors will pair with a white shirt, there are other combinations depending on the occasion.
  • Ponder a pattern: It is easiest to match a patterned garment with a solid accessory, or vice versa.

Become a master matcher with our guide to pairing shirts and ties.

How to Tie a Tie

These directions yield a versatile knot — the Four-in-Hand Knot — you can wear pretty much anywhere.

  1. Begin with the wide blade of your necktie on the right, hanging 8 to 12 inches lower than the tail.
  2. Cross the wide blade over the tail, at a position just below your collarbones.
  3. Wrap the wide blade around the tail.
  4. Pull the wide blade under and up, through the loop created near your neck.
  5. Pull the wide blade down through the loop, adjusting the front of the knot as necessary.
  6. Tighten the knot to the collar, covering the top button, by sliding the knot toward your neck while holding the tie tail.
  7. Add a dimple just below the knot with your index finger.

Watch two video tutorials in our dedicated guide to tying two types of knots.

Do You Really Need a Tie?

When we avoided offices and events in 2020, our suits were shelved. Until this year, they stayed there, at the rear of our closets. Now, though, we’re dressing up again — and for minor events, because suits are, dare I say, sexier than ever. But are ties, too? They can be, if you choose the right one. They’re no longer required in most offices, which means they don’t carry the same stale connotations.

Learn more about changing office dress codes in our story about post-pandemic dressing.

Bonobos offers its high-end necktie in a number of hues and textures, which means if navy’s not your style, there is surely another one you’ll like. They’re all handmade in the US from various silk-cotton blends.

It’s hard to make a patterned tie that isn’t kitschy. Todd Snyder achieves it, though, with his varied Pheasant Tie, a grown-up version of a venerable classic.

Made from a mix of wool and silk, Tie Bar’s solid tie comes in a number of colors, and in various widths, too: from super-skinny to traditional.

Remember what a Seven-Fold is? (Hint: the answer’s above.) “It’s literally a piece of silk, folded upon itself seven times,” Jim Parker says. The Armoury stocks a few Seven-Fold ties from Tie Your Tie, which makes its ties in Italy.

American Trench’s ties are spun in NYC from wool from the American Woolen Co., a Connecticut company that sells its fabrics extra-thick.

Hawes and Curtis makes approachable ties you can buy in bundles. This two-tone print tie is just one of many 100 percent silk ties they sell. Remember: they’re all dry clean-only.

Handmade from a mix of hefty wool and soft cashmere, Eton’s dressed-up accessory probably works best in the fall, but there are other hues you could get away with year-round. They’re all made in Italy, too.

Linen is arguably the best fabric for summer. It’s breathable, comfortable and incredibly lightweight. Percival’s linen ties are the same — and you’d be surprised how much of a difference having a breathable tie makes.

Mango’s Tech Ties are stain- and wrinkle-resistant. That’s great, especially since spills happen (and often when you’re dressed up and drinking: i.e. weddings).

Chunky like a waffle knit sweater, Drake’s knit tie is made from solid color silk, making it soft but super textured still.

Ideal for spring, summer or fall, J.Crew’s classic all-cotton ties are made in Long Island at a factory that’s been making them since the ’50s.

Available in a number of colors, Rowing Blazer’s Tartan Ties offer a splash of prep with a modern twist. The construction is far more modern, even if the pattern is, as the brand calls it, ancient.

Bolo ties abound, but the good ones are rarely new. Find a vintage one, like this simple silver one from an Etsy seller called BeltsBucklesBolos.

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