The Ralph Lauren polo shirt is a staple of prep style and has become near ubiquitous as a piece in many of our closets. The iconic pony logo is recognized across the globe as a symbol of luxury. The shirt is so recognizable that it even has its own exhibit in the Museum of Modern Art, and it’s usually the first thing people think of when they think of a polo shirt. However, we’re here to see if they’re knocking for a point or will just cause a bump into your wallet.
The History of Ralph Lauren
Before we can understand Ralph Lauren’s offerings, we need to first understand what made them so popular in the first place. Ralph Lauren was founded by Ralph Lifshitz in 1967. He named the company Ralph Lauren because he believed it would be more marketable than his true last name.
Ralph worked in the necktie industry and originally sold neckties. Bucking the trend of the slim 60s tie, Ralph instead focused on wide ties. He often looked at the 1930s and 40s for inspiration and stood out for going against the grain in a timeless way.
He got on the map as the first brand to get an in-store concept inside of Bloomingdale’s, a standalone store on Rodeo Drive, and, the first designer to win the Coty Award twice, which is basically the Oscars for fashion designers.
After success with neckties, Ralph then moved on to the Polo line, which ironically was exclusively just for women – not unlike many other things that are in menswear that were originally intended for women, like Oxfords or fedoras. It was in 1972 that he launched the iconic mesh Polo that we all know today.
One of the defining elements of this shirt is the polo player logo stitched onto the chest. The logo had been on some of the women’s shirt cuffs. The subtle design choice gave the brand instant recognizability without making the wearer a walking billboard with brand wording like Gucci.
The logo also gave the shirt the aspirational appeal of old money aristocracy. It also came in 24 bright colors that were fun without being flashy. The polo brand only grew in prestige after being featured in 1974’s “The Great Gatsby” and, later, “Annie Hall.” This boom in mainstream attention helped boost Ralph Lauren’s Polo line into the stratosphere.
This Ralph Lauren line also helped the company build a reputation that they can design clothes that are both casual and chic, all while sticking to timeless silhouettes. This made them perfect for prep-style enthusiasts.
The Preppy Style & Clothes Primer
Branding gained global recognition as they started to expand outside of the US. Starting in the 80s, they added global attention. It brought them into direct competition with brands like Lacoste, who was the one who first arguably designed that shirt style, and Sunspel, who helped to popularize the pique cotton that the polo shirts were made of. This started a rivalry between the three as to who could win the “Polo Shirt Wars” of the 80s and 90s.
This led Polo to expand into other sports like golf and tennis. This will then help them to submit themselves as sportswear juggernauts within the prep style, which only made the brand more ubiquitous. The shirt has remained such an iconic example of Americana culture that it was put into the Museum of Modern Art as a permanent display in 2017. So, you can truly say you’re wearing a piece of art.
Ralph Lauren Polos in Contemporary Menswear
The popularity of Ralph Lauren Polos has remained a consistent mainstay in mainstream fashion, though they have ebbed and flowed throughout pop culture. Ralph Lauren Prides itself on being an “anti-fashion” fashion house.
This is always prominent in their advertising as they often feature items like Winchester shirts and cricket sweaters. This all helps to appear a little bit more whimsical. This timeless but fantastical aesthetic bleeds into their more simple offerings.
The pony featured so prominently in polo clothing got its initial appeal as a status symbol and remains a cornerstone of the brand to this day. This social cachet had a renaissance in the mid-2000s as Kanye West brought the prep style into the hip-hop scene, which we feel is a better choice than Kanye’s shutter shades. It helped expand the brand’s appeal to a wider audience and made the logo even more desirable to those looking to emulate the lifestyle at a more affordable price point.
The tussle of the brand almost synonymous with Ivy League collegiate style and heavily promoted there to maintain its prep-style ubiquity and the prestige that comes with it. This has made their casual wear almost a near-universal addition to menswear, even if most of us never actually play polo. We’ve even built out a whole series on how to buy and wear polo shirts.
Polo Shirts: Your Guide to Buying, Styling, History & More
However, that then raises the question: does the polo shirt truly live up to the hype, or is the pony just an overpriced marketing gimmick?
Ralph Lauren Polo Product Range
One of Ralph Lauren’s most defining decisions was to break the brain down into different lines. It helps the company to maintain its luxury and exclusive brand image, while still being obtainable and affordable to most. It’s appealing for almost anyone to own one of their offerings since the goal is to make exclusivity inclusive.
The actual Polo line has a large variety of offerings outside of the short-sleeved mesh polo shirt, which retails for 110 dollars, which is listed as having a roomier fit with sleeves that end right below the elbow. This includes long-sleeved polos, polos with pockets, and some interesting fabric like terry cloth, which has risen in popularity after Orlebar Brown recreated the same polo that Bond wore in the film “Dr. No.”
Their big and tall line is basically the same as the polo main line, but it goes all the way up to a 6X big or a 68-inch chest, and it retails for 125 dollars.
The “Create-Your-Own” is a made-to-order offering. This lets you customize the color, monogram, logo, and size. These retail for 168 dollars. Although this might sound similar to made-to-measure, they technically are not the same thing.
Made-to-order is where you can select some basic details to help personalize the garment, based on ready-to-wear sizes, and made-to-measure allows for the same customizations while also taking into account your body size and measurements for a more personal fit.
You can find out more about the confusing world of custom in our other guide.
Myth or Magic: Does “Custom” Matter in Menswear?
Ralph Lauren’s Create-Your-Own may seem a little disappointing as many other brands offer greater made-to-measure options at this price point.
The Purple Label Polo is listed as having premium cotton and mother-of-pearl buttons with an exclusive Pony. It can be assumed that the handwork is much higher on these, and it retails for 395 dollars. As the Purple Label line is almost a sister brand, we’ll be covering the range more in an upcoming post, so stay tuned!
The RLX and RLX Golfline are made of performance fabrics based in polyester, as they’re designed to be worn for heavy outdoor activity and sports – specifically for golf and tennis and, you know, polo. This version retails for $115.
Finally, the double RL is based heavily on vintage workwear patterns. You’ll see that their focus was on adventure-style sports shirts and that they don’t provide any Polo offerings. The majority of Ralph Lauren’s offerings are of natural materials, and they appear to be generally about 100% cotton; save for their sportier RLX offerings, which opt for some synthetics.
The two fit profiles that Ralph Lauren offers are classic and custom slim. Classic is a much roomier fit. It is in line with their more historical offerings from the 70s onward. Custom slim is a more contemporary fit. This fit is trimmer around the waist and arms. Which one you’ll prefer depends on your preferences.
They do offer a large amount of sizing – from extra small, all the way up to six extra large, meaning that there’s a good chance to find the size and the range to fit you well.
They offer a whopping 46 different color options that consist of all your standard whites, blacks, blues, browns, grays, and even colorful reds, purples, yellows, oranges, and even pinks.
The majority of their offerings are solid colors, but they do have some bolder horizontal stripes, graphic designs, bold Pony logos, distressed, and color-blocked patterns that are trendier. We personally say that some of these bold graphics are a little too fashion-forward for our tastes.
The oversized Pony is also a much trendier look, and the branding is much more overt, making the shirt appear more casual. But, some of the horizontal stripe offerings are still within the realm of classic menswear.
Ralph Lauren Polo Construction
Let’s now understand how these shirts are made.
On the Ralph Lauren site, the iconic mesh Polo is listed as being made of, simply, cotton. This doesn’t give us much to go on. Sure, there’s cotton in there, but without a listed amount, it’s impossible to be sure of 100% cotton being involved in the shirt as there could be other fibers blended in that simply aren’t stated. It also has the ribbed collar, two-button placket, and ribbed armbands. These are all classic design features.
The biggest downside to them is that the collar tends to roll up and not keep its shape while wearing. We also don’t get any information on if the buttons are plastic, shell, or mother of pearl; though just from touching them, they don’t have that cool feeling, meaning that they’re probably plastic.
No one wants to be the weirdo biting their shirt buttons, but genuine mother of pearl does have a distinctive feel on your teeth. I wonder how many of you will go and try that tip out now.
Plastic is much cheaper, which means that they’re much more likely to break and wear down over time. When you look at the stitching around the buttonholes, you can see that they’re stitched and then cut. This method is cheaper to manufacture, but means that the buttonhole will fray over time.
With all these construction methods in mind, it looks like the classic polo shirt is definitely a mass-produced item. This means it won’t have the handwork or extra styling details of something like the Ralph Lauren Purple Label.
Assessing Ralph Lauren Polo Shirts
When examining the polo, it feels slightly textured, like there’s a mid-weight cotton in my hand; something that I could wear almost anytime throughout the year, barring winter, of course.
Assessing Ralph Lauren Polo Shirts
100% Cotton
The fabric feels durable, like it could take a number of different wears over a few years when cared for properly. This actually does feel like 100% cotton. It doesn’t feel like a mix. It feels like 100% cotton to me.
The polo feels somewhat cool. It’s not the lightest cotton in the world, so I think that if it was extremely warm outside with a lot of humidity, perhaps you might feel a little bit sweaty, but in general, it feels pretty breathable.
In person, as mentioned before, there is a slight texture. So, the appearance, you see that texture but it’s not too intense. It’s not a large weave. It’s something that’s very subtle to the eye, so the construction of the polos that I have here today is pretty typical of what I would envision when thinking about a Ralph Lauren Polo in terms of the short sleeves and its stopping at the waist point, placket with two buttons.
The big difference between the custom slim is the tapered fit through the chest and the slightly shorter sleeves over the biceps, whereas the roomier fit and the classic fit is going to have a longer sleeve and a little bit more room in the body.
The sleeve was assembled. It looks like taking a different piece of material and then stitching it onto the body of the shirt as opposed to having a Raglan style, where they have one continuous piece of fabric from the shoulder through the rest of the shirt.
Assessing Ralph Lauren Polo Shirts
Stitching
When it comes to the stitch density, having had the opportunity to own and wear Ralph Lauren polos and also examine some here in the studio, the stitch does look quite consistent throughout. Nothing necessarily overly intense or heavy-duty, but certainly something that doesn’t seem flimsy or like it’s going to fall apart in five minutes.
And what’s great about these polos is that they have a small vent constructed into the bottom of the shirt, which kind of gives you a little bit more room over the hip and seat, whether you want want to tuck the shirt in or leave it untucked.
When talking about laundry and the color fastness of the polo, it’s been my experience that it’s holding its color fairly well. I tend to air dry most of my things and wash on a delicate cycle where I can, where I don’t make a mistake, so I can kind of maintain some of that color quality. But, for my experience, it’s holding its color fairly well over time. I did see a little bit of a fade happening, but it holds its color well.
The buttonholes appear to have been sewn and then cut open. The fit of the polos overall have been great, no complaints. Personally, I like the custom slim for most occasions, but it’s nice to have the classic cut on hand just in case; sometimes, you want a little more room, and a little more flexibility, so I happen to like both. So, I think it’s going to suit many, many different people and body types, depending on what your preferences are.
Personally, when trying on the polos, one thing I didn’t necessarily love because of my height was feeling like the front of the shirt hit a little bit too short. I would have liked it if it was a little bit longer. Perhaps I can explore looking at a tall collection or something like that and seeing if that would balance things out for when I wear it untucked. Didn’t necessarily feel like it was too tight or too baggy, but I think it was more of a height situation for me in the front of the shirt.
The logo is iconic. It’s great. I love to wear it. The benefit of wearing the typical polos from the Ralph Lauren Polo line is that they’re not overly large like some of the other ones we might have seen or something that’s missing or you don’t know that it’s a polo shirt. It’s nice to have it there, where it’s small, out of the way, but it’s not overly in your face.
Is It Worth It?
The main Polo lines are a solid offering, but it’s ultimately a mass-produced garment that won’t have a ton of sartorial benefits or features on their main Polo line. You’ll be paying a little extra for the brand name, not necessarily the craftsmanship.
So it’s not worth it if you’re looking for a sartorial-inclined polo shirt that gives you a little more bang for your buck. Brands like Spier & Mackay and Charles Tyrwhitt offer a similar-styled garment for less, but they won’t have the polo pony detailing.
If you’re a fan of the Ralph Lauren brand and perhaps like the history and the prestige behind it, the Polo line polo shirts are perhaps some of the most iconic garments that they make and are a more affordable and recognizable way to add some Ralph Lauren garments into your looks. It’s a prep style staple for a reason, and there’s no denying that they’ve done an excellent job at giving meaning behind their logo.
The Polo line shirt can certainly be a dependable, good-looking product. It’s a perfectly valid option as an addition to your wardrobe. It’s even better if you catch them on sale or at an outlet store. For lower prices, we can reduce a little of the brand name markup, ultimately making the Ralph Lauren Polo line polos worth it on average.
Do you own any Ralph Lauren polo shirts? Do you think they’re worth it? Let us know in the comments below.
Outfit Rundown
Today, I’m wearing a Ralph Lauren Polo in kind of a neutral, oatmeal color, wearing that custom slim style; and I’m wearing it untucked with a pair of khaki chinos; some Fort Belvedere, colorful, stripe socks; and a pair of brown dress shoes. I’m finishing everything off of the fragrance from Roberto Ugolini called Marzocco. Check out the Fort Belvedere shop for socks like these.
Now that you’ve done Lacoste and Ralph Lauren, will you complete the triad with Sunspel? I’m much less familiar with the latter brand than I am with the previous two.
Also, it seems like Preston’s tie and pocket square in the thumbs-down image don’t quite harmonize with each other. Perhaps my sartorial taste tends to differ from his on that point, or perhaps it’s the effect of seeing them in conjunction with that bright yellow boutonniere. The boutonniere is quite garish and I can’t help but think that a smaller, subtler white or blue one would have have anchored his look better and helped harmonize the shades of blue in his shirt, tie and pocket square.
Hi Donnager, you’re in luck! We’ve previously discussed Sunspel Polo shirts on the site.
Do you recommend tucked or untucked for a Polo shirt, especially for guys with more of a Dad-bod?
The display of brand logos seems to me to clash with the very idea of classic men’s wear. It baffles me that so many people are willing to pay money for the privilege of acting as a walking piece of advertising. And to the extent that the logo is there to display one’s consumption of a supposedly prestigious brand, it is just vulgar. I have owned some garments by Ralph Lauren, but only ones that had the label on the inside, where it belongs.
I worked at Ralph in the mid 90s in grad school. Around 97 they switched the manufacture to Sri Lanka and you could immediately see the drop in quality. They have never been more than mediocre since then. Collars won’t lay flat and shoulder seams ripple in an unsightly fashion. Dark colors fade quickly in the wash. And who wants to pay to be a walking billboard? Better off to wait until Sunspel Polos go on sale. Really only the Purple Label has a very high quality manufacture these days.
I started buying Polo end 70’s. Exclusivity and quality for a high price then and nowadays not worth a penny. Serious doubts about the material and definitely not the quality as in their heydays (really 100% cotton?), holes in the tissue where the label is stitched, dark blue turns sort of purple. The only thing that stayed the same is the fit but that doesn’t justify the price.
why, would you want to pay hundreds of dollars for a “Ralph Lauren” polo when there are just as nice ones at “Jo’s. A Bank or Charles Tyrwhitte”? especially when they just look the same. I rather save my money and get one that looks & feels good but does not cost me a bunch of money that I could spend on other things.
On the whole, I prefer the feel and appearance of the Orvis Polo…
Agreed Maximus! Heavy reinforcement at key stress points and durable fabric. Maybe not as “fashionable”, but great hard-working shirt for those that actually venture outdoors.
Thumbs down I’m afraid ,hopeless collars , sleeves to short , overpriced. Many better brands . Rodd & Gunn for example.
love Preston’s thumbs down photo. Says all that needs to be said.
Regarding the Ralph Lauren line of polo shirts, “the juice ain’t worth the squeeze,” unless you are trying to impress someone at your country club, or golf club, or ivy league frat party and then, not so much. As an older guy I prefer a collared shirt with a shirt pocket.
I own a few but feel they are way over priced. I own other brands that are just as good for far less money
lauren, yes.
izod, yes.
everything else, hell no.
the logo is 70% of why you’re wearing it.
polo player or crocodile, that’s all.