How To Wear A Brown Belt With Black Jeans

Wearing belts with jeans can work well, but color-coordinating casual items can often raise questions. So, can you wear a brown belt with black jeans? 

A brown belt can be worn with black jeans. Consider wearing a pair of dark wash black jeans with minimal distressing to reduce the risk of a formality mismatch with the brown belt. Alternatively, consider a casual-looking canvas brown belt to go with the black jeans instead. 

That’s the short answer, but there’s more to it. 

Here are some essential tips for wearing a brown belt with black jeans in the best way possible, each and every time. 

Let’s get to it. 

1. Consider The Dress Code

A brown belt and black jeans combo should really only be worn in casual settings. 

While the brown belt may be suitable for a wide range of occasions ranging from casual to formal, the rugged denim black jeans would always look casual. 

Avoid wearing the combination to business-casual or formal settings. 

In fact, black jeans are so casual that it often isn’t necessary to wear a belt in the first place. 

If you did want to wear one, however, a brown one would be perfectly reasonable. It isn’t necessary for the belt to match the jeans. 

2. Consider Wearing Brown Shoes

While it isn’t essential, wearing brown shoes to match the brown belt is a great way to ensure the outfit looks well-coordinated as a whole. 

Matching the belt to the shoes isn’t as essential when it comes to casual attire. You could get away with wearing any pair of shoes because black jeans are casual, at the end of the day. 

You could wear the brown belt and black jeans with a pair of black and white Converse sneakers and still get away with it. 

The outfit is casual enough for it to work. 

If you were wearing a brown belt with black dress pants, it would be a lot more important to wear brown shoes. 

The more formal the outfit, the more important it is for the belt to match the shoes. 

Having said all this, if you did want to dress up a black jeans outfit, wearing a brown belt with brown shoes/boots is a great way to add a touch of sophistication. 

3. The Less Distressing, The Better

Wearing a brown belt with your black jeans is a way to make them look less casual. This is especially the case when you’re wearing a leather brown belt. 

However, wearing a formal-looking brown belt with a very casual pair of black jeans with rips, frays, acid-washing, and other forms of distressing, will look odd. 

It’s best to wear a pair of relatively “smart” looking black jeans when wearing a brown belt, especially a leather one. 

While black jeans would never be considered “formal”, there are definitely pairs that look more formal and others that look more casual. 

Black jeans that look more casual will usually have more of a faded appearance (eg. due to acid washing or stone washing), or features like rips and frays. 

Go for a pair of black jeans in a dark wash, with minimal distressing. It’ll look a whole lot better when combined with a brown belt. 

4. Consider The Shade Of Brown Belt

You’ve got options here. Both dark brown belts and light brown belts would work well with black jeans. 

But it’s important to think about contrast. 

A light brown belt worn with black jeans would produce more contrast, while a dark brown belt worn with black jeans would produce less contrast. 

In general, contrast is eye-catching. In addition, the contrast will look more casual. 

If you’re looking to draw attention to the belt and make it “pop” out of the outfit, consider a light brown belt. 

If you’d prefer a more subtle combination, consider a dark brown belt that isn’t too different from the black jeans. 

Either one would work. Overall, however, a dark brown belt would have a more smart-casual appearance, while a light brown belt would have a more casual one. 

5. Try A Canvas Brown Belt 

Canvas belts are rugged, lightweight, durable, and look a whole lot more casual than leather belts. 

We’ve already talked about how black jeans will always look casual no matter what you wear them with. 

Consider wearing a belt that looks just as casual to reduce the risk of a formality mismatch. 

As we’ve discussed, it’s perfectly possible to wear a brown leather belt with black jeans. But there’s a good chance that a casual brown canvas belt would look even better. 

Bear in mind that this would dress down a pair of black jeans, while a brown leather belt would dress up the jeans instead. 

Overall, going for a casual brown belt makes it even easier to wear non-matching shoes.

6. Consider Black Socks

While color coordination isn’t quite as important when it comes to casual attire, it’s still worth making it clear you aren’t just putting your outfit together randomly. 

Traditionally, the socks should match the pants. This is crucial when it comes to formal attire (eg. 2-piece suits). 

But it’s also worth considering when wearing casual combinations such as the one we’re talking about today. 

When wearing black jeans, consider wearing black or dark grey socks. While it isn’t essential, it’s a great touch. 

The socks and pants will blend into each other seamlessly; a great marker of a well-coordinated outfit. 

A common mistake is to try to match the socks to the shoes, the belt, or something else entirely. 

Avoid this. Stick to the rule of thumb that the socks should be matched to the pants or jeans and you should be fine. 

7. Add Contrast With A Light-Colored Top

A brown belt worn with black jeans will lead to the bottom half of your outfit looking dark.

Going for a dark top will lead to a dark aesthetic overall – if this is what you want, go for it. 

But going for contrast between your top and your bottom is often a great effect. If you’ve gone for a dark pair of pants and a belt, consider a light-colored top to contrast it. 

If you’ve gone for a light pair of pants, consider a dark-colored top instead. 

Creating contrast between light and dark works well. 

So, try a white, beige, light blue, or light grey T-shirt/OCBD to go with your brown belt and black jeans. 

Consider a very light brown overcoat to contrast the brown belt and black jeans. 

The exact colors don’t really matter, as brown and black are neutral enough to pair well with many different items. 

Think more about the contrast between light vs dark than the colors themselves.