Gen Z’s 2026 Fashion Trends Celebrate Elevated Self-Expression
Historically, it’s been relatively easy to predict how Gen Z will feel about a fashion trend. If Millennials like it, Zoomers won’t. If it originated online and doubles as a quick-to-pick-up persona—a mob wife, an office siren, or insert-whatever-core-comes-next—the digitally-native generation typically embraces it. For a while, it felt like the generation’s top two style priorities were making Millennials mad and curating a digital-first identity. At least they were, until 2026.
“After years of ultra-fast micro-trends, Gen Z is showing fatigue with constant novelty and is increasingly valuing pieces that last—emotionally, stylistically, and materially,” explains Noémie Voyer, fashion lead at trend analytics platform Heuritech.
No longer driven by a knee-jerk rejection of Millennial style and now a grown-up member of the workforce in an unpredictable financial, political, and social reality, Gen Z wants clothes that provide joy and security. “Globally, fashion [in 2026] is less about rigid labels or one defining aesthetic and more about fluid self-expression, mixing personal references depending on mood, context, or community,” Voyer says. “And [Gen Z] are the best at playing with that.”
To make sense of where the generation now falls on the fashion landscape, Marie Claire polled two Gen Z fashion creators, a secondhand expert at Depop, and a trend forecaster for their insights. (Full disclosure: I, Emma Childs, MC’s fashion features editor, am also a ‘98-born Zoomer.) Ahead, discover the top Gen Z fashion trends for 2026, as well as the specific styles and brands they’re shopping. Across all ages, the findings below are a great lesson in self-expression balanced with functionality.
Old-Soul Sportswear
(Image credit: Darrel Hunter for Marie Claire/Getty Images/Ruby Lyn)
According to Gen Z, athleisure is dead. Long live athleisure.
In its place comes a more stylized take on sportswear. “Post-pandemic habits remain embedded but are now translated into more polished, intentional silhouettes rather than overt loungewear,” says Voyer. Or, as Ruby Lyn, a Gen Z social media star with a combined audience of over 1.2 million followers, puts it, the generation is still wearing workout wear, but “not in a matching-set kind of way—in a ‘90’s-celeb-grocery-run way.”
In action, the trend looks like athletic essentials paired with tailored, everyday items. (Think: track jackets with denim and striped rugby shirts with kitten heels.) Gen Z is also leading a vintage sportswear revival, “which reflects a taste for comfort, style, and cultural relevance,” says Steve Dool, the senior director of brand and creative at Depop. To quantify it: Searches for “vintage Lululemon” are up 1,689 percent on Depop, as are those for “upcycled jerseys” (up 233 percent), “skiwear” (up 228 percent), and “bike shorts” (up 133 percent).
Lululemon
Nulu Sporty Trim Mid-Rise Flared Pant
FP Movement
Easy Tiger Shorts
Uniqlo
Windproof Stand Blouson
Modern Uniforms
(Image credit: Darrel Hunter and Heidi Jones for Marie Claire/Getty Images)
In 2026, “consistency becomes the new flex,” says Dool. “Amid decision fatigue, economic tension, and digital noise, people are turning to dependable, neutral staples with sharp tailoring, boxy knits, and workwear classics as a way to express taste through repetition rather than constant reinvention.”
Sarahbelle Kim, a Zoomer content creator and buying trainee at Bloomingdale’s, sees this specific Gen Z shift as a side effect of the flattening trend cycle. “Things that were once niche have become viral fodder (e.g., Margiela Tabis), and the recycling of aesthetics and the internet’s tendency to rapidly tire of them will eventually force us to reckon with what it means to have a personal relationship with style. Functionality in clothing—ample pockets, compartments, etc.—will be appreciated as we go forward, perhaps cutting through some of the noise.”
Expect to see the generation in timeless, easy-to-rewear items, including utility jackets, quarter zips, and button-down shirts they can don to their corporate 9-to-5s, as well as balloon pants that are easy to move in. The H&M Group brand Cos particularly excels here, with Depop searches for it spiking over 696 percent.
Madewell
Denim Collarless Jacket in Rinse Wash
Alex Mill
Easy Shirt in Cotton Poplin
J.Crew
Natalia Pant in Four-Season Stretch
Coach
Bleecker Bucket Bag
Mad Hatter
(Image credit: Ruby Lyn/Darrel Hunter for Marie Claire)
2026 is the year Gen Z goes all-in on “crazy, funky, junky hats,” to quote The Wizards of Waverly Place, one of the many Disney shows it was raised on. As Voyer notes, hats are low-lift additions with personality and flair, an easy win for a generation hyper-focused on individuality.
The trend forecaster adds that Gen Z is also increasingly reaching for vintage-inspired hats, “as retro and familiar references are used less as irony and more as reassurance in a context of economic, social, and digital instability.”
Kim confirms Voyer’s point by highlighting the pillbox hat trend, part of fashion’s overall “return to ‘50s sensibilities.” Additionally, Lyn endorses paperboy caps, while Voyer adds fur and knit hats in “cute, retro, Wes Anderson-esque shapes” to the list.
Ganni
Cotton Melange Crochet Bucket Hat
Gigi Burris
Laura Wool-Felt Pillbox Hat
Apparis
Gilly Mink Bucket Hat
Brixton
Gender Inclusive Fiddler Cap
2010s Revival
(Image credit: Heidi Jones for Marie Claire/Gucci/Getty Images/ Lucky Brand/Ruby Lyn)
A noticeable shift from its known ire against styles that Millennials feel fondly for, Gen Z has endorsed “the swagalicious return of the 2010s,” as Kim describes it. The generation used to call skinny jeans cringe, but now they’re cool in an irreverent Addison Rae kind of way. (Searches for “skinny jeans” spiked 131 percent on Depop over the last year.)
Dool adds that Ed Hardy, original Hollister pieces (especially those babydoll-style tops that peaked around 2012), and JNCO jorts have become highly sought after on the secondhand platform. Kim also anticipates an “explosion of turquoise, pastel grunge, studded accessories, fringe, chunky heels, and bandage dresses“—all styles that defined the era as well as Kesha and mustache motifs did.
Hervé Léger
The Amara Dress
Levi’s
Wedgie Straight Ankle Women’s Jeans
A.L.C.
Arlo Studded Leather Bag
We the Free
Fringe Out Vegan Suede Jacket
Everyday Ceremony
(Image credit: Darrel Hunter and Tyler Joe for Marie Claire)
As the younger generation reckons with real-life responsibilities, it’s leaving behind extreme displays of self-expression for more subtle ones.
“People are dressing purposefully, using bold and tailored pieces to make everyday routines feel special,” says Dool, shouting out specific styles like military jackets, structured blazers, metallic skirts, statement jewelry, and kitten heels.
Lyn expects “more structured basics to also have a moment this year, whether it’s shoulder pads or intentional tapering to accentuate the body, as a fun and easy way to spice up an outfit without doing too much.”
Voyer adds “cowl plunge tops” and “cape tops” to that list, noting that Heuirtech has observed that both styles have steadily grown in popularity over the years, particularly among people aged 16 to 25, and will continue to surge in the next 12 months.
Wilfred
Martini Satin Halter Blouse
Eloquii
Layered Cape Sweater
Reformation
Caden Satin Blazer
Lovers and Friends
Emilia Pant
Curated Hodgepodge
(Image credit: Tyler Joe and Darrel Hunter for Marie Claire/Launchmetrics/Sarahbelle Kim)
Sofia Richie Grainge’s flavor of quiet luxury used to have a firm hold on Gen Z, but the less-is-best approach has officially lost its luster. Among her fellow Zoomers, Kim has observed “a fatigue of neutrals and a craving for things that jolt us from the slop” and “people resonating with craftier, playful styles.” She pinpoints intricate textures and embellishments, such as boas, fringe, and tassels, as coming strongly into play. Personally inspired by Dries Van Noten’s Fall 2025 show, with its ornate, colorful tassels as decorative touches, Kim is now wearing her college graduation honor cords as accessories.
Lyn sees this movement towards handmade touches and textiles as a rejection of TikTok’s favorite “clean girl aesthetic”. “I think the idea of being the perfect, productive, Pilates princess is finally being let go this year,” she says. “Don’t get me wrong—if that’s your life and it works for you, that’s great. But I appreciate the sentiment that we each have our own method to our madness, and nobody is perfect.”
A distressed pair of blue jeans or artisan-made crochet top gets this message across well.
Sea
Adelina Tie-Side Fringed Lace-Paneled Woven Top
SC103
Navy & Beige Links Bag
Levi’s
Wedgie Bootcut Patchwork Women’s Jeans
Lovers and Friends
Kaia Necklace
Why Trust Us
Emma Childs is Marie Claire’s fashion features editor with nearly a decade of experience in the fashion industry. She focuses on in-depth trend reports and stories covering the intersection of style and human-interest storytelling. She spoke with two Gen Z fashion creators, one trend forecaster, and one secondhand expert to compile this roundup of 2026 Gen Z fashion trends.
For more than 30 years, Marie Claire has been an internationally recognized destination for news, fashion, and beauty trends, investigative packages, and more. When it comes to the products Marie Claire recommends, we take your faith in us seriously. Every product that we feature comes personally recommended by a Marie Claire writer or editor, or by an expert we’ve spoken to firsthand.
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