The Best Polos, From Budget to Luxury
Updated July 2026 · 13 brands compared
We may earn a commission if you buy through this link, at no extra cost to you.
We line up 13 brands — one representative polo from each — and sort them by price tier, from $22 (Nautica) up to $155 (Sunspel).
At a glance
Budget
· Under $35
At its usual $20-25 street price the Deck Polo is fair budget-tier value for an all-cotton polo; the $54.50 list is brand positioning that Nautica's own site rarely enforces.
At $29.90 this sits squarely in the budget tier, and the price is genuinely fair rather than positioning: an independent six-polo comparison ranked it tied for first and named it best value against shirts costing several times more.
Mid
· $35 – $70
At its usual marked-down price of about $69 it is fair mid-tier money for an all-cotton polo with this level of finishing. The $120 list price is premium-tier and largely brand positioning; the line is discounted often enough that paying…
Premium
· $70 – $130
At $70 it sits right at the mid-to-premium boundary and is the cheapest polo Taylor Stitch sells; the organic fabric and garment-dye finish are real, though part of the price is the brand's responsible-sourcing positioning. Within a line…
At $79.50 it sits at the lower edge of the premium tier, and the Supima cotton plus no-iron finish account for some of that. Part of the price is the brand's premium-menswear positioning rather than a measurable fabric advantage, so buy…
At the $98 list price it sits in the premium tier, and part of that price is brand positioning — the pique is thin for that money. Everlane marks the line down constantly, and at the common $23–$49 sale prices it is genuinely good value.
At $98.50 list it sits mid-premium, and part of that price is the Golden Fleece name rather than the fabric alone. The brand discounts so aggressively — sale prices between roughly $40 and $74 were live at the time of research — that pay…
At $108 list it sits in the upper half of the premium tier, and part of that price is brand positioning for a single-fiber cotton knit. The line is discounted often enough that paying full price is rarely necessary.
At $110 full price it sits near the top of the premium tier, and part of that is the crocodile: independent reviewers call it an above-average polo rather than a luxury-grade one. Frequent 40-50% markdowns bring it down to a defensible m…
At $118 it sits near the top of the premium tier, and part of that price is plainly the pony logo and brand recognition rather than fabric alone. Frequent sales into the $99 range bring it closer to fair for what the shirt is.
At $129 list it sits at the very top of the premium tier, and part of that price is the BOSS name rather than fabric you cannot get for less. The line is discounted often — Hugo Boss's own site was showing a variant at 47% off — so on-sa…
Luxury
· $130+
At $135 it sits at the bottom of the luxury tier, and part of that price is the brand's Los Angeles positioning rather than measurable construction advantages; longtime buyers say the polos were once priced more reasonably. The fabric fe…
At $155 the Riviera sits at the bottom of the luxury tier, and part of that price is heritage positioning. Independent reviewers who compared it directly against cheaper polos still judged the fabric and finishing genuinely better, so th…
Where the money goes at each tier: The real cost of denim →
Still deciding between two?
Wear a brand we haven't ranked? Suggest it — it gets the same review as everyone else.
Prices reflect each brand's representative polo and may change. Our take on each is editorial and independent — not the brands' own claims.