Best Shirts for Workwear: What Brands to Buy and How to Wear Them (with Fit, Fabric and Function in Mind)

In a modern professional wardrobe, the work shirt is not just a basic—it’s a precision garment that communicates your personal style, professionalism, and even your industry. However, finding a shirt that fits correctly, suits your body type, and aligns with your work environment is more technical than simply choosing between white or blue.

Why Work Shirts Matter: Function Over Fashion

The average professional spends over 2,000 hours a year in workwear. Poorly fitting shirts can cause discomfort, restrict mobility, or send the wrong visual signals. Whether you’re in corporate finance, digital marketing, or a design-led creative field, the shirt you wear is part of your uniform—and should be both functional and adaptable.

Key attributes of an effective work shirt include:

• Accurate fit across shoulders, chest, waist, and sleeve length

• Functional fabrics with wrinkle-resistance, breathability or stretch

• A style that reflects your role and company culture

• Durability for long-term wear

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1. Technical Shirt Styles for Different Work Environments

Structured Button-Down (Oxford or Twill Weave)

• Recommended For: Formal offices, finance, law, leadership roles

• Technical Features: Sturdy collar, reinforced placket, 100% cotton or cotton-elastane blend for structure

• Pros: High durability, maintains structure through the day

• Cons: Heavier weaves can feel warm in summer months

Poplin or Broadcloth Shirt

• Recommended For: Business-casual workplaces, presentations, video meetings

• Technical Features: Fine plain weave, typically 100% cotton or cotton-poly blends

• Pros: Crisp appearance, easy to layer under jackets

• Cons: Slightly prone to wrinkles without wrinkle-free treatment

Stretch-Cotton or Tencel Blend Shirts

• Recommended For: Hybrid work environments, extended wear

• Technical Features: Elastane (2-5%) for movement, moisture-wicking finish, sometimes wrinkle-resistant

• Pros: Comfort-focused, less restrictive, technical fibres improve drape

• Cons: May lose shape over time if not cared for properly

Oversized or Relaxed Fit Shirts

• Recommended For: Creative, casual, or fashion-led roles

• Technical Features: Drop shoulders, looser cut through torso, sometimes longer hems

• Pros: Modern silhouette, body-type inclusive

• Cons: Not suitable for formal environments without structure

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2. Fabric Matters: Technical Overview of Work Shirt Materials

💡 Tellar.co.uk’s Shirt Fabric Guide breaks down these blends with care instructions and buying tips.

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3. Brand Recommendations: Tested for Fit, Performance, and Style

🔹 High-Street Brands

Cost-effective, widely available, with consistent sizing when measured correctly using tools like Tellar.co.uk’s profile matcher.

▶ Try the Store Lookup Tool on Tellar to find your exact size in Massimo Dutti, Uniqlo, and more.

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🔸 Luxury and Designer Brands

For long-term investments and premium quality fibres and tailoring.

🧠 Use Tellar to find your fit in Eton, Reiss or ME+EM—accurate sizing saves time, money, and frustration.

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4. Fit by Body Type: Technical Shirt Adjustments That Matter

Each body shape presents unique requirements. Ill-fitting shirts not only look off—they restrict movement and can wear unevenly.

Explore our guide on body-specific fits for shirts to refine your workwear even further.

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5. Smart Shirt Styling for the Modern Workplace

Formal Corporate

• Key Features: Button cuffs, medium spread collar, tuck-friendly hem

• Colours: White, light blue, pale grey

• Brands: Reiss, Eton, M&S

Smart-Casual

• Key Features: Band or grandad collars, optional chest pocket, slightly relaxed fit

• Colours: Dusty pink, olive, striped

• Brands: Massimo Dutti, Uniqlo, & Other Stories

Casual/Remote

• Key Features: Soft fabric, relaxed collar, high arm mobility

• Colours: Sage, cream, denim

• Brands: COS, ME+EM, Theory

📍 Fit tip: Always check shoulder seam alignment, sleeve length, and torso tapering—use a tool like Tellar.co.uk’s measurement-to-size matcher to calibrate correctly across brands.

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6. The Problem with Sizing—and the Solution

Why sizes vary:

• EU, UK, and US size chart mismatches

• Different fit philosophies (e.g. Eton = slim cut; Uniqlo = box cut)

• Use of vanity sizing (especially in women’s high street brands)

• Style-specific allowances (e.g., oversized vs tailored)

🧠 This is why Tellar.co.uk exists: a data-driven platform that matches your measurements to actual brand size data. It removes the guesswork, fits you perfectly, and shows you which exact size to buy in over 1,500+ stores.

🎯 Create your profile here—it’s free and instant

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7. Additional Technical Tips When Buying Work Shirts

• Fit Accuracy: Shoulder seam should sit at the edge of your natural shoulder.

• Sleeve Fit: Cuffs should end where your wrist meets your hand; not before.

• Torso Tapering: Slight waist suppression should follow your natural shape.

• Movement Test: You should be able to raise your arms and rotate without tightness.

• Maintenance: Opt for easy-care or wrinkle-free fabrics to avoid daily ironing.

🧵 Use the right collar for your face shape:

• Point collars elongate rounder faces

• Spread collars flatter narrow faces

• Grandad collars are modern but best for casual offices

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Final Word: Upgrade Your Shirt Game with Precision

A well-chosen work shirt is a tool, not just a garment. It supports movement, breathes through long hours, and communicates professionalism across industries. Whether you’re dressing for finance, design, teaching, or tech, the right fit and fabric matter—and they vary more than most people realise.

❌ Don’t rely on label sizes.
✅ Use real data. Use Tellar.

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✅ Start Now – Tellar.co.uk

“Find your size in 1,500+ brands real-time. It’s free & easy”

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Explore More:

• What Material is Best for a Shirt?

• Shirts and Body Shape: What Fits Best

• Designer vs High Street Shirt Brands