A blue suit is a classic menswear item that has long been a staple in every gent’s wardrobe. Its timeless appeal and neutral color make it an enduring style that can be worn time and time again. Not only suitable for the office, but a blue suit can work for any occasion. Whether you’re off to a business meeting, wedding, or cocktail function, a blue suit can make a smart choice, so long as you pair it with the right shirt. While opting for a suit means that your pants and jacket are already coordinated, it’s up to you to pick the perfect shirt. That means, selecting a color that’ll create your ideal look and compliment instead of clash.

The blue suit is the ultimate wardrobe staple. It’s timeless, versatile, and can be worn with almost anything. But what do you do when you want to spice up your suiting game?

Here are some tips on what shirts to wear with a blue suit:

1) White button-down shirt: A white button-down shirt is a great option for a super-classic look. It’ll go well with any tie that matches your suit, and it’s easy to dress up or down depending on if you’re going for a formal or casual look.

2) Plaid button-down shirt: Plaids are always in style, so try them out for your next business casual outfit! Add some color by pairing your plaid shirt with a navy tie and dark jeans for an easy yet sophisticated look.

3) Light blue button-down shirt: This color is more playful than navy, but still maintains some of its seriousness. Try wearing this with tan pants if you want something that has just enough edge while still being professional!

Shirts to Wear with a Blue Suit

A blue suit is a classic menswear item that has long been a staple in every gent’s wardrobe. Its classic style and neutral color make it a style that you can wear again and again. Not only is a blue suit suitable for the office, but it can work for any occasion. Whether you’re off to a business meeting, wedding, or cocktail function, a blue suit can be a smart choice, so long as you pair it with the right shirt. While opting for a suit means that your pants and jacket are already coordinated, it’s up to you to pick the perfect shirt. That means choosing a color that will complement rather than clash with your desired look.


Best Shirts to Wear With a Blue Suit
The beauty of a blue suit is that it’s versatile. Not only does this mean that you can wear it for countless occasions, but it also means that you can match it with a broad range of shirts. Of course, certain styles will always look better than others. In particular, five key shirts are a cut above the rest. Be sure to keep them on hand in your wardrobe to ensure your blue suit always makes you look stylish.

Blue Suit / White Shirt
If you’re unsure what shirt to wear with your blue suit, white is a failsafe option. The combination is so simple that anyone can pull it off. The clean and crisp shade of white is classic and looks seriously stylish when paired with cool, blue tones. The partnership is perfect for formal occasions, particularly if the suit is navy and classic accessories are added. Don’t be afraid to wear a bold tie, either. A pop of color against a neutral white shirt and blue suit will create a sharp edge. For gents off to a more casual setting, try a lighter blue suit with your white shirt and wear it sans tie with sneakers.

Blue Suit White Shirt

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  • Turnbull & Asser White Bib Front Cotton Tuxedo Shirt
    Ivory Bib Front Cotton Voile Shirt

White Cutaway Collar Slub Linen Shirt
White Jenno Slim Fit Cotton Shirt

Blue Suit / Pale Blue Shirt
The combination of a blue suit with a pale blue shirt works surprisingly well and should be added to your list of regular outfits. A great alternative to a traditional white shirt, a light blue style carries the same classic feel while appearing softer when paired with more blue. While the contrast is less stark than it is with a white shirt, a few shades of distinction between your suit and shirt are needed to create a clean look. As a light blue suit with a pale blue shirt can easily clash, be sure only to pair this shirt with navy or mid-blue suits.

Blue Suit Pale Blue Shirt

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  • Turnbull & Asser Light Blue Puppytooth Cotton Shirt
    Blue Slim Fit Striped Cotton Shirt

Sky Blue Striped Cotton Oxford Shirt
Light Blue Cutaway Collar Slub Cotton And Linen Blend Shirt

Blue Suit / Pink Shirt
Gents are embracing pink shirts more and more, and the results are sophisticated and stylish. While pink shirts look great with grey suits, they also produce a seriously sharp appearance when paired with blue. The color combination, which offers a nice contrast, is ideal for creating a modern look. While the partnership can be worn on countless occasions, it works particularly well for times when you want to look smart and fashionable but not traditionally formal. To ensure you pull off this look, stick to lighter shades of pink and pastel hues. These tones will match with any shade of blue without the risk of color clashing.

Blue Suit Pink Shirt

Blue Suit / Grey Shirt
If you’re after an effortlessly smart look for your blue suit, how about trying it with a grey shirt? The combination, which is decidedly more contemporary than a white shirt, breaks from tradition while remaining stylish and sophisticated. The cool tone of grey creates a soft contrast with blue hues, achieving an elegant yet understated vibe. To make the most of this dapper pair, choose accessories in similar tones to the muted hues. Doing so will create a sleek and suave style without any harsh color clashes. If you do want to wear bold accessories, such as a vibrant tie, it’s best to opt for a plain white shirt instead of grey.

Blue-Suit-Grey-Shirt

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Grey Slim Fit Puppytooth Cotton Shirt
Light Grey Slim Fit Prince Of Wales Checked Cotton Shirt

Grey Slim Fit Prince Of Wales Checked Cotton Shirt
Grey Puppytooth Cotton Shirt

Blue Suit / Printed Shirt
While blue suits make a great classic option, their traditional tone can sometimes appear a little underwhelming. If you feel like you want to make a bigger statement with your blue suit, try pairing it with a printed shirt. A printed shirt can be just the feature your outfit needs to give it a fashionable twist. Choose between stripes, checks, gingham, polka dots, paisley, and more to find the perfect print for you. Just be careful about what colors you choose as they may clash with your suit. A simple way to ensure your shirt will match is to choose one with a white base color and a softly toned print.

Blue Suit Printed Shirt

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Blue Slim Fit Micro Paisley Print Cotton Blend Shirt
White Slim Fit Cutaway Collar Printed Cotton Poplin Shirt

Gingham Brushed Cotton Shirt
Blue Cleric Slim Fit Penny Collar Striped Cotton Oxford Shirt

Blue Suit Color Options
Rather than just a single type of suit, a blue suit refers to a whole category of options. As the color blue is not just one shade, but rather a whole variety of hues within a family, it can refer to any number of tones. As such, what type of blue suit you choose can affect how and where you wear it. To ensure you select the right blue suit for you, be sure to look out for the three main categories when shopping: light blue, mid blue, and navy. Ideally, gents should own at least one suit in each of these categories to ensure a well-rounded wardrobe. Of course, there are then further shades within these three categories, but they’re a good place to start.

Light Blue Suit
The light blue suit is the most casual of all blue suit types. While navy tones appear traditional and formal, soft tones project a fresh, casual, and contemporary feeling. This feeling makes them perfect for semi-formal and cocktail occasions. On top of that, light blue suits are also a fantastic choice for the summer months when dark hues, such as navy, appear too heavy and dull. While this light color is something to appreciate, it’s also something of which to be wary. To avoid clashing with your shirt, stick to light contrasting colors, such as white and soft pink.

Light Blue Suit

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Light Blue A Suit To Travel In Soho Slim Fit Wool Suit Jacket
Light Blue Slim Fit Tech Twill Suit

Light Blue Soho Slim Fit Wool And Mohair Blend Suit
Sky Blue Linen Suit Jacket

Mid Blue Suit
Mid blue suits have become exceedingly popular in recent years with gents donning them more and more. The brighter hue is less formal than traditional navy suits and carries a fantastic, contemporary feel. The unique tone also pairs particularly well with crisp, white shirts and light blue styles. To wear a mid-blue suit for more formal occasions, such as weddings, partner it with a pair of brown leather derby shoes. For less formal events, consider trying some loafers.

Mid Blue Suit

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Blue Kei Slim Fit Linen And Wool Blend Suit Jacket
Storm Blue Linen Suit Jacket

Navy Slim Fit Linen Suit Jacket
Blue K Jacket Unstructured Stretch Cotton Twill Suit Jacket

Navy Suit
Navy suits are the most traditional type of blue suit. As such, they’re perfect for formal and business occasions, including work in an office and business meetings along with formal dinners and functions. Wearing your navy suit with a classic white shirt will create the ultimate sophisticated style. The combination can even be used as a stylish replacement to a classic black suit. Just ensure that your accessories are suitably formal. A leather belt and Oxford shoes in either brown or black will do the trick. For a more casual look, try softly colored shirts, such as a pink design.

The Color Wheel
The color wheel tool helps us establish the basis of all color combos. Understanding the wheel allows you to explore different combinations, concepts, and styles.

The Color Wheel

As you can see, the color wheel is split into cold and warm colors. The cool, calm colors are on the left, and the warmer, more vibrant colors are right.

The color wheel enables you to create near-to-perfect matching combinations. But be aware that the wheel is meant to be a guide only. There are no hard and fast rules.

The best way to learn color combinations is through your personal experience.

So by following the color wheel, we can create four basic combo color schemes:

Single Color Scheme
Blue Suit with a light blue shirt and a blue tie
SHOP THE LOOK

dark blue linen suit by Suitsupply
Solid navy tie by the Tie Barbrown derby shoes by Bruno Marc

The single color scheme leads to the same color combination for your suit, shirt, and tie. This is the most straightforward scheme to achieve and is a great place to start for every outfit.

All you need is to match darker and lighter shades of the same color. A mid-blue suit with a light blue shirt and a dark blue tie is a great example.

Analog Color Scheme
Blue suit with a purple shirt and slightly darker purple tie
With the analog scheme, you match up similar colors. If you look at the wheel, you can see that similar colors are neighboring colors, i.e., adjacent colors.

This means you can wear a warm tie with a slightly cooler suit and shirt. In addition, analog color schemes can be very pleasing to the human eye.

You can match a blue suit with a light purple shirt and a slightly darker purple tie as an example of this color scheme. Looks good, doesn’t it?

Triad Color Scheme
Blue suit matched with a red tie
SHOP THE LOOK

Two-piece classic stretch blue suit by Tomasso BlackKenneth Cole slim fit shirt in white color
Burgundy tie polka with white dots by Scott AllenBrown monk strap shoes by Kenneth Cole

Here you can match colors three slots apart from each other.

The contrast combo brings harmony to your look, but it can be difficult to visualize. Blue and red, for example, are opposite sides of the wheel.

So, they should clash. The trick here is to pair the darker tones of each component.

For example, match a scarlet tie with a light-blue shirt and a blue suit, and you’re sure to make an impact.

Complementary Color Scheme
Blue Suit matched with an orange tie
These colors lie on opposing sides of the wheel, making the complementary scheme one of the hardest to pull off.

Experience helps here, but one rule of thumb states your tie should be darker than your shirt.

One perfect complementary color scheme example will be matching a blue suit, a light-blue shirt, and an orange tie. This combination is a real trendsetter nowadays.

Want to explore deeper? Let’s say you wear your dark blue suit with a pale orange shirt. The ideal tie color could be either dark green or dark red.

Sounds a bit wild? Not according to the color chart. Try it and see.

Choose the Blue Suit by Fit
Blue displays confidence, but so does the man in the suit. We’ve talked about how a suit should fit and its importance many times by now.

how to fit your suit

Believe it or not, fitting your suit defines you. Thus, getting the correct fit and measurements is crucially important.

Classic Fit Blue Suits
If your preferred fit is classic, blue can pair extremely well with the suit you’ve chosen.

Classic fit suits are often chosen for work and business occasions or any other formal events. As a matter of fact, they can be a marvelous choice for weddings, too.

For your convenience, I’ve selected some best-selling classic and modern-fit blue suits sold online. Feel free to take a look:

Each shirt has its distinctive features, silhouette, style element, and color.

Therefore, when choosing a shirt for your blue suit, consider also the various aspects of the shirt, not just the color.

You’re looking for a shirt that will embolden your blue look. Thus, you can never go wrong with a crisp and clean white shirt matched with a blue suit. Period.

Blue suit and white shirt color combination
A tie adds the final flourish to your look. And again, your blue suit is the perfect canvas, just waiting for the right tie to make a real statement.

The tie can also be a subtle touch that projects quiet confidence and a relaxed ego. You decide!

Ties have been essential menswear components since, well, forever. The right tie can transform your look and considerably up the appeal of your blue suit.

Here are a few blue suit/shirt/tie combinations worth playing around with until you find what works for you. Remember, it’s not just the color of the tie that counts. The shape and texture play important roles too.

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