What Is Business Casual?

What does business casual mean?

The Emily Post Institute admits the problem up front: 'Casual business attire is pretty ambiguous, but generally means slacks, khakis, or a skirt with a dress shirt, blouse or polo. Dresses and seasonal sport coats fall into this dress code as well.' Its business casual guide gives the working rule. What's acceptable is 'about one notch down the formality chain from the usual expectations', so the code has two versions. Where people usually wear suits, it means a jacket, a button-down dress shirt with the tie optional, slacks and loafers. Where they don't, it means an optional sweater, a button-down, chinos or khakis, and casual leather shoes or 'well kept sneakers'. Indeed's guide, updated in June 2026, adds that a tech company and a financial firm draw the line in different places. The code started as a shirt promotion. The Honolulu Star-Bulletin reported that in 1966 the Hawaiian Fashion Guild persuaded Bank of Hawaii officer Willie Cannon to let staff wear aloha shirts on Fridays. In 1992 Dockers mailed an eight-page brochure, 'A Guide to Casual Businesswear', to 25,000 human resources managers, Marketplace reported in 2012. Wall Street came late: when Goldman Sachs relaxed its code in March 2019, CBS News noted that JPMorgan Chase had adopted everyday business casual nearly three years earlier.

Where business casual sits on the ladder

Business casual for women

1. 
   01

   Charcoal sheath dress

   Indeed's 2026 starter list names 'A sheath dress to pair with another layer', and Emily Post's definition counts dresses in. Under a cardigan it's the less dressy version of the code; under a blazer, the dressier one.

2. 
   02

   Heather-grey knee-length A-line skirt

   Indeed lists 'Modest skirts (knee-length, A-line)'. The knee keeps it inside the 'nothing too short or low cut' line from the Posts' 2022 rundown for the Associated Press.

3. 
   03

   Chambray button-down shirt

   On Indeed's starter list, and Emily Post's less dressy version asks for a button-down, 'dress or casual'. Chambray sits one notch softer than a white poplin dress shirt, which is exactly the step the code asks for.

4. 
   04

   Stone chinos

   Emily Post's definition names khakis right after slacks, and Indeed lists chinos and khakis together. A straight, pressed leg keeps them in the office and out of the weekend.

5. 
   05

   Navy knit polo

   Emily Post's women's list includes a knit shirt, and her definition names the polo outright. A fine-gauge knit with a collar sits between a blouse and the plain T-shirt she saves for casual.

6. 
   06

   Black leather low-heel pumps

   Emily Post: 'Stick to closed toe shoes as long as the word business is in the description.' Indeed lists pumps alongside loafers, flats and Oxfords; a low heel gets you through a commute and a client meeting.

7. 
   07

   Camel single-breasted wool coat

   Indeed's list ends with a coat, noting 'single-breasted isn't too formal'. In a New York December averaging 7°C/45°F by day (NOAA), it's the first thing a client sees when you walk in.

Business casual for men

1. 01

   Seasonal sport coat or blazer

   Emily Post: 'Seasonal sport coat or blazer with slacks or khakis.' In a suit office it's the jacket that stays on; in a casual one, her less dressy version swaps it for a sweater.

2. 02

   Dress shirt, button-down or polo

   All three are on Emily Post's list. Tuck any shirt with an uneven hem, and wear a belt with it.

3. 03

   Slacks or khakis, pressed

   Indeed's 2026 interview example is loafers, slacks and a pressed white button-down. Emily Post adds that a step down in formality doesn't lower the standard of care and cleanliness.

4. 04

   Loafers or casual lace-ups

   Emily Post: 'Loafers or loafer-style shoes, and socks.' Her less dressy version allows 'well kept sneakers', and Indeed lists lifestyle sneakers in leather or canvas.

Business casual in winter and summer

Winter. New York's December averages 7°C/45°F by day and 1°C/34°F at night (NOAA). Emily Post calls the sport coat 'seasonal', so move to wool or tweed and wear a fine knit or turtleneck under it. Indeed's starter list closes with a single-breasted coat, which it says isn't too formal for the code.

Summer. New York's July averages 29°C/84°F by day (NOAA), but Emily Post points out that 'Most offices are kept extra-cool in the summer months', which makes shorts 'a poor option anyway'. Her summer guide calls sandals 'hit or miss', lets stockings stay in the drawer, and rules out strapless dresses and spaghetti-strap tops. Debrett's 2022 heatwave advice for British offices is looser: tailored dark shorts to the knee and smart open-toed sandals in informal workplaces.

Reading the invitation

• “Business casual” — On an invitation, the Posts' 2022 rundown says 'it may be up to you to figure out what's acceptable'. Start with slacks or a skirt and a collared shirt or blouse.
• “Business attire” — The step up. 'The safest bet is suits and ties', the same rundown says, with dress slacks and a dressy top or a conservative dress for women.
• “Casual Friday” — One notch below your usual. Emily Post: 'If you usually wear a suit to work, casual Friday might mean jackets and no ties.'
• “Smart casual” — The neighbour. Indeed (2026) says it adds trendier pieces to business casual; err toward business casual until you know the room.

A suggested look — blue chambray button-down shirt, stone chinos, black leather low-heel pumps.

What to avoid

• spaghetti straps or a low neckline — Emily Post's women's list rules out both, and her summer guide adds strapless dresses
• sandals when 'business' is in the code — Emily Post: 'Stick to closed toe shoes as long as the word business is in the description'
• gym clothes — Emily Post reminds you that business casual is still 'a workplace standard'
• torn, worn or threadbare clothes — a step down in formality 'does not change any expectations about the care and cleanliness of what you wear'
• ripped jeans and flip-flops — Emily Post warns that the one person who goes too far is the one who 'gets the policy changed for everyone else'

Continue planning

• The business-casual capsule

  Fifteen pieces and six office outfits for this code, worked out.