Take a good, long look at your footwear rotation. A stylish guy needs options, and the best black boots for men offer up some of the coolest, most versatile styles on the planet (seriously, trust us). It seems that leather boots in their many shades of brown tend to get all the love, but black leather boots for men can provide a nice style swerve if you’re the type of guy who can’t seem to stop wearing boots day in, day out.
What is it about the best black leather boots we love so much? Well, they’re hard to escape these days, be it the fact that James Bond now favors black chukka boots (thank you, Skyfall and Spectre!), not to mention their prevalence as the dressy footwear of choice among a certain set of stylish British gangsters (hello, Peaky Blinders!). You don’t have to turn into a star of the screen to wear some of the best black boots for men, nor do you need to dress in tailored wear all the time to make these essential shoes work for you.
Black leather boots for men are the purview of workwear looks, punk rockers and well-dressed, casually rugged men the world over, and again, there’s no time quite like the cozy confines of fall and winter to lace up or step into the right pair for you. These SPY-approved picks will help you step up your style, literally.
Below, SPY the most stylish black boots men should be rocking this fall and winter.
Read More: 13 Best Casual Men’s Boots
1. Thursday Boots Captain Boots
BEST OVERALL
If you’re new to the world of black boots and the wonders they can do for your style, there might not be a better place to start than Thursday Boots. Affordably priced at under $200, these boots feature a relatively sleek profile meant to be dressed up or down, and they’re set atop a studded rubber outsole for grip and traction. The sleek black leather has an eye-catching shine, and black waxed cotton laces complete the monochromatic, sharp-as-can-be look.
Read More: Thursday Boot Company’s Executive Dress Shoes Offer Premium Back-to-Work Style
2. Nisolo All-Weather Andres Boots
BEST ALL-PURPOSE
Boots are, at their core, meant to be ready for absolutely anything. Finding a pair of black leather boots for men that are office-friendly yet adventure-minded was another story, but Nisolo solved that with these handsome black leather boots boasting a sturdy build and weather-ready black leather. Team them with chinos at the office or blue selvedge jeans over the weekend.
3. Dr. Martens 1460 Smooth Leather Boots
BEST CLASSIC
If you love combat boots, then you love your Doc Martens. Sometimes, what you want in a pair of the best black leather boots for men is just something timeless and straightforward. Dr. Martens’ 1460 Boots have been a style icon in their own right for decades, worn by rockers, the Mod movement, and guys who want a reliable, dependable, and rugged pair of black boots. The smooth leather is visually appealing, as is the classic contrasting yellow sole stitching.
4. Blundstone 558 Chelsea Boots
MOST RUGGED
While black leather boots are ideal for adding a bit of edgy style to your daily ensembles, there are times when you’ve got to step things up a notch, literally and get down and dirty while wearing said boots. Blundstone boots are ideal for everything from yard work to camping trips and day hikes, to name but a few purposes, and the weather-ready 558, with its easy-wearing pull-on style, delivers comfort and utility.
Read More: Meet the Reimagined Blundstone Boot, New for Fall ’22
5. Gordon Rush Sutherland Wingtip Boots
BEST DRESS BOOTS
Black boots, and black footwear in general, have always carried a more formal air (note “black tie” dress codes with shiny black patent leather shoes a requirement, for instance). Black is a sleek, sharp color that gets an even cooler upgrade when done up in wingtip boots, the kind you can easily wear with a wool suit or herringbone trousers come fall and winter, and this Gordon Rush pair amps things up to 11 with a clean profile and premium style details.
6. Thursday Boots Major Zip-Up Boots
BEST ZIP BOOTS
Adding a side zip can take a pair of black leather boots for men from good to great, just by adding a bit of dressy, edgy cool. There’s a reason rock stars favor the side zip boot (hello, Alex Turner) — it’s easy to step into and zip up, literally, and it offers a clean silhouette with slim trousers. You get all that at a decidedly “non-rock star” price with this classic pair from Thursday Boots (priced at under $200).
7. Allen Edmonds Chapman Weatherproof Combat Boots
BEST COMBAT BOOTS
Like so many menswear essentials, the utilitarian roots of the combat boot made them a natural fit for those searching for hard-wearing, up-for-anything footwear, and they’ve only gotten better over the years. Allen Edmonds makes a surprisingly luxe but no less cool and ever-so-slightly edgy take on the combat boot style, complete with weather-ready protection and a tough-as-nails design.
8. New Republic Sonoma Suede Chelsea Boots
BEST CHELSEA BOOTS
We’ve said it before, and we’ll say it again: Black shoes already add a refined touch to any outfit (even simple combinations like black jeans and a classic henley). In that case, it doesn’t get any better than handsome suede Chelsea boots in deep black, especially a pair that retails for under $100 when on sale. Dress these up or down as you please: They’re as stylish and wearable as it gets.
9. Paul Smith Cubitt Leather Boots
BEST LUXURY
If we had to select one set of boots from this list of black leather boots for men that might catch the attention of the oft boot-clad gentlemen of hit gangster drama Peaky Blinders, it might be this pair from Britain’s own Paul Smith. These are exceptionally well-crafted and made to last with luxury in mind, and you should wear them as often as possible with your finest cold-weather tailoring (or any time of year at all, really).
10. Clarks Wallabee Chukka Boots
BEST MOC BOOTS
The Wallabee is one of many timeless styles pioneered by Clarks, with a moc-style design that blends a moc boot with the ankle-height construction of a chukka boot. It all sits atop a springy crepe rubber sole, giving it a hybrid vibe that works with a dressed-down navy cotton suit (sans tie) or with rolled light wash denim, especially in crisp, cool black leather.
Read More: The 12 Best Chukka Boots for Men
11. Wolverine UltraSpring CarbonMax Work Boots
BEST FOR WORK
When the going gets tough, the tough don’t simply stop: They lace up rugged work boots and get to work. And yes, you should consider work boots a worthy addition to any collection of the best black boots for men, as these no-fuss, tough-as-nails boots are meant for days on the job site or the factory floor. Yet, they can also pull double-duty when camping, hiking or working around the yard. They’re also meant to deliver shock absorption and comfort, and you can’t ask for much more than that as far as work boots go.
Read More: 17 Best Work Boots for Men
12. Huckberry All-Weather Duckboots
ALSO CONSIDER
Look, black boots aren’t just ideal for sleek style situations, as you know from reading this post. They’re also a perfect companion when you need a no-frills set of workwear boots, like these hybrid boots that blend the appeal of a duck boot with the lace-up durability of both sneaker boots and hiking boots. Huckberry checks all the right boxes with this highly wearable pair of the best black boots for men.
Read More: 16 Best Men’s Duck Boots