Oh black denim, will I ever wear anything more in the fall and winter months? I think not [excluding leggings of course ;)]. There’s just something about the cooler seasons that always has me gravitating towards black jeans – I think mostly because whenever I put them on I instantly feel like I’m “dressy” and well, my oversized sweaters and sweatshirts need all of the help they can get sometimes. Whether it’s a girls night, date night, concert, if it’s happening at night, I’m wearing them.

While they are great and all [hi slimming abilities!] they can be a bit of pain thanks to their fade factor [see tips on how to prevent this below under what I ranked] or lint collecting capabilities. After owning and wearing several pairs of black jeans over the past couple of years, I thought it would be fun to go on a quest of finding the best of the best. Let’s get down to business and see which black jeans will remain hanging in my closet and which ones will be collecting dust…

The Black Jeans I Compared:

• PAIGE Transcend – Verdugo Ankle Ultra Skinny Jeans
• Wit & Wisdom Ab-solution Skinny Ankle Jeans
• Old Navy High-Waisted Rockstar Super Skinny Jeans For Women
• American Eagle High-Waisted Jegging
• Women’s Mid-Rise Jeggings – Universal ThreadTM Black
• Abercrombie & Fitch Curve Love High Rise Skinny Jeans

What I Ranked:

Fade Factor: One of the biggest pain points with black jeans — you wear them once, wash them, and suddenly your favorite pair of black jeans are your new favorite pair of gray jeans. I wore and washed the jeans to be able to give true results! NOTE: To keep your black jeans from fading, I’d recommend turning your jeans inside out before washing, wash on delicate cycle and air dry! These 3 tips can help make a big difference!

Lint Collecting: Another annoyance — lint. We put the jeans to the true test by rubbing them against the fuzziest sweatshirt we could find and then noted how well it deflected said link or attracted every last ounce of it.

Quality: Do they stretch out with wear? Will they get a hole in the crotch after two wears [it’s a good question to ask yourself] or will they last for the end of time? These factors were taken into consideration!

Overall Fit: Of course, like any pair of jeans, you want them to look good and feel good. I noted how they felt fit-wise and then re-evaluated after looking at the pictures of them to make a final decision on just how good [or not so good] they fit!

The Pairs I’d Recommend:

Wit & Wisdom Ab-solution Skinny Ankle Jeans [Fit Tip: Size down one]

jacket [true to size, wearing in small] // similar cami [true to size] // jeans [size down] // heels [true to size]

I don’t know if I’ve ever worn a more comfortable pair of black jeans. Their ab-solution waistband [also read: elastic] makes them so comfy and makes me want to reach for them every time I go to wear black jeans. I will say that while I love them, they do fade with time. I have owned these for years and I have noticed that by the time a new year roles around I am ready to buy a new pair of them to get that true black color back. You do want to size down one as they run a little big. If comfort is what you’re looking for on your nights out, I would buy these.

PAIGE Transcend – Verdugo Ankle Ultra Skinny Jeans [Fit Tip: True to size]

jacket [true to size, wearing in small] // similar cami [true to size] // jeans [true to size] // heels [true to size]

The splurge of the group, it was no surprise that these felt incredible on. These collected the least amount of lint thanks to their magical fabric, however, I didn’t love the ankles being a little loose. I have washed these several times and the black is still quite black which I’m happy about [especially considering I wouldn’t want to have to replace this pair every year]. These are very smoothing and you can feel the quality. If you’re looking to spend a little more on a pair of jeans that should last for seasons, these would be my pick!

American Eagle High-Waisted Jegging: Fit Tip – Size up if in between!

jacket [true to size, wearing in small] // similar cami [true to size] // jeans [size up if in between] // heels [true to size]

I couldn’t believe just how soft these were when putting on, but even better than the softness — how slimming they were. Bye bye cellulite, these seemed to hide it all. They didn’t collect much lint in our test and they are still very black after washing. My only con was that they do run small so definitely size up if in between. I am wearing in short length for 5’4 but highly recommend!

Old Navy High-Waisted Rockstar Super Skinny Jeans For Women [Fit Tip: True to size]

jacket [true to size, wearing in small] // similar cami [true to size] // jeans [true to size] // heels [true to size]

This pair from Old Navy was a pleasant surprise! The fit was perfect [I love a good high rise] and they were super stretchy without stretching out. The biggest annoyance with this pair was that they do collect more lint than some others. I did notice that with washing they faded some but for the price, I felt like these were a great value! I loved the fit of these overall and they were the perfect length in petite for my 5’4 self!

The Pairs I Didn’t Love:

Abercrombie & Fitch Curve Love High Rise Skinny Jeans

jacket [true to size, wearing in small] // similar cami [true to size] // jeans [true to size] // heels [true to size]

These were probably my biggest disappointment in the jeans that I tried, mostly due to the fit. They were a little baggy overall along with the ankles being loose. They didn’t seem to be that slimming or smoothing and did collect a decent amount of lint in our test. I feel like your dollars can buy you better, I’d pass.

Women’s Mid-Rise Jeggings – Universal ThreadTM Black

jacket [true to size, wearing in small] // similar cami [true to size] // jeans [true to size] // heels [true to size]

I was really excited about these at first, but then as the day continued I noticed just how much they seemed to stretch out. They do collect a considerable amount of lint which unless you’re trying to look like a walking dog hair collector, maybe steer clear. While they are an inexpensive option, I would much rather buy the Old Navy pair than these.

Now that I’ve owned all of them for a period of time, the two that I keep wearing when I go to reach for black jeans are the Wit & Wisdom and Paige which ultimately tells me the two that I really love the most. I hope this helps guide you in your black denim purchase — what brand[s] do you love the most when it comes to black denim? Do share, I’m all ears…