Search for black motorcycle jeans and you will find plenty of style advice, but very little about how colour behaves once you are actually riding. Black and blue are the two colours most riders choose between, and the choice changes more than the look: it affects how oil and dust show, how the denim ages and how easily the jeans pass for everyday clothes. This guide compares the two and helps you match the colour to the way you ride. We use the NORDRYK Redback motorcycle jeans, which come in both colours, as the example.
Black Motorcycle Jeans: The Low-Key Choice
Black is the default for good reasons. It goes with every jacket, helmet and pair of boots, and it hides the oil and chain grease you pick up around a bike better than any lighter shade. Off the bike, black jeans read as smart-casual, which is why many commuters start here.
The trade-offs are small. Black shows dust and lint, and it warms up faster than lighter colours in direct sun. It also fades: with sun and repeated washing, black denim softens towards charcoal, so the deepest black is the one you have on day one. If you are weighing black against olive, sand or camo in a cargo cut, our guide to camo, olive and black motorcycle trousers compares them all.
Blue Motorcycle Jeans: The Everyday Look
Blue is the colour most people picture when they think of jeans, and that is its strength. A pair of blue motorcycle jeans looks like the ordinary denim in everyone else's wardrobe, so it blends in at a café, a shop or a friend's kitchen without a second glance. It suits relaxed outfits too: a plain T-shirt, a checked shirt, trainers.
Mid-blue is also more forgiving than black about dust, because pale road dirt stands out less against it. Oil and grease are its weak point, as they show up as darker marks. Both colours are the same Redback jeans: stretch denim with a breathable mesh lining and the protection built into the fabric, in sizes XS to 5XL and three leg lengths (76, 81 and 86 cm).
How Black and Blue Denim Age
Colour decides how your jeans look after a season, not just on day one. Indigo blue sits on the surface of the yarn, so it lightens gradually where the denim flexes: the knees, the thighs and the creases behind the knee. Black drifts towards charcoal overall, and fresh dark denim can bleed a little in the first few washes. Care is the same for both colours, and it is simple:
- Wash at 30 °C on a gentle cycle.
- Turn the jeans inside out so the surface takes less rubbing.
- Wash dark colours on their own for the first few washes, in case dye runs.
- Dry them in the shade and skip the tumble dryer, because strong sun fades blue and black alike.
Which Colour Suits the Way You Ride
Pick the colour for how you ride, not for the catalogue photo:
- Commuting or riding to work: black. It looks smarter at a desk and hides the oil and grease you pick up around a bike.
- Weekend rides and café stops: blue. It looks like everyone else's jeans, which helps when you park up and walk in.
- Dusty, dry roads: blue, because pale dust shows less on it.
- Full summer sun: blue again, as darker colours absorb more heat. Airflow matters more than colour, though.
One thing colour does not change is how visible you are to other road users. Neither black nor blue helps a driver spot you, and dark clothing blends into dusk and wet tarmac. Our guide to hi-vis motorcycle trousers explains what does help.
If you would rather have black without the denim, the RoadVault cargo trousers and the Sentinel trousers both come in black. And if you are unsure whether ordinary denim would do, our guide to wearing jeans on a motorcycle shows where it falls short.
Common Questions
Do black motorcycle jeans get hotter than blue ones?
Slightly, in direct sun. Darker fabric absorbs more heat, so black warms up faster when you are stopped or riding slowly. Once you are moving, the breathable mesh lining and the airflow do more for comfort than the colour does, although in high summer a jean is still a jean.
Will black motorcycle jeans fade?
Yes, gradually. With sun and repeated washing, black denim softens towards charcoal. Washing at 30 °C, turning the jeans inside out and drying them in the shade all slow it down. Blue fades too, but it lightens along the knees and creases instead, which many riders see as character.
Are the sizes and leg lengths the same in both colours?
Yes. Blue and black are the same Redback jeans, in sizes XS to 5XL with leg lengths of 76, 81 and 86 cm. To choose a length, measure a well-fitting pair from crotch to hem. If you are between two sizes, take the larger one, because the trousers pull a little more in the riding position.
Black, without the denim
Two more black options, cut as cargo trousers
NORDRYK RoadVault — Cargo Motorcycle Trousers
4-way stretch and zipped vent panels, in black, army green or camo.
See the RoadVault →
NORDRYK Sentinel — Motorcycle Trousers
Nyco stretch with an adjustable hem, in black, grey, olive or sand.
See the Sentinel →