Levi's Low Pro: The Mid-Rise Jean With a Low-Rise Name

On May 20, 1873, a tailor named Jacob Davis, working in Reno, Nevada, and Levi Strauss & Co. were granted U.S. patent No. 139,121 for putting metal rivets at the stress points of work pants. Levi's counts that day as the birthday of the blue jean. Every cut the company has made since descends from it, and that includes the one with the confusing name.

 

Here is the confusing part. The Levi's Low Pro is described by Levi's as a mid rise with a classic straight leg, relaxed and slouchy, inspired by the '90s. On the spec line at size 27 that is a 10.75 inch rise, a 31 inch inseam and a 16 inch leg opening, in 100% cotton with no stretch. I like a jean that tells you its attitude in the cut and not in the label, and this one does. I went deeper on a related idea in High Rise Jean Edit.

 

I will say it plainly once: the Low Pro is mostly sold out right now. Only one colorway, Right Over in light wash, is still around, and only in a waist 24. So the pairs below are the closest in-stock Levi's cuts, and none of them is a Low Pro. Picture her in the Right Over with a boxy gray sweatshirt and white sneakers, the hem just brushing the shoe.

 

For anyone who wants the same easy, lived-in drape, the light wash Low Loose in Future Life or Pick Sides Psk gives you a wide straight leg, and the Low Straight in Blasted Stone Clean is the tidier version. The Superlow Loose in Don't Miss sits much lower, so I would only reach for it with a long, cropped top or a tucked-in tee. Bootcut people get the Superlow Bootcut in All Alone and the Low Slim Boot in Tinted Memories or Blue Shuttle. Tip: Low Loose runs small, so size up one or two.

Seven of these eight are the same jean in different washes, which makes comparing easy. The Low Loose has a low rise and a wide straight leg, and Levi's cut it to run small, so the note on the pair says to size up one or two. That is the first thing I would check before falling for a color.

 

The dark washes, Dream Nice Dreams and Tomorrow Morning, are the ones I would wear to look a little put together: a cream knit, a leather belt, boots underneath the wide leg in October. The medium washes, Rescued City, Shakey Ground, Good Grades Tencel and Lost In Translation, are softer and read more like the jeans you have owned for years. Good Grades Tencel is the name that hints at a Tencel blend, so I would read that product page for the fabric before assuming anything.

 

The Low Straight in Happy Tale is the narrower one here, a medium wash with an early-aughts low rise and a straight leg. It suits someone who likes the low rise but not the volume.

 

Fitting test: sit down, then bend to tie a shoe. A low rise that stays put while you do that is the right size. What I would skip: a dark wash if you plan to wear it with a long coat in the same dark color, because the legs vanish.

Color is where a cut like this gets interesting, and it is also where fabric matters, because a white or gray denim shows every pocket and seam. The Low Loose here comes in Tech Storm black, To The Bone white, Boss Business gray, Rose Up Ll pink and Washed Bracken brown, all with the same wide straight leg and relaxed fit.

 

In our fashion dreams, black Tech Storm goes with a fitted turtleneck and loafers, which is the most useful version of this whole edit. The brown Washed Bracken is my pick for fall: a cream cable knit and a suede jacket do the rest. The Canteen corduroy is brown too, with a low rise and a wide leg, and it is the one I would wear when the weather turns cold. Rose Up Ll is the playful one, best kept simple with a white tee.

 

If you want a slimmer leg, the Low Straight in Tech Storm is the black option, and the Superlow Bootcut in Crew Look is black with a low rise of 8 5/8 inches and an 18 inch opening, a real early-aughts shape. Test any light color by holding the denim over your hand in daylight: if you can see your fingers through it, add a layer.

 

What I would skip: white To The Bone for a day of travel or street food. Wait for a dry, easy day.

The 501 is the blueprint. Levi's says it goes back to 1873 and calls it the blueprint for modern jeans, and the 501 '90s in Office Refresh and Flash Full is the looser, vintage-leaning version of it, a mid-rise with a loose straight fit and a button fly. For comparison, the regular 501 original has a 10 3/4 inch rise and a 14 1/2 inch leg opening, a narrower leg than the Low Pro's 16.

 

The classic 501 in Array Away is a mid-blue with a button fly that Levi's says holds its shape and fades over time. The Wedgie Straight in Indifferent Indigo is a dark high-rise with a button fly, and the Middy Straight in On Trend is a mid-blue mid-rise. All of them want a plain white tee and a belt.

 

The Ribcage Straight Ankle in Wow Me Over, Jazz Pop and Cloud Over is the odd one out. Levi's lists a super high rise of 12 1/8 inches, an ankle length with a 17 inch leg opening and a 27 inch inseam, so it is the opposite of low. It works with a short boot and a cropped jacket. I would go by the 12 1/8 inch spec line.

 

Fitting test: with a button fly, button it all the way and sit. If the waist gaps at the back, go down a size. What I would skip: Cloud Over white if you want a jean that works with every jacket in your closet; the washes are easier.

Care is part of this category. Levi's says to wash jeans once every 10 wears at most, inside out and cold, and baggy denim in particular lasts when you do. The softer a roomy 100% cotton jean gets, the better it hangs, and The Strategist describes rigid denim as the kind that loosens up a little with wear.

 

The Baggy Dad in Fan Flare, Shrink Up and Easy Days has a mid rise of 10 1/4 inches and a straight leg with a 17 1/4 inch opening, built to stack at the hem. That stack is the whole point, so I would wear it with a sneaker or a chunky loafer, not a heel. The XL Baggy Straight in Gamble Time and Dream Nice Dreams is oversized with a tie waistband, so you can cinch it up high or wear it mid.

 

For shape, the Baggy Dad Barrel in Most Wanted has a curved leg, and the Super Baggy Barrel in Shaded View is rinsed navy with an even rounder one. Easy Dad in Truth Slip is cream, pull-on, with belt loops at the waist, a good pick for a day when a zipper feels like too much.

 

What I would skip: the barrel shapes with a very short boot, because the curve needs room. Fitting test: hold the hem at your ankle bone and see how much fabric stacks. A little is the idea, a lot means size down.

I would start with the Right Over in light wash if a waist 24 is yours, because it is the only real Low Pro left. If it is not, I would look at the Low Loose in light wash for the drape, then the 501 '90s for the straight leg and button fly, since those are the cuts that feel nearest to a '90s relaxed jean.

 

Then I would check the rise on the product page, not the name, and size by the leg opening and rise numbers, not by habit. A pair that sits where you want it on a Tuesday will stay in your closet.

 

The jean has been the same riveted idea since 1873. A name that says low while the cut says mid is the least surprising thing in its history.