Leather jackets remain firmly in style heading into 2027, with menswear buyers reportedly investing more deeply in leather and outerwear while pulling back from logo heavy pieces. Trending now, late in 2026, are earthy tones like cognac and chocolate brown, deep burgundy, sage green and navy alongside classic black, relaxed and belted silhouettes next to sharper biker cuts, and a genuine bomber jacket revival. On the way out are glossy synthetic finishes, heavy branding, and the idea that a leather jacket only comes in one slim cut. Early signals for 2027 point to richer jewel tones, waist defined silhouettes, and a continued shift toward buying fewer, better made pieces rather than chasing every microtrend.
Are Leather Jackets Still In Style?
Yes, and if anything the leather jacket's position has strengthened rather than weakened heading into 2027. Menswear buyers going into the Fall Winter 2026 to 2027 season have reportedly been investing more deeply in leather, outerwear and refined tailoring, while deliberately pulling back from logo heavy pieces and novelty streetwear that does not resonate a year or two later. That is a meaningful shift. Fashion has spent the last few years rewarding pieces bought for a single season, and it is now swinging back toward pieces bought to last, which is exactly the category a well made leather jacket has always belonged to.
This matters if you are staring down the cost of a genuine leather jacket and wondering whether it is a passing purchase or a genuine investment. The honest pain point most buyers are actually weighing up is not whether leather jackets are trending right now, they clearly are, it is whether the specific jacket in front of them will still look right in two or three years once this particular trend cycle moves on. That question is really about silhouette and quality rather than trend chasing, and it is the thread running through the rest of this guide.
There is a second, quieter worry underneath that one too, whether spending more on a genuine leather piece is actually worth it when a cheaper synthetic version exists at a fraction of the price. The trend data covered in this guide points fairly clearly toward one answer, buyers are moving away from disposable, trend led pieces specifically because they do not hold up, physically or stylistically, past a single season. A jacket that cracks or dates within a year was never actually cheaper, it just moved the cost to a repeat purchase instead of a one off decision.
What's In: Leather Jacket Trends Late 2026
Here is what is actually trending in leather jackets as 2026 heads into its final stretch, based on current runway direction and what menswear buyers are stocking for the season ahead.
What Leather Jacket Colours Are Trending in 2026?
Black remains the safest, most versatile choice and is not going anywhere, but 2026 has genuinely opened the door to colour in a way the last several years did not. Cognac, chocolate brown and hazelnut tones are the standout trend of the year, described repeatedly by menswear buyers as the natural next step for anyone who already owns a black jacket and wants a second piece with a softer, more approachable feel. Burgundy and deep cherry red have also become a firm favourite for evening and cooler weather wear, paired with darker denim or tailored trousers for something that reads considered rather than costume like.
Sage green and other muted earth tones round out the trending palette, alongside navy as a quieter alternative to black that still photographs as a genuine colour choice rather than a safe default. The common thread across every trending shade this year is warmth and depth rather than anything loud, glossy black and high shine patent finishes are noticeably absent from what is actually selling.
Is The Bomber Jacket Trending Again?
Yes, decisively. The bomber has moved from a secondary style to one of the defining silhouettes of the current cycle, and it has come back changed rather than simply repeated. Where past bomber trends leaned slim and minimal, the version dominating 2026 is looser through the body with more generous, relaxed shoulders, built to layer over a hoodie or a heavier knit rather than sit close to the frame. It reads as comfortable and nonchalant rather than sharp, which is precisely why it has found its way back into rotation alongside the biker jacket rather than replacing it.
Alongside the bomber, the cafe racer has had a genuine moment too, its lean, minimal silhouette and snap tab collar giving it an athletic, clean line that pairs as easily with tailored trousers as it does with denim.
Fit And Silhouette: Relaxed Meets Structured
Two directions are trending at once, and they are not in conflict. Oversized, relaxed cuts with wider shoulders and more room through the body have become a genuine alternative to the slim fit that dominated the previous few years, offering a nonchalant, easy going feel that layers well over knitwear. At the same time, more structured, natural cut jackets, better shaped shoulders and controlled volume without going fully slim, are trending as the smarter, more considered option, often finished in those cognac and earth tones covered above.
Belted silhouettes are a specific trend worth calling out on their own. A defined waist, whether through an actual belt or a more structured cut that creates the same effect, has become one of the season's clearer signals, bringing a more tailored, refined edge to a jacket style that has historically been about volume rather than shape.
Longline Coats And Leather Trenches
The trench coat treatment applied to leather has become one of the more sophisticated trends of the year, long, fluid silhouettes that move between daywear and evening with a level of polish a standard biker jacket does not attempt. For anyone wanting a leather piece that reads more considered wardrobe investment than casual outerwear, this longline direction is where that conversation is heading.
The Mindset Behind The Trends: Quiet Luxury And Buying Less
Underneath the specific colours and cuts, there is a bigger shift shaping every trend on this list. Clean lines, neat finishes, and discreet detailing rather than visible logos or branding have become the defining attitude of the season, often described as quiet luxury. That attitude sits comfortably with leather specifically, since a genuine leather jacket has never needed a logo to justify itself, the material and the construction were always the point.
Alongside that, there is a genuine and growing preference for buying fewer, better pieces rather than restocking a wardrobe every season, which lines up with something worth remembering about leather specifically: a well made jacket in a quality hide can realistically last ten to twenty years, developing character rather than wearing out, which makes it one of the few genuinely trend resistant investments in an otherwise fast moving wardrobe.
How To Style This Year's Trends
Trend direction only matters if it actually translates into something wearable, so here is how each of the current directions plays out in a real outfit.
The Earth Tone Racer Or Bomber
A cognac or olive jacket works best against a genuinely neutral base, think charcoal, white, or navy denim, so the leather stays the focal point rather than competing with another strong colour. Pair with dark boots rather than white sneakers for the smarter end of casual, or lean into the relaxed bomber trend with a plain hoodie underneath and the jacket left open.
The Belted Or Structured Jacket
Because the waist definition is already doing visual work, keep the rest of the outfit simple, a fitted knit or plain shirt underneath and tailored trousers rather than baggy denim, which would fight the silhouette rather than complement it.
Burgundy Or Deep Colour Pieces
These read best treated as a statement piece rather than one part of a busy outfit. Keep everything else close to black, grey or denim, and let the jacket's colour do the work rather than trying to colour match it to anything else you are wearing.
The Longline Leather Trench
This silhouette wants a slightly more polished base than a standard biker jacket, tailored trousers or a clean pair of chinos rather than distressed denim, since the whole point of the longline cut is a more considered, evening ready look.
What's Out: Leaving 2026 Behind
A few things that defined leather jacket style in recent years are noticeably fading as 2026 closes out.
• Glossy, high shine patent style finishes, in favour of matte or lightly satin surfaces that read as more premium rather than plasticky
• Heavy branding and visible logos, as the broader shift toward quiet, discreet detailing takes hold
• Ultra slim, second skin cuts as the only acceptable fit, now sitting alongside relaxed and oversized options rather than dominating alone
• Cheap split leather or synthetic pleather dressed up to look premium, as buyers increasingly ask what grade of leather they are actually paying for rather than trusting the word leather on its own
• Single note wardrobes built entirely around one black jacket, as buyers grow more comfortable adding a genuine second colour rather than treating black as the only safe option
It is worth spending a moment on why these specific things are fading rather than just listing them. The shift away from glossy finishes and heavy branding both trace back to the same quiet luxury attitude covered above, a visible logo or a plasticky shine both signal that a jacket is trying to prove something, and the current mood is moving toward pieces that do not need to try. The retreat from cheap split leather is a slightly different story, driven less by aesthetics and more by buyers becoming genuinely more informed. As more people learn the difference between full grain, top grain and the lower grade split leather that gets marketed under the same generic genuine leather label, a jacket that cannot say clearly what grade of hide it is made from starts to look like a harder sell than it used to.
What's Coming For 2027: Early Signals
It is worth being upfront that anything said about a full year ahead is a forecast, not a certainty, but a few directions are showing up clearly enough across current runway seasons and trend forecasting to be worth watching.
• Richer jewel tones, sapphire blue, emerald green and deep purple are already flagged by trend forecasters as a winter 2027 direction, which would mark a genuine departure from the earth toned palette dominating 2026
• Waist defined, sculptural silhouettes, echoing the peplum shapes already appearing on leather tailoring at major runway shows, are likely to push belted and structured cuts further into the mainstream
• Continued investment in outerwear and leather specifically as buyers keep favouring long term wardrobe pieces over trend led purchases that do not resonate a year later
• Sustainability and traceability moving from a marketing point to a baseline expectation, with buyers increasingly asking where a hide actually came from rather than taking sustainability claims at face value
None of this means the trends covered above are about to disappear overnight, earth tones, the bomber revival and relaxed fits all have real momentum behind them and are likely to carry well into 2027 rather than fall away the moment the calendar changes. What is genuinely new is the direction of travel, richer colour, more defined shape, and an even stronger expectation that a leather jacket is a considered purchase rather than a disposable one.
Mens Leather Jacket Trends In Australia
Most of the trend coverage above comes out of European and American fashion weeks, which is worth adjusting for if you are actually dressing for an Australian climate and calendar rather than a New York winter. The core trends translate directly, cognac and earth tones, the relaxed bomber, belted silhouettes, but the practical application shifts. Australian buyers tend to prioritise lighter weight, more breathable leather over the heavier shearling and oversized volumes that dominate northern hemisphere winter coverage, since a jacket here needs to work across a genuine transitional season rather than several months of hard cold.
That is part of why racer and bomber silhouettes have such a strong following in Australia specifically, both work as a layer you can put on and take off through a single day rather than a jacket built to stay zipped from May to September. There is also a noticeably stronger interest in Australian made leather goods generally, driven by the same buy fewer, better pieces mindset covered above, buyers increasingly want to know exactly where their leather came from and who actually made the jacket, not just what trend it belongs to.
How To Buy A Leather Jacket That Will Not Look Dated
If the real question behind all of this is which jacket to actually buy, the answer has less to do with chasing this year's specific colour and more to do with three things: grade of leather, quality of construction, and a silhouette with enough history behind it that it is not tied to a single trend cycle. A racer, a bomber, and a tailored blazer cut have all been in and out of the spotlight for decades without ever fully disappearing, which makes them a safer long term buy than anything built around a single season's colour story.
This is where the current Valian & Villain range lines up naturally with where the trends actually are, rather than needing to chase them after the fact. The Vintage Olive Racer sits squarely inside this year's earth toned, racer silhouette trend, right down to the sage adjacent olive colorway. The Men's Croc Leather Bomber Jacket rides the genuine bomber revival covered above, while the Croc Texture Leather Jacket in burgundy hits the exact deep, warm colour direction trend coverage keeps pointing to. For the quiet luxury, tailored end of the trend, the Brown Leather Blazer brings that cognac and chocolate brown palette into a genuinely versatile, business ready cut rather than a purely casual one.
None of that is a coincidence so much as a reflection of the same underlying shift, genuine top grain leather in a considered cut and an honest colour has quietly been the trend all along, the specific shade and silhouette getting the spotlight just moves from year to year.
Conclusion
Leather jackets are not just holding their position heading into 2027, they are being bought with more intention than they have been in years, as buyers move away from logo led, trend chasing pieces and back toward genuine, well made outerwear. What is in right now, cognac and earth tones, burgundy, the relaxed bomber, belted and longline silhouettes, all point the same direction: toward pieces built to last rather than pieces built for one season's feed. What is out, glossy finishes, heavy branding, cheap split leather dressed up as premium, all point away from exactly the kind of shortcut a genuine leather jacket was never meant to be.
If you are working out which piece actually fits where the trends are heading rather than where they have already been, that is precisely the thinking behind the current Valian & Villain range, genuine top grain leather cut into the silhouettes this year has proven have real staying power, not just this season's colour story. Browse the full range and you will find the racer, the bomber, the blazer and the burgundy texture jacket all already there, built the same way regardless of which one the trend cycle favours this year.
FAQs
Are leather jackets in style in 2026?
Yes. Menswear buyers have been investing more deeply in leather and outerwear this season while pulling back from logo heavy, trend led pieces, which points to leather jackets holding a stronger position than in recent years rather than a weaker one.
What leather jacket colours are trending in 2026?
Cognac and chocolate brown lead the trend, alongside burgundy, sage green and navy as alternatives to classic black. Black remains a safe, versatile choice, but it is no longer the only colour reading as a genuine style decision.
Is the bomber jacket trending again?
Yes, and it has come back in a looser, more relaxed cut than previous bomber trends, built to layer over a hoodie or heavier knit rather than sit slim against the body.
What are mens leather jacket trends in Australia specifically?
The same global trends apply, cognac tones, the relaxed bomber, belted silhouettes, but Australian buyers tend to favour lighter weight leather and transitional pieces like the racer and bomber that work across a single day's changing temperature, rather than the heavier shearling styles suited to a harsher northern hemisphere winter.
Will these leather jacket trends still be relevant in 2027?
Earth tones, the bomber revival and relaxed fits all have genuine momentum and are likely to carry into 2027 rather than disappear, though early signals point to richer jewel tones and more defined, waist conscious silhouettes gaining ground alongside them.
How do I choose a leather jacket that will not look dated in a year or two?
Prioritise genuine top grain leather, solid construction, and a silhouette with real history, a racer, a bomber or a tailored blazer cut, over chasing a single season's specific colour or detailing, since classic silhouettes move in and out of the spotlight without ever fully disappearing.