Best Workout Shorts for Women, Tested of 2026

Eight inches of leg, a high waist, and enough compression to feel held in — that's the whole case for the Ewedoos pair, and it's why this is the one we hand to anyone who wants a single pair of shorts to do everything. The leg covers the spot where thighs rub, so long runs and resistance-band work don't turn into a chafing experiment, and the high waist stays where you put it instead of sliding down mid-set.

The fabric is the other half of the story. It's a thick, brushed knit that feels smooth rather than slick, and it stays opaque when you sit into a deep squat rather than turning sheer across the seat. That matters more than any line on the listing, because a short you have to think about during a workout is a short you stop wearing. Three pockets seal it: two on the legs that take a phone, and a small one in the waistband for a key.

The length is a commitment. At eight inches it lands close to mid-thigh even on taller frames, which is the point and the reason the chafing stops, but if you like a short leg this isn't the pair — petite wearers should look at the five- and six-inch options here instead. For lifting, running, and long walks, though, we keep coming back to it, and there's nothing to adjust once you're moving.

The fabric is the surprise here. Heathyoga's knit is dense and brushed, closer to the heavyweight pairs in this guide than to the thin, buttery ones, and it stays covered when you bend rather than doing that sheer-at-the-seat thing that thinner shorts do in a mirrored studio.

That's why it's our budget pick, and we mean it as praise. It covers the thigh at a mid-length that stops short of the knee, pulls the middle in without making you feel cinched, and has a real side pocket that takes a phone — and it does all of that for less than most of the pairs on this page.

Sizing is the one place to pay attention. It runs small and the chart is optimistic, so if you're between sizes, take the larger one. The other thing to know is that the legs can creep up during genuinely hard intervals; for lifting, spin, and walking they stay where you put them, which is where most of us spend our training time anyway.

Butterluxe is the softest-feeling knit we tried in this group. The surface is brushed, almost peach-fuzz, which makes the more technical pairs here feel like equipment by comparison. The six-inch leg does the rest of the work: long enough to stop the top of the thigh rubbing, short enough that it doesn't read as a cycling short when you wear it out of the studio.

That softness is what you're buying, and we think it earns the higher price. These are the shorts we reach for on a rest day, a long drive, or a yoga class where the point is to feel unbothered rather than held in. If you want sculpting compression, look elsewhere — the hold here is light, closer to a second skin than a shaper.

The price is the other thing to weigh. This sits near the top of the range here and it's still a pair of shorts you'll sweat in, which is worth it only if hand-feel is what makes you reach for one pair over another. If you want a workhorse you can throw in a gym bag and forget about, the heavier, cheaper pairs in this guide make more sense.

Four pairs is a different proposition from one. It's roughly the number that gets you through a week of training without an emergency wash, and the Whouare set is the most affordable way here to own four pairs of something that behaves like a proper workout short: high waist, side pockets, soft brushed knit that has held its shape for the people who own it.

The fabric is genuinely good. It's soft, on the thick side of the buttery shorts in this guide, and it doesn't go slack through the seat or the thigh. The waistband holds, the pockets take a phone, and the whole thing feels like more short than the price per pair suggests.

Sizing is where you need to slow down. These run small, so if you're between sizes take the larger one, and if you're at the top of a size, go up. Length is the other variable: the leg lands above the knee for most people, which is either exactly right or a size too short depending on your height, and if you want knee coverage for chafing you should look at the longer picks here.

So: a good buy if you want a stack of soft, high-waisted shorts for gym days, walks, and layering under dresses, and you're willing to size up to get there. If you want one excellent pair rather than four good ones, our top pick is the better spend.

A phone in a stretchy side pocket is only useful if the pocket pins it against your leg instead of swinging it around. The Gym People shorts are the pair here that got that right: two deep side pockets, one of which takes a phone flat against the thigh, with room left in the other for a key or a card.

The rest is a high waist that's genuinely high and compression through the middle that does what tummy control promises. What tempers it is fit. These hold their place on some figures and creep up the thigh on others, so the size chart matters more than usual, and the thick top band is unforgiving of a size that's slightly too small.

We still put them in the guide, because when the fit lands they're a genuine all-rounder — gym, yoga, errands, and a phone that stays where you put it. If you're between sizes, ordering both and returning one is the practical move here.

Not everyone wants compression. On a hot, sticky run, a loose short with some airflow beats a tight knit, and this is the pair in the guide that goes that way: a relaxed leg, a light soft fabric, and an elastic waist with an inner drawstring you can cinch down.

The pockets are the detail that sold us. Both are zippered, and a zip is what makes a pocket usable at speed — keys, a card, and a folded bill stay put instead of bouncing out. Colors hold through repeated washing too, which matters more in a pair you'll wear three times a week than it sounds.

Sizing is generous to a fault: they run large, so going down a size is the usual move if you're between. Get that right and these are the shorts we take for summer runs, hikes, and anything where you'd rather feel air than compression. They arrive as a multi-pack, which is why the outlay looks steep beside a single pair.

The reason to know about these is the range. This is the pair in the group that runs into plus sizes and keeps going, sold three to a pack with pocket and no-pocket versions, and the fit is the payoff — the knit stretches without going slack at the knee, and the high waist holds rather than rolling down over the course of a day.

Comfort is where they earn their place. The fabric is soft and light, closer to a second skin than a compression short, and the waistband doesn't dig in after a long day of running around. What they aren't is sculpting — if you want firm compression through the middle, this is the wrong short and one of the denser pairs here will serve you better.

Two practical notes. Order from the size chart rather than your usual number, because these run small for a fair number of people. And treat the pocket version as a key-and-card pocket: it isn't built around a phone, so a belt or armband is the safer carry for a long run.

Three inseams in one listing — three, five, and eight inches — is unusual at any price, and this is the least expensive pair in the guide. If you don't yet know whether you're a short-short person or a knee-length person, that's worth something: start with the five-inch, live in it for a month, and you'll know which way to go when you buy the pair you actually keep.

The shorts themselves are soft, stretchy, and high-waisted, with side pockets that take a phone and a leg that mostly stays where you put it during walking and light training. Sizing runs small, so the chart is a starting point rather than an answer — go up rather than down if you're on a line.

The catch is the fabric. It's thin, and thin means sheer in the wrong light: pale colors, a bright gym, a deep forward fold. The listed lengths also run a touch short on a tall frame, so the five-inch can land closer to a three. For anything high-impact, or for a class full of mirrors, darker and heavier is the safer combination.

So these aren't the pair we point at for serious training. They are the pair we point at for figuring out your length, for walking, for layering under a dress, and for keeping a spare in the car. At the bottom of the price range, that's a reasonable job for a pair of shorts to do.