How to Fold or Roll Pants for Travel

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Professional organizer Natalie Broyhill provides tips for rolling & packing pants effectively

Co-authored by Natalie Broyhill and Raven Minyard, BA

Last Updated: November 14, 2025 Fact Checked

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Folding Pants

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Rolling Pants

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Packing Effectively

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Tips

If you’re getting ready for a trip, you may be stumped by how to pack your pants and keep them wrinkle-free while saving room for your other belongings. Luckily, there are easy and effective ways to fold or roll pants for traveling. Keep reading as we explain the best ways to pack slacks, sweats, and more, with help from professional organizers Natalie Broyhill and Julie Naylon.

How do you pack pants?

Professional organizer Natalie Broyhill says rolling pants is the most effective way to pack them in a suitcase. She suggests folding one leg over the other and folding the legs up to the belt. Then, roll the pants from the base to the top and place the open side of the fold face down in your bag.

Section 1 of 3:

How to Fold Pants for Packing

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Fold pants that wrinkle easily. Folding cuts back on wrinkles, so avoid rolling slacks, suit pants, or any fabrics that wrinkle easily, like pants made of 100% cotton. Even if they take up more space, fold them so they’re crisp and clean once you reach your destination.^{[1]
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- It’s also acceptable to fold pants that don’t wrinkle easily, but you might save space by rolling them. Jump to our How to Roll Pants for Packing section for more details.
Meet the wikiHow Experts

Natalie Broyhill is a professional organizer and the founder of Tartan Professional Organizing. Her business offers home and personal organizing services from general decluttering to dramatic transformations.

Julie Naylon is a professional organizer and the founder of No Wire Hangers. Her business provides residential and office organizing and consulting services.
If you pack wrinkly pants, they’re just going to look worse after being packed in your luggage for several hours. To keep your pants looking their best, iron them before you pack. This way, you’re more likely to be able to wear them straight out of the suitcase when you arrive.

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Place your pants on the floor or another hard surface to make sure your fold is neat. Lay them out flat, and smooth out any creases or folds so that you can pack them neatly.^{[2]
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Fold the pants in half so the legs overlap. Bring one leg over the other, and make sure the fold is right down the middle over the seam at the crotch of the pants. Straighten the legs as needed to remove any creases.^{[3]
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- If you're folding dress pants or trousers that have a crease or pleat down the middle, fold the pants in half along the crotch so that the crease is preserved.
Bring the cuffs of the pants legs up to the waist. Again, straighten the pants so that no creases make it into the fold. Run your hands over the fabric to make sure the folds are nice and flat.^{[4]
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Bring the edges of the pants (the waist and the cuffs) down to meet the bottom of the fold. Your pants are now ready to pack. Note that when you fold pants in half this way, it will create a crease across the knees and across the thighs. They won’t be covered in wrinkles, but you may need to iron them before you wear them.^{[5]
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Section 2 of 3:

How to Roll Pants for Packing

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Roll fabrics that don’t wrinkle easily. “Rolling really does maximize the space in a suitcase,” says Naylon.^{[6]
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Expert Source

Julie Naylon
Professional Organizer

Expert Interview} However, it often causes more wrinkles than folding does. If you don’t mind a few wrinkles or your pants are made of a fabric that doesn’t wrinkle easily, rolling is the way to go. Here are the types of pants you can roll:
- Jeans
- Leggings
- Workout pants
- Rolling is also a great way to organize pants in your closet!
- In general, Broyhill says rolling your pants up is the most effective way to pack them in your suitcase.^{[7]
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Start with ironed pants if you want to keep them as wrinkle-free as possible. Lay them out on the floor or another hard surface, and smooth your hands over the legs to remove any creases.
Broyhill says to “neatly fold the pants in half with the front of the pants facing inward.”^{[8]
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Natalie Broyhill
Professional Organizer

Expert Interview} Simply place one leg over the other and smooth out any creases with your hands, making sure there are no places where the fabric is rumpled.^{[9]
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Roll the pants down, starting from the waist. Use your fingers to start rolling the pants down from the waist, as you would roll up a jelly roll or a sleeping bag. Keep rolling until you reach the cuffs. It’s also possible to do the opposite and roll your pants up from the cuffs to the waist.^{[10]
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Research source} Either way, your pants will end up in a neat roll that you can easily tuck into your suitcase.
- Broyhill says you can also roll the pants up from the base of the pants to the top.^{[11]
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- As you roll, make sure the fabric stays crease-free. Smooth out creases as you go.
- Roll loosely, rather than tightly, as tightly-rolled fabric will end up creasing.
- Optional step: Broyhill suggests folding the legs of the pants up to the belt once before you start rolling them up.^{[12]
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Alternatively, ranger roll your pants. Ranger rolling is a clothes-rolling method used by members of the military to save space, prevent wrinkles, and keep items organized. It’s possible to ranger roll almost any type of pants, but it may be better to avoid materials that wrinkle easily. Here’s what you do:^{[13]
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- Make sure your pants are zipped and buttoned, and lay them flat.
- Fold the waistband inside out about 3 inches to form a cuff.
- Smooth out any wrinkles, then fold one leg over the other.
- Starting from the bottom, roll your pants up as tightly as possible. Smooth out any wrinkles as you go.
- Pull the waistband cuff over the pants to hold everything in place.

Section 3 of 3:

Packing Pants Effectively

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Pack the dressiest pants in a suit bag. If you’re concerned about damaging your trousers, or you need to show up to your destination and wear them without time to iron them, use a suit bag that will allow you to pack them vertically instead of folding them in half. This is the best way to keep your pants wrinkle-free.^{[14]
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- Affix the pants to a pants hanger that won't damage the fabric. Some pants hangers require folding the pants in half at the knee and draping them over the top of the hanger.
- Store them neatly in your suit bag, making sure they’re completely straight so they'll remain wrinkle-free.
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Pack your rolled pants toward the bottom. If you end up with a few pairs of rolled pants, pack these casual items below items that need to stay wrinkle-free. Tuck them in toward the bottom of the suitcase since it won’t matter as much if they get a little crushed.
- When packing your rolled pants into your bag, Broyhill says to “place the pant roll with the ‘open’ part facing down so it's less likely to come undone when moving things around in the suitcase.”^{[15]
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This way, they won’t get crushed and wrinkled as you travel. Lay them over the top of the other items you've packed when your suitcase is mostly full. Don’t pack shoes or other heavy items on top of your folded pants.
This extra layer of protection will keep them from shifting in transit. Using a dry cleaner bag is a good way to keep freshly-ironed pants from picking up a lot of little creases while they're in the suitcase.^{[16]
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I tried every method in this with my sweatpants, but they're just too thick. Any other way of folding sweatpants?

Community Answer

I'm not sure if you've tried this method yet, but fold the sweatpants in half first, and then roll the pant legs up.

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How do I pack corduroy pants?

Community Answer

Pack them the same way you would pack any other pants using the tips you read here.

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Tips

Take your time while folding your pants. If you rush, you'll probably end up with more creases. Make sure you smooth out the fabric as you go.

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