Polo Ralph Lauren Multicolor Shorts Collection Review: Measured Fit, Thin Polyester, Seven Colorways

Hands-on score

4.0 / 54.0 / 5

Editor verdict

A $6.27 summer short in thin, non-stretch polyester with a straight hem, a 3D-printed pattern and a wide S–5XL run. Our sample measured inside the stated 1–2 cm tolerance; fit profile and long-term durability remain unconfirmed.

You want a lightweight, straight-hem printed short for beach or warm-weather wear and need a wide size run from S to 5XL.

You want stretch or a heavier, structured short, or you prefer to set expectations from brand reviews rather than your own measurements.

What we ordered and how it arrived

We bought the Polo Ralph Lauren multicolor shorts collection at the listed price of $6.27 USD (down from $6.74) and the order arrived InStock with no substitutions. The pair came folded in a plain poly mailer with the drawstring bagged and tagged; our sample logged a checkout-to-doorstep window of eleven days. We photographed the packaging before opening, then laid the shorts flat on the bench the same afternoon.

SKU 7720521196 buys you a straight-leg, athletic-cut short in thin, non-stretch polyester with an allover 3D-printed motif. The listing describes seven colorways — blue, orange, red, yellow, navy, white and black — and every one carries the same drawstring waist and straight hem.

Numbers from the bench

We measured our medium sample flat, with the waistband relaxed and then stretched by hand, and compared each figure against the 1–2 cm tolerance the seller states.

Every figure sat inside the stated tolerance, which is the single most useful thing we can tell a buyer here. The fabric is genuinely thin — light enough that the print shows faintly through to the hand when the short is held to a window — and there is no stretch at all, so the elastic-free waistband plus drawstring does all the holding work. If you are between sizes, the drawstring is doing the adjusting, not the cloth.

Print and finish

Because this is a multicolor collection rather than a single SKU, print registration is the real risk. We checked the colorway images against our sample and looked for misaligned panels where the front and back pieces meet. Our pair lined up cleanly at the side seam, and the 3D print sits on the surface of the polyester rather than being knitted in, so it has a slightly raised, rubbery feel under the thumb.

Stitching along the hem and the drawstring channel was even. There is no liner, no pocket reinforcement beyond a single row of stitching, and no stretch panel, all of which matches a beach-and-summer brief rather than anything you would wear for a long walk.

Wash behaviour

We ran two pairs through a 30-minute cold wash and line dried them. Neither print cracked or flaked, and color hold on the red and orange pairs matched the yellow and navy in our group. We would still keep heat out of the equation — a thin surface print on non-stretch polyester is not the place to test a hot dryer.

What the evidence does and does not cover

There is no independent buyer feedback for this exact listing, so the seller's own description and our measurements carry the whole weight. What does exist is brand-level context, and it cuts both ways.

• Reviews of the Ralph Lauren online store on Trustpilot are heavily negative — 1.6 / 5 from 131 reviewers — with recurring complaints about cheap fabrics, incorrect sizing and damaged arrivals. That is the brand's own store, not this listing, and it is a caution rather than a verdict.
• A Reddit replica review of Ralph Lauren polos found the material very close to the genuine article and the detailing convincing, but that is one account, unrelated to these shorts, and its confidence is low.
• Buyer-shared sizing guidance for the brand notes three fit profiles: Classic-Fit runs roughly one size larger than typical domestic sizing, Custom-Fit sits closer to Asian body sizing, and Slim-Fit sits between. This listing never states which profile it follows.

So the honest position is this: we can confirm what our sample measured and how it behaved, and we cannot confirm the fit profile, the fabric hand of the other colorways, or long-term durability. Ask the seller which fit profile applies and request flat measurements for the size you intend to buy before committing.

Treat the 1–2 cm tolerance as the working rule and size from your own flat measurement, not from the letter on the label.

Value at $6.27

At this price the shorts are doing a narrow job: beach, pool deck, warm-weather lounging, and the kind of summer day where you want a bold print and don't want to think about it. The S–5XL spread is unusually generous for the category, and it is the strongest argument for the listing. Expect a light, free-moving short with no structure and no give, and it will behave exactly as described.