Companies around the world have been relaxing their office dress codes for years. But does this happen everywhere, and how do the rules differ per region and industry? Recent research gives a clear picture of the latest business dress code trends, showing how different countries and sectors are adapting. In this article, I highlight the most important global developments and what they tell us about the future of workplace attire.
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Business dress code trends around the world
To understand how companies approach dress codes today, the international staffing agency Indeed recently analysed their job posting database. They found that employers increasingly use the term “casual dress code” when recruiting new staff. Still, countries differ strongly in how often they mention this.
Business dress code trends in Canada
In July 2025, the term “casual clothing” appeared in 5.3 percent of all Canadian job postings. That sounds low, but it represents a six percent increase compared to previous years. The pandemic played a major role in this shift. In 2019, a maximum of only 0.8 percent of job ads mentioned casual clothing, but that number has risen steadily ever since.
What stands out is that employers used to relax the dress code mainly for people who worked remotely more often, while this now plays a smaller role. Both in the office and at home, employees increasingly wear casual clothing. The industries that mention casual attire most often are childcare (19.4 percent), sports (15.2 percent) and cleaning services (10.9 percent).
The British embrace the casual dress code
Dress codes have also become more relaxed in England over the past years. Most organisations now prefer a smart casual look, somewhere between casual and formal. In job ads, British employers use the term “casual clothing” in 3.3 percent of vacancies (July 2025). Regions differ: London scores lowest at 2.3 percent, while Northern Ireland is highest at 4.7 percent.
The industries where casual attire is most common are personal care and home care (9.2 percent), marketing (6.7 percent) and media and communications (7.1 percent).
Business dress codes in Australia
Dress codes have also become more relaxed in Australia, but much less than in England and Canada. Only 0.41 percent of job ads (June 2025) mention casual clothing. The regions with the most government services (0.9 percent) are slightly more likely to encourage a relaxed dress code.
The insurance industry stands out with the most casual work environments. Employers mention casual clothing in 11.6 percent of job ads. The legal sector follows with 3.6 percent, and accountancy with 2.9 percent.
United States: casual clothing dominates the workplace
In the United States, companies have widely embraced the casual dress code. On average, 31 percent of employees choose casual attire at work. The share of formally dressed employees dropped from seven to three percent, while business casual rose from 34 to 41 percent.
Women are more likely to wear business casual (51 percent) than men (32 percent). Men more often wear a uniform at work (31 percent), compared with only 14 percent of women.
Global business dress code trends
Although the Netherlands has not conducted similar studies, we see the same development here.
Where sneakers used to come out only on casual Friday, people now wear them even in the banking sector, and the traditional suit stays in the closet more often. Fashion is always changing, but I do not expect formal clothing to become as popular as it once was. It will probably be something we wear mainly on special occasions, rather than every day at the office.
Greetings,
Aileen