Palm Angels Capri Shorts Review: Wrinkle-Free Polyester at $3.73

How we tested these Palm Angels shorts

We ordered SKU 7720603668 through our shopping agent and logged the full chain: purchase, warehouse intake, quality-check photos, and the packed parcel that landed at our desk. On arrival we weighed the shorts, measured the flat waist and outseam at size L, checked the drawstring channel and hem stitching, and photographed the illustrated face print against the listing images. We then hand washed the pair at low temperature and re-checked the print and the wrinkle-free finish once dry.

This is a $3.73 item — the listing shows an original price of $4.40, so the discount is small and the baseline is already low. That shaped our scoring: we judged it as a cheap summer short, not as a luxury purchase, and we measured it against what a budget buyer should reasonably expect to receive.

Fabric, weight and construction

The shell is thin polyester with a non-iron finish and no fleece lining, which is exactly the construction you want for a warm-weather short. There is no stretch in the fabric, so the fit is governed entirely by the elastic waistband and the drawstring tie. Stitching on our pair was tidy at the hem and the side seams, and the print sat flat without the cracking or lifting we look for on budget screen prints.

The light weight is a genuine advantage in summer, but it cuts both ways: this is not a short that will feel substantial or hold a crisp silhouette in wind. It behaves like sportswear, and it should be treated as such.

Cut and sizing in practice

Palm Angels pieces are cut loose by design — the brand's skatewear roots mean the house sizing guidance is to order your usual waist for the baggy look and size down if you want something closer to the body. Our size L matched that description: roomy through the seat and thigh, with a straight leg that does not taper. The five-point length on our pair finished above the knee, though buyer reports on Palm Angels shorts disagree on length, with some describing a five-point cut that still runs long.

We would not treat a single reviewer's "true to size" as a fit guarantee here. The waistband has no stretch to absorb error, so ask your agent for flat waist and outseam measurements in the size you intend to buy, and compare those numbers with a pair you already own. Sizing down tightens the look; staying at your usual letter size keeps the intended loose shape.

Colourways and the naming problem

The listing title references a black short, but the colour field lists Cool K344 Yellow and Cool K344 Blue-Black. That mismatch is worth resolving before you order, because on a printed short the base colour determines how the illustrated face motif reads. Our agent confirmed the yellow is a bright, saturated tone rather than a muted mustard.

Colour accuracy is a recurring theme on budget Palm Angels shorts. A quality-check poster on r/FashionReps questioned the shade and stripe tone of a cheap pair against retail, writing that the colour "looks off." Print placement is the other common flag — one thread noted the stripes should sit further to the side with more space between them and the pocket. Our pair's motif aligned cleanly with the product photography, but we cannot say every unit will.

Care and long-term wear

Printed Palm Angels pieces carry hand-wash guidance at low temperature, with ironing done inside out to protect the motif. We followed that routine and the print came through unchanged. Given the thin polyester and the absence of stretch, the realistic weak points over time are the drawstring channel and the print itself, not the fabric body. Machine washing at high heat is the fastest way to shorten the life of both.

What $3.73 buys

The value case is straightforward. For less than the price of a coffee you get a lightweight, non-iron short in an inclusive size range up to 5XL, with a waistband that adjusts through a drawstring rather than relying on fabric give. The trade-offs are the ones that come with any budget printed piece: no verified fit data for this exact SKU, a colourway list that contradicts the title, and brand-level customer sentiment for Palm Angels that runs strongly negative on price-to-quality. We score what arrived in our parcel, and what arrived was a clean, well-stitched summer short that does its job.