The great thing about buying jeans today is that you can find a style tailored to your body type. The bad thing about buying jeans today is that you have to find that perfect type! For example, if you want a close-fitting pair of Levis, what is the difference when you compare Levis 511 vs 513 jeans?
The main difference between Levis 511 and 513 jeans is that the 511 cut is slightly tighter and closer-fitting than the 513. Levis classifies the 511 as slim fit and the 513 as slim fit straight, meaning that the 513 has legs that do not taper from the knee to the ankle. The 513 will also have a slightly larger leg opening than the 511.
In this article, you will find out what characterizes the 511 and 513 styles. You will discover key differences between these popular types of Levis jeans. Finally, you will learn how the 511 and 513 line up against other popular styles of Levis jeans!
Levis 511 vs 513 Jeans: Key Points
For a quick overview of key differences between Levis 511 and 513 jeans, check out this handy chart!
| 511 | 513 | |
|---|---|---|
| Cut | Slim fit | Slim straight fit |
| Waist | Below actual waist | Low rise, sits below actual waist |
| Leg Opening | 14.5” for 33” waist | 15.75” for 32” waist |
| Rise | 10.5” | 10.5” |
| Seat | Close-fitting | Looser but close-fitting thighs |
| Material | Cotton with a small percentage of polyester and elastane | Stretch Denim, 98% cotton and 2% elastane |
| Fly | Zip fly | Zip fly with button |
What Are Levis 511 Jeans?
Levis 511 jeans have a slim but not super tight fit that gives people with slender hips a comfortable, casual appearance. This trendy style has a fairly low waist that sits below your actual waist. This creates the impression of a straight line from your waistband to the ankle.
Like any pair of jeans offering a trendy, fairly narrow silhouette, these jeans will fit you closely through the seat and will fit your thighs. The legs also remain quite slim through the hip and calf but will not cling to your skin as much, giving you more room for movement. The leg opening may feel a bit looser than you would expect, at a measurement of 14.5” for a 33” waist.
Unlike many of Levi’s more classic styles that contain pure denim, the 511 has a unique fabric composition. It contains 88% cotton, 10% polyester, and 2% elastane. This is what Levi’s calls its “Water<Less” material, meaning that these jeans also have a more eco-friendly manufacturing process!
You can also buy a version of the Levi’s 511 called flex slim, which comes with even more elastic in the fabric. This version would offer extra mobility to anyone planning for an active day.
What Are Levis 513 Jeans?
The Levi’s 513 style gives you a slim straight fit best suited to anyone with a slender but muscular frame. Levi’s calls this style slim but “not too narrow.” You can expect a linear lower-body shape that doesn’t look baggy but some extra fabric in the legs to allow you comfortable mobility.
The 513 has a low-rise waist that sits below your actual waist as a nod to current style trends. This look does not define your waist as much and also creates the appearance of a straight pant leg.
Plus, one of the key features of the 513 style is its straight, slightly wider legs that do not taper and instead fall down to a wide leg opening with a measurement of 15.75” on a pair of pants with a 32” waist. This means that the 513 has a looser feel below the knee than other slim slim-fit styles.
What does 513 mean on Levi’s jeans? The three-digit number, always starting with a five, is just a shorthand way to describe a particular style.
Levi’s gives every style its own number. This way, you can quickly learn the key characteristics of each numbered style, such as the classic 501 or the slim-straight 513.
Many Levi’s styles also come in a few variations. For instance, you may find a stretch version of many of the closer-fitting styles, too.
The 513 stretch version is called the “Slim Straight Flex” and contains a special material called advanced stretch denim. Advanced stretch denim weaves elastic fibers across the horizontal threads in the denim fabric. This provides both great stretch and great recovery, so your jeans will not go baggy at the seat or knees in the near future.
What is the Difference Between Levis 511 vs 513 Jeans?
The main difference between Levi’s 511 and 513 jeans is that the 513 style falls in a straight line from the knee to the ankle and has a wider leg opening. This means you will have more room in the lower leg while wearing the 513 style of jeans. Levi’s characterizes the 511 style as a slim fit, while the 513 is considered a slim straight fit.
Cut
Both the 511 and 513 jeans feature a slim fit cut, with a close-fitting seat and thigh area. However, the 511 has slim legs down to a fairly narrow leg opening, while the 513 maintains a looser straight leg that falls to a wider leg opening.
Though they have a slightly different cut, both pants styles offer you a slender, straight silhouette best suited to anyone with a flat or narrow frame. Because of the extra room in the legs in the 513 style, this cut may work best for people with a slender but athletic frame and muscled legs.
Waist
Levi’s 511 and 513 styles offer essentially the same waist that rides low, falling below your actual waistline. Besides looking trendy, this type of jeans waist has several practical advantages.
First, it may stay up better than other waist styles for anyone with narrow hips. Second, it can give the illusion of a longer torso for anyone who may feel like they have a short upper half.
Rise
Both the 511 and 513 style of Levi’s jeans has a pretty low rise of 10.5” above the crotch seam. This means that the top of the waistband falls below your actual waist.
The idea of low-rise jeans originated in the 1960s and 70s and has remained popular ever since. That said, this style may not feel comfortable for everyone. If you have rounded or curvy hips, you may feel that the low-rise jeans accentuate that area too much, for example.
On the other hand, anyone with a straight, narrow frame will feel casual and comfortable in these jeans because this style does not point out the lack of a distinct waistline.
Fly
Both the 511 and 513 styles of Levi’s jeans offer a zipper fly. Because of the low rise in these jeans, the fly looks pretty unobtrusive and the zipper will be shorter than what you might find in some other Levi’s styles.
Fit
At first glance, the fit of the 511 and 513 styles may appear quite similar. Both jeans feature a slim cut with a low-rise waist and fitted seat and thighs. The key difference in the fit is that the 513 jeans legs do not taper to the ankle and instead allow an extra-wide leg opening. This totally straight pant leg includes more fabric than the 511 style and gives you extra wiggle room.
Stretch
The normal versions of the 511 and 513 style of jeans both contain about 2% of an elastic fiber called elastane. You often see this in any close-fitting pant style, as the elastic gives the pants more room for ease of movement.
On top of that, you can also find stretch versions of the 511 and 513 that contain special stretch denim. Look for the word “flex” in the name of the jeans, such as “Levi’s 513 Flex.” If you want stretchy, flexible jeans, you will want to buy the stretch variation rather than the normal slim-fit style.
Leg Opening
One of the key differences between the 511 and 513 styles of Levi’s jeans is that the 513 has a wider leg opening of 15.75”, while the 511 has a narrower leg opening of 14.5”. You may wonder if a measurement increase of just over an inch can make a big difference in jeans.
Adding a full inch to the diameter of a pant leg really is a lot of extra fabric! This means that the 513 has much looser legs below the knee.
Material
Like all Levi’s jeans, both the 511 and 513 styles contain a large percentage of cotton. However, the 511 typically features Levi’s special eco-friendly fabric blend that uses less water in its production. This material contains some polyester and a tiny bit of elastic fibers.
The 513 typically uses mostly pure cotton in its denim, with the addition of a little bit of elastic as well.
Best For
The 511 and 513 style will look best and feel most comfortable on anyone with a slender, narrow body. The 513 may better suit anyone with an active lifestyle or muscular legs. You may also prefer the 513 over the 511 if you strongly dislike the clinging “skinny jeans” type of style because the 513 gives you looser jean legs.
Were Levi’s 513 Discontinued?
You can still find Levi’s 513 jeans on the main company website, as well as through many third-party sellers on Amazon or other online stores. However, it does seem that Levi’s plans to discontinue this particular style in the near future and may only sell a limited amount of the 513 jeans for now.
If you like the slim fit but comfortable style of the 513, you may want to try the slightly closer-fitting 511 as a good alternative.
Are Levi 511 Stretch Jeans?
You can buy a version of the 511 style that uses stretch denim, called Levi’s 511 Flex. The normal slim-fit 511 style incorporates about 2% of elastane fibers, which means the seat and thigh area will feel slightly stretchy.
The 511 features a slim fit, though, not an ultra-tight skinny jeans style. For this reason, you don’t necessarily need the stretch version unless you feel strongly about having extra flexibility in your jeans.
Levi’s 513 Slim Straight Jeans
Levi’s 513 style of jeans has a distinctive cut called slim straight jeans.
This means that the jeans have narrow, fitted hips and thighs but looser lower legs.
The loose lower legs give the whole pant one straight line instead of a tapered shape. Plus, the straight leg below the knee falls down to a wider leg opening that may feel more comfortable to anyone who likes looser clothing.
Are Levis 511 Too Skinny?
Whether or not you find Levi’s 511 jeans too skinny depends on the type of pants you like to wear. You can consider the 511 cut as much tighter than the classic, baggy cut of the 501 jeans but much looser than true skinny jeans like the Levi’s 510.
That said, the 511 will hug your seat and thighs quite closely. If you dislike this close-fitting style, you may want to look into a looser cut.
What Levis Are Similar to the 513?
Several other popular types of Levi’s jeans have some similarities to the 513. Tracking down just the right Levi’s jeans for you often means figuring out how one type of jeans measures up against another cut of jeans. For that reason, you may find it helpful to see how the 513 compares to other similar styles.
Levis 512 Vs 513
The biggest difference between Levi’s 512 and 513 cuts is that the 512 features tapered legs. This means that the 512 style rocks very narrow leg openings of just 12.75 inches, while the 513 has a much larger leg opening measuring 15.75 inches!
Despite this big difference, the 513 ad 512 actually look exactly the same in the upper half of the jeans. They share the same waist and slim-fit seat and thighs. The 512 simply offers a tightly tapered leg for anyone who wants to wear a more skinny-looking style.
Levis 501 Vs 513
Levi’s 501 and 513 styles have pretty enormous differences, including the entire cut of the jeans, as the classic 501 has a much looser fit overall than the slim-fitting 513 cut.
Levi’s launched the original 501 style way back in the late 1800s, intending this sturdy denim kind of pants for use on cowboy ranches and in coal mines. Today, the 501 remains very popular for anyone who wants a classic loose-jean look or for anyone doing hard physical labor.
The 513 has a much slimmer, closer fit throughout the seat and legs than the 501. It also has a much lower waist. Plus, the 501 features a button fly instead of a zipper fly.
Levis 513 Vs 514
Levi’s 513 jeans will fit you much more closely than the classic straight-fit 514 jeans. Levi’s 514 jeans fall between the classic, baggy 501 style and the slim-fit 513 style. The 514 takes the straight lines and higher waist of the classic straight-cut 501 but tightens the design by cutting a slightly more closely fitted seat and leg than the original 501.
That said, the 514 has much more room in the seat, thighs, and lower leg than the 513. If you don’t mind a less fitted silhouette, you may appreciate the comfort and mobility of this loose-fitting straight-cut pair of jeans.
What Levis Are Similar to the 511?
If you’re still trying to decide whether or not Levi’s 511 jeans will work for you, take a moment to find out how the 511 jeans compare to other similar types of Levi’s jeans.
Levis 511 vs 512
Levi’s 511 and 512 jeans have a lot of similarities, differing only a fraction when it comes to the lower leg. The 512 style has the same upper boy as the slim-fit 511, but it has slightly more tapered legs that end in a smaller leg opening. This is a pretty big difference, though, as the leg opening on a 511 pair of jeans measures 14.5” and the opening on the 512 comes in at 12.75.”
If you want almost-skinny jeans, try the 512. If you like a little more room for movement and don’t mind a marginally looser leg opening, stick with the 511!
Levis 511 Vs 514
Levi’s 511 and 514 jeans don’t have a lot in common because the 514 cut of jeans is a lot bigger and baggier than the slim-fitting 511. However, the 514 does make a perfect middle ground if you want something looser than the 511 cut but more modern-looking than the classic 501 jeans.
If you want a modern, trendy look, you should wear the slim-fitting 511 cut of jeans. If you want a more classic approach, you may want to consider the straight-slim cut of the 514 that includes much more fabric in the seat, thighs, and lower leg of the jeans.
Conclusion
The biggest difference between Levi’s popular 511 and 513 jeans is that the 513 style includes more fabric in the lower leg and has a larger leg opening. The 511 has a more traditional slim-fit style that narrows down to a closer-fitting leg opening. For this reason, the 513 style may suit you better if you like more range of movement or if you have muscular legs.
Both the 511 and 513 styles of Levi’s jeans offer a traditional slim fit in the seat and thighs. They also both feature a low-rise waist and a zipper fly. The only real distinction between these two types of jeans is in the width of the lower leg and the diameter of the leg opening at the ankle.
Have you tried Levi’s slim-fit jeans before? Did you like the 511 or the 513 better? Leave a comment below to let us know!