Women's High-Rise Straight Stretch Linen-Viscose Utility Pants vs Men's Workwear Technician Pant: which is safer?

Banana Republic Women's High-Rise Straight Stretch Linen-Viscose Utility Pants is our pick: better on PFAS and on the overall hazard picture.

Our pick

Banana Republic Women's High-Rise Straight Stretch Linen-Viscose Utility Pants

Banana Republic

Women's High-Rise Straight Stretch Linen-Viscose Utility Pants

PFAS grade

Good 65/100

Overall grade

Good 53/100

Verdict

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Hazard flags

⚑ 3

Material

linen-viscose blend, no water-resistant finish

Confidence

82%

PossibleFormaldehyde resins (wrinkle resistance, shape retention)

PossibleAzo dyes and heavy metal pigments

PossibleAntimony in polyester (if present in trim/elastic)

Wrangler Men's Workwear Technician Pant

Wrangler

Men's Workwear Technician Pant

PFAS grade

Bad 20/100

Overall grade

Bad 12/100

Verdict

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Hazard flags

⚑ 2

Material

Cotton twill with stain/water-resistant water-repellent coating treatment

Confidence

45%

Possiblewater-repellent coating (water-repellent coating) coating chemistry

Possiblewater-repellent coating degradation and reapplication products

Where these two actually differ

  • We flag Formaldehyde resins (wrinkle resistance, shape retention), Azo dyes and heavy metal pigments and Antimony in polyester (if present in trim/elastic) on the Banana Republic and not on the Wrangler.
  • We flag Durable water-repellent (DWR) coating chemistry and DWR coating degradation and reapplication products on the Wrangler and not on the Banana Republic.
  • The Banana Republic is linen-viscose blend, no water-resistant finish where the Wrangler is Cotton twill with stain/water-resistant DWR treatment, which is most of the difference in these two grades.
  • The gap is 45 points, wide enough that this is not a close call, and the Banana Republic is the one to buy.
  • We are less certain about the Wrangler grade, at 45% confidence against 82%, because it discloses less.

Both products run through the same public rubric: materials, coatings, brand disclosure, lab findings, and recalls, plus a beyond-PFAS hazard analysis. Grades are model-based estimates, not lab tests. How grades work →

More stain-resistant professional workwear: see the full ranking