The Great T-Shirt Challenge: Old Navy vs. The Gap

by Elizabeth

So, I recently decided to start paying just a little bit more attention to what I wear on a daily basis. Now, don't get me wrong, I am still throwing on a t-shirt almost every morning, but I'm trying to pair that t-shirt with a cute skirt or a fun necklace or some of the amazing shoes collecting dust in the back of my closet for years. And I made myself a promise that I would quit throwing cheap Target t-shirts in the cart, and instead I'd just make sure I always have at least five great fitting t-shirts in navy or white in my dresser drawers at any given time. 

The first thing I did when I made this resolution was to order some "Perfect Fit" t-shirts from Old Navy:

When they arrived I was not impressed. I love that these t-shirts are super duper cheap and readily available at an online shopping cart near you, but they seemed even thinner than I remembered, and even worse, that dark blue pictured isn't anywhere near navy, and actually more closely resembles a french blue in person. And the white is so see through that it really can't be worn in public without something over it.  So frustrating!  And they don't even have a plain white v neck for sale online, except one with strange neck ruching.

I decided that I'd take a crazy leap a few tabs over and try out the Favorite T Shirt at the Gap to see how the two compare.

Yes, they retail for $14.95 so that's almost twice as much as you can score the Old Navy Perfect Fit tee for, but they're on sale for $12.50 right now and the Gap sends me a coupon code for 25% off about every two minutes, which brings the price down to the $9 range, and I was really curious: is the Gap t-shirt $3 better than the Old Navy t-shirt? 

I ordered a long sleeved navy crew neck, a short sleeved white v-neck, and a navy blue short-sleeved crewneck, and overall, I was really pleased. For one thing, the navy is dark navy, almost a black, and is the exact color I was after. They are much more substantial feeling than the Old Navy t-shirts, to the point that I think they will look much nicer with just a skirt and won't require layering to make an outfit look pulled together. Unlike Old Navy, The Gap does have a plain white v neck for sale, so I ordered that, and while I still have to wear a beige bra with it and it's still a little bit see through, it's nowhere near as inappropriately transparent as the Old Navy one. The thing I noticed most is that when I received that first order of Old Navy t-shirts, I thought "Eh, I might as well keep these." When I got my Gap t-shirt order, I was thrilled with them, and couldn't wait to wear all three of them.  

So I'm going to go ahead and call this challenge. For me the Gap t-shirt is the clear winner, and I'd gladly pay even twice the price for them. No more Old Navy t-shirts for this girl. 

{Photo credits: oldnavy.com, thegap.com}

Comments

[cate]

I put Old Navy into the same category as Target. It's disposable clothing, good for maaaaaaybe one season if you're lucky. Not worth spending the money on.

[Lisa]

Target and Old Navy ts are about equal in quality.

I have started ordering two crisp white Gap scoop neck tees every spring. Perfect with just about everything.

That said, Target still can't be beat for basic tanks (Merona). I get a handful of colors to live in every summer (wearing one now with a cardigan).

[Kitty Murray]

I refuse to even shop at Old Navy anymore. It's really such a waste of money.

[HollowSquirrel]

Loved this post! I need some new tees -- I LOVE the JCrew ones, but they tend to get holes easily, but they're cut so well. Ugh. Maybe I'll give the GAP another go!

[Molly]

For me, I find that the favorite short sleeve v-neck version from Gap Outlet is awesome. Thinner material than the regular Gap favorite T, but still durable and I like the fit better. My only gripe about the Gap version is that I ordered 4 white and 2 black and the length varied hugely from shirt to shirt. Thanks for the post!

[Meghan]

I have GAP t-shirts that have lasted me YEARS!! I LOVE them! So easy to wear and they wash sooo well! BONUS: My mom works for them and we are the same size so she can score me 50% off!