Mark Zuckerberg’s style evolution through the years, from hoodies to his hypebeast t-shirts and chain era
Mark Zuckerberg is becoming more like a style influencer in 2024.
Meta founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg is better known for his business accomplishments than his personal style, but the billionaire has taken steps in recent years toward becoming a tech industry fashion icon.
Zuckerberg — who’s now worth $198 billion, per Forbes — burst onto the tech scene as a young coding prodigy responsible for the popular social media platform Facebook. All eyes were on him even in his early 20s, and the public quickly noted his laid-back style that consisted mostly of gray t-shirts.
Today, as a 40-year-old father and the head of a tech company that has expanded far beyond friend requests and pokes, Zuckerberg’s look is again a topic of conversation.
In April, he debuted a chain necklace with his outfits, and the internet ate it up — Zuckerberg got the meme treatment and comments from his nearly 14 million followers complimenting him on his “drip,” or style.
From lavish weddings and a big birthday bash in May to sitting ringside at UFC fights, his Instagram photos seem a little like those of an influencer.
Here’s a look at Zuckerberg’s style evolution over the years.
Zuckerberg’s style as Facebook took off was pretty normal for a twenty-something in the early aughts.
A 23-year-old Zuckerberg dressed a lot like a college student in 2007.
He dropped out of Harvard University to work on Facebook full-time in 2005, and his look at the time was that of a college student heading to class.
In the picture above, he paired his quarter-zip pullover with a pair of blue jeans — jeans which would become a recurring theme in Zuckerberg’s life as a public figure.
The subdued outfit didn’t really match the feisty attitude Zuckerberg had during the early days of Facebook. He infamously carried business cards that read, “I’m CEO, Bitch.”
He’s one of the tech execs who influenced the casual dress code of the industry.
Even when addressing his entire company in 2010, Zuck kept it very casual.
Eventually, Zuckerberg became known for his gray t-shirts and hoodies.
The jeans might have ranged from light to dark washes, but he almost always paired them with a hoodie and a comfortable pair of sneakers—he’s wearing Brooks tennis shoes in the photo above.
“I really want to clear my life to make it so that I have to make as few decisions as possible about anything except how to best serve this community,” Zuckerberg said in a 2014 Q&A. “I feel like I’m not doing my job if I spend any of my energy on things that are silly or frivolous about my life.”
Zuckerberg spent years wearing essentially the same outfit everyday.
His style didn’t change very much from 2010 (left) to 2014 (right).
The photos above were taken four years apart, but it might not be easy to tell. For over a decade, Zuckerberg wore the same thing over and over.
Adam Mosseri, the head of Instagram, said during an appearance on “The Colin and Samir Show” that Zuckerberg spent many years “not wasting any energy on deciding what to wear.”
Instead, he just wore “the same thing every day for a long time as a lot of tech execs have done,” according to Mosseri.
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“First day back after paternity leave. What should I wear?” he captioned a Facebook post that showed a rack full of the same gray shirts and dark gray hoodies in 2016.
As the years passed, Zuck found ways to elevate the “tech bro” uniform.
The shift in Zuckerberg’s style becomes evident in 2019.
Around 2018, Zuckerberg’s style shifted, perhaps with his fashion meant to reflect his increasing wealth. According to Forbes, he was worth about $71 billion that year.
Instead of a basic shirt and hoodie, the Meta CEO started wearing expensive-looking cashmere sweaters and paired them with better-fitting jeans.
More recently, it appears he’s gotten more comfortable with switching up his clothing choices.
He might be a CEO, but Zuckerberg will always find ways to keep it casual like this outfit in 2021.
The pandemic blurred the lines of what exactly makes an outfit appropriate for work.
Returning to the office post-lockdown has spurred a new conversation about dress code, but when you’re the boss, those rules are likely a bit looser.
Zuckerberg is pictured above with Facebook’s then-chief operating officer, Sheryl Sandberg, and the former White House Office of National Drug Control Policy advisor Kevin Sabet in 2021.
The trio had just left a session at the Sun Valley Conference, but Zuck looked especially casual next to his peers. He ditched the blue jeans for shorts and completed the outfit with slip-on sandals.
He appears to take more style risks when he’s traveling abroad.
Zuckerberg uploaded photos and videos of his trip to Japan on his Instagram and Facebook profiles.
Zuckerberg and Chan took a trip to Japan in February, and his vacation attire made major waves.
Months before his chain went viral, the shearling jacket he wore while in Japan caught the public’s attention. When he was out and about, his Instagram followers saw more of his off-duty style.
Again, it included a neutral top, fitted jeans, and a pair of sneakers — this time white Nike shoes.
The new jacket, a departure from his old hoodies, made for an iconic “jersey swap” picture, with Zuckerberg trading tops with another iconic figure in tech, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang.
Occasionally, he swaps his casual clothes for a classic suit.
Zuckerberg and his wife Priscilla Chan attended the pre-wedding celebrations of Anant Ambani and Radhika Merchant in March.
Some events call for more formal dress, and Zuckerberg isn’t too proud to push back on that.
For court appearances, luxurious weddings, and fancy ceremonies, he typically pulls out a classic black suit.
But for the March pre-wedding celebrations for members of India’s richest family, the Ambanis, Zuckerberg and his wife Priscilla Chan wore all black, embellished with gold accents. He had a dragonfly on his lapel.
In 2024, Zuckerberg is going viral every few weeks for his new look.
Zuckerberg celebrated his 40th birthday on May 14, 2024.
The outfit he wore to his 40th birthday party in May cemented Zuckerberg’s new era in fashion. He wore a gold chain and a black T-shirt, but unlike his past shirt choices, it had a message.
The top reads “Carthago delenda est,” which translates to “Carthage must be destroyed,” a phrase famously attributed to Roman historian Cato the Elder. As B-17 previously reported, it was a rallying cry within Facebook in 2016 when it was competing with Google.
He has since worn several similar shirts.
At a live taping of the “Acquired” podcast in September, he sported a new shirt he designed that said “learning through suffering” in Greek. At Meta Connect this year, he wore another custom shirt that read in Latin, “All Zuck or All Nothing.”
As for his new chains, Zuck has said those are a part of his “process” of designing a “long-term” chain engraved with a prayer he reads to his daughters.
His motive is endearing, and the internet’s obsession with the necklaces makes for a lot of viral content and positive attention.
“I love it so much,” Mosseri said in June.
Zuckerberg was spotted wearing this $1,150 shirt while vacationing in Ibiza this summer.
Zuckerberg wore this Balmain t-shirt during a vacation in Ibiza, Spain.
Zuckerberg continued his exploration into designer shirts going during his and Chan’s vacation in Ibiza, Spain, People reported. He was spotted wearing this white knit Balmain shirt with the brand’s logo highlighted on the chest.
In spite of the shirt’s hefty price tag, the Meta CEO surprisingly manages to keep this hypebeast shirt in line with his usual simple style. He accessorized with a pair of reflective glasses but kept the luxurious outfit casual with white sneakers and blue shorts.
He made waves on Independence Day when he surfed on his hydrofoil while wearing a tuxedo.
“Happy birthday, America!” Zuckerberg said in an Instagram post he published on July 4, 2024.
The Meta CEO went viral once more on July 4, 2024, when he posted a video of himself hydrofoiling.
But unlike your average water sports lover, Zuckerberg decided to take things to the next level.
Besides wearing a tuxedo and pair of Meta Ray-Bans, the billionaire can be seen in the clip waving the American flag while taking sips from a can of beer.
And if that wasn’t enough, Zuckerberg scored the entire video to Bruce Springsteen’s “Born in the USA.”
“Pure 8 month post-recovery surfing with a dry start right here,” Zuckerberg said in a comment on his Instagram post.
Zuck and Chan also sported some retro looks at a disco-themed party he threw.
“Disco queen wanted a party,” he captioned the photos on Instagram in October.
