The 21 Best-Dressed Celebrities of 2021

We missed you, major red carpet moments!

When Covid-19 brought red carpets to a screeching halt right after awards season ended in 2020, celebrities did their best to take their fashion A-game digital, posting ‘fits to Instagram like the rest of us mere mortals. But as fun as it was to get a glimpse inside our favorite famouses’ homes, it just wasn’t the same — mind-blowing style drama is much harder to deliver on the grid.

So we here at Fashionista were thrilled when the arrival of vaccines in the spring meant a slow and cautious return to the red carpet in 2021. Though things looked a little different than before, big events — annual film festivals like those at Cannes and Venice, industry events like the Oscars and the Emmy Awards, major fashion tentpoles like the Met Gala and the CFDA Awards, and star-studded premieres for movies and TV shows — were back on the schedule, and with them, stars and their stylists.

The biggest celebrity style story of 2021 had to be Zendaya: Between releases of blockbuster vehicles “Dune” and “Spider-Man: No Way Home,” she and image architect Law Roach had plenty of opportunities to wow us — which they did, time after time. Not far behind her, though, was Anya Taylor-Joy, a former Roach-client herself (Taylor-Joy now works with friend Paul Burgo); her style star rose astronomically fast, earning both a Dior ambassadorship and the 2021 CFDA “Face of the Year” award. And they were far from the only celebrities who delighted us with their return to the spotlight.

It was a near-impossible task to narrow our 2021 Best Dressed list down to just 21 people, but we did it: From longtime Fashionista favorites (hi, Harry Styles and Dakota Johnson!) to newbies we can’t wait to see more from in 2022 — and a truly astonishing amount of Gucci, tbh — these are the stars who kept us refreshing our Getty subscription this year.