24 Affordable Dresses That Do All the Work for You

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(Image credit: @courtneeruthie)

It's a universally shared fact that some days it's harder to find the motivation to piece together an outfit more than others. Be it due to waking up late, feeling uninspired by your closet, or just an unwillingness to shell out the time and effort into creating a look worthy of an Instagram post, we're not always in the mindset to look street style–ready.

For these days, we like to have a few back-up plans to rely on like a saved folder of outfit inspiration, some pre-styled looks we've created for a rainy day, or, the easiest trick in the book: a stockpile of great dresses. It’s always good to have an arsenal of dresses that capture the throw-on-and-go spirit without looking like you just, well, threw on and went. The right dress has the power to carry a look on its back, cutting out the need to fuss over finding the right shoes, bag, and whatever else you feel the need top off an ace outfit. Even better is it doesn't even have to cost you more than a fraction of what you're willing to spend.

Skip ahead for 24 affordable dresses that will truly do all of the work of pulling together a good look for you.

Up next: 11 affordable and awesome brands to shop if you have Zara fatigue like me.

Contributing Editor

Ray Lowe is a contributing editor for Who What Wear. She's spent the last decade living in New York, but now that she professionally works from home, she's slowly been going back to her roots by splitting time between NYC and L.A. A year ago, she left a four-year stint as a fashion editor for Refinery29 to explore the freelance life. Nowadays, she does just about everything from penning online articles (for Who What Wear, Refinery29, Elle, Cosmo, and many more) to writing scripts, styling, and finding ways to fuse her love for both Disney and fashion. Her main beat is fashion (trends, emerging brands, affordable finds, you name it), but you may find her dropping in with a beauty story every now and then. As for her personal style, she'd best describe it as a balanced blend of basics and contemporary trends, often with a dash of Mickey Mouse thrown in for good measure. In her spare time, she can be found coddling my pets (a French bulldog and a rescue cat), curating travel itineraries for her friends, scrolling through Instagram for up-and-coming brands, and watching so-bad-they're-good films.