Retro Dinosaur Shirts: Our 80s and 90s Designs, From Retro Rex to Sunset Tees

If you grew up on sunset-stripe T-shirts, neon windbreakers and a dinosaur on every lunchbox, a retro dinosaur shirt is how you wear that without digging through a thrift bin. We don't sell secondhand vintage. Everything here is printed new when you order it, in designs drawn to look like the 80s and 90s: faded-sunset T-Rexes, neon dinosaurs, and one tee, Retro Rex, that does nothing but that.

Below is every retro-style shirt we make, who each one fits, and what the listings say about fabric, sizing and how long it takes to arrive.

The short version

The retro dinosaur shirt for adults: Retro Rex

Retro Rex is the one people find when they search for a vintage dinosaur shirt, and it's the simplest pick here: a retro-style T-Rex graphic on a plain cotton tee. It comes in Solid Black, Heather Grey, Solid Heavy Metal, Solid Light Blue and Solid White, sizes S through 2XL, for $24.99.

What the listing says about the shirt itself:

• 100% combed ring-spun cotton (fiber content can vary by color), 4.3 oz/yd², so it's a light tee
• Side-seamed, taped shoulders, a tear-away label
• It runs bigger than usual. If you're between sizes, take the smaller one.

If you want the same T-Rex on your desk too, there's a Retro Rex color-changing mug ($24.99 for 11 oz, $29.99 for 15 oz), or the plain Retro Rex mug for $19.99–$21.99.

For more adult designs that aren't specifically retro, the full adult dinosaur shirt collection has about a hundred.

Retro for women: sunsets and 90s prints

Two very different shirts, so pick by fit first.

Mamasaurus Sunset pairs Mamasaurus with a retro sunset. It's a relaxed women's cut in S–3XL, 100% combed ring-spun cotton at 4.2 oz/yd² (heather colors are blended with polyester), pre-shrunk and side-seamed. Seven colors, including Navy, Black, Heather Mauve and Heather Blue Lagoon. $24.99–$28.99.

The 90's Dinos tank is the loud one: a 90s dinosaur print on a body-hugging tank. It's 82% polyester and 18% spandex with four-way stretch, XS–XL, $34.99. The listing gives chest and waist measurements per size (XS is a 33⅛″ chest, XL is 42½″), so measure before you buy rather than guessing.

If neither suits, our guide to ladies' dinosaur shirts compares the women's tee, the unisex tee and the tanks side by side, and the women's dinosaur shirts collection has every design.

A retro shirt you can wear to work: the 90's Dinos polo

The 90's Dinos polo puts the same 90s dinosaur theme on a slim-fit polo with a white button placket. It's 95% polyester and 5% spandex, stretchy and lightweight, in XS–3XL for $49.99–$53.99.

The listing is direct about one thing: the polo runs a bit small, so size up. Its size guide goes by chest, waist and hips, from a 32–34″ chest at XS to 42–44″ at 3XL.

Other prints on the same price and fit are in the dinosaur polo collection.

Retro dinosaur shirts for kids

Kids don't remember the 90s, but they do like neon and sunsets. Four options:

• Neon T-Rex, $24.99, kid's sizes XS–XL in Forest, Black, Cardinal, Moss and Navy. This is the closest thing we make to an actual vintage feel: the listing describes open-end cotton that gives "thicker vintage feel to the shirt," at 5.2 oz/yd², knitted without side seams. It runs smaller than usual, so size up for a growing kid.
• Sunset T-Rex, $24.99, a T-Rex against a retro sunset. Soft jersey cotton, pre-shrunk, relaxed unisex fit, youth S–XL (15¼″ to 18¼″ wide). Seven colors.
• T-Rex Sunset Beach, $24.99, the same sunset idea with a beach. 100% combed ring-spun cotton, 4.2 oz/yd², pre-shrunk, youth S–XL in eight colors.
• Multicolor Dinosaur Skeleton, $29.99, multicolored dinosaur skeletons. Different fabric from the rest: 95% polyester, 5% elastane, four-way stretch, so it's the one for kids who climb things. Sizes 8–20, with height and chest in the listing's chart.

When it's cold: retro hoodies

All of the shirts above are short-sleeved, and none of our dinosaur tees come in long sleeves right now. For winter, the same sunset look comes as a hoodie: the T-Rex Retro Sunset hoodie is $44.99–$46.99 in colors including Black, Navy Blazer and Purple, and there's a Retro Triceratops Sunset version at the same price. The adult dinosaur hoodie collection has those plus the Crazy 90's and Neon 90's hoodies. Our dinosaur hoodie buying guide explains the difference between the printed-front hoodies and the all-over ones.

Ordering for Christmas

Every retro shirt is printed when you order it, so production time and shipping time add together. Working back from Christmas with the longest time each listing quotes, plus a few days to spare:

These are our estimates from the listings' quoted ranges, not a delivery guarantee. Shipping is US only, and tracking arrives by email once your order ships.

Retro dinosaur shirt FAQ

Are these real vintage shirts? No. They're new shirts printed to order in retro-style designs. If you want a genuine 1990s museum-shop tee, you're looking at resale sites. If you want the look in your size, new, that's us.

Which one feels most like an old, worn-in tee? Neon T-Rex, for kids. Its open-end cotton is the one the listing describes as having a vintage feel. For adults, Retro Rex is a light, soft combed-cotton tee rather than a heavy one.

Do they run true to size? Not all of them. Retro Rex runs big. Neon T-Rex runs small, and the polo runs small. The tank and the skeleton tee give measurements in their size charts. The sunset tees are relaxed fits.

What's the biggest size? 3XL, in the Mamasaurus Sunset tee and the 90's Dinos polo. Retro Rex stops at 2XL.

Is there a long-sleeve version? Not right now. Every retro design here is short-sleeved; for warmth, go for one of the retro hoodies.

Where to start

If you're buying one retro dinosaur shirt for a grown-up and don't know their taste, get Retro Rex in Heather Grey, keeping in mind that the listing says it runs big.