How long does shorts take to dry outside?

Why shorts behave the way they do

Drying time follows how much water the fabric holds and how much surface it can present to moving air. Shorts sit in the light group at 2 hours in reference conditions, which is 20°C, 55% humidity, a light breeze and sunshine. Every other combination is that figure divided by how fast the air is working.

Humidity is the multiplier that matters most. Going from 50% to 75% can roughly double the time without anything else changing, because the air simply has less room to take the moisture. Still air does the same, since washing wraps itself in a thin layer of humid air as it dries and needs a breeze to strip it away.

Getting shorts dry faster

Hang for surface area rather than tidiness. Anything folded double over the line dries at roughly half the rate, because you have halved the area meeting the air. Give the heaviest items the windiest spot and the longest run of line you have.

Then get them out early. The drying rate climbs through the morning, peaks in the early afternoon and falls away after about four o'clock as the temperature drops and dew starts settling back onto the fabric. At 2 hours, shorts pegged out at nine and shorts pegged out at two are very different propositions.