Clothing sizes

Clothing sizes are the sizes with which garments sold off-the-shelf are labeled. Sizing systems vary based on the country and the type of garment, such as dresses, tops, skirts, and trousers. There are three approaches:

Body dimensions: The label states the range of body measurements for which the product was designed.^[1] (For example: bike helmet label stating "head girth: 56–60 cm".)
Product dimensions: The label states characteristic dimensions of the product. (For example: jeans label stating inner leg length of the jeans in centimetres or inches (not inner leg measurement of the intended wearer).)
Ad hoc sizes: The label states a size number or code with no obvious relationship to any measurement. (For example: Size 12, XL.) Children's clothes sizes are sometimes described by the age of the child, or, for infants, the weight.^[2]^[3]

Traditionally, clothes have been labelled using many different ad hoc size systems, which has resulted in varying sizing methods between different manufacturers made for different countries due to changing demographics and increasing rates of obesity, a phenomenon known as vanity sizing. This results in country-specific and vendor-specific labels incurring additional costs, and can make internet or mail order difficult. Some new standards for clothing sizes being developed are therefore based on body dimensions, such as the EN 13402 "Size designation of clothes".

History of standard clothing sizes

Before the invention of clothing sizes in the early 1800s, all clothing was made to fit individuals by either tailors or makers of clothing in their homes. Then garment makers noticed that the range of human body dimensions was relatively small (for their demographic). Because of the drape and ease of the fabric, not all measurements are required to obtain a well-fitting apparel in most styles. Sizes were based on:

Horizontal torso measurements, which include the neck circumference, the shoulder width, the bustline measurements – over-bust circumference, the full bust circumference, the bust-point separation, and the under-bust (rib-cage) circumference – the natural waist circumference, the upper hip circumference and the lower hip circumference.
Vertical torso measurements, which include the back (neck-waist) length, the shoulder-waist length (not the same as the back length, due to the slope of the shoulder), the bust-shoulder length, the bust-waist length, and the two hip-waist lengths.
Sleeve measurements, which include the under-arm and over-arm lengths, the fore-arm length, the wrist circumference and the biceps circumference.

Pit-to-pit measurement is not a tailoring measurement, but a finished garment measure, used in the second-hand internet marketplace, generally the straight line measure across the garment, laid flat, at the bottom of the armpits.^[4]^[5]^[6]^[7]^[8]

Standards

A variety of plastic size markers commonly attached to a clothes hanger in stores to indicate an item's size.

International standards

There are several ISO standards for size designation of clothes, but most of them are being revised and replaced by one of the parts of ISO 8559 which closely resembles European Standard EN 13402:

ISO 3635:1981, Size designation of clothes: Definitions and body measurement procedure (withdrawn, replaced by ISO 8559-1)
ISO 3636:1977, Size designation of clothes: Men's and boys outerwear garments (withdrawn, replaced by ISO 8559-2)
ISO 3637:1977, Size designation of clothes: Women's and girls outerwear garments (withdrawn, replaced by ISO 8559-2)
ISO 3638:1977, Size designation of clothes: Infants garments (withdrawn, replaced by ISO 8559-2)
ISO 4415:1981, Size designation of clothes: Mens and boys underwear, nightwear and shirts (withdrawn, replaced by ISO 8559-2)
ISO 4416:1981, Size designation of clothes: Women's and girls' underwear, nightwear, foundation garments and shirts (withdrawn, replaced by ISO 8559-2)
ISO 4417:1977, Size designation of clothes: Headwear (withdrawn, replaced by ISO 8559-2)
ISO 4418:1978, Size designation of clothes: Gloves (withdrawn, replaced by ISO 8559-2)
ISO 5971:1981, 2017, Size designation of clothes: Pantyhose
ISO 7070:1982, Size designation of clothes - Hosiery
ISO 8559:1989, Garment construction and anthropometric surveys: Body dimensions (withdrawn, replaced by ISO 8559-1)
- ISO 8559-1:2017, Size designation of clothes: Part 1: Anthropometric definitions for body measurement
- ISO 8559-2:2017, Size designation of clothes: Part 2: Primary and secondary dimension indicators
- ISO 8559-3:2018, Size designation of clothes: Part 3: Methodology of the creation of the body measurement tables and intervals
- ISO 8559-3:2023, Size designation of clothes: Part 4: Determination of the coverage ratios of body measurement tables
ISO/TR 10652:1991, Standard sizing systems for clothes (withdrawn)

Asian standards

Chinese standards

GB 1335-81
GB/T 1335.1-2008 Size designation of clothes - Men
GB/T 1335.2-2008 Size designation of clothes - Women
GB/T 1335.3-2008 Size designation of clothes - Children
GB/T 2668-2002 Sizes for coats, jackets and trousers
GB/T 14304-2002 Sizes for woolen garments

Japanese standards

JIS L 4001 (1997) Sizing systems for infants' garments
JIS L 4002 (1997) Sizing systems for boys' garments
JIS L 4003 (1997) Sizing systems for girls' garments
JIS L 4004 (1997) Sizing systems for men's garments
JIS L 4005 (1997) Sizing systems for women's garments
JIS L 4006 (1997) Sizing systems for foundation garments
JIS L 4007 (1997) Sizing systems for Hosiery and Pantyhose

Korean standards

KS K 0050 (2009) Men's wear
KS K 0051 (2004) Women's wear
KS K 0052 Infants
KS K 0059 Headgear
KS K 0070 Brassiere
KS K 0037 Dress Shirts
KS K 0088 Socks

Thai standards

Wacoal (1981, 1987)

Australian standards

L9 - Women's clothing - Apparel Manufacturers Association of NSW - 1959-1970
AS1344-1972, 1975, 1997 Size coding scheme for women's clothing
AS1182 - 1980 - Size coding scheme for infants and children's clothing

European standards

The European Standards Organisation (CEN) produced a series of standards, prefixed with EN 13402:

EN 13402-1: Terms, definitions and body measurement procedure (2001, withdrawn and replace by ISO 8559-1:2020)
EN 13402-2: Primary and secondary dimensions (2002, withdrawn and replaced by ISO 8559-2:2020)
EN 13402-3: Size designation of clothes. Body measurements and intervals (2004, 2007, 2014, 2017)
EN 13402-4: Coding system (2006)

These are intended to replace the existing national standards of the 33 member states. It is currently in common use for children's clothing, but not yet for adults. The third standard EN 13402-3 seeks to address the problem of irregular or vanity sizing through offering a SI unit based labelling system, which will also pictographically describe the dimensions a garment is designed to fit, per the ISO 3635 standard.

German standards

DOB-Verband (1983)

French standards

AFNOR NF G 03-001 (1977) - Human body - Vocabulary - Pictogram;
AFNOR EXP G 03-002 (1977) - Women Measures
AFNOR EXP G 03-003 (1977) - Men Measures
AFNOR EXP G 03-006 (1978) - Measures of babies and young children
AFNOR EXP G 03-007 (1977) - Size designation of clothes for men, women and children
AFNOR NF G 03-008 (1984) - Tights - Sizes - Designation - Marking

Russian standards

GOST R 53230-2008 (ISO 4415-1981) Size designation of clothes. Men's and boy's underwear, nightwear and shirts

British standards

Clothes-size label with EN 13402-3 pictogram and body dimensions in centimetres (found on a high-visibility jacket sold in the United Kingdom).

BS 3666:1982 Specification for size designation of women's wear
BS 6185:1982 Specification for size designation of men's wear

BS 3666:1982, the standard for women's clothing, is rarely followed by manufacturers as it defines sizes in terms of hip and bust measurements only within a limited range. This has resulted in variations between manufacturers and a tendency towards vanity sizing.^[9]

Yugoslavian standards

Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Macedonia and Serbia still use the JUS (F.G0.001 1979, F.G0.002 1979, F.G0.003 1979) standards developed in the former Yugoslavia.^[10] In addition to typical girth measurements clothing is also marked to identify which of 5 height bands: X-Short, Short, Medium, Tall, X-Tall, and body types: Slim, Normal, or Full, it is designed to fit.

American standards

US standards

CS-151-50 - Infants, Babies, Toddlers and Children's clothing
CS 215-58 - Women's Clothing (1958)
PS 36-70 - Boys Clothing (1971)
PS 42-70 – Women's Clothing (1971)
PS 45-71 - Young Men's clothing
PS 54-72 - Girls Clothing
ASTM D5585-95 (2001)
ASTM D6829-02 (2008)
ASTM D5585-11 (2011) (withdrawn, 2020)
ASTM D6240-98
ASTM D6960-04 – Women's Plus sizes (2004)

There is no mandatory clothing size or labeling standard in the US, though a series of voluntary standards have been in place since the 1930s. The US government, however, did attempt to establish a system for women's clothing in 1958 when the National Bureau of Standards published Body Measurements for the Sizing of Women's Patterns and Apparel. The guidelines were made a commercial standard and were even updated in 1970. But the guide was eventually degraded to a voluntary standard until it was abolished altogether in 1983.^[11] Private organization ASTM International started to release its own recommended size carts in the 1990s.^[12]

Since then, the common US misses sizes have not had stable dimensions. Clothing brands and manufacturers size their products according to their preferences.^[12] For example, the dimensions of two size 10 dresses from different companies, or even from the same company, may have grossly different dimensions; and both are almost certainly larger than the size 10 dimensions described in the US standard. Vanity sizing may be partly responsible for this deviation (which began in earnest in the 1980s).

Women

Comparison table

Comparison of women's dresses and suits sizes
Int	XXS	XS		S		M		L		XL		XXL
US	0	2	4	6	8	10	12	14	16	18	20	22	24
UK	4	6	8	10	12	14	16	18	20	22	24	26	28
DE	30	32	34	36	38	40	42	44	46	48	50	52	54
FR	32	34	36	38	40	42	44	46	48	50	52	54	56
IT	36	38	40	42	44	46	48	50	52	54	56	58	60
KR	44	44	55	55	66	66	77	77	88	88
JP			7	11	15	17	21

Inch-based women's sizes (US/UK)

British (UK) and American (US) standard dress sizes, s, are calculated by bust circumference, b, measured in inches, as follows:

US: s = b − 28
UK: s = b − 24

Women's clothing US/UK
US	4	6	8	10	12
UK	8	10	12	14	16
Bust	32 in	34 in	36 in	38 in	40 in
Bust	81 cm	86 cm	91 cm	97 cm	102 cm
Waist	24 in	26.5 in	29 in	31 in	33 in
Waist	61 cm	67 cm	74 cm	79 cm	84 cm
Hip	35 in	37 in	39 in	41 in	43 in
Hip	89 cm	94 cm	99 cm	104 cm	109 cm

Women's junior misses dresses and coats
EU	28	30	32	34	36	38	40	42
US	1	3	5	7	9	11	13	15
UK	3	5	7	9	11	13	15	17

Women's blouses and sweaters
EU	40	42	44	46	48	50
US	32	34	36	38	40	42
UK	34	36	38	40	42	44

Korean women's sizes

Korean casual and underwear (KS 051:2009)
Dress size	3XS	XXS	XS	S	M	L	XL	XXL	3XL	4XL
Bust (cm)	70	75	80	85	90	95	100	105	110–115	120–125

Japanese women's sizes

Japanese dresses sizes (JIS L 4005:2001)
Dress size	3	5	7	9	11	13	15	17	19	21	23	25	27	29	31
Bust (cm)	74	77	80	83	86	89	92	96	100	104	108	112	116	120	124

Japanese dresses length modifiers
Modifier	PP	P	R	T
Modifier	double-petite	petite	regular	tall
Body height (cm)	142	150	158	166
Additional hip girth (cm)	0	0	2	4

Japanese dresses fit modifiers
Modifier	Y	A	AB	B
Additional hip girth (cm)	0	4	8	12

Note: a Japanese dress marked 13-Y-PP or 13-Y-P would be designed for someone with an 89 cm bust and 89 cm hips, while a dress marked 13-B-T would be targeted at a taller individual with 105 cm hips, but the same 89 cm bust. The B fitting adds 12 cm and the T height modifier 4 cm to the base hip measurement 89 + 16 = 105 cm.^[13] Additionally there are a set of age based waist adjustments, such that a dress marketed at someone in their 60s may allow for a waist 9 cm larger than a dress, of the same size, marketed at someone in their 20s. The age based adjustments allow for up to a 3 cm increase in girth, per decade of life.

Continental European women's sizes

Italian (IT), French (FR) and German (DE) standard dress sizes, s, are calculated by bust circumference, b, and body height, h, both measured in centimetres, as follows:

IT: s = ⁠b/2⁠
FR: s = ⁠b/2⁠ − 4 = ⁠b − 8/2⁠
DE: s = ⁠b/2⁠ − 6 = ⁠b − 12/2⁠
- short, petite, h < 164: s' = ⁠s/2⁠ = ⁠b/4⁠ − 3 = ⁠b − 12/4⁠
- tall, h > 170: s' = 2 × s = b − 12

French sizes are also used by Belgian manufacturers and retailers, while German sizes are also used by Austrian, Dutch and Scandinavian ones.

Women's clothing sizes (DE/AT/NL/SE/DK)
Short size codes	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27
Standard size codes	32	34	36	38	40	42	44	46	48	50	52	54
Tall size codes	64	68	72	76	80	84	88	92	96	100	104	108
International	XS		S		M		L		XL		XXL
EU tops	76	80	84	88	92	96	100	105	110	116	122	128
EU bottoms	60	64	68	72	76	80	84	88	94	100	106	112
Shoulder width (cm)	12				13				14
Arm length (cm)	58	59		60		61				62
Bust (cm)	74–77	78–81	82–85	86–89	90–93	94–97	98–102	103–107	108–113	114–119	120–125	126–131
Waist (cm)	58–61	62–64	65–68	69–72	73–77	78–81	82–85	86–90	91–95	96–102	103–108	109–114
Hips (cm)	80–84	85–89	90–94	95–97	98–101	102–104	105–108	109–112	113–116	117–122	123–128	129–134
Inside leg (cm)	103	104	105	106	107	108	109	110	111	112	113	114

Men

Comparison tables

Men's shirts by neck girth
UK / EU / Japan	36	37	38	39	40	41	42	43	44	45	46
UK / US / AUS	14	14+1⁄2	15	15+1⁄2	15+3⁄4	16+1⁄4	16+1⁄2	17	17+1⁄2	18	18+1⁄2
Japan^[14]	S		M		L		LL
Korea^[14]	90		95		100		105		110
International	XS	S		M		L		XL		XXL

Men's sports shirts, T-shirts by chest girth
EU	36	37/38	39/40	41/42	43/44	45/46
UK / US	XS	S	M	L	XL	XXL
chest girth	84 cm	92 cm	100 cm	108 cm	116 cm	124 cm

Men's sweaters, jackets
EU	38/40	42/44	46/48	50/52	52/54
UK / US	S	M	L	XL	XXL

Men's suits, suit jackets, blazers, overcoats^[15]
EU / Russia	40	42	44	46	48	50	52	54	56	58	60	62	64
UK / US	30	32	34	36	38	40	42	44	46	48	50	52	54
Japan	32	34	36	38	40	42	44	46	48	50	52
Korea	80	85	90	95	100	105	110	115	120	125	130
SML	XXS	XS	S	S	M	M	L	L	XL	XXL	XXXL

Men's jeans, slacks, pants, trousers: Waist
EU	64/68	68/72	72/76	76/80	80/84	84/88	88/92	92/96	96/100	100/104	104/108	108/112	112/116
Italy	43	44	45	46	47	48	49	50	51	52	53	54	55
UK / US	27	28	29	30	31	32	33	34	36	38	40	42	44

Men's jeans, slacks, pants, trousers: Length
EU	34	36	38	40	42	44	46	48
UK / US	25/26	27/28	29/30	31	32	33	34	36

Men's underwear
EU	1	2	3	4	5
UK / US	S	M	L	XL	XXL

Continental European men's sizes

French (FR) and German (DE) standard suit sizes, s, are calculated by chest circumference, b, measured in centimetres, as follows:

FR: s = ⁠b/2⁠ + 0.5 = ⁠b + 1/2⁠
DE: s = ⁠b/2⁠ − 0.5 = ⁠b − 1/2⁠
- short, stocky (kurz, untersetzt): s' = ⁠s/2⁠ = ⁠b/4⁠ − 0.25 = ⁠b − 1/4⁠
- portly (Bauchgröße): s' = s + 1 = ⁠b/2⁠ + 0.5 = ⁠b + 1/2⁠
- tall, lean (lang, schlank): s' = 2 × (s − 1) = b − 3