Clothing Size by Garment Type

International clothing size systems vary dramatically between countries. A size 10 in the US, a size 14 in the UK, a size 40 in Europe, and a size 38 in France can all refer to roughly the same garment. This calculator maps sizes across systems using body measurements as the universal reference.

Key body measurements (in inches or cm):

• Bust / Chest: the fullest part of the chest
• Waist: the narrowest point, usually an inch above the navel
• Hips: the fullest point, usually 7 to 9 inches below the waist

US women’s size conversion: US Size ≈ (Bust in inches − 31.5) × 2 (approximate, varies by brand)

A US 0 is cut for a 31.5" bust and each size number adds half an inch, so a 35.5" bust lands on a US 8 and a 36" bust sits between an 8 and a 10. Our dress size converter will take the measurement directly if you would rather not do the arithmetic.

If you already know a size and only want it in another scale, the clothing size converter does that across US, UK and EU with no measuring involved. This page is the one to use when you are working from a tape measure or comparing several countries at once.

What the numbers actually are

Only the European figure has a body behind it. EU sizing descends from a system based on half the bust measurement in centimetres, which is why the numbers sit in the thirties and forties and why they step in twos. The US and UK numbers are pure labels with no measurement meaning at all, which is how vanity sizing was able to happen: a modern US 8 is roughly what a 14 was in the 1950s, and nothing stopped it because no standard was being violated.

Men’s clothing is the opposite. A men’s jacket size is the chest in inches, a men’s trouser size is the waist in inches, and both are real measurements, which is why menswear converts cleanly and womenswear does not. The European jacket number is the chest in inches plus ten. European trousers run sixteen above the US waist, so a 34 becomes a 50.

Cross-system reference, women’s tops:

Every column above is one fixed offset from the US number: UK is US + 4, German EU is US + 30, France is US + 32, Italy is US + 36, Japan is US + 5. That matters because this table used to add 6 to US in its top row and 4 everywhere below it, which is the sort of thing nobody notices in a chart and everybody notices in a parcel.

A warning about the EU column, because you will see it written differently. Plenty of charts publish EU as US + 32. They are quoting French sizing and calling it European. The German Konfektionsgröße scale is the one most of the continent’s high street actually uses, and it is US + 30: a US 8 is a German 38 and a French 40. If a retailer’s own chart disagrees with this one by exactly two, that is almost certainly which of the two conventions they picked, not an error on either side. Check the brand chart.

Men’s shirt sizes (neck circumference):

Important: These are general guides. Fit varies significantly between brands and cuts (slim fit vs. relaxed). Always measure yourself and check the specific brand’s size chart before ordering online.