Clothing size converter (US, UK, EU, IT, FR, JP)
Convert women's and men's clothing sizes and jeans waists across US, UK, EU, French, Italian and Japanese labels, driven by body measurements.
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Measure over light clothing, tape level and snug but not pulled tight. Bust and chest go around the fullest point; waist goes around the narrowest, usually just above the navel.
| US | UK | DE/EU | FR | IT | JP | Letter | Bust | Waist | Hip |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | 4 | 30 | 32 | 36 | 5 | XXS | 79 | 61 | 87 |
| 2 | 6 | 32 | 34 | 38 | 7 | XS | 83 | 65 | 91 |
| 4 | 8 | 34 | 36 | 40 | 9 | S | 87 | 69 | 95 |
| 6 | 10 | 36 | 38 | 42 | 11 | S | 91 | 73 | 99 |
| 8 | 12 | 38 | 40 | 44 | 13 | M | 95 | 77 | 103 |
| 10 | 14 | 40 | 42 | 46 | 15 | M | 99 | 81 | 107 |
| 12 | 16 | 42 | 44 | 48 | 17 | L | 103 | 85 | 111 |
| 14 | 18 | 44 | 46 | 50 | 19 | L | 108 | 90 | 116 |
| 16 | 20 | 46 | 48 | 52 | 21 | XL | 113 | 95 | 121 |
| 18 | 22 | 48 | 50 | 54 | 23 | XL | 118 | 100 | 126 |
| 20 | 24 | 50 | 52 | 56 | 25 | XXL | 123 | 105 | 131 |
| 22 | 26 | 52 | 54 | 58 | 27 | XXL | 128 | 110 | 136 |
A dress size is not a measurement
Clothing sizes have no legal definition in any major market. A US 8, a UK 12 and a German 38 are conventions maintained by habit, and they have drifted steadily larger for decades — the phenomenon usually called vanity sizing. A garment labelled US 8 today is several centimetres bigger than one labelled US 8 in the 1970s.
This converter therefore works from a body measurement to a label rather than from label to label. Two approximations become one.
Measuring properly
- Bust or chest — around the fullest point, tape level all the way round, arms down.
- Waist — around the narrowest part of the torso, usually just above the navel. Do not hold your breath.
- Hip — around the widest point of the seat, typically 20 cm below the waist.
- Neck — for shirts, around the base of the neck with one finger under the tape.
- Inside leg — from crotch to the top of the shoe, in the shoes you will wear.
Measure over light clothing or none, with the tape snug but not compressing. A tape pulled tight will put you a size down and a size out.
The European numbering families
"EU size" is not one system. For women's clothing there are at least three in common use, and they are offset from each other by fixed amounts:
| US | UK | Germany / EU | France | Italy |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 | 8 | 34 | 36 | 40 |
| 6 | 10 | 36 | 38 | 42 |
| 8 | 12 | 38 | 40 | 44 |
| 10 | 14 | 40 | 42 | 46 |
France runs two above Germany; Italy runs six above. A label reading "40" could be a UK 8, a UK 12 or a UK 14 depending on which country printed it — check for a country code on the tag.
Men's sizing is more honest
Men's tailoring is usually labelled with the actual chest measurement in inches, and shirts with the collar measurement, which makes the conversion nearly mechanical: a 40 in chest is a 100 cm chest, which is an EU 50. Letter sizes (S, M, L) are a coarser overlay on the same measurements, and where a brand gives both, trust the number.
Jeans, where labels are fiction
Denim waist labels are the least reliable numbers in clothing. Independent testing has repeatedly found jeans labelled W32 measuring anywhere from 79 to 91 cm at the waistband, with the same brand varying between cuts. The label is a marketing decision, not a measurement.
The reliable method is to lay a pair that fits flat, measure the waistband from side to side, double it, and shop against that number. The jeans tab here converts between the inch label, centimetres and the European and women's numbering, but no chart can fix a brand that mislabels.
Use the brand's chart when there is one
These tables are industry mid-points. A brand that publishes garment measurements — particularly a "flat measurement" chart, giving the dimensions of the garment rather than of the intended body — is telling you something far more precise, and it should always win.
Questions
How do I measure for a size chart?
Over light clothing, with the tape level and snug but not pulled tight. Bust and chest go round the fullest point, waist round the narrowest part of the torso, hips round the widest point of the seat.
Why is a US 4 a UK 8?
The two systems are simply offset by four, but that offset is a convention rather than a standard, and both have drifted over decades of vanity sizing. That is why this converter starts from a measurement and reports the label, rather than mapping label to label.
How do Italian and French sizes relate?
For women's clothing, Italy runs about four numbers above the German/EU number and France about two — so a German 38 is roughly a French 40 and an Italian 44.
Why do jeans in my "size" not fit?
Denim waist labels are notoriously optimistic; measured waists on jeans labelled W32 vary by several centimetres between brands and within a brand across cuts. Measure a pair that fits you and match to that.
Are these charts brand-specific?
No — they are the common industry mid-points. Any brand that publishes its own measurement chart should win over this one, because these labels have no legal definition anywhere.