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Convert a size
Pick the clothing line, the region of the size you know, and type it — the full row appears below.
REFERENCE TABLE · EVERYDAY
Clothing Size Chart
Every common clothing size in one chart — women’s tops and dresses, women’s bottoms, men’s shirts, suits, and trousers — in US, UK, and EU sizes with the bust, waist, chest, and neck measurements each row covers. Three live lookups below: convert a size (know the US, get the UK and EU), size from measurement (tape it, type it), and the size rules, live (the +32, +4, +10, and +16 rules in one calculator). The five rules that decode every tag are in the box below — a women’s US 8 is a UK 12 and an EU 40, and Italian sizes run about one size small.
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Size from measurement
Measure yourself with a tape, type the inches — the matching size row appears below.
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The size rules, live
Type a size and the conversion rules do the rest — US to UK and EU in one step.
The five rules that decode every clothing tag
- Women’s EU = US + 32. A US 8 is an EU 40; a US 2 is an EU 34. This is the single most-used rule in the chart — it holds across tops, dresses, and bottoms.
- Women’s UK = US + 4. A US 8 is a UK 12; a US 4 is a UK 8. (The reverse trips people up: a UK 8 is a US 4, not a US 8.)
- Men’s jacket EU = US/UK + 10. A US 40 suit is an EU 50; a US 34 is an EU 44. Men’s suit and trouser numbers are identical in the US and UK.
- Men’s trousers EU = waist + 16. A 34-inch waist is an EU 50; a 32 waist is an EU 48.
- Italian sizes run about one size small. An IT 44 fits like a US 8 / UK 12 / EU 40 — which is to say, if you wear a US 8, buy the IT 46. This is the one brand-family caveat that catches travelers most.
Women’s tops & dresses
Alpha sizes with the US/UK/EU numbers and the bust and waist ranges each covers:
| Size | US | UK | EU | Bust | Waist |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| XS | 2 | 6 | 34 | 32.5–34 in | 24.5–26 in |
| S | 4–6 | 8–10 | 36–38 | 34.5–36.5 in | 26.5–29 in |
| M | 8–10 | 12–14 | 40–42 | 37–39 in | 29.5–31.5 in |
| L | 12–14 | 16–18 | 44–46 | 39.5–42 in | 32–35 in |
| XL | 16–18 | 20–22 | 48–50 | 42.5–45.5 in | 35.5–39 in |
Women’s bottoms
Jeans, trousers, and skirts — sized by waist, with the US/UK/EU equivalents:
| US | UK | EU | Waist |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | 6 | 34 | 26 in |
| 4 | 8 | 36 | 27 in |
| 6 | 10 | 38 | 28 in |
| 8 | 12 | 40 | 29.5 in |
| 10 | 14 | 42 | 31 in |
| 12 | 16 | 44 | 32.5 in |
| 14 | 18 | 46 | 34.5 in |
| 16 | 20 | 48 | 37 in |
Men’s shirts
Dress shirts are sized by neck; the alpha size follows:
| Neck (US) | EU | Size |
|---|---|---|
| 14 | 36 | XS |
| 14.5 | 37 | S |
| 15 | 38 | S |
| 15.5 | 39–40 | M |
| 16 | 41 | M |
| 16.5 | 42 | L |
| 17 | 43 | L |
| 17.5 | 44–45 | XL |
| 18 | 46 | XL |
Men’s suits
Suit and jacket sizes are the chest measurement; US and UK numbers are identical:
| US / UK chest | EU | Chest (cm) |
|---|---|---|
| 34 | 44 | 86 cm |
| 36 | 46 | 92 cm |
| 38 | 48 | 97 cm |
| 40 | 50 | 102 cm |
| 42 | 52 | 107 cm |
| 44 | 54 | 112 cm |
| 46 | 56 | 117 cm |
Men’s trousers
Trouser size is the waist in inches; the EU column follows the +16 rule:
| Waist (US / UK) | EU | Waist (cm) |
|---|---|---|
| 28 | 44 | 71 cm |
| 30 | 46 | 76 cm |
| 32 | 48 | 81 cm |
| 34 | 50 | 86 cm |
| 36 | 52 | 91 cm |
| 38 | 54 | 97 cm |
| 40 | 56 | 102 cm |
Worked example: a US 8 in every region
Take a women’s US 8 — the middle of the chart. The +4 rule makes it a UK 12; the +32 rule makes it an EU 40; the row is size M, covering a 37–39-inch bust and a 29.5–31.5-inch waist. Shopping a British site? Type the US 8 into the converter above and read off UK 12. Shopping Italian? Remember the caveat — the tag will read 44, and you want the 46.
Output · formula · meaning: how to read the chart
| Output | Formula | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| Converted size | look up the row whose range contains your number | US 8 (women’s tops) → size M: US 8–10 · UK 12–14 · EU 40–42. |
| Size from measurement | find the row whose measurement range contains your inches | A 38-inch bust → size M in women’s tops (37–39 in range). |
| Rule result | UK = US + 4 · EU = US + 32 (women’s) · jacket EU = US + 10 · trousers EU = waist + 16 | US 8 women’s → UK 12 · EU 40. |
| Italian-size adjustment | buy one size up from your converted size | US 8 → IT 46 (not 44), because Italian cuts run ~1 size small. |
Who uses this
- Cross-border online shoppers: the US 8 who keeps getting burned by UK 8s — convert once, screenshot the row, shop with confidence.
- Travelers buying abroad: an EU 40 in Paris, an IT 44 in Milan — the rules turn foreign tags into your home size.
- Between-sizes shoppers: a 38-inch bust sits dead-center in M (37–39), but a 36.5-inch bust straddles S and M — the measurement lookup settles it.
- Gift buyers: they know one size in one region — the converter fills in the rest of the row so the surprise fits.
Accuracy & limitations
Brands vary — vanity sizing is real, and there is no legal standard for clothing sizes. These tables are the industry-consensus conversions, cross-checked across multiple references, but any single brand can run a full size off: fast-fashion labels tend to run small, American heritage brands tend to run generous. Measure yourself with a tape (bust at the fullest point, natural waistline, tape snug not tight) and match the measurement ranges, not the alpha label — the ranges are more honest than the letters. Between sizes? Go by your measurements: size up in tops for the bust, in bottoms for the waist, and check the retailer’s return policy before you commit. Children’s, petite, and plus-size extended ranges follow different scales and are not covered here.
Cite this reference chartBright Side Kit. “Clothing Size Chart.” brightoolbox.com, 2026.
Bright Side Kit. "Clothing Size Chart." https://brightoolbox.com/clothing-size-chart/ Accessed October 23, 2026.Frequently asked questions
What is the +32 rule for clothing sizes?
For women’s clothing, EU size = US size + 32: a US 8 is an EU 40, a US 2 is an EU 34, a US 12 is an EU 44. It holds across tops, dresses, and bottoms, and it is the fastest way to read a European tag. Type any US size into the rule calculator above and it applies all four rules at once.
Is a UK size really the US size plus 4?
For women’s clothing, yes: UK = US + 4 — a US 8 is a UK 12. The confusion runs the other way: a UK 8 is a US 4, which is why British-site shoppers keep ordering two sizes too small. For men’s suits and trousers there is no +4 at all — US and UK numbers are identical, and the EU follows the +10 (jackets) and +16 (trousers) rules instead.
Why do clothing sizes differ so much between brands?
Because there is no legal standard — sizes are whatever each brand’s fit model says they are, and vanity sizing (labeling a larger garment with a smaller number) has drifted the whole scale over decades. The fix: ignore the alpha letter, measure yourself, and match the measurement ranges in the chart above. A 38-inch bust is a size M in women’s tops on any honest chart — the letters are marketing, the inches are physics.
Do Italian clothing sizes run small?
Yes — Italian cuts run about one size small compared with the standard EU scale. An IT 44 fits like a US 8 / UK 12 / EU 40, so if you wear a US 8, buy the IT 46. This is the single most common traveler mistake in the chart: the tag number looks familiar, the fit is not. When in doubt abroad, size up.
What should I do if I am between two sizes?
Go by your measurements, not the letter. In tops, fit the bust (a 36.5-inch bust straddles S and M — choose by how you like tops to fit, and check the shoulder seams); in bottoms, fit the waist — a tailor can take in a waist far more cheaply than you can return worn jeans. Type your inches into the size-from-measurement lookup and it picks the row your body actually lands in.
Do men’s pants use the same size scale as women’s?
No — completely different systems. Men’s trouser size is the waist measurement in inches (a 34 is a 34-inch waist), while women’s bottoms use arbitrary numbers (a women’s 8 is a 29.5-inch waist). Men’s EU trousers follow waist + 16 (34 → EU 50); women’s follow US + 32. The two scales share nothing but the store.