Clothing Size Converter: US, UK, EU
Convert women’s dress and men’s suit sizes between US, UK, EU, France and Italy.
Good to know. A UK 12 and a US 12 are two sizes apart, which has caused many a returned parcel.
Approximate. Real-world values vary.
How it works
In plain words
Women’s sizes: UK is US + 4, EU is UK + 28, France is EU + 2 and Italy is EU + 4. Men’s suits: US and UK sizes are the chest in inches, and European sizes add 10.
The formula
women: UK = US + 4 · EU = US + 32 · FR = US + 34 · IT = US + 36 men: EU = US + 10
Worked example
A US women’s 8 is a UK 12 and an EU 40, which is 42 in France and 44 in Italy: US 8 · UK 12 · EU 40, a medium.
Sources
No outside data or rates: this is plain arithmetic.
4 automated tests check its answers on every change.
About the clothing size converter: US, UK, EU
Clothing sizes are numbered differently from country to country, and the same number can mean very different things: a UK 12 is a US 8, and a 40 is an EU women’s size but a US men’s jacket. This converter translates women’s dress, top and coat sizes and men’s suit and jacket sizes between the main systems.
Women’s sizes follow a fixed pattern. UK and Australian sizes are four higher than US sizes. German, Dutch and Scandinavian sizes, usually meant by “EU”, are 28 higher than UK sizes. French and Spanish sizes are two higher again, and Italian sizes four higher. Men’s suit and jacket sizes in the US and UK are the chest measurement in inches; European sizes add 10, so a 40 chest is a 50.
Brands vary, sometimes by a full size, and “vanity sizing” means many US brands now run larger than the numbers suggest. When a brand publishes its own chart with body measurements, use that. Measuring your bust, waist and hips (or chest for men) in centimetres or inches is the most reliable way to choose.
Shoe sizes follow different rules; the shoe size converter covers those.
Questions people ask
What is a UK 12 in US size?
A US 8. UK women’s sizes are four higher than US sizes.
What is size 40 in US women’s?
An EU 40 is a US 8 and a UK 12. In France, a 40 is a US 6.
What is a size 50 suit in the US?
A 40, for a 40-inch chest. European suit sizes are the US size plus 10.