Bra sizing systems as of 2017-04-21 20:50:07.328545

Here we will try to make sense of how different brands and regions address label their bra sizes.

Traditionally, different countries/regions have been using standards on how to label their bras.

The most popular sizing systems around are US, UK, EU and what France and Spain uses. There is also an Italian system but is very not very common.

All these bra sizing systems agree in one thing, they all have a number to represent the band size and use letters to represent the cup size. The difference rely in the combination of rules they use for bands and cups.

Sizing by regions

UK sizing

Is starting to gain the most traction online for its apparent stability across brands and seemingly standard.

For its band sizes, it uses increments of two and all the bands are even numbers. Usually the smallest size is around 26 or 28 band. There is a rough correlation between this number and the perimeter of your ribcage in inches, this the increments are considered to be two inches bigger on each size.

For cups, the widely understood progression of cups goes as follows:

AAA, AA, A, B, C, D, DD, E, F, FF, G, GG, H, HH, J, JJ, K, KK...

As you can see it has a particular set of rules: * Anything below A is smaller by adding more As to it, very unusual to find anything with more than 3 As together. * After D comes double D, then single E and then F, then double F. There is no double E. This is pretty safe. I have not seen any brand that claims to use UK sizes and does double E cups. * Beginning at F, all cups go single letter, then double letter although no letter I, don't ask me why. * Since it is not a standard set on stone, it is unclear how it goes much further beyond KK cups. A few brands start to differ as of what goes next, but most people will expect the same single/double letter progression. Ewa Michalak for example has opted to skip O cups to avoid confusion.

US Sizing

This sizing, is what is most commonly found in retail stores in the USA. It is growing unpopular for its inconsistency across brands, and how quick it starts having differences making it very difficult to use to translate one size to another brand.

For bands, it uses the same rules as UK sizes, by roughly relating band sizes with inches and using even numbers on its progression. The translation to UK cups is direct, a 34 band is the same in both.

This system shows its weakness on the cups. Each brand that claims to use US sizing has implemented their own version of how cups should go, some of them go like this:

AA, A, B, C, D, DD, DDD, E, F, G, H, I ...
AA, A, B, C, D, DD/E, DDD/F, G, H, I ...
AA, A, B, C, D, DD, E, F, G, H, I ...
AA, A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I ...

As shown, things get pretty unclear on what happens after D or DD. Some brands show equivalences saying that DD and E are equivalent, others say that E is after DD. Some brands do DDD and others never label their bras like that. In some brands F cups are the 4th cup after D, in others it is the 3rd size after D.

US sizing, is usually known for its presence of DDD cups, no double cups (except DD) and I cups in brands that dare to reach as high. Most brands that claim to use US sizing rarely go beyond G cups. So it is impossible to translate a larger UK cup into "US sizing" since there is no standard and brands don't go as high, it is undefined.

EU Sizing

France/Spain sizing

Italy sizing

Index sizing

Other sizing systems out there

Sugar shape
Ampere
Lady Cameo

There is no real "UK/US/EU/etc" sizing

As explained above, you will see that all sizing schemes come with exceptions. Reality is that there is no global entity that dictates and regulates how each manufacturer should size their bras according to their region.

Each manufacturer has the liberty to use whichever bands or cup lettering system they please or they think it is right, or even worse, change their minds at any point in time.

What you will find is that there are some rules that certain brands follow and other don't, so any regional sizing system will never be 100% precise across all brands that claim to use it.

Changing sizing schema

Some brands will change their sizing in time after they have produced certain bras.

True & Co - Added DD cup
Parfait - Different conversions
Panache - Using DDDDDD cups
Freya - Changed US/UK conversions
Alexis Smith - Added F/E cups