Men's suit size chart: US and UK sizes like 38R and 40L, Italian, EU and German sizes, and the drop

A men's suit size chart has to tell you two things, which jacket fits your chest and which length fits your height. In the US and UK a suit size like 40R gives both. The 40 is your chest in inches and the R stands for Regular length. Italian and European brands use a different number for the same jacket (50), and German brands add separate numbers for short and long builds.

Below are the conversion tables, what S, R and L mean by height, German sizes, the drop between jacket and trousers, and how to measure. The last part is for Shopify stores that sell suits and blazers.

Men's suit size chart: US, UK, EU and Italian sizes

US and UK suit sizes are the same number. Suitsupply labels every jacket that way, for example "EU 48 / US 38 / UK 38". The European number is the US size plus 10. Italian and German brands use the same numbers for men's jackets, and Peserico labels its column IT/FR.

The size pairs follow Suitsupply and Wikipedia's suit table, which agree in every row. The chest in inches and cm follows Brooks Brothers, where a 38 is a 38 in (96.5 cm) chest. The trouser waist is the Brooks Brothers chart too, which has a 6 in drop in every size.

How to convert European suit sizes to US

Subtract 10 from the European or Italian number to get the US and UK size. Add 10 to go the other way. Hockerty's suit size guide gives the same rule and says Italian sizing matches the EU system for men. Brunello Cucinelli's conversion chart prints them as one EU/IT column.

The rule breaks down a little in the cm, though. Breuninger's German chart fits a 56 to a 110 to 113 cm chest, which is 43.3 to 44.5 in, while a US 46 is cut for 46 in (117 cm). Peserico, an Italian brand, sits near the top of Breuninger's ranges, with 96 cm for a 48 and 112 cm for a 56. From a 52 up, a shopper between two sizes should compare centimetres, not labels.

This is also why "IT size to EU" has two answers. For men's suits they are the same number. For women's clothing an Italian size is four above the French and most EU sizes, so an IT 48 is an EU 44. Our clothing size conversion chart has the women's tables.

Letter sizes vs suit sizes

Suits are rarely sold in letters, but casual blazers and knit jackets are, and brands do not agree on which letter a 40 is.

The two Italian brands give one letter per size, so a 40 is an L. Brooks Brothers puts 38 to 40 in M. Generic conversion tables, including Wikipedia's and our clothing size conversion chart, pair the sizes instead: 34 and 36 are S, 38 and 40 are M, 42 and 44 are L. If you sell lettered blazers, print the chest size next to the letter. Our XS to XXL size chart covers letter sizes for tops in more detail.

Short, regular or long: suit length by height

The letter after the number is the jacket length. S is Short, R is Regular and L is Long, so a 40L is a 40 in chest with a longer body and sleeves. Macy's suit size guide says the same: "The number is your chest measurement and the letter refers to the jacket's length." The two charts below disagree on where each length starts.

A man who is 6' is a Regular at Brooks Brothers and a Long at Macy's. Height is a starting point. Arm length and torso length decide the rest, so check the sleeve and back length on the product.

German suit sizes: short 24 to 28 and long 94 to 110

German, Austrian, Dutch and Scandinavian brands add two more number series, according to Wikipedia. Short sizes (Kurzgrößen or untersetzte Größen) are half the standard size, so a 48 becomes a 24. Long sizes (Langgrößen or schlanke Größen) are twice the standard size minus 2, so a 48 becomes a 94. Hugo Boss's size guide notes that its menswear care labels "show German sizing". Suitsupply sells the same series to US shoppers, labelled EU 24 / US 38S and EU 94 / US 38L.

Chest and heights follow Breuninger. The German retailer Baur prints the same numbers. The US column follows Suitsupply, which pairs 23 to 28 with 36S to 46S and 90 to 110 with 36L to 46L.

German short and long sizes are not only about length. Breuninger describes short sizes as for shorter men with a stronger upper body, and long sizes for taller, slimmer men. On its chart a 24 fits a 97 to 100 cm chest, a little more than a 48, and a 94 fits 92 to 95 cm, a little less.

The drop: jacket vs trouser sizes

The drop is the difference between the jacket size and the trouser waist. Macy's says suits "usually have a 6-inch or 7-inch drop", and Hockerty gives three types:

European labels hide the drop. Suitsupply's jackets and suit trousers both say EU 48, but the jacket is a US 38 and the trousers a US 32, a 6 in drop. Peserico's men's chart pairs IT 48 with US 34 trousers, which is a 4 in drop. A "size 48 suit" can come with two different trousers, so say the waist in inches or cm. For trouser sizing in general, see our jeans size chart with W and L sizes.

IT 48 to US: Italian sizes for other clothing

Many searches for "size 48" or "IT 48" are not about suits at all. The same label means different things on a blazer, a pair of trousers and a dress.

The trouser column is a range because brands disagree. The lower number is Suitsupply and Brunello Cucinelli, and the higher one is Peserico. Women's sizes follow our clothing size conversion chart, so a women's UK 18 is an IT 50 and an EU 46. Men's dress shirts are sized by collar instead, which our men's shirt size chart covers.

How to measure for a suit

You need a soft tape and, ideally, someone to help. Wear a thin shirt.

1. Chest. Macy's says to measure "around your upper body, underneath arms and over the fullest part of chest and shoulder blades". Keep the tape level. Hockerty says you should be able to slide a finger under it.
2. Over-arm. Arms at your sides, around the broadest part of the shoulders and upper arms. Macy's uses it to work out the drop.
3. Waist. At the natural waist, the narrowest point, with the tape comfortably loose. Suit trousers sit higher than jeans.
4. Height. Shoes off, back to a wall. Breuninger uses height to choose between standard, short and long sizes.

Your chest in inches is your US or UK jacket size. Charles Tyrwhitt's suit jacket guide lists each size as the largest chest it fits, so a 40 is for a chest up to 40 in (102 cm). The jacket itself measures 2.5 to 3.5 in more around the chest on that chart. If you are between sizes, Hockerty suggests sizing up, because a jacket is easier to take in than to let out. Shoulders are the exception, since they are hard to alter.

Jacket length and sleeves

Charles Tyrwhitt measures jacket length down the centre of the back. Breuninger says a classic jacket should cover the seat and end at about crotch height, and sleeves should end at the wrist, about 1 to 2 cm above the base of the thumb, so a little shirt cuff shows. On the Brooks Brothers chart a Slim Fit 38 Regular jacket is 29.25 in (74.5 cm) long and a 44 Regular is 30 in (76 cm).

These are garment measurements, not body measurements, and a chart should say which is which. Our guide to garment measurements and pit to pit charts explains how to label each one.

For Shopify stores selling suits and blazers

We build Shopify apps, including a size chart app. This is what we would set up first for tailoring.

Variants: size and length

Shopify allows three options and 2,048 variants per product. A suit in sizes 36 to 48 with Short, Regular and Long is 21 variants, so it fits easily.

If your labels are European, show the US number in the value ("50 (US 40)"). If the suit is sold as a set, write the trouser waist in the description, for example "40R jacket comes with 34 in trousers (6 in drop)". If your supplier uses German short or long sizes, say so. A 25 means nothing to a US shopper.

Plainfee Size ChartsSize charts that show every shopper their own country's sizes, with how-to-measure steps in 31 languages.See how it works

Plainfee Size Charts has a ready-made chart for men's tops and jackets, with letter sizes, US/UK, EU and Asian sizes and the chest. It has no Short, Regular or Long column and its letters follow the paired scale above, so add your lengths and adjust the letters to your brand. Measurements show in inches in the US and cm elsewhere, with one tap to switch. On charts with several countries' size columns, shoppers see their own country's sizes first (44 countries), and "Find your size" lights up the row that matches the size they usually wear. Each chart can carry a how-to-measure drawing with numbered marks and steps in 31 languages, plus a per-product fit note such as "Slim cut, size up". The chart can open in a popup or sit on the product page, open or in a collapsible row. The free plan covers 3 live charts and Pro is a flat $14.99 a month with no fees per order. Kiwi Size Chart has a fit recommender, which we do not; our list of Shopify size chart apps compares it with others. If you are building a chart from your own samples, our guide on how to make a size chart covers measuring and grading.

Checklist before you publish a suit

• Every size shows the US/UK and the EU/IT number.
• Length (Short, Regular, Long) is a separate choice or part of the size, with the heights you use.
• The trouser waist and drop are stated for suits sold as a set.
• The chest appears in inches and cm, with a note if it is a body or garment measurement.
• German short or long sizes are explained if you stock them.
• Measuring steps for chest, waist and height sit next to the size picker.

A 40R is three facts: a 40 in chest, a Regular length and, usually, 34 in trousers. Give shoppers all three in their own system, and most suit size questions end before they turn into returns.

Frequently asked questions