German clothing sizes

I'm not one for spending hours in a shop trying stuff on, I'd rather just buy clothes and leave the shop. But there seems to be so many different sizing methods.

Has anyone found an easy comparison chart to English sizes. I can't find a previous thread, but I'm sure this must have come up before.

Größen / Sizes Herrenanzüge / Men´s suits

Deutsch	42	44	46	46-47	48	50	50-52	52	54
Englisch /Amerikanisch	34	35	36	37	38	39	40	41	42

Herrenhemden / Men´s shirts

Deutsch	35-36	37	38	39	40	41	42	43
Englisch /Amerikanisch	14	14 1/2	15	15 1/2	14 3/4	16	16 1/2	17
	XS	S	S	M	M	L	L	XL

Herrensocken / Men´s socks

Deutsch	39-40	40-41	42	42-43	43-44
Englisch /Amerikanisch	10	10 1/2	11	11 1/2	12

Damenkleider - Blusen - Kostüme / Ladies dresses - blouses - costumes

Deutsch	42	44	46	48	50	52
Amerikanisch	34	36	38	40	42	44
Englisch	36	38	40	42	44	46

Damenstrümpfe / Ladies stockings

Deutsch	1	2	3	4	5	6
Englisch /Amerikanisch	8 1/2	9	9 1/2	10	10 1/2	11

Schuhe / Shoes

Deutsch / Französisch	35	36	37	38	39	40	41	42	43	44	45	46	47
Englisch	2 1/2	3 1/2	4	5	6	6 1/2	7	8	9	9 1/2	10 1/2	11	12
Amerikanisch	4 1/4	5	5 3/4	6 1/2	7 1/4	8	8 3/4	9 1/2	10 1/4	11	11 3/4	12 1/2	13 1/4

Hüte / Hats

Deutsch	53	54	55	56	57	58	59	60	61
Amerikanisch / Englisch	6 1/2	6 5/8	6 3/4	6 7/8	7	7 1/8	7 1/4	7 3/8	7 1/2

Just watch out for those darned 'left handed zippers'! I had a very hard time finding a coat with a right handed one and soon gave up. Right handed zippers are 'mens' and left are 'womens' typically, but in germany they are all left handed.

Don't forget that with men's suits (and some trousers) there are long sizes and short sizes.
So as well as 44-58 for example (which corresponds to an inch size of 28-42), you will also find 90-114 (long/tall sizes for 30-40 inch) and 25-28 (36-42 inch short).
I know this because Herr Indoors and I are diddy.
If you can't be arsed with the faff, go to GAP or Esprit as they have the UK sizes listed on the labels.
Katrina

i'd use the chart above cautiously and as a base only to go from. i know i wear a woman's size 39 shoe, which is equivalent to an 8 U.S. that size chart said it was 7 1/4, another one i looked at said 8, the other 7 1/2.

for me, buying pants can be a drama. some 38's are no way too tight, others just right, or a 40 is no way too tight, others like a balloon on me. i have hips so it's just trial and error.

I know what you mean, having looked at a number of sites thrown up by Google similar to the one Keydeck mentioned. Being a bigger chap, shopping in Germany is sometimes easier, but I think that I will have to resort to the 'try it and see' method. Thanks for the suggestions though.

Has anybody ever been *really* surprised to find size mismatches of more than 40% in clothes with the same size labels?

I've noticed that "Large" t-shirts here tend to be a wee bit tighter than those in the States. This is fine by me, since they fit me tad better actually.

I'm bringing this thread up because I just got back from the Schiller concert. (Dreeeeaaaamy music Woo-hoo! ) Anyway at the end, I buy a T-shirt and guess I should go "L" because up to now it's been a safe guess for me in Germany. Not wanting to try it on there in the concert hall, I just order, pay and leave. Cut to our hero at home 30 minutes later, slipping into a stretchy skintight T-shirt that leaves no contour to the imagination. Summer is coming up and I have to cut weight for competitions anyway, but I just got burned on €15 on a shirt that would basically get me beaten up in the States..

The only time I've come close to being remotely surprised is when I bought shirts in the south of France -- the "L"'s there are pretty tight, but still not as big a jump as this. Anybody else get surprised on sizes that are not universal?

I want to a trekker place, and they had trousers but the sizes went from 27 to 108. WTF?

Anyone know the conversion to inches?

IW, were you shoppig in the kids department or are you a man? kids clothes usually have 3 digits (been buying a lot of gifts for various kids lately).
women's pants, erm trousers, go by 34, 36, up to maybe who knows 52 or so. that 27 might be a petite size.

p.s. that chart from edit bob is confusing. in the u.s. i wear a 6 blouse. never heard of 34. and that certainly ain't equivalent to a 42 german.

No, it was all very confusing so I ran out the shop crying.

Elf is correct - those ladies sizes are incorrect.

• UK 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 20
• US 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18
• Europe 34 36 38 40 42 44 46 48

Sizes may vary according to store.
Katrina

@ IW, tell us your size (US or UK) and we can make a suggestion which sizes you should try first.

@ Katrina, thanks for the correction. it's confusing enough to get the right sized clothes here. i bought tennis shoes the other day and bought a pair of size 40 (8.5 so they say) asics only to take them home, put them on, and have my right foot fall assleep. so i wound up with a pair of nikes, size 8. go figure.

But Katrina, even that's not right. I wear a UK 10 or 12 (not sure about US) but a EU 36 or 38. Editor Bob's chart is very wrong. Nobody can get shoe sizes right. US 5 = EU 34 = UK 3.

Then janet you take typically a UK 10 or very, very small cut UK 12.
If you are a true UK 12 a 36 will not fit you because I've tried (and nearly ripped stuff in the process!). UK 12 I can buy off the peg without having to try them on in any UK store apart from possibly Top Shop.
I generally take the 40 but the 38 in Esprit and in certain other stores so usually take the 38 and the 40 into the fitting room. There is a big variance between sizing brands so the list that I put was really a rough guide.
Katrina

Yeah, I am a bit of an in between size. Most of my body is a 36, but my ass is a 38. I also like my tops with some freedom of movement.

In my opinion you also have to allow for the fact that British and German women are quite simply different shapes. You get very few pear shaped German women, and so the trousers here are cut differently. I seriously think that there's a bigger difference between the hips and waist measurements of a pair of trousers in Britain than there is here.

German women tend to not have small waists. British women do have smaller waists whether pear-shaped or not. A small waist doth not a pear-shape make
Katrina

But a severe lack of boobs above the waist does You're right though, I guess it doesn't have much to do with pear shapedness, but whatever, in my experience trousers are cut much straighter from the waist to the hip here than in Britain... In my case, I can often get into a 10 in Britain, but have to wear a 40 here, because the 38 rarely goes over my hips...

Hmm anyone know a conversion chart for mens trousers? I couldn't find one here but maybe I am being blind. I went shopping and ended up with some "size 50's" because they fitted well, but have not been able to find anywhere a conversion to inches. I guess it is around 34 inches, because that is what I normally wear, but most conversion charts seem to say size 50 German is 42 inches ... WTF!

Not really important, but would be interesting to know...

Some places have different sizings though. For instance, what is a 48 -size 20 UK - in Woolies is a UK size 22 to them. All their sizes are one dress size more than anywhere else.

hi, i'm new. i am buying clothes for a 15 year old girl in frankfurt whom i haven't seen for three years. she said she wears a size M for "outer wear" and a 42 otherwise. in my mind that would be about my size for an american M but a 42 would be about and american 14. we don't use sizes 34, 36, 38, etc. except for bras, so that conversion from german to american doesn't make sense to me. the idea of M and 42 doesn't make sense either. because a 42 would be a large. can anyone help, please? thank you so very much.

Topics merged by admin

Well, a size 42 would usually convert to a size 12 I think but it very much depends on the store and even within a store sizes vary greatly. I am not sure if anyone will be able to really give you any definite advice. It would be better to get her measurements (bust, waist, hip) and to go from there.

hola, mariposa y gracias.

I agree it would be an American size 12. Nevertheless in addition to getting her measurements don't forget that 15 year old girls are very picky about what they wear. I would just take her shopping when you see her to get something nice and that you know fits properly

I had a bit of eureka moment today regarding trouser sizes by finding out that although size 50 is equivalent to a 34¨ waist size 25 is the short leg version and 104 (? it was 10x I have short legs and didn't take too much notice) the long leg version

you do not seem to have by any chance one of these for bra sizes do you? coz what ever is printed on the lables here is simply not right and i just cant find the right one... whats a 36c in germany?? any help appreciated ...Ta

The cup size is the same.

US/UK: 32 34 36 38 40
Germany: 70 75 80 85 90

Again, sizes may vary according to brand.

thank you... i'll give it another try.

Apparently most women wear the wrong size bra anyways, so knowing the German sizing might not help. Any of the lingerie departments in the big stores (or any specialist lingerie shop) will be happy to measure you.

i had a bra fitting in the uk and they all told me the same... tried this here a few weeks ago and everyone told me something else... no idea how they measured it but there was anything from 75 to 90 and cup size a to d so didnt find that helpful either

so maybe i just keep taking 5 different sizes into the fitting room and keep trying til i find one thats about right.

thanks again

To be honest, you should try all bras on anyway. Although, 36C should come up as an 80C, not all 80Cs are equal (same as with 36Cs), but often you can find a brand or two that fit. Triumph promotes itself as being size-true across their range, but I find that their sports bras size slightly differently to their main range and so tend to personally buy more French brands as the sizing works better for me (both UK and German sizing should be on the label).
Anyway, take not only the shape of your clothing but also the shape of you into account. Sounds strange, but you will find certain cuts sit better than others.
Good luck!

Definitely. I always try on bras, if I didn't I would have to return around 80% of them. I have tried bras that were my usual cup size cup and too small, and then there were some where a cup size smaller fit. Same with the number part of the size. And sometimes they would fit but look ridiculous anyway.
Bra shopping can be so annoying.

well i try them on before i buy them coz i know they are slightly different depending on where you buy them, but im sick and tired of taking 5 different bras into the fitting room all looking the same, and the bra fitting i tried here in 3 different shops didnt help much either, (and yes some simply look shite hehehe) so it be a 80c i will keep trying pretty sure i'll find the right one, one day, but sometimes its quite frustrating

thank you all for your help

Hiya,

I'm new to this and I too am confused. I have a cousin in Germany that I want to send a dress to. She is 17 and I've been told sizes are 34-36. A slim build about 5'4. Going to the store all the dresses for "Juniors" are sizes 5, 7, 9, 11, 13 etc.

How does this fit?

bs these sizes are wrong see katrinas post for the right ones, (bit higher up)
dunno how different us female sizes are to teen sizes, but maybe that helps better than the 1st table

Thank you... well I've gone with a size 7... I hope it fits..

Danke

These days, I find that UK sizes are US + 4; that is, I wear a spot-on 10 in the US (when the waist is much smaller than the hips), but find a 14 works better in the UK. I'm also going to say that DE ladies' sizes are US + 30 or 32. Sometimes the 40 works, sometimes it's the 42. Actually, I have a really hard time with pants, as my waist/hip ratio seems to be significantly smaller than German average. Clothes shopping in England, however, is great (aside from the freakishly strong currency).

Oh, and German sizing is harsh - a lot of stuff is only availabe in sizes 34 - 42, which is about US 2-10 or 4-12. The Ulla Popelka (sp?) plus size chain, for example, STARTS at a 42! Ouch! Note to guys: that would be dead-average these days in the States, if not possibly on the small side of average.

Buying bras here is a challenge if you have a small ribcage/large bust. Stock up in the States, or better yet, take a trip to the UK every other year or so. However, I've managed to score some excellent deals because I usually wear a 32DD (70E) - if the store ever got one, they might just have a hard time getting rid of it! German gals tend to have larger ribcages.

US sizes seem to be slipping a little larger as Americans continue to expand - can't wait till I'm an 8 again (unfortunately, the main area of size gain is in the waist, which makes pants shopping a little less rewarding every year, as well.)

Is it just me or do german girls tend to have over-sized shoes for their height? Some greek guy pointed that out to me, and now it's quite tormenting.