T-Shirt Sizing Chart: 3 Brands Side by Side, S to 5XL

Key Takeaways

• A Comfort Colors 1717 medium is an inch shorter than a Gildan 5000 medium.
• Maker charts measure the shirt flat, so double the chest number to compare.
• A Gildan women's medium is 1 inch narrower and 3 inches shorter than a unisex medium.
• For a group, send the chart, then cover anyone who never replies with the most-asked sizes.

Table of Contents

• The T-Shirt Sizing Chart: Three Tees Side by Side
• How to Read a T-Shirt Size Chart and Find Your Size in One Step
• T-Shirt Size Chart for Men, Women, and Youth
• Which Size to Order When You Are Between Sizes
• How to Collect T-Shirt Sizes for a Group Order
• Extended Sizes: 2XL to 5XL and What Changes at Checkout
• Frequently Asked Questions
• Pick the Column, Then the Letter

Lay a t-shirt that fits you flat on a table and measure it armpit to armpit. Compare that one number with the chest column below and you have your letter on any tee. A t-shirt sizing chart works once you know that trick. A maker's spec chart lists the shirt laid flat, and every brand cuts its medium differently. The chart below puts three tees we carry side by side, so the differences show before you pick a size.

The T-Shirt Sizing Chart: Three Tees Side by Side

The three tees below do not agree on what a medium is. Each row comes from the maker's own spec sheet, in U.S. sizes and inches. Chest width is the shirt laid flat, measured armpit to armpit. Body length runs from the top of the shoulder at the collar down to the hem.

The Gildan 5000 and the Bella + Canvas 3001 share the same chest and length at every letter from S to 5XL. Cut and cloth are what separate them: the 5000 is a classic fit in 5.3 oz cotton. Bella + Canvas calls the 3001 a retail fit, in a lighter 4.2 oz fabric with side seams. The lighter cloth drapes closer to the body.

The Comfort Colors 1717 is the odd one out. Its medium is a quarter inch wider and a full inch shorter than the other two; its 3XL and 4XL run a quarter inch narrower. Comfort Colors garment-dyes the finished shirt for a lived-in feel. The 1717 spec sheet allows plus or minus 1 1/4 inches on length, against 1 inch on the other two. The shirt itself is a relaxed fit in 6.1 oz cotton. It runs shorter than the other two at every size, so check the length column before rounding down.

That is why a single "standard" chart fails a group order. A person who wears a large in a 3001 is a large in a 5000 too. A 1717 large is more than half an inch shorter, and a tall wearer notices. When you design custom t-shirts, the product page carries that tee's own size grid, so you order from the sizes that tee comes in.

How to Read a T-Shirt Size Chart and Find Your Size in One Step

Every number in the chart is a shirt laid flat, so the chest column is half of what a tape measure reads around your body. A 42-inch chest reads as 21 on the chart. That one conversion is all a t-shirt size calculator does for you. Skip it, and the shirt that arrives can be a size too tight.

There are two ways to get your number, and the first one is better.

1. Measure a shirt you already like. Lay it flat, smooth it without stretching, and measure straight across from one armpit seam to the other. Then measure from the top of the shoulder next to the collar straight down to the hem. Those two numbers match the chart's columns directly, and they already include the room you like.
2. Measure your body. Wrap a tape around the fullest part of your chest, under the arms, and divide by two. For a regular fit, pick a chest column 1 to 2 inches above that half measurement. That gives 2 to 4 inches of room around the body. A 42-inch chest wants a chest column of 22 to 23, which is a large on all three tees.

Length decides the rest. If you are tall, or you like a tee to cover your belt, check the length column against a shirt you own first. A 5000 in large is 30 inches long, and a 1717 in large is 29 2/5. That difference is small on paper and obvious on a tall frame.

If you need the chart in centimeters, multiply inches by 2.54: a Gildan 5000 large is 56 cm across laid flat and 76 cm long. The same math works on any row above, and the FAQ carries the full converted row.

T-Shirt Size Chart for Men, Women, and Youth

A unisex medium and a women's medium are two different shirts. A men's t-shirt size chart is usually the unisex chart. The Gildan 5000 and Bella + Canvas 3001 are unisex cuts sized on a men's body. A women's tee is a separate garment with its own numbers, and so is a youth tee.

The women's Softstyle is 1 inch narrower than the unisex 5000 at every letter, and 2 1/2 to 4 inches shorter. Gildan calls it semi-fitted, with a narrow rib collar. That is what "women's sizes run small" means in numbers: a different body and a shorter hem. A woman who wears a unisex medium, 20 inches across, and wants at least that much room takes a women's large at 21. Or she stays unisex for the length.

A youth XL is 19 inches across and 25 long, which is almost exactly a women's medium (19 by 26). A youth large is as wide as an adult small but 4 1/2 inches shorter. The last column carries the numerical sizes: 4, 6 to 8, 10 to 12, 14 to 16, and 18 to 20. Those are the kids' clothing sizes parents already know, so ask for them when the wearer is a child.

Which Size to Order When You Are Between Sizes

Pick by the chest column first, then let length break the tie. Chest is the number a shirt cannot hide. An inch too narrow across the chest pulls at the sleeves and the print. An inch too long sits a little lower on the hip.

The cut of the tee decides which way to round.

• Classic fit (Gildan 5000): the pattern already carries room through the body. If your half chest lands between two columns, take the lower letter unless you are tall.
• Retail fit (Bella + Canvas 3001): same numbers as the 5000, in a lighter fabric that follows the torso. Between sizes, take the higher letter if you want any drape at all.
• Relaxed fit (Comfort Colors 1717): within a quarter inch of the 5000 across the chest, but shorter at every size. Between sizes, take the higher letter for length rather than width.

No chart fixes a shirt that is the wrong cut for the wearer. A 1717 reads boxy on a slim frame at any size, and a 3001 reads fitted on a broad one. For a mixed group, the 5000's classic fit is the safest single cut, because it sits between the retail-fit 3001 and the relaxed-fit 1717. If you cannot decide between two sizes for yourself, order one shirt in each, and the test costs one extra tee. Custom orders that match your approved proof can't be returned or refunded. A one-piece order is refundable only for a defect or a proof mismatch.

How to Collect T-Shirt Sizes for a Group Order

Send people the chart, not the question, because "what size are you?" returns the letter from whatever shirt they wore last, slim or boxy. Send the chest and length rows for the tee you are ordering, and ask for the letter that matches a shirt they like, laid flat. That takes each person a few minutes and removes the guess from your end.

A plain shared sheet is enough: name, cut (unisex, women's, or youth), size, and a deadline about a week before you order. Let each person choose the cut. A woman who prefers the unisex length should get it, and the youth column should be asked for by numerical size. Different cuts under one design still count together for volume pricing, so offering the choice does not split the order.

Some people never answer. Read which sizes came back before you close the sheet, because a group that skews small or tall shows it in the replies. Cover the silent ones with the sizes asked for most, and add a spare or two.

Order every size someone asks for, the largest included: a run that stops at 2XL leaves anyone bigger without a shirt they can wear.

Gifts shipping to employees' homes have a collection playbook in our employee gift guide. Shirts for a shelf, where nobody can be asked, follow the retail size curve in our brewery merch guide. Everything else, a team, a crew, a class, or a reunion, is the sheet above. When the sizes are in, enter the count per size on the product page.

Extended Sizes: 2XL to 5XL and What Changes at Checkout

Extended sizes are ordinary rows on the chart, not a special order. The Gildan 5000 and Bella + Canvas 3001 run to 5XL, the Comfort Colors 1717 to 4XL, and the women's 64000L to 3XL. The largest sizes come in fewer colors, so check your color on the product page. On the three tees in the first chart, each step up adds about 2 inches across the chest laid flat. That is 4 inches around the body, and each step also adds about 1 inch of length.

Someone who asks for "a big one" needs that 2-inch step more than a letter. A 3XL on the 5000 is 28 inches across, a 56-inch chest with no room at all. A wearer with a 52-inch chest is therefore a 3XL, and a 4XL would hang.

Two things change at checkout. First, the size grid is per product: the page lists the sizes we offer in that tee. Second, larger sizes can add a per-item surcharge, which the product page shows before anything goes in the cart.

The rest of the price does not split by size. Every shirt of one design counts toward the same volume price. A run of 30 tees across seven sizes prices as a run of 30, and the per-shirt cost keeps falling as that count grows.

Frequently Asked Questions

What size t-shirt should I order if my chest is 42 inches?

A 42-inch chest is 21 inches laid flat. Order the chest column 1 to 2 inches above that. That is a large (22 inches) on the Gildan 5000, Bella + Canvas 3001, and Comfort Colors 1717. Take an XL only if you want a loose fit or need the extra inch of length.

Is a unisex medium the same as a men's medium?

Yes. Unisex tees such as the Gildan 5000 are cut on a men's body, and a men's t-shirt size chart is usually the unisex chart. A unisex medium is 20 inches across laid flat and 29 inches long. The women's medium is the different one, at 19 by 26.

Do women's t-shirts run small?

Women's tees are cut smaller on purpose. The Gildan women's Softstyle is 1 inch narrower than the unisex Gildan at the same letter, and 3 inches shorter at a medium. The body is semi-fitted. A woman who wears a unisex medium and wants at least that much room takes a women's large.

How much bigger is a 2XL than an XL?

A 2XL is 2 inches wider laid flat, which is 4 inches around the body, and about 1 inch longer than an XL. That holds on the Gildan 5000, Bella + Canvas 3001, and Comfort Colors 1717. The same step continues up the range, so a Gildan 5000 3XL fits a 56-inch chest with no room to spare.

What is a t-shirt size chart in cm?

Multiply inches by 2.54. On the Gildan 5000 the chest laid flat runs 46, 51, 56, 61, 66, 71, 76, and 81 cm from S to 5XL. Lengths run 71, 74, 76, 79, 81, 84, 86, and 89 cm. Double the chest for the measurement around the body.

Pick the Column, Then the Letter

The letter on a tag is the least reliable thing about a t-shirt. The chest column is the reliable thing. You now have a t-shirt sizing chart with three tees side by side. The women's and youth cuts share the letters and none of the numbers.

Before you order:

• Measure a shirt you like laid flat, armpit to armpit, and match that number to the chest column.
• Check the length column against the same shirt if you are tall or the tee is a 1717.
• For a group, send the size chart and collect letters, then cover the silent ones with the sizes asked for most.
• Read each product page's own size grid, because each tee lists its own sizes and any surcharge for the larger ones.

When you have the counts, browse custom t-shirts and order every size the group needs under one design. There is no minimum, and you approve a proof before anything is made. Once you approve it, your shirts ship in 1 to 2 weeks, and transit time is separate. Have a question before you order? Contact us, and we'll get back to you within 24 hours on weekdays.