Women's International Dress Size Standards
Direct Answer
Women's dress sizing systems standardize the proportional relationship between bust, waist, and hip circumferences across global manufacturing regions. Mapping US sizes (0 to 16), UK/Australian sizes (4 to 20), Continental European sizes (32 to 48), and Japanese sizes (3 to 17), standard sizing grids maintain predictable anatomical increments.
Source: ASTM D5585-21 / EN 13402-3 / JIS L 4005
Specs
| Governing Standards | ASTM D5585 / EN 13402-3 / BS 3666 / JIS L 4005 |
| US Size 2 (XS) | Bust: 32" (81 cm) | Waist: 24" (61 cm) | Hip: 34.5" (88 cm) | UK 6 / EU 34 / JP 7 |
| US Size 4 (S) | Bust: 33.5" (85 cm) | Waist: 25.5" (65 cm) | Hip: 36" (91 cm) | UK 8 / EU 36 / JP 9 |
| US Size 6 (S/M) | Bust: 35" (89 cm) | Waist: 27" (68 cm) | Hip: 37.5" (95 cm) | UK 10 / EU 38 / JP 11 |
| US Size 8 (M) | Bust: 36.5" (93 cm) | Waist: 28.5" (72 cm) | Hip: 39" (99 cm) | UK 12 / EU 40 / JP 13 |
| US Size 10 (L) | Bust: 38" (97 cm) | Waist: 30" (76 cm) | Hip: 40.5" (103 cm) | UK 14 / EU 42 / JP 15 |
| US Size 12 (L) | Bust: 39.5" (100 cm) | Waist: 31.5" (80 cm) | Hip: 42" (107 cm) | UK 16 / EU 44 / JP 17 |
| US Size 14 (XL) | Bust: 41" (104 cm) | Waist: 33" (84 cm) | Hip: 43.5" (110 cm) | UK 18 / EU 46 / JP 19 |
International Dress Size Cross-Conversion Formulas
While brand vanity sizing creates slight variations, international standards follow strict numerical offset algorithms:
- $\text{UK / AU Size} = \text{US Size} + 4$ (e.g., $US\; 6 = UK\; 10$).
- $\text{EU Size} = \text{US Size} + 32$ (e.g., $US\; 6 = EU\; 38$).
- $\text{Italian Size} = \text{US Size} + 36$ (e.g., $US\; 6 = IT\; 42$).
- $\text{Japanese Size} = \text{US Size} \times 2 - 1$ (e.g., $US\; 6 = JP\; 11$).
Standard Proportional Girth Differentials
Under standard ASTM D5585 proportional grading:
- Bust to Waist Differential: A standard hourglass baseline assumes the waist is approximately $8.0\text{ to } 8.5\text{ inches}$ ($20\text{–}22\text{ cm}$) smaller than the bust.
- Waist to Hip Differential: The hip circumference is approximately $10.5\text{ to } 11.0\text{ inches}$ ($27\text{–}28\text{ cm}$) larger than the natural waist.