Italian Women's Clothing Sizes

Charts to Translate from American to Italian Clothing Sizes

Shopping for clothing in Italy is differnet than shopping in America. Not only that, the rules for successful shopping change slightly from department stores to smaller boutiques. First we'll deal with the differences in Italian clothing sizes, then we'll move on to clothes shopping etiquette.

Remember that the numbers in the size table are approximate starting sizes, clothing is sized according to each  manufacturer's reading of public vanity. So do not use these tables to order clothing online.

Women's Dresses, jackets, coats and blouses

S-M-L	American Size	UK/AU/NZ Size	Italian Size
XS	0 - 2	4 - 6	36 - 38
S	2 - 4	6 - 8	38 - 40
M	6 - 8	10 - 12	42 - 44
L	10 - 12	14 - 16	48 - 50
XL / 1X	14	18	50
	16	20	52
2X	18	22	54
3X	22	26	58
XXL / 4X	24	28	60

Women's Shoe Sizes

USA	UK	Italian
5	2 1/2	35
5 1/2	3	35 1/2
6	3 1/2	36
6 1/2	4	37
7	4 1/2	37 1/2
7 1/2	5	38
8	5 1/2	38 1/2
8 1/2	6	39
9	6 1/2	40
9 1/2	7	41
10	7 1/2	42
10 1/2	8	43
12	9 1/2	44
13	10 1/2	45

Women's Pant Sizes

USA	Italian
0	36
0 - 2	38
4	40
6	42
8 - 10	44
12 - 14	46
16 - 18	48
18	50
18+	50+

Where to Buy Clothing in Italy and What to Say to Get what you Want

Shopping for clothes in Italy is different than it is in the US. Yes, there are big, fashionable department stores like La Rinascente, but it's unlikely you'll find folks pawing through the merchandise as you might encounter in the US. As the size of the store decreases, the expected level of civility increases as well.

Popular places for clothes shopping are large department stores and outlet malls like the Shopping Outlet Brugnato Cinque Terre. Smaller and more interesting for folks seeking fine clothing are the smaller boutiques. 

Smaller shops are seen more as the extention of the owner's home and call for more polite responses. It's likely you'll be greated with a "buon giorno!" (morning) or "buona sera!" (after lunch) upon entrance. Turning away is rude, and may cost you a discount or the service you might expect. 

Generally, the sales person asks what you want in what size. Don't ignore this question and go pawing through stacks of clothing or you'll likely be reprimanded. In smaller stores knowledgable sales persons will be able to guess your size with amazing accuracy and lead you toward the clothing you seek. 

Say "good morning".

Say "good evening".

The shopkeeper asks "do you know your size (or measure)?"

How to Learn More Italian

To be able to shop and eat better, I recommend learning a little Italian. At minimum you'll want to know the "polite" words like "thank you" and "please".

Learning some of the food words that might confound you if you've listen to them mangled by American wait persions is a good idea. Many of them are found here.

If you don't have an Italian class near to where you live, you might consider taking one in Italy. Here are two short classes in Milan and Siena.

Inexpensive online classes are available at our partner italki.com.

If you wish to spend an extended time in Italy, you can attend a school like the  University for Foreigners Perugia as we did.

Happy Shopping in Italy!

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