Giving your bra size by text or email: here's how

You can just send us your bra size over text or email, and that's exactly how our customer service team gives sizing advice. You send your band measurement and bust measurement, plus your current size and brand if you know them, and you get personal advice back. That's often faster and more accurate than picking a size yourself from an online size chart.

A lot of women put off sending in their measurements because they think they need to figure out their own cup or size first. You don't. The whole point of getting sizing advice over text or email is that you don't have to read a chart at all: you send two simple measurements and customer service does the rest. That saves time, and it also keeps you from ordering the wrong size off a chart that's built a little differently than the one you're used to.

What does customer service actually ask when you text or email?

Customer after customer describes the same thing: customer service asks for your band and bust measurement before giving advice. That's just two numbers, but together they say everything about which size fits you.

• Your band measurement: the measurement snug under your bust.
• Your bust measurement: the measurement at the fullest point of your bust.
• Your current size and brand, if you know them. That helps show whether your brand runs differently than our size chart.
• What exactly is going wrong: is the band digging in, is the cup gaping, are the straps sliding off your shoulder. The more specific you are, the more targeted the advice.

A photo of how your bra fits right now works too. That's often faster than explaining it in words, especially over text.

It also helps to mention how long you've worn your current bra and whether your body has changed recently, for example from pregnancy, weight change or another life stage. That context gives customer service something extra to work with, because two women with the exact same band and bust measurement can still need different advice if one just lost weight and the other just gained it. The more information you give, the smaller the chance you end up with the wrong size at your door.

How do you measure your band size?

Grab a tape measure and take your bra off. Measure snug under your bust, right where a band would normally sit. The tape shouldn't cut in, but it shouldn't hang loose either.

Quick check: breathe out normally and look at the tape. If you can easily slide two fingers under it, it's not snug enough and the number won't be accurate. Read the tape while breathing normally, not while holding your stomach in.

Do this measurement standing in front of a mirror if you can, so you can see whether the tape sits evenly all the way around and doesn't ride up in the back. A lot of women accidentally measure lower in front than in back, which throws the number off. Feel free to measure twice and take the average if the two numbers are slightly different.

How do you measure your bust size?

Put your bra back on, but one that doesn't push up or flatten. Measure horizontally around the fullest point of your bust, usually at nipple level. Stand up straight, arms relaxed at your sides.

Quick check: lean forward and measure again. If the number is off by more than half an inch from your first measurement, measure a third time standing up straight and use that last number. That keeps you from sizing up by mistake.

Make sure the tape doesn't twist or sit crooked across your back for this measurement. A tape that sits a couple inches higher in back than in front will quickly throw off the number. If you can, ask someone else to check it, that's often more accurate than doing it alone in front of a mirror.

What happens with those two numbers?

Customer service looks at the difference between your band and bust measurement. The bigger that difference, the bigger the cup size. That difference then gets translated into a size, since we work with sizes from S to 3XL, not standalone bra sizes like 36D.

That translation is exactly where a real person beats a chart you read yourself. Say you currently wear a 38C and the cup still gapes: there's a good chance you're actually closer to a 36D, and customer service translates that straight into the right size for you.

They also look at the brand you currently wear. Some brands are known to run small or large, and that knowledge doesn't live in a simple size chart, it lives with the people who handle sizing questions every day. So if you mention you currently wear a 36C in a brand known for running large, customer service automatically factors that into the advice.

Want to see for yourself how that can differ by style? Read why your bra size can differ by style, even within the same brand.

Why texting is often faster than emailing

With text you get a quick reply and can immediately send back a photo or a follow-up question. With email the back and forth takes a little longer, but you have everything laid out in writing. Both work. It really comes down to what's easier for you.

Reached out over text and after talking it through and sending in my measurements, got advice to go with a different bra.

This customer describes exactly how the process works: you send your measurements, someone thinks it through with you, and you get targeted advice out of it. Not a list of sizes to figure out yourself, but a personal answer.

Some women prefer email specifically because it lets them take their time figuring out how to describe the issue, without feeling pressure to respond right away. Others want to know within a few minutes which size to order, so they'd rather text. Both paths lead to the same kind of advice, so pick whichever channel fits your day.

What if the recommended size still doesn't fit?

Of the almost 2,900 women we asked about their biggest frustration with a bra, 8.2% named the wrong size or cup. That's exactly why sending your measurements over text or email is so popular: you want to head off that frustration before it happens.

If the size still isn't right after advice, our 30-day perfect fit guarantee applies. You don't even have to send the wrong bra back to get a new size. Read exactly how that works in keep the bra you're exchanging, here's how that works.

So it's not a problem if the first recommended size turns out not to be quite right. Just describe again what's rubbing, digging in or gaping, and customer service will send an adjusted recommendation. A lot of women don't realize this and keep wearing a bra that doesn't quite feel right instead of saying something, when a second message is often all it takes to find the right size after all.

Which bra fits your size?

Our most-worn bra is the Daily Essential: wireless, with memory foam cups that mold to your shape instead of the other way around. The 3-inch band is deliberately wide, so it takes the weight off your shoulders instead of leaving your straps to carry everything. A double layer of shaping fabric on the sides keeps your bust in place, without gaping or that squished-together look.

This bra runs from size S to 3XL+, with a size chart that goes from cup B to cup H, in band sizes 32 to 48. Those are the exact same numbers customer service uses when you send in your measurements over text or email.

Check out the Daily Essential Bra and feel free to send your band and bust measurement if you're not sure which size is right for you.

Wondering if you've been wearing the same size for years while your body has changed? Check that first with worn the same bra size for years? here's how to check if it's still right, before you send in your measurements.