Ordered the wrong bra size? Here is what to do now

Ordered the wrong bra size? Don't send it back right away before you've actually checked whether the size is off. That can save you a lot of hassle. If it really doesn't fit, just tell customer service: within most guarantee periods, you'll get the right size sent to you for free. Below is how to figure out in two minutes what's actually wrong, and what to do about it.

Is the band too loose, or is it digging into your back?

The band carries almost all the weight of your bra, not the straps over your shoulders. If that band is too loose, it creeps up during the day and all the weight ends up on your shoulders anyway. If it's too tight, you'll actually feel that the moment you close it.

Try this: push a finger under the band on your back. If you can easily slide two fingers under it, the band is too loose. If you see a red line form right away, or the fabric digs into your skin as soon as you close it, it's too tight. Either way, that means you need a different band size, not a different style.

Also pay attention to the hooks on your back: if the band is still loose on the tightest hook, the whole size is too big, even if the cup might feel fine. If it's already tight on the loosest hook, you know you'll need a size up once the fabric stretches out after a few washes.

Band too loose: go down a size. Digging in: go up a size. Not sure if it's your body or just the style you bought? Read why one bra style fits and another doesn't.

Is flesh spilling over the cup, or is there empty space left over?

A cup that's too small literally pushes your breast outward. A cup that's too big leaves a fold of fabric like there's nothing in it. Both feel uncomfortable, but the fix is the opposite in each case, so it matters which one you're dealing with.

Try this: stand up straight in front of the mirror and lean forward slightly. If flesh spills over the side or top edge of the cup while the band itself fits well, the cup is too small. If there's an empty pocket of fabric at the top instead, the cup is too big.

One more check: look at yourself from the side in the mirror too. If you see flesh spilling over the edge of the cup near the side of your breast, toward your underarm, that's just as clear a sign as spillage in front. Plenty of women only check the front and miss that the cup is already too small on the side.

Say you currently wear a 38C and you're seeing flesh spill over the edge: try a 36D instead. Same cup volume, just a little snugger around the ribcage. If you have the opposite problem, empty space up top, this article on too much room at the top of the cup walks you through the fix.

Do your straps keep sliding no matter how tight you pull them?

Straps get blamed a lot, but the real problem is usually somewhere else. If a cup is just a bit too big, the whole bra tilts forward slightly, and the straps slide right off your shoulders on their own. You can pull them as tight as you want, they'll keep slipping.

Try this: pull your straps all the way tight and move your arms up and down a few times. If they slide back down within a few minutes while the band on your back stays put, it's almost always the cup, not the strap itself.

In that case, fix your cup size first before buying new straps. Often the problem disappears right away. Also keep in mind that straps that are too thin will always dig into your shoulders under a heavy cup, no matter how right the rest of the size is. A style with wider, adjustable straps that spread the weight out better helps with that.

Why do you keep ordering the wrong size, anyway?

You're really not the only one. Of the nearly 2,900 customers we asked about this, 8.2% name the wrong size or cup as their biggest frustration with their bra. That usually has nothing to do with how carefully you measured.

The biggest issue is that a size runs differently from brand to brand, and even from style to style within the same brand. A 36C at one brand can be a 34D at another. If you want to understand how that happens, read why your bra size differs by style within the same brand or why the same size keeps fitting differently.

On top of that, a lot of women never measure themselves again after a diet, a pregnancy, or just getting older. You end up unconsciously going by a size that was right years ago, while your body has since changed. That's not a problem by itself, as long as you know it and account for it with every new order.

Have you been wearing the same size for years without checking it again? Your body changes, and your bra size changes right along with it. Check out this article on resizing after years in the same size.

Ordered the wrong size: here's what to do now

Did the self-checks above show you the band, cup or straps aren't right? Then there's nothing complicated to do. Here are the steps:

• Measure yourself again: measure the band snugly under your bust, and the cup size comes from the difference between that measurement and your bust at its widest point.
• Contact customer service and give them your new size. You can just do this by email or chat. Here's how to share your bra size by chat or email.
• Monavida offers a 30-day perfect fit guarantee. Often you won't even need to send the wrong size back, you simply keep it or give it away. Here's how that works in this article on exchanging for free without returning anything.

This is exactly what countless women before you have done. One customer put it this way:

Ordered the wrong size at first, got the right advice and the right size without any issues.

So yes, it's annoying when you open your package and the bra doesn't fit right. But it's not a dead end, it's just one extra step that gets sorted within a few days.

The right fit from the first try: the Daily Essential Bra

One big reason sizing so often goes wrong is a cup that doesn't move with you. The Daily Essential Bra uses memory foam cups that shape themselves to you instead of the other way around, so small differences in your body are less likely to throw off the fit. The size chart runs from S to 3XL+, with cup sizes from B to H and band sizes from 32 to 48.

If you're stuck between two sizes, order the one closest to your actual band measurement. The wide, 3-inch band takes the weight off your shoulders instead of letting it ride on the straps, and you'll feel that difference the first time you put it on.