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September 25, 2013

Dress & Grooming, Style

How Should a Suit Fit? Your Easy-to-Follow Visual Guide

Antonio

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How Should a Suit Fit? Your Easy-to-Follow Visual Guide

If youre dressing on a budget, one of the most popular pieces of advice out there is to buy off-the-rack suits
in the best fit you can get, and then take them to a tailor for custom adjustments.

Thats good advice. Youll find it in several articles right here on the Art of Manliness.

But if youre really going to get any benefit out of having your suits adjusted, you need to know a little bit
about tailors and the kinds of adjustments they can (and cant) make.

You also need to know what a good fit actually looks like.

Tailors vary in skill and in how they communicate the work theyre doing, so getting a suit adjusted is only
going to deliver a good return if you can make your exact needs clear.
Below, we give you an easy-to-follow rundown on how your suit should fit.

What a Good Fit Looks Like

Can you guess which man had his suit tailored to fit?

When you try on a suit, youre looking for a good fit in whats called your natural stance.

That means standing up straight, preferably in the kind of dress shoes youll be wearing with your suits, with
your arms relaxed at your side.

Its not actually a very natural posture for a lot of us, but it is the base from which most of our movement
flows. If the suit doesnt fit well in this stance, its not going to move comfortably with your body either.

Practice standing in that relaxed, upright pose, and then start trying on suits in that posture. Look for a good
fit in the following areas when youre in your natural stance:

The Shoulder
A well-fitted shoulder lies flat. The seam on top of the shoulder should be the same length as the bone under
it, and should meet the sleeve of the suit right where your arm meets your shoulder.

If the seam that connects the sleeve to the jacket is hiked up along your shoulder bone, or dangling down on
your upper bicep, the jacket is never going to sit properly. In these instances, youll see ripple effects that
create lumps or wrinkles on the sleeve and the top of the jacket.

Shoulders are one of the hardest parts of a jacket to adjust after construction, so dont buy a piece with an ill-
fitted shoulder. Odds are youll never be able to get it quite right with post-purchase alterations.

The Seat
The back of your trousers should be a smooth drape over the shape of your rear end whatever that happens
to be.

A good fit in the seat will lie loosely against your underwear, without pulling tight against your butt or
draping loosely down your thighs.

You can spot a bad fit in the seat when there are horizontal wrinkles just under the buttocks (caused by too
tight of a fit), or by loose, U-shaped sags on the backs of the thighs (caused by too loose of a fit).

A tailor can take in a seat to make it tighter in the back without too much difficulty, but theres a limit to
how far he can go. If the seat was way too loose to begin with, its not possible to adjust it to fit without
pulling the pockets out of place.

Unless the pants have an unusual amount of spare cloth on the inside, seats cant be let out very far to make
the fit looser. Err on the side of too loose rather than too tight when buying.

Trouser Break

The break is the small wrinkle caused when the top of your shoe stops your trouser cuff from falling to its
full length.

This should be a small, subtle feature. One horizontal dimple or crease is usually ideal. The cuff should
indeed rest on the top of your shoe there needs to be contact but it shouldnt do much more than
that. The trouser can fall a touch longer in the back than in front, so long as its still above the heel of the shoe
(the actual heel, not just the back of the shoe).

This is one of the easiest adjustments to make, so you can rely on making some changes here if you need to.
In fact, dress pants are often sold unhemmed, with the assumption that the purchaser will take the trousers to
a tailor (or make use of the stores tailor if there is one) to have the cuffs fitted.

The Jacket Closure

When you are wearing a suit and standing, you should have the jacket buttoned (you know the jacket
buttoning rules, right? Click here to learn!).

This means that part of the trying-on process is checking how the front of the jacket closes over your body.

Close a single-breasted jacket with only one button when youre testing the fit, even if its a three-button
jacket. Youre looking to see if the two sides meet neatly without the lapels hanging forward off your body
(too loose) or the lower edges of the jacket flaring out like a skirt (too tight).

The button should close without strain, and there should be no wrinkles radiating out from the closure. A little
bit of an opening at the bottom of the suit is fine, but the two halves beneath the button shouldnt pull apart so
far that you can see a large triangle of shirt above your trousers. (Ideally, you shouldnt see any, though a bit
is socially acceptable, especially when you move.)
Taking in or letting out the waist to help the jacket close more comfortably is not a difficult adjustment, but
its one with limits. Dont expect a tailor to be able to make huge changes here. If the jacket closure looks
really bad unaltered, its probably due to problems beyond the waist measurement, and you should be looking
for a different jacket rather than planning on getting that one altered.

Jacket Sleeve Length

A half-inch of linen is a good, old-fashioned guideline for the relationship between a suit jacket and the
shirt worn under it about half an inch of the shirt cuff should be visible beyond the jacket cuff.

That said, its a general guideline, and you dont need to get too obsessive. What you do need to be sure of is
that the suit sleeve doesnt rise above the cuff entirely the seam where the shirt cuff joins the shirt sleeve
should never be visible.

Similarly, the jacket sleeve should never hide the shirt sleeve entirely. At least a small band of shirt cuff
should always be visible.

For most men, that ends up being a jacket sleeve that terminates just above the large bone in the wrist. But
everyones arms are slightly different, and sleeve length is a very easy adjustment for a tailor to make, so get
the best sleeve length you can (erring on the side of too long if possible) and then have it adjusted to fit.

Jacket Length
Not enough time or writing gets devoted to the overall length of mens jackets. Its more important than most
people think!

A good suit or sports jacket should fall past the waist and drape over the top of the curve formed by the
buttocks. An ideal fit will cover a man down to the point where his butt starts to curve back inward, and stop
there (but anywhere in that general region is okay).

The hands are also a good marker here, and this is why its important to have your arms relaxed in your
natural stance. The hem of the jacket should hit right around the middle of your hand at or just past where
the fingers meet the palm.

If the hem of the jacket is sitting on top of the butt, with a small little flare in the back, its too short. If it falls
past the bottom entirely, longer than the arms, its too long. The hem can be adjusted upward without too
much trouble, but if you go too far the front pockets start to look out of proportion, so dont count on more
than an inch or two of adjustment here.

Jacket Collar
Its easy to tell a well-fitted collar from a poorly-fitted one, although identifying the cause of the bad fit can
be challenging.

Your jacket collar should rest against your shirt collar, which in turn should rest against the back of your
neck. All of these should touch lightly, without significant gaps in between.

If the collar is too loose, its very easy to spot there will be a gap where its flopping back off your neck.

A tight collar is a little harder to spot on a jacket, since (unlike a shirt collar) its almost all in the back. Turn
from side to side as needed and check it out in a mirror. A tight collar will create bunching and folds just
beneath it, and often wrinkles the shirt collar underneath it as well.

Bad collar fit could just mean the neck size is wrong for you, but its often caused by a larger fit issue: bad
shoulder sizing, a back panel thats too small for you, or even a jacket thats constructed with more of a
forward or backward tilt than your neutral stance.

Since these adjustments cost time and money to fix, you want to get as good of a fit in the original jacket as
possible at the collar.

Four Automatic Bad Fit Warnings

There are a couple of easy to spot problems that are major warning signs. A suit with these bad fit signs is
one that you probably wont ever be able to adjust to a really good fit.

Unfortunately, most of them are caused by the core structure of the suit and that means that your body just
isnt a good match for the way that particular brand makes its pieces.

Be patient, try on lots of brands, and dont compromise (unless you know it can be fixed!).

If you cant afford bespoke (made to order), an adjusted off-the-rack suit can work but you have to start
with a pretty good fit in the first place, or its never going to get the results you want.

Unless you want to pay for alterations, be careful buying any jacket thats showing these serious warning
signs:

The Dreaded X-Shaped Button Strain

If you can see wrinkled lines radiating outward from your jacket button when you close the jacket, its too
tight and will need adjustment.

The Dreaded X, as my friend Barron over at Effortless Gent likes to call it is not a look you seek in a well-
fitted jacket.

Front button strain is indicative of a bad fit in the torso, and it can go beyond just the waist size youre
probably straining at the shoulders or in the back, too. On a more basic note, it also means the button is going
to be prone to popping off.

Dont buy a jacket that shows strain lines radiating outward from the button. If youve got an old jacket that
used to fit but has started showing them, its possible that youve either gained weight or accidentally shrunk
the jacket in a wash in that case (assuming the fit was good before), you may be able to have the waist let
out a little and keep the jacket in use.

Shoulder Divots & Upper Arm Wrinkles

If the sleeve of the jacket seems to dip in slightly just under the shoulder, and then flare back out again, the
shoulders are too big. What youre seeing is the shoulder padding protruding beyond your arm, and the cloth
of the sleeve tucking back in underneath it.

You can also get those wrinkles if youve got a somewhat slouched stance and the jacket is stiffly-constructed
for a more upright posture. In either case youll need to get a smaller size, so that the seam where the
shoulder meets the sleeve matches up with your bodys shoulder, or give up and try a different brand.

Shoulder Wrinkles Top Rumpling

If youre getting noticeable bunching on top of your shoulder, rather than on the upper sleeve, the jacket is
too large in the shoulders.

This could be a simple length problem, but more likely its that the interior space is simply too large your
shoulders arent broad enough, front to back, to fill out the jacket.

Try a slimmer fit, if the manufacturer offers multiple styles, or a smaller size. If youre still seeing wrinkles
on the tops of your shoulders, the brand probably isnt going to work for you.

Twisted Sleeves Bad Sleeve Pitch

Faint spiraling wrinkles on the outside of the sleeve occur when the angle of your arm in its natural stance
doesnt match the angle that the sleeve was constructed with. The result is a sleeve that looks slightly twisted
even when your arms are hanging still at your sides.

A tailor can theoretically remove the sleeves and reattach them at a slightly different angle, but its not a
simple or a cheap fix. Generally speaking, you can consider this one a deal-breaker. Keep trying until you
find a jacket where the sleeves fall smooth and straight when your arms are resting in their natural stance.

Watch a Video Summary of This Post

How A Suit Should Fit | Buy A Proper Fitted Suit | What Good Fitting Suits Look
_______________________________________

Written By:
Antonio Centeno
Founder of Real Men Real Style
Creator of The Style System a college-level course that teaches the foundations of professional dressing so
you control the message your image sends.

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58 Comments Art of Manliness !

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Recommend 7 Share Sort by Oldest

Tim 3 years ago

Great post Antonio- Brett thanks for letting guys like this post

I have found out buy fewer suits from reputable places and they make you look good. Quality
just never goes out of style

tim
4 Share

Jeremy C. 3 years ago

Good article! Wish I could wear a suit everyday.
1 Share

John 3 years ago

Nice guide! The trouble with knowing how a suit *should* fit, is then never being happy with one
that *almost* fits.

A word of warning- if your cu has working buttons, sleeve length adjustment becomes slightly
less simple.

Also, before you buy it, think of how the jacket sits around your backside. If you have a
"prominent seat" as I do, a single vent will sit open, and look bad. I always go for twin vents.
1 Share

Matthew Perryman 3 years ago

Hey, a very good article.
I am a man who was about 220lbs and lost 30lbs recently so all of my suits were too big and
also as a Masters Student with a limited Budget I couldnt aord 4 new suits so I went to a local
tailor in my market and as I am interested in looking good I asked him pointers on fitted suits
and this article was pretty much what he told me.
1 Share

Terrence Higgins 3 years ago

I have been selling suits for 35 years and I couldn't agree with you more, you are right on target
about everything. The trick is to convey this message to the man buying the suit, but all
salesman should know these facts. Those who don't should be avoided as amateurs. The
dreaded X shape is not correctable and when I see it I shudder. Usually very skinny men have
this problem. I also rarely find a man that is actually the size they think they are as pertains to
the drop. Muscular men have an illusion of themselves being smaller in the waist then they really
are. Remember suit trousers are dierent than slacks. Too skinny of a leg creates a bell look to
the suit. I also hate too long of sleeves and too long of trousers. Instructing men in this requires
tact, which you possess. I shall inform all my colleagues of your sight as it is elementary.
Thank you for your insight,
Terry Higgins

see more

7 Share

josh_k 3 years ago

I bought a new suit for my graduation from seminary this past April. For the first time I stepped
up a to a real quality men's store and got some alterations done. The guy was a magician and
the suit fits incredibly well.

I know some of us won't wear a suit on an ever day basis, but whatever your needs it really is
worth going quality and getting a few adjustments rather than just picking up the generic
special o the rack. Also, the salesmen at a quality store know clothes a lot better than the
college kid working at the department store. They'll help you find something that looks good on
you and is practical for your needs.

Also, John, you are so right about the single vs. double vents in the jacket. I have the same
problem.
1 Share

Wolfgang 3 years ago

I love everything about this post. Details on what a tailor can and can't do with a suit is exactly
what I've been looking for.
1 Share

Caleb 3 years ago

In reference to the jacket length, this is a good post if this is your first suit or you only plan on
having one. However, shorter jackets are very stylish if worn properly.
2 Share

Brock 3 years ago

This is a pillar post, Antonio and Brett. Love the illustration style! Keep 'em coming.

Oh, and I see lots of guys these days with their pants hemmed extra short, showing some
colorful sock. It's trendy, for sure, but kind of cool, especially for shorter guys (it gives an
appearance of extra height).

What do you think about this?

-B
Share

Shane 3 years ago

I would love to go out and buy myself a suit as I am nearing the end of my part-time job for
college looking into start my career, but I never know where to go for good quality, yet
aordable suits. This is a good start for me at least to know what to look for in a suit to fit right.
Thanks!
Share

Brian 3 years ago

My problem with buying suits is my built: just shy of 50 inches in the chest and very meaty in
the glutes and legs. Every suit I can find that will fit me seems to be built for someone 6' 5" and
I'm only 5' 8"!

Usually I can do okay with the jackets, but every pair of trousers has the crotch somewhere
down by my knees!.
Share

David Tong | 3 years ago

Excellent as always, Antonio.

Having lost a few inches o my gut and added some width to my shoulder/chest, I found a
couple of my jackets ill-fitting.

Good thing they weren't/aren't exactly expensive but still annoying.

The problem with cheaper jackets is that I always struggle to justify the cost of altering them.

At 5'7, it's hard finding o-the-rack jackets that fit reasonably well yet not too long for my frame.
After a while, it seems to make more sense having them made, though the thought of changing
body size in the future bothers me (still trying to shed an inch or two).

Dave
Share

Aless 3 years ago

THIS IS WONDERFULL I TELL YOU ! Sry for caps, but it was needed.
1 Share

Eddie 3 years ago

I have the same issue as Brian. I am 68.5" tall and about 200lbs even. I have a 34in waist, 17.5
in neck and a broad chest and wide shoulders. I love lifting weights but heaven forbid I get any
bigger, I'll never find anything nice to wear. If I buy any thing in large, its too tight, XL is too long.
Share

Tomas 3 years ago

Spot on: informative, easy to read and very useful in everyday life. This sort of articles is the
reason I became a fan of the site. Thanks an keep them coming!
2 Share

Rick John 3 years ago

If you need advice contact me. I was in the clothing business for many years. Pro Bono
2 Share

Jared > Rick John a year ago

I heard that to test the jackets closure you should be able to put your hand between the
button and you stomach and have it fit snugly. Do you know if this is a good method?
Share

Lindsey 3 years ago

Wonderful article! One thing to add to the pants portion. Please explain how suit trousers should
be worn at the natural waist. It does no good to get them hemmed in this position and then
wear them around your hips. The mulitple breaks, oh how they drive me crazy!
Share

Larry 3 years ago

I've worn a suit maybe twice in the past fifteen years, but I'll keep in mind for the next time! )))
Share

Steve 3 years ago

Although I don't need this information myself, this is a great guide for the beginner/person
buying their first suit who needs a few pointers.
If you are about to embark on your first suit buying adventure, I can tell you with hand on heart
that there is nothing better than walking out in a well fitting suit, I don't get to do it nearly
enough, but when I do, I feel great, and always nice to get compliments from the ladies! Being
"suited and booted" is probably the best look we males can get...if our gear fits us properly.

Oh, and Caleb makes a sound point, a lot of modern suits are cut quite short these days, and it
is now an acceptable look (which gives the shorter guys a bit more scope/choice when suit
hunting)
Share

NeoVG 3 years ago

Funfact: The wrongs are either hipster or hip hop.
Share

Darren 3 years ago

@Brian, you'd be surprised how inexpensive (relatively speaking) custom suits are. I have a
tailor in Siena, Italy who makes custom suits for me for 700 Euro (about 1100) in REALLY nice
wool. Better one good one than two or three bad ones...
Share

Darren 3 years ago

P.S. My father used to have custom suits made in Singapore. 250 bucks.
Share

cbrand 3 years ago

Thanks for yet another great article. My teenage son is in a mixed jazz choir and the young men
are required to wear matching suits which were ordered from a well known, men's retailer.

I went with my son for his "fitting" and I had to practically arm wrestle with the in-house tailor
and salesperson to make many of the changes you noted above. They kept saying, "These will
be expensive alterations etc. etc. etc." I said that I was happy to pay for them.

Enough venting.... I have a question about break. My son is small and trim. He seems better
served with a more Euro cut suit. Is it acceptable to forego the break? (Note, in the first picture it
looks like the trousers have little or no break.). Also, how short is too short in the jacket?
Share

Ryan 3 years ago

Interesting article, helped pinpoint why wearing suits is always so unpleasant for me. My
measurements are so far away from "standard" that (based on the advice here) nothing short of
bespoke will ever fit correctly...for the shirt/jacket alone, dierent measurements put me at
everything from M to XXL. Pulled out the one sport coat I own; sure enough, pretty much every
"bad fit" indicator in the article was present in one direction or another. Kind of funny.
Fortunately, it's all academic since I'm never called upon to wear them; there's no way I'd ever
be able to justify dropping the scratch for something quality. Even the "inexpensive" suits
Darren mentioned are jaw-droppingly pricy for those of us in the thrift store tax bracket.
Share

sikandar ali 3 years ago

sir, a very good and informative article. Could you also please keep us updated with the latest
fashions/style in vouge ie single breasted ) one button, two buttons, three buttone)/double
breasted, the collar/lapple style etc etc . Thanks.
Share

Dan Harrison 3 years ago

I am a suit specialist for a British company called TM Lewin, check their youtube channel, in
particular the "Know Your Size" videos to see how we do it.
There are also other useful videos on their from style to packing for a business trip presenyed
by, our Head of Creative Design, John Francomb.
Share

bgl 3 years ago

I wear suits regularly, but here in the south, it's extremely uncomfortable to wear long sleeved
shirts in the summer; ergo, I wear short sleeved dress shirts with suits. Any suggestions for
jacket length with short sleeved dress shirts? Forgoing such shirts in a Georgia summer is not
an option.
Share

Rishi Chullani 3 years ago

This is a great article. Unfortunately, it seems like while most men pay a lot of attention to that
which covers their torso, they don't pay enough attention to their trousers.

The points you mention about how the trousers should fit on the back side, in addition to the
important quarter break as opposed to half or full break have been really well covered and
illustrated here.

This is definitely a very comprehensive guide covering how a suit should fit and the elements
that need to be paid attention to.
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Sue 3 years ago

What fitting suggestions or tailoring adjustments are made for osteoporosis? This stooping
posture causes an unbuttoned jacket to flare open at the bottom in the front, while the back of
the coat sticks out from the waist and hip area.
Share

Sean 3 years ago

I think its worth mentioning that certain aspects of the fit may depend on current fashion trends.
One that comes to mind is that it has become fashionable for some suits to be just a little bit
longer in length nowadays. I purchased a beautiful TM Lewin slim fitting suit just the other day
and it fit perfectly with the only adjustment required being hemming of the trousers. The length
of the jacket was slightly longer than what I was used to but it was designed this way and
looked very sharp!
2 Share

Justin 3 years ago

It's hard to find a suit that fits well without going to a tailor you purchase it, Esp if you buy a suit
a zara or TK max
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Ian ST John 3 years ago

A tailor can only do so much before labour costs start to approach bespoke levels. Nowadays,
suit separates are available form several big box brands in both classic (heavy) and modern
(slim) fits. This should enable the majority of guys to attain a reasonable initial fit, which may be
fine tuned by their tailor. If all else fails, there are always blazer and slacks, Roger Moore is rarely
seen in anything else.
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Gandalf 3 years ago

Great post. The illustrations are totally spot on! Even gave me a chuckle.
Share

Feminist Kate 3 years ago

Is anything in this world more stylish, charismatic and, dare I say it, sexy, than a man in a well-
fitted suit?
No, sir, there is not.
1 Share

Captain 3 years ago

Great post, thanks for sharing. Do the rules for "fitting" change as current fashion trends
change?
Share

Will 3 years ago

I always love to see a perfect and clean sleeve pitch.
Share

AED 3 years ago

Great info! I knew a lot, but still a few of these I didn't know. I'm lucky (in suit shopping terms,
anyway) as I have a very ''medium'' built. between 5'10'' and 5'11'', 32 inch waist, very average
arm and leg lengths. Many suits fit very well o the rack. Still even better with some fitting
though of course!
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Daniel 2 years ago

When the article says things like 'a half inch of the shirt should be visible' please not that this is
a general rule of thumb. Think proportions. Small men may need less than that, some larger
men may need more.
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dave 2 years ago

A few things: changing up the bottons for genuine bone, antler or shell makes a suit or jacket
look more expensive, and is relatively cheap. But get your tailor to do it if you don't know how
to sew bottons properly.

@ Brock - trendy may be fashionable but it's seldom well dressed. Hipster fit is too Euro
fashionista to fly as 'well dressed in the US'.
Share

rahul mishra 2 years ago

Nice informative articles to those who want to know details of tailored clothing!!
Great guide for suit buying as well.
Share

Sam disuja 2 years ago

I agree: clothes make a big dierence! I find it really hard to find good fitting t-shirts even though
I'm not big at all. I just have broad shoulders and a slightly smaller waist. Everything seems to
be made for people the other way round.
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Mark G 2 years ago

Great article! My tailor actually just called as I was reading this to let me know my new suit is
ready :)
Share

Kay 2 years ago

Hi guys
I live in a suit free environment so can't ask friends -
Is is normal when wearing a tailored coat or jacket to have rather limited arm movement (After
years of wearing due coats etc., I have bought a 'proper' coat and wonder if it's too small or if
it's normal that the back feels tight when I lift my arms or stretch them out)? Cheers. Kay
Share

Dan DeSantis 2 years ago

I am distressed with the look of men's suits these days. They look like they don't fit and are too
small. I believe that the suit length should reach the tip of one's thumb, not the middle of the
palm of the hand. Also. to see a tie sticking below the button of the suit jacket is to me,
appalling. No matter what the fashion is, I would never where a suit like you describe.
Share

Toby flenderson 2 years ago

Speaking of lousy fitting suits, I nominate Joel McHale on The Soup.

His dressers have managed to commit EVERY fitting error listed in this article.

I would bet any random suit found in a Goodwill store would fit better than what this poor guy is
made to wear.
Share

Scott 2 years ago

Thank you for your great advice, it really helped me in buying my first suit.
Share

Joseph 2 years ago

Nice article to get the basics right.

There is only one thing I would slightly disagree with or at least comment on: In my personal
experience the length of jackets has become a little more open to personal tastes. I found
several designers to produce jackets today, that are a little shorter than a few years ago and
also a little shorter than your suggestion.

I personally find jackets that end around your thumb's first knuckle (regarding to your pictures
exactly between the "perfect" and the "too short" fit) to look a little more fashionable. I had my
last tailor made suit made that way and am very happy with the length and receive a lot of
compliments. However, this only works with slim-fit, two-button, single-breasted suits. With a
conservative suit you might be better o with the "classic" length.
1 Share

Rob 2 years ago

Great article! Tried on a few jackets out shopping today and thanks to this could immediately
classify them as badly made ;-) Thanks !
Share

Joshua 2 years ago

Salutations! I'm a 36 Long. I have discovered that finding suits of that size can be somewhat
tasking. My funds are limited and the most expensive suit that I can aord as of now is
somewhere in the Men's Warehouse range. Is buying a 38 long then getting it tailored to closer
to a 36 possible?
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