A Petite Size Chart Is Only a Starting Point.
Being short is a lifestyle. Walking under low branches without ducking and struggling to see the stage at concerts are just a couple of the joys and sorrows only Shorties understand. Inconsistent sizing, however, is one frustration we share with women of every height.
I’m willing to bet there are multiple sizes in your closet. I own a size 23 pair of Levi’s jeans that fits just as snugly as a size 26 pair from Reformation. Short or tall, none of us can rely on the number on the label alone.
Why You Wear Different Sizes
Vanity Sizing
Vanity sizing is the marketing practice of assigning garments a smaller size to flatter us. It may feel like a modern retail trick, but brands have been shrinking the number on the label since the early 1930s.
No Universal Standard
The same size can fit differently from one brand to the next because the United States has no obligatory clothing-sizing standard. In a shopping landscape where every company creates its own sizing system, size charts are our compass.
For Shorties, there’s another layer of complexity – petite doesn’t always mean the same thing. It may describe an entire brand for shorter women, a petite version of a brand’s regular sizing, a shorter garment length or even the smallest size in a collection.
Brands Approach Petite Sizing Differently
Petite Studio, for example, designs its garments specifically for Shorties. J.Crew adapts its regular styles into petite proportions. Theory uses P as its smallest alpha size rather than to identify a separate petite range. Then there are retailers that simply market shorter lengths as petite styles.
A petite size and a petite-friendly garment are not necessarily the same thing, and retailers don’t always make it clear which one they’re offering.
Take Anthropologie. Its petite fit guide outlines adjustments such as shorter sleeves, rises and lengths, along with higher armholes, waistlines and knee placements. Presumably, these apply to in-house labels such as Maeve and Pilcro. However, Anthropologie also carries petite clothing from more than 70 outside brands, each with its own approach to petite sizing. When I reviewed the site in September 2026, the same general size chart appeared across 278 petite styles from those outside labels. It’s unlikely that every one of those garments receives Anthropologie’s in-house adjustments.
Brands build their sizing systems around the customers they want to serve. Banana Republic, Gap, Old Navy and Athleta offer a perfect example. Although they are owned by the same parent company, their approaches to petite sizing aren’t the same.
Banana Republic lists shorter sleeves and smaller bust, waist and hip measurements for petites. Gap, Old Navy and Athleta keep the same body measurements as their regular ranges, while the petite-specific differences they disclose are mainly about length. Without insider intel, it’s impossible to know why Banana Republic takes a different approach. Its chart makes one thing clear – the brand imagines its petite customer as narrower, not just shorter.
The federal government once attempted to bring more consistency to women’s sizing. Its PS 42-70 standard, introduced in 1970, included petite categories but remained voluntary. It was largely ignored and ultimately withdrawn in 1983.
As long as sizing remains unregulated, size charts remain our best bet for finding the right fit. To make sense of them, we first need to know our measurements.
How to Take Your Measurements
Taking your own measurements is harder than it looks. In fact, research confirms that we’re pretty bad at it. In one apparel study, women’s self-measurements differed from professional measurements by an average of 1.6 inches.
For the most accurate results, a skilled tailor or seamstress is your best bet. If you have to measure alone, at the very least use a full-length mirror to keep the tape level.
When measuring your bust, waist and hips, keep the tape level all the way around and comfortably snug without squeezing.
BUST
Wearing your usual bra, measure around the fullest part of your bust. Keep your arms relaxed.
WAIST
Measure around your natural waist, which you can find by bending slightly to one side. Stand naturally and resist the urge to suck in.
HIPS
With your feet together, measure around the fullest part of your hips and seat. If you’re unsure, take a few measurements nearby and keep the largest one.
INSEAM
It is commonly advised to measure the inseam of an existing pair of pants, but that only works if the pants in question have the same cut. While consulting for Elims, a Los Angeles denim brand offering petite styles, I was privy to a rather intimate but highly accurate technique.
You’ll need help from someone you feel comfortable with, a stiff measuring tape, a pencil, an eraser and a light-colored blank wall about three feet wide.
Stand straight and barefoot with your back against the wall.
Have your trusted helper mark your crotch, making sure the pencil isn’t angled.
Using the stiff measuring tape, measure from the floor to the mark – that’s your inseam!
Don’t forget to erase the mark when you’re finished.
Use that figure as a guideline, remembering that shoes add height, even flat ones, and that the ideal inseam depends on how the pants are meant to fall. A shorter inseam suits ankle-baring cuts, while a longer one is better suited to floor-grazing silhouettes.
10 Tips for Finding Your Best Size
Even with accurate measurements, there is no foolproof formula for finding your best size every time. These guidelines can get you closer:
Treat your usual size as a starting point.
Don’t attach your self-worth to a label nobody sees.
Always compare your measurements with the size chart.
Disregard generic petite size charts that aren’t tied to a brand or garment.
On multi-brand retail sites, consult the garment brand’s own size chart.
Read the size-and-fit details.
Compare garment measurements with a similar piece in your closet.
Treat fit finders like True Fit as another clue.
Take reviews with a grain of salt – fit is highly subjective.
When in doubt, contact customer service.
Remember, an ill-fitting purchase is part of the process. Expecting mass-produced clothing to fit our individual frames perfectly every time is a little wild when you think about it. Honestly, even petite clothing isn’t a sure thing – it’s a shortcut that can bring us closer to the right fit and save us money on tailoring.
In Short
Sizing is inconsistent, thanks in part to vanity sizing and the lack of a universal standard. Brands create their own sizing systems, and petite sizing is no exception. Some design for Shorties from the outset, others adapt their main collections and some apply the petite label to garments that are merely shorter. Since brands don’t always disclose their approach, the label alone cannot tell us how a garment will fit.
Accurate bust, waist and hip measurements help us navigate size charts, while our inseam provides a baseline for judging pant length. For the most reliable numbers, visit a skilled tailor or seamstress. You can measure yourself, but research confirms that doing so accurately is harder than it looks.
Treat your usual size as a starting point, then compare your measurements with the garment brand’s chart. Disregard generic petite charts and double-check general charts used across multi-brand retail sites. Garment measurements, size-and-fit details, fit finders and reviews can offer additional clues. When in doubt, contact customer service.
Petite sizing may be the Wild West, but knowing your measurements, checking the right chart and reading the fine print give you a better chance of finding your best size.
Your Best Fit Might Not Be Petite
Depending on your vertical proportions, regular sizes may fit you better than petite ones in certain garment categories. Your curves and scale add another layer to the equation. Through a complimentary frame assessment, I’ll help you understand all three.
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