What size should you order?
Yes, most of it runs small — but that is a tendency, not a rule you can order by. Here is how to actually pick your size on a Chinese listing, using the seller's own numbers instead of a guess.
Written by Ludey — years of hauling and QC'ing
in the rep scene, posting as @ludeyisback.
Do reps run small?
Usually, for clothing — and for a reason that has nothing to do with them being replicas. These pieces are cut for the Chinese domestic market, which sizes against different body data than the US does, so the same letter lands smaller than a US buyer expects. Plenty of pieces are also cut deliberately oversized, which is why "just size up" gets people the wrong thing about as often as it saves them.
So the letter is not the answer. The size on a Chinese listing is not the size you wear at home, and it is not even comparable between two sellers. Shoes at least use a number that means something — European sizing, covered on the shoe size page. For clothing there is no reliable conversion at all.
What works instead is a method, and it takes about two minutes: measure something you already own that fits the way you want, and compare it to the centimetres in the seller's own size chart. Everything below is detail on top of that.
How to get clothing sizing right
This is what experienced buyers do, and it works regardless of brand, seller or what letter is printed on the tag.
- Measure a garment you already own, not your bodyLay a t-shirt or hoodie that fits you the way you want this one to fit flat on a table. Measure armpit to armpit across the chest, and collar seam to hem for the length. Write the two numbers down in centimetres.
- Open the listing's own size chartMost Weidian and Taobao listings include a photo of a size table giving chest and length in centimetres for each size. That table is the seller's own measurement of the item you are buying, which is the only number that describes this specific garment.
- Match the numbers, ignore the letterPick the size whose chest measurement is closest to the garment you measured. A letter is a label a seller chose; a chest measurement in centimetres is a fact. Two listings both marked L routinely differ by several centimetres across the chest.
- When you are between sizes, size upClothing cut for the Chinese domestic market is usually smaller under the same letter than a US buyer expects, because the two markets size against different body data. Sizing up is the common advice for that reason, not because replicas are made small — but check it against the chart first, because some pieces are cut oversized on purpose.
Do not order from the letter alone. The single most common way people waste money here is assuming an L is an L. It is the one mistake this whole page exists to prevent.
Browse clothing in the larger sizes
The sizes that most often stop a listing short. Each link filters a category to sellers whose size list includes it.
XL: Hoodies Shirts Jackets Pants
XXL: Hoodies Shirts Jackets Pants
XXXL: Hoodies Shirts Jackets Pants
4XL: Jackets
What sizes these sellers actually stock
Counted across the 2,461 clothing listings on this spreadsheet that publish a per-size list. This is what the sellers offer, not a stock level — stock numbers upstream are a placeholder, so no honest stock figure exists.
| Size | Listings | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|
| XXS | 4 | <1% | |
| XS | 452 | 18% | |
| S | 2,035 | 83% | |
| M | 2,439 | 99% | |
| L | 2,436 | 99% | |
| XL | 2,014 | 82% | |
| XXL | 888 | 36% | |
| XXXL | 261 | 11% | |
| 4XL | 67 | 3% | |
| 5XL | 25 | 1% | |
| 6XL | 3 | <1% | |
| ONE SIZE | 1 | <1% |
If you need XXL or larger, it is worth checking the size chart before you commit — the larger the size, the more often a listing simply stops.
Why the same letter comes up small
These garments are cut for the Chinese domestic market, and that market's sizing is built on Chinese body-measurement data — the reference point behind China's own GB/T 1335 standard. US sizing is built on different data. Neither is wrong; they describe different populations, so the same letter lands in a different place.
That is the main mechanism behind "reps run small". It is not that replicas are made smaller than the originals — it is that a garment cut for one market is being read by someone used to another. It is a tendency rather than a rule, though: plenty of pieces are cut deliberately oversized, which is why the answer is always to check the measurements rather than to size up on reflex.
It is also why a fixed "Asian XL equals US L" conversion does not exist and is not printed anywhere on this page. The same letter varies between sellers, between the brands being copied, and between production runs. Any chart claiming otherwise is guessing on your behalf.
What is Asian XL in US sizing?
There is no fixed answer, and any page giving you one is guessing — the same letter differs between sellers, between the brands being copied and between production runs. What can be pinned down is the other half of the question: what a US brand means by each letter, in centimetres. That gives you a fixed point to compare a seller's chart against.
| US size | Chest (body) | Waist (body) |
|---|---|---|
| XXS | 71–80 cm | 57–65 cm |
| XS | 80–89 cm | 65–74 cm |
| S | 89–95 cm | 74–81 cm |
| M | 95–104 cm | 81–89 cm |
| L | 104–112 cm | 89–97 cm |
| XL | 112–123 cm | 97–109 cm |
| XXL | 123–136 cm | 109–121 cm |
| 3XL | 136–147 cm | 121–133 cm |
| 4XL | 147–160 cm | 133–145 cm |
These are body measurements — the person the size is cut for, not the garment laid flat. Seller charts are usually the garment, and a garment always measures bigger than the body it fits, so do not match these numbers straight against a listing's chart. Use them to find where you sit in US sizing, then use the method above for the listing itself.
What 170/88A on a size chart means
Chinese size charts often label rows with something like 170/88A rather than a letter, and it looks like a model number. It is not — it is a description of the body the size is cut for, which makes it the most useful label on the chart once you can read it.
The first number is height in centimetres. The second is the body circumference the size is cut for, also in centimetres — chest on a top, waist on trousers. The letter is the build: how much bigger the chest is than the waist. So a top marked 170/88A is cut for someone 170 cm tall with an 88 cm chest and a regular build.
If you know your height and chest in centimetres, you can read these rows directly and skip the letter entirely.
The body-type letters
The letter after the measurements is how much bigger the chest is than the waist. There are four, each covering a range, and the ranges differ between men's and women's sizing. A is the one you will see most often.
| Letter | Men: chest minus waist | Women: chest minus waist | What it describes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Y | 17–22 cm | 19–24 cm | Slim — a big drop from chest to waist |
| A | 12–16 cm | 14–18 cm | Regular — the one most listings use |
| B | 7–11 cm | 9–13 cm | Fuller through the middle |
| C | 2–6 cm | 4–8 cm | Straightest through the waist |
Most listings use A. If your own chest-to-waist drop is smaller than the 12 to 16 cm A assumes, the chest measurement will fit and the waist will be tighter than the chart implies — which is worth knowing before you size up for the sake of it.
The mistake that catches almost everyone: comparing your body measurement to the garment measurement. If your chest is 100 cm, you do not want a garment measuring 100 cm around — it would have no room at all. Garment charts describe the garment, so compare them to a garment, which is why step one is measuring something you already own.
How much of the spreadsheet publishes sizes
The 9,384 finds on this spreadsheet point at 6,520 distinct seller listings, because several near-identical finds often share one listing. Of those, 45% publish a real per-size list, and they are the ones showing size chips on the product page. The rest use a single free-text option — usually something like "35-50, leave your size in the order notes" — which is not a size list and is not counted as one here.
When you hit one of those, put your size in the note to the seller when you order, and expect the agent to confirm it before purchase.
Where these numbers come from
The availability figures are counted from the 2,956 listings on this spreadsheet that publish a size list, so they describe what these sellers actually stock. The conversion charts are standard reference tables, listed here so you can check them yourself:
- Nike — Men's footwear size chart (US / UK / EU / cm)
- Shoe size: Mondopoint, Paris points, and why US conversion varies by maker
- 服装号型 — the Chinese size designation (170/88A) and the Y/A/B/C body types
- ISO/TS 19407 conversion table, for comparison against Nike's
- Nike — men's tops, what each US letter is in centimetres
Frequently asked
Do reps run small?
Usually, for clothing, and for a specific reason: Chinese-market garments are cut to the GB/T 1335 sizing standard rather than a US one. The practical answer is to measure a garment you own and compare it to the centimetres in the listing's size chart rather than trusting the letter.
Should I size up?
If you are between sizes, yes — that is the usual advice for clothing. Shoes are a different problem: the number on the listing is European sizing, but published US conversions disagree with each other by up to a full size, so measure your foot and use the foot-length column on the shoe size page rather than converting to a US number and hoping.
What size is CN L or Asian XL in US?
There is no dependable answer, which is why this page does not print one. Two listings both marked L routinely differ by several centimetres in the chest, because the letter varies by seller, by the brand being copied and by production run. The listing's own centimetre chart is the only measurement that describes the garment you are actually buying.
What does 170/88A mean?
Height 170 cm, an 88 cm body measurement, and a regular build. On a top the 88 is chest; on trousers the same slot is your waist, so a pair marked 170/74A is a 74 cm waist rather than a very small chest. The letter is the chest-to-waist drop, and A covers 12 to 16 cm for men. It describes the body the size was cut for, not a product code, so if you know your measurements you can read these rows directly.
How do I know my size is available?
The product pages on this spreadsheet show the seller's own size list where they publish one — 45% of listings do. If your size is not in that list, the listing did not offer it. The remaining listings use a single free-text option instead, and there you put your size in the note to the seller when you order.
Before you order
Sign up first and shipping gets cheaper
New Pikobuy accounts get a shipping-coupon bundle (currently up to 40% + 30% off), and every user gets 25–35% shipping coupons dropped weekly. Shipping is usually the biggest line on a haul — the coupons come straight off it.
Free to join · code 63YVRA applies automatically · you only ever pay the seller + shipping
