Clothing Brand Blank Sizing Guide: Reduce Returns

Clothing brand blank sizing comes down to three habits. Read the finished garment measurements on your blank's size chart, not the size letter. Put that chart, in inches and centimeters, inside every listing with one plain sentence about how the blank fits. And offer only the sizes your blank is sewn in, priced size by size.

It matters because sizing is the main reason clothes come back. Coresight Research estimates the US online apparel return rate reached 23.4% in 2025, and nearly 70% of shoppers who returned clothing bought online gave size and fit as the reason.¹ For a print-on-demand brand the cost lands on you: Printify's own returns guide tells sellers to refuse wrong-size returns, because the garment was made to order.²

You already know a size chart helps. The harder part is knowing what the chart can and can't tell you. This guide shows how to read one, puts the charts of six common tees and three hoodies side by side, and sets out what to publish on the listing. If you're still choosing the blank itself, start with our guide to choosing blanks for your clothing brand.

Key Takeaways

• Nearly 70% of shoppers who returned clothing bought online cited size and fit, and the US online apparel return rate reached an estimated 23.4% in 2025.¹
• Printful and Printify don't take back a wrong size, as our Printful vs Printify comparison shows, so the brand absorbs it. Printify's guide calls the fix a chart in the listing: "A chart buried in a policy tab is a chart nobody reads."²
• Printful's charts give the Gildan 5000, Gildan 64000, Bella+Canvas 3001, Next Level 3600, and Comfort Colors 1717 the same 22-inch chest width at size L.³
• The women's relaxed Bella+Canvas 6400 is also 22 inches wide at L, but 3.25 inches shorter than the unisex 3001.³
• Every one of those charts says measurements "may vary by up to 2″ (5 cm)", so a smaller gap between two blanks may be noise.³

Why Sizing Returns Cost a Print-on-Demand Brand More

A retailer that takes back a wrong size can put the shirt back on the shelf. A print-on-demand brand can't. The shirt was printed for one order, the provider won't take it back, and a replacement in the right size is a second production run you pay for.

Printify's guide is blunt about where the line sits. It says "Buyer's remorse and wrong-size orders are not your problem to absorb," and tells sellers to state a no-wrong-size policy before the sale.² Its defect cover is separate: misprints, damage, and lost parcels get a free replacement, wrong sizes don't.² Printful draws the same line, as our Printful vs Printify comparison shows from both help centers.

So the size chart does a job a returns desk would do elsewhere. If a customer orders the wrong size, you choose between refusing them and paying for the second shirt. A chart they can read and trust makes that choice come up less often.

How to Read a Blank's Size Chart

Most blank size charts hold two different tables, and mixing them up is the most common sizing mistake. Printful's size guide for the Bella+Canvas 3001 shows both.³

Body measurements vs garment measurements

The body table ("measure yourself") gives the chest of the person a size is meant for. For the 3001 at size L, that's a 42 to 45 inch chest, measured around the body.³

The product table gives the shirt itself, laid flat. For the same size L, that's 22 inches wide and 30 inches long.³ This is the table your customer should compare with a shirt they already own.

Vaybel's blank pages keep these apart for the same reason. The 3001 page lists eight measurement sources and says: "Each source is kept separate. Body measurements and finished garment measurements are not interchangeable."⁴

What each measurement means

• Width (or chest width): the shirt laid flat, measured straight across from the seam under one sleeve to the seam under the other. Double it for the garment's full chest.³
• Length: from the highest point of the shoulder, next to the collar, down to the hem.³
• Sleeve length: listed on four of the six tee charts compared below and on the Gildan 18500 hoodie, but not on the 3001, 3600, 3719, or M2580. Charts measure it from different points, so compare sleeves only within one blank.³⁵
• Tolerance: Printful's charts carry the note "Product measurements may vary by up to 2″ (5 cm)."³

That last line matters more than it looks. If two blanks differ by half an inch on paper, the charts can't tell you which shirt will measure bigger in your customer's hands.

The question your chart should answer

A size chart's job is to let a customer compare your shirt with one they already like. Printful's own tip says the same thing from the other side: "Measure one of your products at home and compare with the measurements you see in this guide."⁶ Put that instruction in your listing, written for the buyer: lay a favorite tee flat, measure armpit to armpit, and pick the size closest to it.

Want to see these numbers before you pick a blank? The Bella+Canvas 3001 page in Vaybel's blank library shows the size range and the flat chest width and body length at every size, and labels where each set of measurements comes from.⁴

Blank Sizing Compared: Six Tees and Three Hoodies

To see how much the charts differ, Vaybel put Printful's published product measurements for six common tees side by side. These are the provider's charts as read on November 12, 2026, in inches, laid flat.³

What the tee charts show

At size L, all six charts list the same 22-inch width.³ The Gildan 5000, Gildan 64000, and Bella+Canvas 3001 match at every size from S up. Next Level calls the 3600 "form-fitting," yet its chart is half an inch wider than the 3001 at M.³

The charts list chest width, body length, and sometimes sleeve length. The parts that make a tee feel fitted or boxy, like shoulder width, sleeve width, and taper, aren't on them. That's why two shirts with the same chart can fit differently, and why your listing needs a fit note in words as well as the numbers.

Length is where the real gaps are. The Comfort Colors 1717 is shorter at every size, and the women's relaxed 6400 is 3.25 inches shorter than the unisex 3001 at L with the same width.³ "Women's" on that blank means a shorter body, not a narrower one. Our Comfort Colors vs Bella Canvas comparison goes deeper on why the 1717 looks roomy without being wider.

What the hoodie charts show

Hoodies spread out more. Here are Printful's product measurements at size L.⁵

The Gildan 18500 is a full inch wider than the Cotton Heritage M2580 at L.⁵ Printful's M2580 page warns buyers: "This hoodie runs small. For the perfect fit, we recommend ordering one size larger than your usual size."⁵ If you sell that hoodie, put the same advice in your own listing.

For which hoodie suits which brand, see our best blank hoodies guide; this section is about how they're sized.

Not sure which cut your design looks right on? Vaybel's AI Mockup Generator builds images from the blank you select and your finished design, so you can check color, print placement, and proportion on each candidate before you order a sample. A mockup shows proportion, not fit, so the chart and the sample still decide the size advice.

Set Your Clothing Brand's Size Chart and Size Range

Here's the listing setup, in the order to do it. It works the same on Etsy, Shopify, and TikTok Shop, and TikTok treats a size chart as part of a fashion listing's quality, as we covered in our product video guide.

1. Take the chart from your provider's current product page. Use the product measurements for the exact blank and provider you sell. Charts change: our Comfort Colors comparison found the 1717's chest widths had moved by three quarters of an inch to an inch at every size from S to XL against a 2019 spec sheet.
2. Give each blank its own chart. If your tee is a 3001 and your hoodie is a 3719, they get separate charts. One generic "unisex" chart across your whole line is how a customer who knows their size still gets the wrong one.
3. Show garment measurements in inches and centimeters, with a measuring line. Width, length, and sleeve where the chart has it. Printify's suggested line works: "Lay it flat and measure the chest from armpit to armpit, and the length from the top of the shoulder to the hem."²
4. Write one fit sentence for the blank. Say what the chart can't: "Relaxed and boxy, slightly shorter body," or "Fitted through the body and sleeves." Printify's guide gives the 1717 as its example: it "Runs relaxed and boxy."²
5. Put the chart in the listing images and again in the description. Printify's advice: a chart that lives only on a policy page doesn't get read.²
6. Offer only the sizes the blank is sewn in. The 3001 runs XS to 5XL and the 3719 hoodie stops at 2XL.³⁵ Printful sells the 3600 up to 5XL, but its size guide has no measurements past 3XL, so measure a sample before you list those sizes. If your tee goes to 5XL and your hoodie to 2XL, say so on the hoodie listing, so a 4XL customer isn't surprised.
7. Price the large sizes on their own. On Printful the 3001 costs $11.92 up to XL and $19.92 at 5XL, so a flat retail price gives your biggest customers your thinnest margin.⁷ Our Printful vs Printify comparison covers the size-by-size math.
8. State your return rule before the sale. Say that each item is made to order and that you can't take back a wrong size, as Printify's guide recommends.²
9. Keep a screenshot of every listing's chart. Printify suggests it, so you can show what the buyer saw if a wrong-size claim turns into a dispute.²

What not to write

Skip "true to size" unless you've measured samples. A label like that is a claim about a physical shirt, and the 2-inch tolerance on every chart means the shirt in the box may not match the table exactly.³ Skip "size down" advice you've read online too. Our Comfort Colors comparison found the most repeated advice for the 1717, "runs big, size down," isn't backed by its current chart.

Avoid AI model images as sizing proof. A generated model shows how a design looks, not how a size fits. Our guide to AI mockups for clothing explains where generated images help and where a real photo or the provider's chart has to do the work.

Test the Sample Before the Chart Goes Live

A chart is the provider's promise. A sample is what your customer gets. Vaybel's own docs recommend ordering one sample per blank, ideally in more than one size, and checking "sizing and fit compared to the size chart you publish."⁸

Measure the sample flat the same way the chart does, then wash it the way your customer will and measure again. Shrinkage is the gap a chart can't show. In one measured test, a Bella+Canvas 3001 lost 5.8% to 6.3% of its length after two washes, though it's sold as pre-shrunk.⁷⁹

If your sample measures more than the stated tolerance away from the chart, or shrinks enough to cross into the next size, adjust the fit note before you list. "Runs slightly short after washing; size up for length" is honest and specific. It can also save you the second shirt.

For side-by-side checks on the two most common tee blanks, our Gildan vs Bella Canvas comparison lists what to inspect on each sample, from shoulder position to collar shape. And if you want the shortlist of tees worth sampling at all, see our best blank t-shirts for clothing brands.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do blank t-shirts run true to size?

It depends on the blank, and the size letter won't tell you. Printful's charts give five common tees the same 22-inch width at L, but they still fit differently because the chart leaves out shoulder, sleeve width, and taper.³ Measure a sample before you call a blank "true to size."

What should a size chart for a clothing brand include?

Garment measurements laid flat, in inches and centimeters: chest width, body length, and sleeve length where it applies. Add a one-line measuring tip, one sentence on how the blank fits, and the sizes you actually offer. Use a separate chart for each blank.

Should I use the body chart or the garment chart?

Use the garment chart in your listing. Customers can compare it with a shirt they already own, which is more reliable than measuring their own chest. Vaybel's blank pages keep the two apart because body and garment measurements aren't interchangeable.⁴

Does a women's blank run smaller than a unisex blank?

Not always in width. On Printful's charts, the women's relaxed Bella+Canvas 6400 is the same width as the unisex 3001 at L but 3.25 inches shorter.³ Check both width and length before you write size advice.

Can I offer exchanges on print-on-demand orders?

You can, but you pay for the second item. Printful and Printify don't take back wrong sizes, so an exchange is a new order on your account. Our Printful vs Printify comparison quotes both policies. Many brands state a no-wrong-size policy up front and rely on a clear chart instead.

Clothing Brand Blank Sizing: Get the Chart Right Once

Sizing returns aren't bad luck. They come from charts that use the wrong table, hide in a policy tab, or promise a fit nobody measured. With nearly 70% of shoppers who return clothing bought online citing size and fit, the chart is the cheapest return prevention you have.¹

Pick the blank, take its current garment chart from your provider, write one honest fit sentence, offer only the sizes it comes in, and price the big sizes on their own. Then sample, wash, and measure before you publish.

Vaybel helps with the parts around that work. Compare blanks in the blank library, preview your design with the AI Mockup Generator, and publish listings to Etsy, TikTok Shop, and Shopify. Vaybel doesn't print or ship; your provider does. Start your free trial and set up your next drop's listings before the first order.