Japanese, Korean and Chinese sizes explained

Buying from a Japanese, Korean or Chinese shop — or standing in one — the labels look impenetrable and are anything but. Each of the three tells you a real measurement in centimetres. Once you know which measurement, the label reads itself.

Japanese clothing uses the familiar S/M/L letters and a numeric women's ladder, both running roughly one step smaller than the American equivalents: a US men's M is a Japanese L, and a US women's M is a Japanese 9 on the numeric scale.

Japanese shoes are the clearest system anywhere: the number is the foot length in centimetres. A 27 fits a 27 cm foot. Nothing to convert, nothing to misinterpret — just measure the foot.

Korean menswear is numbered off the chest: a 95 is cut for roughly a 92 cm chest, which is a US M. Korean womenswear uses the 44/55/66/77 ladder — a US women's M is a 66.

Korean shoes are Japanese shoes in millimetres: 270 is the same 27 cm foot as JP 27.

A Chinese label like 175/92 is not a fraction and not a range. It is height / chest in centimetres — the garment is cut for someone of that height with that chest — and it is a US men's M. Women's labels work the same way: 165/88 for a US women's M.

Chinese shoes are the exception: they have largely converged on the European ladder, so a Chinese number and a European one are usually the same shoe — a women's US 8 is 38.5 in both.

• Fit models differ, not just labels. A converted size is the right starting number; the cut may still be narrower through the shoulder or shorter in the sleeve than the same size at home.
• Free size. Plenty of Korean and Chinese listings sell "free size" — one size, usually somewhere around a US small to medium. Check the garment measurements in the listing, because there is no ladder to convert.
• The listing's own chart wins. When a seller publishes centimetres, those beat any conversion table, including this one.