Thirty years ago in America, you might have struggled to find a cute bra over a 40 band or above a D cup. Luckily, things have changed. Thanks to the accessibility of the internet and growing competition in the lingerie industry, bra-makers from budget to luxury are finally expanding their sizes.
But how many bra sizes do these brands actually make? I took a deep dive and crafted a list of sizes sold by some of the most popular bra brands out there today.
I assumed it would be pretty cut-and-dry. However, things were a bit more interesting than I expected.
How "Inclusive" is Inclusive?
Some of the brands that market their size inclusivity don't actually have a huge size range. For instance, while Rihanna's Savage X Fenty line is widely discussed as an inclusive answer to Victoria's Secret, Savage X actually carries fewer bra sizes than Victoria's Secret.
Of course, a brand's number of bra sizes manufactured is not the ultimate marker of inclusivity. Inclusive and accessible language, diverse models, multiple shades of nude, flexible return policies...these are all aspects of creating an inclusive lingerie business. Aspects that are not part of this list.
Additionally, smaller or newer brands don't have the capacity to make as many sizes as older, larger brands. And of course, many people define "inclusive sizing" differently. To one person, "inclusive sizing" might mean a brand makes band sizes over 48. Another person might say "inclusive sizing" features AA cups, or 28 bands.
But no matter how you define inclusive sizing, you've probably heard some noise around the number of bra sizes available by certain brands. Famed DTC brand ThirdLove's founder claims that they "currently carry the most sizes in the industry," a lie parroted even by CNN as recently as May 2021. This claim is completely false. ThirdLove ranks third on this (very non-exhaustive) list. And their ranking here includes half sizes, which are debatably a scam. Without half sizes, they only have 66 sizes, bringing them more in line with Aerie, AdoreMe, and Wacoal.
How We Found These Numbers
Unfortunately, bra size charts are horrible. Many legacy brands are incredibly outdated, leaving out the G and H cups they've added over the years. Some brands' have size charts that include sizes they don't make. Others don't have size charts at all.
The numbers in this article are all easily accessible through the brands' websites and webstores. You can find them the way I did: either on their size charts, or by looking through individual shop pages to find their manufactured sizes.
The sizes I've chosen to include in this list are lettered/numbered bra sizes only, like 32A and 40E. All sizes listed have been converted to European sizes for consistency, and brands are listed in alphabetical order. Custom sizing, if available, is not included in this list.
How Many Bra Sizes Do Popular Brands Make?
ASOS DESIGN: 70 sizes (30A-J; 32-38A-I; 40-44C-J)
AdoreMe: 66 sizes (30-34A-H, 36A-I, 40B-I, 42B-H, 44B-G, 46B-F)
Aerie: 62 sizes (30A-D; 32-34AA-F; 36A-F; 38A-E; 40C-E)
Agent Provocateur: 31 sizes (32-36A-H, 38B-H)
Auden (Target): 47 sizes (32AA-F; 34A-F; 36B-F; 38B-F; 40-36C-G; 48D-G)
Bali: 31 sizes (32-34 C-E; 36B-G; 40B-G; 42-44C-G; 46C-E)
Cacique (Lane Bryant): 98 sizes (32F-G, 32-36E-I; 38-46B-L; 48-50B-I; 52-54B-F)
Calvin Klein: 27 sizes (30B-E; 32-36A-F; 38A-E)
Chantelle: 65 sizes (30B-I; 32-34A-I; 42B-H; 44B-F)
Curvy Kate: 84 sizes (30-40D-O; 42-44 D-I)
Cuup: 40 sizes (30-38A-H)
Elomi: 66 sizes (32J-O; 34I-O; 36-40E-O; 42E-L; 44E-I; 46E-H; 48E-G)
Ewa Michalak: 147 sizes (30A-J; 32A-O; 34-38A-P; 40A-O; 42A-L; 44A-M; 46-48A-L; 50A-J)
Fleur du Mal: 18 sizes (32-36B-G)
Gap Body: 14 sizes (32-36A-D; 38B-C)
Hanes: 20 sizes (34-40A-E)
Honey Birdette: 28 sizes (32-34A-H; 36-38C-H)
La Perla: 29 sizes (30-38 A-E; 40-42B-C)
Maidenform: 20 sizes (32-38A-E)
Natori: 61 sizes (30-38A-H; 38-42B-H)
Panache: 84 sizes (28D-40O)
Playful Promises: 93 sizes (28DD-I, 30A-K, 32A-L, 34A-L, 36A-L, 38B-L, 40C-K, 42B-K, 44B-K)
Playtex: 54 sizes (32-42A-I)
SKIMS: 31 sizes (32-34A-F, 36-38A-DD, 40B-DD, 42C-DD, 44C-D)
Savage X Fenty: 43 sizes (32-36A-F, 38B-H, 40-42C-H, 44D-G, 46E-F)
ThirdLove: 83 sizes, including half sizes (30B-G, 32A-H, 34AA-H, 36A-H, 38A-I, 40A-H, 42B-G, 44B-F, 46B-E, 48B-D)
Torrid: 70 sizes (36C-F; 38-50B-I; 52-54B-F)
Vanity Fair: 36 sizes (32A-D; 34A-E; 36-38A-H; 40-42B-H; 44B-F)
Victoria’s Secret: 54 sizes (30AA-F, 32-40 AA-G, 42C-G, 44C-D)
Wacoal: 69 sizes (30B-G; 32AA-H; 34-36AA-I; 38-40B-I; 42-46C-H)
What Are Your Thoughts?
How do you view "inclusivity" in the lingerie industry? Have any of these numbers changed how you see your favorite brands?
There's no right answer here. Everyone will interpret this information differently, and that's OK! But knowledge is power, and the more we understand about our favorite bra brands, the more we can push them to do better for us.