Have I misunderstood bra sizes?!?

[TheFlis12345]

I ordered a selection of bikinis online, one brand I got in a 32GG and 34G as I wasn’t sure which would fit best (the others didn’t have a 32GG option so just got 34G).

Tried them on and the 32GG is way too big around the back, much bigger around the band than the 34. I have compared and the 32G is nearly 2 inches longer than the 34GG. I thought the 32 would be smaller on the band and have bigger cups?! Have I been completely misunderstanding bra sizes or is it an error?

Are they different brands? Some are notorious for coming up large/small. Possible also that you just got a duff one?

No, it was literally 2 identical bikini tops, just it 2 different sizes. So I am right that the band on a 32GG should be smaller than on a 34G?!?

Sometimes the wrong labels get sewn in.

You can also think of them as equivalent to short sizes. A 32 is equivalent to a 12 and 34 a 14. But you should always go down a size. So for example if you wear a size 14 in tops buy a 32

That’s what I thought! Glad to hear I am not going mad / getting it wrong all these years!

What brand was it, out of interest?

It was by Freya (via Figleaves).

Freya’s 32GGs are generally too big in the big. When I went to John Lewis they suggested it was because they were marketing to larger / pregnant rather than small-curvy ladies.

Try Fantasie (30GG). Panache too but it’s a bigger cup so you may need to go down a cup size.

Cup size is proportional to band size. So a 32C will hold much less breast volume than a 38C even though the cup size is the same.

It's called sister sizing. A 32G and a 34GG should, in theory, be roughly the same size in terms of cup volume.

bustyresources.fandom.com/wiki/Sister_size