Size charts and returns in a clothing store

In fashion two numbers decide a store's profit, and neither is about traffic. The first is how many shoppers abandon the cart because they could not work out the size. The second is how many orders come back because the item did not fit. Both depend directly on how the size chart and the returns page are built. Here is how to get them right.

Why one chart for the whole store does not work

Site builders and templates give you one size table for the entire site: S, M, L and centimetres. In reality patterns differ between brands, kids' clothing is sized by height, and in knitwear the same label stretches differently depending on the fabric.

The shopper sees "M", cannot tell whether it is their M, and does one of two things: leaves, or orders two sizes "to try" and returns one of them. The first eats conversion, the second eats margin on shipping.

The working approach is a chart attached not to the store but to a brand or a category. The product page shows the table that applies to this specific item, ideally with two columns — the nominal size and the actual garment measurements.

Garment measurements versus body measurements

This is the most important detail most stores skip. Tables come in two kinds: body measurements ("chest 88–92 cm") and garment measurements ("chest width laid flat 52 cm"). The second is more precise, because the shopper can take a favourite T-shirt, lay it on a table and measure it.

Ideally you show both: body measurements for those who know their parameters, and garment measurements for those who navigate by clothes they already wear. Plus a short hint on how to measure — two sentences, not a page-long manual.

What else reduces bounce on a product page

• Model height and the size worn. "Model is 175 cm, wearing size S" removes half the fit questions.
• A fit label: slim, regular, oversized. One word that saves returns.
• Fabric composition and stretch. Critical for knitwear: "the fabric stretches" changes the size choice.
• Real-time stock by size. There is no worse scenario than paying for an item that is not there.
• A photo on a person, not only on a mannequin. In fashion that is half the decision.

We covered the structure of the product page itself in our article on the product page that sells.

Returns are not evil — they are part of the process

In fashion 15 to 30 percent of orders come back. That is a normal industry figure, not a sign of a bad product. The problem is not the return itself but how it is presented. When the terms are buried in small print in the footer, the shopper suspects a catch and does not order at all.

What has to be in plain sight: the return window, who pays for return shipping, what condition the item is accepted in, how many days the refund takes and how to submit a request. The last one is a proper form on the site, not "DM us".

The paradox is that transparent return terms increase sales. The shopper risks less and therefore orders more boldly — including one size of an item instead of two.

A returns form instead of an email thread

Processing returns by hand eats a manager's hours. The working scheme: the customer opens their account or the order by number, picks the item, selects a reason from a list and receives instructions with a shipment number. The manager sees the request in the admin panel with a status.

Reasons from a list are also free analytics. After two months you know exactly which items come back most and why: "too small" on a specific model means the chart for it is shifted and needs fixing.

How return numbers tell you what to fix

Put returns into a simple table: item, size, reason. A few typical conclusions become visible immediately:

• mass "too small" on one model — an error in that brand's chart;
• returns marked "wrong colour" — a photography and lighting problem, not a sizing one;
• "the fit did not work" — a missing fit label and no photo on a person;
• one of two ordered sizes returned — the shopper does not trust the table and hedges.

Each of these is fixed in half an hour in the admin panel — and reduces shipping costs every month.

The technical side: how this works in the store

For all of the above to be more than theory, the store needs three things. First, charts as a separate entity: you create a table once and attach it to a brand or category instead of copying it into every product. Second, product variants instead of separate cards per size — otherwise duplicates appear in search and stock is counted incorrectly. Third, stock tracked per size and synced with your accounting system or at least a spreadsheet.

We build all of this into a clothing store by default — the details are on the page about clothing e-commerce development.

What it costs to implement

If the store is already built properly — meaning sizes are product variants rather than separate cards — charts and a returns form are added within a few days as part of support. If the catalog has to be rebuilt, that is separate work: first we merge items into variants, connect stock tracking per size, and only then attach the charts.

In a new store all of this is built in from the start and costs nothing extra. General budget benchmarks for an online store are in our article on how much an online store costs.

Frequently asked questions

How many size charts does a store need?

As many as you have brands or categories with different patterns. A single-brand store gets by with two or three tables: tops, bottoms, outerwear. A multi-brand store creates a chart per supplier and attaches it to products automatically so the manager does not do it by hand for every item.

Can the table be shown on the product page rather than a separate page?

That is exactly how it should be. The table opens in a popup with one tap, without leaving the page — the shopper never loses sight of the product. A separate "Size chart" page still stays: it collects search queries such as "women's jeans size table".

Who pays for return shipping?

That is your decision, and the main thing is to state it plainly. If the customer pays, say so honestly: people accept such terms when they see them before ordering and reject them when they find out afterwards. If you cover shipping for returns caused by your own sizing error, that is a strong argument worth putting in a visible place.

Will returns increase if we make them convenient?

The number of requests may rise slightly, while the overall return rate usually falls — because a shopper with an accurate chart and a photo on a person picks the right size straight away and does not order two "just in case". Conversion rises at the same time, so the store wins overall.

Do we need a separate "Size chart" page?

Yes, and it pays off twice. First, it collects search queries like "women's jeans size table" — cold but highly targeted traffic. Second, it works as a reference you can link to in customer correspondence and product descriptions. The key is that it must not replace the popup table on the product page itself.

How long does implementation take on an existing store?

If the store is built on a sound foundation, charts and a returns form are added in a few days. If every size is entered as a separate product, the catalog first has to be rebuilt into variants — that takes longer, but without it neither stock nor charts will work correctly.

In short

A brand-level size chart with garment measurements, model height and a fit label on the product page, transparent return terms in plain sight and a form instead of an email thread — four changes that lift conversion and cut return shipping costs at the same time. Collect return reasons as a list: within two months they will show you exactly what to fix.