Just the other day, I got an email from a lingerie brand that I respect. It was a message that, quite frankly, I’m wary of as both a lingerie entrepreneur… and as a modern-day consumer.

“You’re probably wearing the wrong bra size,“ said the headline, sitting in my inbox.

It’s not the first time that I’ve heard this. Respected publications, including the Queen of All Media, Oprah, herself, Harper’s Bazaar, and Huffington Post have whipped out the statistic that “80% of women wearing the wrong bra size.” I have literally walked right into it in the form of a sign in my neighborhood.

Experts, bra fitters, and lingerie brands all agree: “80% of women are wearing the wrong size bra.”

In this installment of Bra Theory 101, we’re going to deep dive into this claim.

Is it true? Are 80% of women wearing the wrong bra size? Do I need to feel bad about this? Do I need to buy something now? (The answers: it’s complicated, maybe, no, and absolutely not.)

Without further ado, let’s get to the bottom of this!

The “80%” statistic is bunk

While you see the quote that “80% of women are wearing the wrong size bra,” it’s not as frequent to see the necessary citation. After doing some digging, the research that “backs” this claim is insufficient to validate the statistic.

Honestly? No one is doing research with sample sizes that are representative of the female population, and no one is reaching consensus in their research, either.

Besides…

Unfortunately, bra sizing is not standard.

It’s hard to say whether your bra size is “right” or “wrong” when there are no bra size standards. The list of confounding factors are impressively long, and they confound consumers and industry professionals alike:

Brands use different sizing systems. Fitters use different measuring systems. The same brand’s 34B in a push-up style might not fit the same as its 34B in a balconette style You can sister size up and down. A 34B can be a similar fit to a 32C, with a few trade-offs in between.

As demonstrated by Kimmay Caldwell, a professional bra-fitter in New York, you can wear 9 different sizes and feel pretty good in all of them.

In our experience fitting customers in the Bra Theory beta, a lot of women haven’t learned the ins and outs of bra sizing and why it’s so complicated… and rightfully so, since it can take years of accumulated experience.

However, to say that they’re wearing the “wrong bra size” (1) isn’t factually correct, (2) imply blame for something they literally cannot be “right” about.

It’s a problem when The Onion doesn’t sound far from the truth:

Moreover, collected data demonstrate that a full 100 percent of all women were wearing bras with incorrect measurements in every aspect of band width, strap length, and cup size, although we concluded you can’t really blame them for that. It’s almost worse than buying decent jeans—I mean, jeans? Fuck me.

What’s a definable metric of a bra that’s “right”?

Maureen O’ Connor says it best in The Cut:

“If you put it on and like how it looks and feels, then it fits just fine. Your bra is not wrong. Your bra cannot be wrong. Your bra is underwear, a value-neutral object to be worn, replaced, stuffed, discarded, celebrated, hidden, or exposed however you want.”

“Right” isn’t defined by the person trying to sell you a bra. “Right” is what you decide for yourself.

So why repeat the 80% stat?

In my personal experience, most women aren’t wearing a bra that makes them feel comfortable. As a lingerie entrepreneur I tend to talk about my job to any women I meet. They immediately commiserate: “Ugh, I’ve never found a bra that works for me!”

So while I’m not a fan of telling women that they’re wrong about something and to buy a product to fix themselves, a lot of women are understandably confused by their bra size and suffer from ill-fitting bras. For many, bra fit is a serious problem.

Bra experts know that they can help you discover an option that brings you more comfort. They use the statistic because they believe it is truth, based on their anecdotal evidence.

It’s also not as sexy to state the nuanced version: “80% of women are in bra sizes that do not optimally support their breasts.” It’s too long to read, and it doesn’t catch your interest quite as well as a fear-based tactic.

Conclusion

Bra Theory 101 is here to say: the jury is still out on the science of the “80% of women are wearing the wrong size bra” statistic. And when it comes to matters like these?

There is no right or wrong, except for what makes you comfortable.

While bra fitters can help you find a more comfortable fit, it’s up to you to choose what’s right for you.

Hopefully, this breakdown empowers you to stand up to those newsletters, publications, and marketing ads that are trying to sell you something.

Until next time!

Bra Theory has a hypothesis that you, an individual, may find value in a bra that is made with you in mind. We can make you something that is “right” for you…because YOU make that decision. Our secondary mission is to empower you with information so that you’re better equipped to make that decision.