Letter sizes map to body chest inches: on Bella+Canvas's unisex chart S fits 34 to 37 inches, M 38 to 41, L 42 to 45 and XL 46 to 49, and each size above XL adds 4 inches, up to 62 to 65 inches for 5XL.
Method: compiled 2026-09-29 from three sources, each named beside its row: Bella+Canvas's own fit chart (https://www.bellacanvas.com/fit-size-charts, fetched live 2026-09-29), SanMar's Port & Company PC61 spec sheet (https://www.sanmar.com/p/1634_Ash/specSheetMeasurements, fetched live 2026-09-29), and the Gildan 5000 figures published on our pages https://theloyalbrand.com/blogs/blog/shirt-size-chart-xxs-to-5xl and https://theloyalbrand.com/blogs/blog/xxxl-xxxxl-shirt-size-chart (read 2026-09-29). Where a source gives inches only, cm is converted at 2.54 cm per inch and rounded to the nearest cm.
What is each letter size in numbers?
Body chest the size is built to fit, measured around the fullest part of the chest. One row per brand and size, so a size a source does not list simply has no row.
| Size | Brand and style | Fits chest (in) | Fits chest (cm) | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| XS | Bella+Canvas men's/unisex | 31-34 | 79-86 | bellacanvas.com/fit-size-charts (converted) |
| S | Bella+Canvas men's/unisex | 34-37 | 86-94 | bellacanvas.com/fit-size-charts (converted) |
| S | Gildan 5000 | 34-36 | 86-91 | theloyalbrand.com/blogs/blog/shirt-size-chart-xxs-to-5xl (as published) |
| S | Port & Company PC61 | 35-37 | 89-94 | sanmar.com PC61 Size Chart (converted) |
| M | Bella+Canvas men's/unisex | 38-41 | 97-104 | bellacanvas.com/fit-size-charts (converted) |
| M | Gildan 5000 | 38-40 | 97-102 | theloyalbrand.com/blogs/blog/shirt-size-chart-xxs-to-5xl (as published) |
| M | Port & Company PC61 | 38-40 | 97-102 | sanmar.com PC61 Size Chart (converted) |
| L | Bella+Canvas men's/unisex | 42-45 | 107-114 | bellacanvas.com/fit-size-charts (converted) |
| L | Gildan 5000 | 42-44 | 107-112 | theloyalbrand.com/blogs/blog/shirt-size-chart-xxs-to-5xl (as published) |
| L | Port & Company PC61 | 41-43 | 104-109 | sanmar.com PC61 Size Chart (converted) |
| XL | Bella+Canvas men's/unisex | 46-49 | 117-124 | bellacanvas.com/fit-size-charts (converted) |
| XL | Port & Company PC61 | 44-46 | 112-117 | sanmar.com PC61 Size Chart (converted) |
| 2XL | Bella+Canvas men's/unisex | 50-53 | 127-135 | bellacanvas.com/fit-size-charts (converted) |
| 2XL | Gildan 5000 | 50-52 | 127-132 | theloyalbrand.com/blogs/blog/shirt-size-chart-xxs-to-5xl (as published) |
| 2XL | Port & Company PC61 | 47-49 | 119-124 | sanmar.com PC61 Size Chart (converted) |
| 3XL | Bella+Canvas men's/unisex | 54-57 | 137-145 | bellacanvas.com/fit-size-charts (converted) |
| 3XL | Gildan 5000 | 54-56 | 137-142 | theloyalbrand.com/blogs/blog/xxxl-xxxxl-shirt-size-chart (as published) |
| 3XL | Port & Company PC61 | 50-53 | 127-135 | sanmar.com PC61 Size Chart (converted) |
| 4XL | Bella+Canvas men's/unisex | 58-61 | 147-155 | bellacanvas.com/fit-size-charts (converted) |
| 4XL | Gildan 5000 | 58-60 | 147-152 | theloyalbrand.com/blogs/blog/xxxl-xxxxl-shirt-size-chart (as published) |
| 4XL | Port & Company PC61 | 54-57 | 137-145 | sanmar.com PC61 Size Chart (converted) |
| 5XL | Bella+Canvas men's/unisex | 62-65 | 157-165 | bellacanvas.com/fit-size-charts (converted) |
| 5XL | Gildan 5000 | 62-64 | 157-163 | theloyalbrand.com/blogs/blog/xxxl-xxxxl-shirt-size-chart (as published) |
| 5XL | Port & Company PC61 | 58-60 | 147-152 | sanmar.com PC61 Size Chart (converted) |
Full source URLs: https://www.bellacanvas.com/fit-size-charts ("Men's/Unisex Chest" row) and https://www.sanmar.com/p/1634_Ash/specSheetMeasurements ("Size Chart" Chest row), both fetched live 2026-09-29.
What is XL in numbers?
XL fits a 46 to 49 inch chest (117 to 124 cm) on the Bella+Canvas chart and a 44 to 46 inch chest (112 to 117 cm) on Port & Company PC61 (sources in the table above). Gildan XL is left out because our own Gildan chart marks it "not verified" (theloyalbrand.com/blogs/blog/shirt-size-chart-xxs-to-5xl).
Do brands agree on the numbers?
Through M they agree within about 1 inch: all three put M at 38 to 40 or 38 to 41 inches (table above). From XL up, PC61 runs 2 to 5 inches smaller per label than Bella+Canvas; at 5XL the gap is 4 to 5 inches (PC61 58 to 60 vs Bella+Canvas 62 to 65). Gildan 5000 tracks Bella+Canvas within 1 inch at every size both list. Derived from the rows above.
What do the X letters mean in numbers?
Each extra X is one more size step: XXL is 2XL, XXXL is 3XL, XXXXL is 4XL and XXXXXL is 5XL (source: theloyalbrand.com/blogs/blog/shirt-sizes-in-numbers, letter size to X-count table). On the Bella+Canvas chart each step from XL to 5XL adds exactly 4 inches of chest (46, 50, 54, 58, 62 inch lower bounds, table above).
How do I find my own number?
Measure around the fullest part of your chest with a soft tape and match it to the brand you are ordering. The full method is at theloyalbrand.com/blogs/blog/how-to-measure-chest-for-t-shirt.