What Does Neck 16 Mean on Dress Shirts? (Collar Size Guide)

How the collar is measured

The collar size is a measurement of the shirt, not of you. Lay the collar flat and open, then measure from the centre of the top button to the far end of the buttonhole. That distance is the collar size. On a "16" shirt, it's 16 inches.

Dress shirt collars go up in half-inch steps: 14, 14½, 15, 15½, 16, 16½, 17, 17½, 18 and so on. Each half-inch step is a noticeable difference at the throat, which is why getting the number right matters more for dress shirts than for almost anything else in a man's wardrobe.

Neck 16 in every system

The centimetre sizes run 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43 and so on. Because one inch is exactly 2.54 cm, 16 inches works out to 40.6 cm, which brands round to 41. A 15½ becomes a 39 or 40 depending on the brand, and a 16½ becomes a 42. Our men's shirt neck size conversion has the full table.

Collar size and letter size

If you mostly buy casual shirts in S, M, L, this is how the collar sizes usually map across:

"Typical" is doing a lot of work in that table. Some brands put 16 in Medium, especially European brands that cut smaller, and some put 15½ in Large. When a brand publishes its own chart, trust that over any general table, including this one. The full men's shirt size chart goes into chest and waist measurements by size.

How to measure your neck for a dress shirt

You need a soft tape measure and, ideally, a mirror or someone to help.

1. Stand up straight and look ahead, not down. Looking down shortens the front of your neck and gives you a smaller reading.
2. Place the tape around your neck about where a shirt collar would sit, just below the Adam's apple, level all the way round.
3. Keep it snug but not tight. You should be able to breathe and swallow normally.
4. Read the number. That's your bare neck measurement.
5. Add about half an inch to get your collar size, and round to the nearest half size.

So a bare neck of 15½ inches gets a 16 collar. A bare neck of 15¾ inches usually gets a 16 or 16½, depending on whether you like a closer collar or plan to wear the shirt with a tie all day.

There's also a quick check that tailors use. With the shirt buttoned, slide two fingers flat between the collar and your neck. If they fit snugly, the collar's right. If you can't get two fingers in, it's too small. If you can get three in easily, it's too big. Our guide on how to measure neck size walks through both methods with photos.

What the "16 32/33" on the label means

Dress shirts are often labelled with two numbers, like 16 32/33. The first number is the collar. The second is the sleeve length, measured from the centre back of the neck, across the shoulder and down to the wrist. A 32/33 sleeve is designed to fit arms that measure anywhere between 32 and 33 inches.

So two shirts can both be "neck 16" and still be completely different sizes. A 16 32/33 and a 16 34/35 have the same collar but sleeves two inches apart. If your 16 shirts always fit at the neck but ride up at the cuffs, the sleeve number is the one to change. Our article on what sleeve 32/33 means covers sleeves in detail.

Slim fit, regular fit and classic fit in a 16

Fit names describe the body of the shirt: how much room there is through the chest, waist and arms. They don't change the collar. A 16 slim and a 16 classic both have a 16-inch collar, but the slim version can be several inches narrower at the waist.

This is why a 16 can feel perfect in one brand and tight in another. If the collar fits but the shirt pulls across the chest or the buttons gape, the collar size is right and the fit style is wrong. Go to a roomier fit in the same 16 rather than jumping to a 16½, which would leave the collar loose.

The reverse also happens. Men with a muscular neck and a slim waist often find that the collar size their neck needs comes with a body that's too baggy. Athletic-fit and muscle-fit shirts exist exactly for that case. See what athletic fit means and what muscle fit means.

Signs your 16 collar is wrong

Too tight: - You can't fit two fingers inside the buttoned collar. - The collar pulls the front of the shirt into horizontal creases just below the button. - Your neck bulges slightly over the top edge. - You find yourself undoing the top button by lunchtime.

Too loose: - The collar stands away from your neck, with a visible gap at the sides. - With a tie on, the collar points twist outwards or the knot pulls the collar down. - The collar slides around when you turn your head.

A collar that's a half-size too tight is uncomfortable all day. One that's a half-size too big just looks a little sloppy, and a tie hides some of that. So if you're truly between sizes, most people are happier going up.

Things that change your neck size

Your neck size isn't fixed. A few things that shift it:

• Weight. Gaining or losing even a few kilograms often shows up at the neck first.
• Strength training. Building the trapezius and neck muscles can push you up a half size.
• Time of day. It's a small effect, but necks can be slightly fuller in the evening, just like fingers and feet.
• Shrinkage. Cotton shirts can shrink a little in the first few washes, especially if tumble-dried hot. Many brands build in an allowance for this, but if a new shirt is already snug, it won't get better.

If it's been a year or more since you measured, measure again before ordering a batch of shirts.

Picking a collar style for a 16 neck

Once the size is right, the collar style changes how the shirt looks and how it works with a tie.

• Point collar. Narrow gap between the collar points. Works with slim ties and suits most face shapes. It's also the most forgiving if the collar is a touch loose, because the points sit close together.
• Spread collar. Wider gap, made for larger tie knots like a half-Windsor. It shows more of the neck, so a collar that's too big is more obvious.
• Cutaway collar. Very wide spread. Looks sharp with a big knot or worn open. It needs an accurate collar size, since any looseness shows straight away.
• Button-down collar. Points buttoned to the shirt front. More casual, and good if you often go without a tie, because the collar keeps its shape when open.

If you wear a tie every day, go for a collar that fits with two fingers of room exactly, and a point or spread style. If you mostly wear shirts open, a button-down in your usual size is the most comfortable choice, and you can get away with a collar that's half a size snug, since you won't be buttoning the top.

Is a 16 neck big?

It's right in the middle of the range for adult men. Collar sizes for adult men commonly run from about 14 up to 18 or more, and 15½ to 16½ covers a large share of buyers, which is why those are the sizes shops stock most deeply. A 16 is about as "average" as a collar gets.

Women's shirts and neck sizes

Women's shirts are rarely sized by collar. They're usually sized by bust measurement and a dress size or letter size instead. If you're buying a men's-style shirt for a woman, measure the neck the same way, but also check the bust and shoulder measurements on the brand's chart, because a men's 16 is cut for broader shoulders and a straighter body. The women's shirt size chart is the better starting point there.

If you sell dress shirts online

Collar and sleeve sizing is one of the most common sources of shirt returns, because shoppers know their letter size but not their numbers. A few things on the product page make a real difference:

• Show both inches and centimetres for every collar size.
• Map each collar size to a letter size for that specific brand.
• Show the fit style's chest and waist measurements, so a 16 slim isn't a surprise.
• Link to a neck-measuring guide right next to the size selector.

The men's dress shirt neck and sleeve chart is a good template, and the men's shirt size calculator can sit on the page to do the maths for shoppers.

Frequently asked questions

Sources and standards

1. Inch definition (international yard and pound, 1959)One inch is exactly 2.54 cm, the basis for the inch-to-centimetre collar conversions above.
2. Shirtmaking and tailoring practiceThe collar measurement method (button centre to buttonhole end), half-inch steps, and the two-finger fit check are standard across shirtmakers and tailors.
3. Tailor Size Guide men's shirt size chartOur reference chart for collar, chest, waist and sleeve measurements by size, used across the shirt pages on this site.