For a lot of people, shopping for a suit is a big deal. These are investments for your style and you want to make sure you buy the correct one as well as receive the proper tailoring. Here is how a suit should fit you!

It is important to start with the shoulders when shopping for your suit because a tailor can’t do much about changing them. The pad in the jacket should follow the lines of your shoulder, not stick out.

2. The Waist

Both dress shirts and suit jackets should be slim on the waist and should be brought in on the sides if needed be. Jackets should dart in bit in wearing them and skim to your sides, not cling.

3. Jacket Length

The best rule of thumb when picking out your suit jacket is the curved fingers test. Keep your hands to your side and curl your fingers so your hand is making a ‘U” shape. Your hand should perfectly cup the bottom of the jacket. You can go shorter if you like but the shorter the jacket, the more casual it is.

4. Pant Legs / “Break”

The break of your pants is how much the bottom of your pants will crinkle when hitting your shoe. No break means when standing up, your pant leg will still be straight. Medium break means your pants will bend and dent a little at the bottom but you can still see the sock when sitting down. The break of your pants is your preference as long as its not to much, the most popular would be the medium break.

5. Shirt Neck

You want the collar of your shirt to be up against your skin but still comfortable. A rule to follow is to see if you can stick two fingers in-between your neck and shirt collar. This way it will still be breathable yet slim.

6. Sleeve Length

The length of your shirts should hit just around your wrist bone, and your jacket just a little higher than that. You normally want to leave about 1/4 to 1/2 an inch of your shirt sticking out of your sleeve, but to much will look sloppy.

7. Pant Waist

You would want your pant waist to fit just like the rest of your clothes, not to tight but not to loose. With a suit, you’re going to be wearing a belt to keep it up anyways and the waist can be hidden by a suit jacket.

8. Tie Length

Most of your tie is covered by your suit jacket, but the end of your tie should hit just at your belt buckle, preferably the middle of it. This small detail can make a difference in how your suit looks.

9. Shirt Tail Length

Dress shirts are meant to be tucked in, there’s no doubt about it. They give you extra length so when you move about, it doesn’t become untucked.