T-Shirt Fit and Fabric

GSM sets the price band, yarn count sets the hand, the neckline sets durability, the size chart sets sell-through.

The specification side of a t-shirt programme: what to write down, in what order, and which of those decisions actually move the unit cost and the reorder rate.

Three routes cover all 56 t-shirt articles in this cluster
Four specifications move the unit cost more than any other decision
Every route ends in a line you can paste into a tech pack

Ask about fabric and fit

Cotton jersey t-shirt range manufactured by Finetex in Shenzhen

Three routes, and you only need one of them

Start from the fabric, from the fit, or from the order economics.

Set the fabric weight before the style

Weight is the fastest way to reposition a t-shirt and the most expensive thing to change late, because it moves fabric cost, shrinkage behaviour and drape at once. Under 160 GSM reads promotional; 180 to 200 GSM is where most commercial programmes sit; above 220 GSM you are selling a specific look to a specific customer. Pick the band from the price you can defend at retail, then choose the fibre inside it.

Yarn count decides the hand-feel

A 40s yarn gives a smoother, finer surface and needs more weight to reach the same opacity; a 20s yarn is rougher, heavier-feeling and cheaper. Combed cotton removes short fibres, so it pills less and holds its surface through washing. Put the count and the combing into the tech pack beside the GSM, because a weight specification without a count can be met by two fabrics that feel nothing alike.

Fibre choice changes the story and the cost

Organic cotton carries a certification premium and a documentation burden that has to survive all the way to the label. Modal and bamboo change the drape and the shrinkage, and a bamboo claim is challenged in several markets unless the fibre is lyocell rather than viscose. Choose the fibre that supports the claim you intend to make, and budget for the certificate rather than discovering it after the first order sh…

Necklines, hems and fit blocks

A crew neck with a 2 cm rib and a scoop neck with a 1.2 cm rib are different garments even when the body is identical.

Necklines and hems are durability specs

A neckline fails when the rib is too narrow, untaped, or attached under the wrong tension. Specify the rib width and the taping, then measure the neck opening after a wash test rather than at the end of the line. The hem is a different matter: a curved hem adds a cutting and finishing step, reads as premium in some markets and as a fad in others. Add it deliberately, and price it.

Fit blocks, sizing and the size chart

Measure the chest, body length, shoulder and sleeve on a flat sample, and publish those numbers rather than a generic S to XL guide. Oversized and drop-shoulder blocks read as one size larger, which is why customers order down and then complain. Write the measured points into the tech pack with tolerances, and keep the block consistent across the range so the size chart stays true as you add colours.

Minimums, cost and the landed number

Ask for the minimum per colour, per size break and per print placement, then build the landed cost with freight, duty, print waste and packaging included. Landed cost planning is where a programme that looked viable at the factory gate turns out to have no margin left, and it is far cheaper to discover that at quote stage than at the port.

Sampling, quality and the second order

Approve fabric and hand at development, measurements at the size set, print at pre-production.

ODM, OEM and private label programmes

If you need speed, choose from an ODM library and negotiate exclusivity in writing before the sample is approved. If you need a product nobody else can order, supply the tech pack and accept the development round. Private label sits between them: the design exists, the branding does not, and the branding assets you have to supply are more numerous than most first-time buyers expect.

Quality checks and the second order

Check the four points that generate most complaints: measured points against the sealed reference, neck rib recovery after washing, colour against the approved swatch, and print placement on every size. Keep the screens, the artwork file and the approved reference with the order file, so the repeat run starts from a specification rather than from memory.

Four specifications decide a t-shirt

Everything else on this page follows from these four.

Weight before style

Moving from 160 to 220 GSM changes the fabric cost, the hand-feel and the retail band at the same time.

Yarn count beside the GSM

A weight specification without a count can be met by two fabrics that feel nothing alike.

Rib width and taping

Necklines fail when the rib is too narrow, untaped, or attached under the wrong tension.

Measured points published

A size chart copied from a competitor is a returns problem. Publish the numbers from your own sample.

Where to go from here

The guides around t-shirt specification.

Custom T-Shirt ManufacturingThe full decision path for a t-shirt order.

Printing and DecorationMethod choice by order size and artwork.

Apparel Fabric SelectionFibre, weight, structure and claims.

Clothing Factory SourcingTech packs, MOQ and landed cost.

T-shirt specification questions

What GSM is a good t-shirt?

For retail basics, 180 to 200 GSM. Below 160 feels promotional, and above 220 becomes a deliberate streetwear product rather than a general-purpose shirt.

Does a higher yarn count mean a better shirt?

It means a smoother, finer surface, and it also means more weight is needed for opacity. A 40s yarn is not automatically better than a 30s one.

Why do my t-shirt necks ripple?

Usually a rib that is too narrow, a neck that was not taped, or attachment at the wrong tension. All three are specification failures, and all three show up in a wash test before the order ships.

How do I compare two fabric quotes that both say 100% cotton?

Ask for the yarn count, the combing, the GSM and the shrinkage result from a wash test. Two 100% cotton fabrics at different counts are different products.

What should the tech pack include?

Measured points with tolerances, fabric composition, GSM and yarn count, neckline and trim specification, print placement, colour references, size range, and labelling and packaging artwork.

Ask about fabric and fit

Send the weight band, the fit block, the size range and the decoration you have in mind, and we will come back with a fabric proposal, a size set and a sampling timeline.

Send your specification