Debunked: Does Zara have secret symbols to tell you how their clothes will fit?

People on TikTok are saying different shapes mean different fits


I love Zara as much as the next person. It’s literally my name. But let’s be honest, their clothes sizing is really weird. You could buy a skirt in a size 8 and need a belt for the waist, and at the same time struggle to fit into a pair of size 14 jeans.

Every time I’ve shopped in Zara, I’ve grabbed multiple sizes of every item I’ve taken to the changing rooms because the way their clothes fit is completely random. And whilst “what size will I be today?” is a fun little game, it can also get a tad demoralising and ridiculously impractical.

So, imagine my delight when I heard rumours that a secret code exists, explaining how an item of Zara clothing will actually fit- whether it will be ridiculously small and you should size up immediately, or whether it will be true-to-size.

TikTok user Officially Outfits revealed the code, explaining that clothes with a box around the tag whole meant they’d fit true to size, but clothes with a triangle around the tag hole need sizing up as they fit smaller.

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Where has this been all of life?

But was this too good to be true? I needed to find out for myself so I headed to my local Zara, otherwise known as my wardrobe (seriously, I own way too much Zara).

I checked my clothes for these mystical symbols and it turns out they’ve been on the labels all along! I found a square on a size small jacket which does fit normally/ a tad oversized, and a triangle on a top I’d sized up on because it fit smaller.

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Turns out they’d been on my clothes the whole time

But upon further research, it turns out the symbols don’t specifically show how an item of clothing will fit. A stylist told OK! Magazine that the symbols “actually just relate to the different sections in Zara. So it’s the different brands, whether it’s Zara woman, Zara basic or Zara TRF.

“TRF comes up slightly smaller, Zara woman does come up a little on the generous/ true to size, and Zara basic is just basic and is true to size.”

So, there you have it!

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