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Necklace Length Guide: How To Measure & Choose The Right Necklace Chain Length

By Ginny • March 8, 2017 • Size Guides, Ultimate Guides

When buying a necklace online, a decision you might find yourself agonize over is choosing the right necklace length, be it for a woman or a man. This guide will help you select the right necklace length that will best showcase your necklace, accentuate your facial and body features and suit your wardrobe.

This comprehensive necklace length guide will tell you:

    • How to find your necklace length
    • How to choose the right necklace length for another woman or man

Necklace Length Guide: How To Measure & Choose The Right Necklace Length
DIFFERENT STYLES OF NECKLACE LENGTH

First, you need to understand the exact look you are going for with your necklace using the chart of standard necklace lengths.

Standard necklace lengths for women
Necklace Length Guide: How To Measure & Choose The Right Necklace Length

There are roughly 6 standard looks are that are based on variants of necklace lengths, the most common are choker and princess lengths. The other types are less common, but are good to know when considering necklace lengths.

The different women’s necklace looks are explained in this standard necklace lengths chart for an average woman:

Length Style Position on body Worn best with
13 – 15” Collar Tightly around the neck Any clothes with open neck such as V-neck, scoop or boat necks and off-the-shoulder.
15 – 17” Choker Sit at the base of the neck Almost everything
17 – 19” Princess On the collarbone (the most common necklace length for the average women) Almost everything
20 – 24” Matinee Between the collarbone and the bust Great for both business and casual wear
28 – 37” Opera From top of the bust to a couple of inches below High necklines and evening wear
37 – 60” Rope From the center of the bust to the stomach Elegant business and evening wear
Standard Necklace Lengths for Men

Our Engraved Necklace For Him

The different men’s necklace looks are explained in this standard necklace lengths chart for an average male:

Necklace Length Position on body Worn best with
17-19″ Sits at the base of the neck A crew neck t-shirt. Popular for beaded necklace which sits right above the tee collar.
19-21″ On the collarbone (the most common necklace length for the average men) Almost everything if worn over. Low v-neck or unbuttoned dress shirt if you want it to sit on the skin.
21-23″ A few inches below the collarbone Almost everything worn over or under.
23-25″ On the chest This style is best for either religious or meaningful pendant to be worn under the shirt close to the heart, or to make a fashion statement worn over the shirt such as a dog tag necklace.

 

HOW TO MEASURE NECKLACE LENGTH FOR YOURSELF

Necklace Length Guide: How To Measure & Choose The Right Necklace LengthOur Name Necklace worn at princess length.

1.Choose a similar necklace/cord to the one you are buying
When choosing the length for yourself, you can measure a similar necklace chain that falls the way you want. Take note that the chain thickness needs to be similar to the one you are purchasing. If you don’t have a necklace with similar look or fall, you could use a string or cord of the same thickness.

2.Wrap the chain around your neck
Ask someone to help you wrap the string around your neck, with one end pressed against the nape of your neck. Adjust the other end so that the string falls the way you want your necklace to, and mark where it meets the first end on the back of your neck.

3.Measure the chain by laying it flat
Lay the string/chain flat on a surface and measure the length up to the mark. This measurement should be your necklace chain length.

>> Find Your Bracelet Size And Wrist Size

SELECT THE RIGHT NECKLACE LENGTH FOR ANOTHER MAN OR WOMAN

The best way is of course being able to measure one of their existing necklaces which falls how they like it. As this is not always possible, your best shot is usually an educated guess at both the style they want and their neck size.

If so, consider a couple of things:

Most common average necklace length

If you are unsure, I recommend you to stick with the “princess length” for women and the “on the collarbone” for men as these are the most common. Furthermore, if your guess falls a little short or long, you will not end up with something completely unwearable.

Necklace chain length guide handwriting necklaceOur Handwriting Necklace worn at choker and princess length.

Typically, in my experience, the princess necklace length is 16” for petite ladies, 18” for the average women, 20” for those curvier and 22 – 24” if she is tall with wider body frame.

For men, 18-20” is good for skinnier man with smaller frame, 20-22” for the average men, 22-24” for the larger built, and 24” and above for the really tall, well-built men.

>> Find Someone Else’ Bracelet Size Without Wrist Size

Consider an extender

Necklace Extender Necklace Length GuideOur Necklace Extender

Since all of the above are still educated guesses at best, when selecting a gift, you should go for some room for adjustment with an extender.

For example, all of Centime’s necklaces can be extended with a 3” extender, with multiple loops that allow wearer to choose the most suitable length.

Note that when you add the extender length to the estimated necklace length, make sure it can be adjusted longer and shorter.

For instance, if her estimated necklace length is 18 inches, choose a 17” with 2” extender or a 16” bracelet with 3” extender. Don’t order 18” plus extender.

Consider your facial shape and body build

Necklace Length Guide CentimeGift Drop Bar Coordinates NecklaceWearing drop bar necklace with a long chain to elongate a short face like how this coordinates necklace is worn

You should select necklace length that compliments your facial shape (see table belows). Generally, rounder face should choose a necklace length that elongates, while longer face will want to balance out their shape with a shorter necklace. When in doubt, just remember that you can almost never go wrong with the classic princess length.

Facial shape Suits Avoids
Round Princess, matinee, opera, rope Collar, choker
Long Collar, choker, princess Matinee, opera, rope
Heart Collar, choker, princess Matinee, opera, rope
Oval Almost all Almost none

Those who are more petite might want to avoid longer-style necklaces as they might swallow a small frame.

Pair the right necklace length with your wardrobe

Our Sterling Silver Monogram Necklaces worn at princess length with a button down shirt.

>> What is a monogram

You should consider your wardrobe when buying a necklace. For example, if you have a lot of turtlenecks, you should not buy a choker as it will be rarely worn.

The table below shows you which necklace length to get to suit your wardrobe.

Outfit
Best suits
Best avoids
Turtlenecks
Opera
  Collar, choke, princess
Scoop Necks
Princess, matinee
   Opera, rope
Round Necks
Opera, rope
or a collar statement necklace
Princess or matinee as they might fall too close to the neckline
V Necks
Princess, matinee
   Collar, choker
Boat necks
Collar, opera
   Almost none
Button up Shirts
Princess and Matinee
Opera, rope as they clash with vertical buttons column
Strapless
Almost any style
 Almost none
SHOP OUR RANGE OF NECKLACE HERE:

Necklace Length Guide

From Left to Right, Top to Bottom: Initial Necklace for Moms – Tags –
Children’s Name Necklace For Mother – Circle of love – Disc Handwriting Necklace with Initial & Birthstone Charm – Personal Handwriting Necklace

Still have any question? Feel free to leave a comment below or send me an email at [email protected].

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Bracelet Size Guide Pt.1: Find Your Bracelet Size And Wrist Size
Bracelet Size Guide Pt.2: Find Someone Else' Bracelet Size Without Wrist Size

About the Author

Ginny

Hello, it's Ginny. I am a mother of two beautiful kids and I love to do craftwork in my spare time. I started Centime out of a dream to create handmade gifts with a timeless appeal and personal touch. With this blog, I wish to impart my knowledge from years as a jeweler so that you can pick out gifts of everlasting love.

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11 Comments

  • Reply Coleen May 24, 2017 at 2:28 pm

    Choker necklace is my favorite, I appreciate this article a lot! Thanks!

  • Reply Becca Holton September 16, 2017 at 2:46 pm

    That necklace chart for the average women you included was helpful. My friend has been asking about what a good length necklace would be, so he can surprise his wife with a gift. Since neither of us knows anything about jewelry, I figure that we could use this on the hunt for the perfect necklace.

    • Reply Ginny September 17, 2017 at 5:35 am

      Glad it’s helpful!

  • Reply Katherine Branson November 6, 2017 at 12:13 am

    I really appreciate guides like this with visuals and illustrations because it’s easier to follow and not difficult to understand for topics like necklaces because let’s be honest there are tons of designs out there! This is really helpful article to me!

    • Reply Ginny November 7, 2017 at 8:31 am

      I’m really glad it helps!

  • Reply Marcus November 30, 2017 at 9:20 pm

    I had no idea that it was recommended to consider the shape of your face when buying a necklace. It is important ot remember that taking the time to do some research can help you get the best jewelry you can. Personally, I would also want to consult with a professional jeweler in order to find the best quality materials to give my wife the best necklace I can find.

  • Reply How to Layer Necklaces | Centime Blog July 3, 2018 at 7:28 am

    […] Not sure what those necklace lengths mean? Check out our extremely popular necklace length guide […]

  • Reply Ellen H. August 14, 2018 at 2:30 am

    It was nice that you suggested sticking with the princess length if you’re buying a necklace, and you’re unsure how long the necklace you should buy. My friend from a different country is going to visit me soon, and I’m planning to give her a crystal drop necklace. I want the necklace to look good on her, and since we have never met, I will make sure to consider all your tips.

    • Reply Ginny August 26, 2018 at 11:48 am

      I’m really glad it helped! Let me know how she likes it 🙂

      Ginny

  • Reply Silver Chain October 17, 2018 at 1:21 pm

    Rope necklace is perfect size of necklace to wear it on t-shirt or shirt. I think this is one of the best blogs on deciding the length of the chains. Thanks for sharing the details!

  • Reply Benjamin Klawson February 3, 2022 at 7:07 pm

    Dear Ginny,

    I appreciate the useful information on necklace classification. I will use this in the future.

    What is your source? Is this peer-reviewed?

    Regards,
    Benjamin Klawson

Leave a Reply Cancel Reply

Hi, I’m Ginny. I run Centime.

Hi, I’m Ginny. I run Centime.
Hi, I'm Ginny. Welcome to Centime's blog. I started Centime because I was sick of generic, branded gifts with no soul. As I have always loved to make my own jewelry and gifts, I dreamed of creating handmade gifts with a timeless appeal and personal touch. Centime was born out of that dream, and I am grateful to be living my dream everyday. All the posts in this blog were written by me, using years of experience as a jeweler so that you can pick out the perfect gifts that are not just gifts but symbols of everlasting love. Love for keeps, we call them. My colleagues and I also occasionally post inspirations and customer stories that touch our heart. We will also keep you updated of any changes going on in our store. I hope you enjoy this blog, and keep loving <3
Ginny of Centime

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