LOOKSMETER · GUIDE
The best swimsuit for your body type
Swimwear is the one category where there is nowhere for a bad cut to hide: no layering, no tailoring, no belt. The good news is that the logic is simple. Every shape has one line it wants to widen and one it wants to quieten. A swimsuit is just a set of panels, straps and seams that do exactly that. This guide walks the five shapes, the cuts that balance each one and the construction details that separate a suit that photographs well from one that only looks good on the hanger. Find your shape free →
First, find your shape in thirty seconds
Stand front-on in fitted clothes and compare three widths: shoulders, waist and hips. You are looking for which lines match and which stand out, not for a number. Shoulders and hips level with a clearly narrower waist is Hourglass. Hips wider than shoulders is Pear. Shoulders wider than hips is Inverted Triangle. All three close together is Rectangle. Width carried through the middle with slimmer arms and legs is Apple.
Most people sit between two shapes. That is normal and it is why the guide reads the actual proportions from a photo rather than asking you to pick a label from a quiz.
The cuts that balance each shape
The rule underneath every recommendation below: add structure, print or brightness to the line you want to widen and keep the line you want to quieten plain, dark and clean.
Hourglass
You are balancing nothing, you are following a line. Wrap fronts, halternecks, underwired balconette tops and mid-rise bottoms trace the waist without adding bulk. Skip boxy tankinis and heavy ruffles that bury the curve.
Pear
Draw the eye up. Off-shoulder or wide-neck tops, ruffles, prints or a brighter colour above the waist, then a plain mid-rise bottom with moderate coverage in a darker shade. A one-piece with a plunge or a cut-out at the ribs works the same way.
Apple
Create a waist and support the bust. One-pieces with side ruching or a twist front, V or plunge necklines with underwire, tankinis with a drape and high-waist bottoms. Thin strings and structureless bandeaus are the two cuts to leave on the rail.
Rectangle
Add curve at both ends. Ruffled or padded tops, cut-outs at the waist, belted one-pieces, tie-side or ruched bottoms. A plain straight tank one-piece in one dark colour does the opposite of what you want.
Inverted Triangle
Quieten the shoulder, widen the hip. Plain dark tops with narrow set straps, V or scoop necklines, then boy shorts, skirted bottoms, side ruffles or a bright printed bottom. Avoid halternecks and heavy shoulder detail.
Construction details that do the real work
Two suits with the same name can fit completely differently. These are the details to check on the garment itself.
Underwire and power mesh
An underwire channel with a firm band under the bust lifts and separates. A power mesh lining through the torso smooths without squeezing. Hold the suit up to the light: if you can see straight through the front panel it has neither.
Strap width and adjusters
Wider straps carry more weight. Adjusters at the back rather than the front let you shorten them without a visible buckle in photos.
Leg line height
A higher cut leg lengthens the leg and shortens the torso visually. A lower cut does the reverse. Pick based on which you want, not on the current trend.
Seam placement
Princess seams running down the front of a one-piece create a vertical line that narrows. Horizontal seams at the waist widen it. Diagonal ruching from the side blurs it.
Three habits that beat any single cut
Buy the top and bottom as separates even when they are sold as a set, because almost nobody is the same size above and below the waist. Try the suit in daylight and sit down in it, since a suit that only works standing in a dim changing room will not survive a beach. Finally, match the brightness to the job: a dark matte panel recedes and a light, shiny or printed one advances, so put the attention exactly where your shape wants it.
What the Swim & Resort Fit Guide adds
The free step reads your shape from one clothed full-length photo and names your number one swim cut and number one support style. The paid guide writes the full fitting-room brief: three cuts with the construction to look for, three support styles with the necklines they work under, strap and back styling, cover-ups, the three cuts to skip, your sun palette, three complete vacation looks, accessories, a holiday photo brief, a packing list and your Vacation look rendered on your own photo. Nothing is read as a size from the photo at any point.
Frequently asked
How do I know which body shape I am?
Compare three lines: shoulder width, waist width and hip width. Shoulders and hips close with a clearly narrower waist is hourglass. Hips wider than shoulders is pear. Shoulders wider than hips is inverted triangle. All three close together with little waist definition is rectangle. Width carried through the middle with slimmer legs is apple. The Swim & Resort Fit Guide reads the three lines from one clothed full-length photo and returns the shape free.
What is the best swimsuit for a pear shape?
Anything that adds visual weight above the waist and keeps the bottom clean: a structured or ruffled top, a wider neckline, a brighter colour on top and a plain mid-rise bottom with moderate coverage. The guide names the three cuts for your exact proportions with the construction to look for.
What is the best swimsuit for an apple shape?
Cuts that create a waist line and support the bust: a one-piece with side ruching or a wrap front, a V or plunge neckline with underwire, a tankini with a draped front and a high-waist bottom. Avoid bandeaus with no structure and thin string bottoms that cut across the hip.
Does colour matter as much as cut?
Cut sets the silhouette, colour sets where the eye lands. Light, bright or printed panels pull attention, dark matte panels recede. Place the brighter panel where you want to add visual width and the darker one where you want to narrow. Your sun palette decides which shades do that without washing you out.
Is the Swim & Resort Fit Guide free?
The shape is. One clothed full-length photo returns your body shape, your number one swim cut and your number one support style, free and without an account. The paid guide adds all three cuts with construction, three support styles, cover-ups, the cuts to skip, your sun palette, three vacation looks, a sizing and fit chapter and a Vacation look rendered on your photo.
Does the guide read my size from the photo?
No. Nothing is ever read as a size from the photo. The photo gives the shape and proportions only. The approximate band and cup come from a two-minute at-home tape method in the paid guide's Sizing & fit chapter, which you do yourself.
Email me the cheat-sheet
Get the cheat-sheet + a first-time member perk
Get our facial harmony & styling reference sheet emailed to you.
Keep going
Swim & Resort Fit Guide
Your shape, number one cut and support style free from one photo
Body shape analyzer
The five shapes and what each one wants from clothing
Colour analysis
Your season and the swatches that hold up in bright sun
Bra styles explained
Balconette, plunge, strapless and which neckline each works under
Measure your bra size at home
Two-minute tape method, cup table and sister sizes
What to pack for a beach holiday
A capsule list by category
Keep reading
How to measure your bra size at home
The quick at-home check for an approximate band and cup, the inch-difference cup table, sister sizes and the five changing-room fit checks.
Bra styles explained
Balconette, plunge, full cup, strapless and bralette: what each is built to do, the neckline it works under and which suits a wide set, shallow or full shape.
What to pack for a beach holiday
A resort capsule by category for a week: swim, cover-ups, day, evening, shoes and accessories in one palette, with the three looks it should produce.
This page is general information about facial aesthetics terminology, not medical or cosmetic advice. Scores from our tools are calibrated reads of one photo that describe presentation, never your worth.