Pear vs rectangle

One number, one cut-off

Hips minus bust at 3.6 inches separates Rectangle’s condition from Triangle’s first clause. But the rules are checked in order: Spoon (hips more than 2 over bust, waist 7 or more under hips, flaring high hip) and Bottom hourglass are tested first, and when their other conditions hold without a high hip the calculator asks for one rather than returning either. Triangle also has a second clause — waist larger than bust, no larger than hips — that does not depend on the 3.6-inch difference at all.

The boundary, in numbers

Why this boundary is so crowded

In our ANSUR II analysis, the single-measurement change that most often altered a Rectangle result led to the undetermined high-hip zone (406 cases) or to Triangle (371), and Triangle results most often flipped to Rectangle (195). The bust was the deciding measurement in 769 of 1,297 cases. These are figures from that sample, with chest standing in for bust; they say that in this analysis, many results were one bust measurement from a different outcome.

What to do with a result within 2 cm

Re-measure the named measurement — usually the bust here. Over a thin, unpadded bra or none; tape level across the back; arms down; normal breath. Take it twice. If the two readings give different results, the classification is sensitive to how you measured, and the measurable fact — hips a little larger than the bust — is more informative than either label.

Does it change what suits you?

Near the threshold, hardly. The pear outfits page lists options for hips that measure larger than the bust; at a 3.5-inch difference that is still true in fact. The rectangle page lists options for marking a waist or leaving the line straight, and both are open at 3.6 inches. Read both and take what you like; the label adds nothing the tape did not.

• Pear body shape · Rectangle body shape
• Measuring the bust: how to measure

References

The rules and figures on this page come from the sources below. Reference values are conventions from the literature, not targets.

1. Simmons, Istook & Devarajan (2004). Female Figure Identification Technique (FFIT) for Apparel, Part I: Describing Female ShapesJournal of Textile and Apparel, Technology and Management 4(1):1–16 · JTATM 4(1)Defines the nine FFIT shapes (hourglass, top and bottom hourglass, spoon, triangle, inverted triangle, rectangle, diamond, oval) from bust, waist, high-hip and hip circumferences on 3D body scans of North American women. The rules on this site are this set, as later revised.
2. Sokolowski (2020). Modification of the Female Figure Identification Technique (FFIT) Formulas to Include Plus Size Bodies3DBODY.TECH 2020 Conference Proceedings · proc.3dbody.tech/2020Shows the 2007 FFIT formulas assumed the waist is smaller than the bust and so failed on many larger bodies; adds the Diamond and Oval rules and a ≥ 0 lower bound to Triangle, Inverted Triangle and Rectangle. This site uses the revised formulas.
3. Gordon et al. (2014). ANSUR II: 2012 Anthropometric Survey of U.S. Army Personnel — public working databasesU.S. Army Natick Soldier RDEC / Penn State OPEN Design Lab · ANSUR II Female PublicUsed only to test how sensitive the FFIT labels are to small measurement changes (median 2.4 cm to flip; 43.6% of women within 2 cm). Army personnel are not a general-population sample, so it is not used for percentiles.