Nail Size Chart: Find Your Press-On Size
Measure your ten nails in millimeters, type them in, and get the press-on size for every finger plus the list of sizes to buy. The full size chart is on the page too.
Press-on nails lift early for one reason more than any other: the tip is too small. A tip that is a millimeter narrow leaves the side walls exposed, water gets under the edge, and the whole nail pops off in a day. A tip that is slightly wide can be filed to fit.
So measure once. Type your ten numbers in below and you get a size for every finger, plus the list of sizes to buy.
How to measure your nails
You need a ruler with millimeters, or a strip of paper and a pen. Do it on bare nails with no polish on the sides.
1. Look at your nail from directly above, not at an angle.
2. Find the widest part. On most people that is the smile line where the nail meets the skin, not the free edge.
3. Measure straight across from one side wall to the other. Do not include the skin.
4. Round to the nearest half millimeter and write it down.
If you do not have a ruler, lay a strip of paper across the nail, mark both side walls with a pen, then hold the marks against any ruler you can find later. A printed sizing strip from a brand works the same way.
Measure both hands. Most people have a wider thumb or index on their dominant hand, and that one nail is usually the one that pops off first.
Press-on nail size chart
These are the widths most brands use for each size. They are the numbers this tool matches your measurements against.
| Size | Nail width | Usually fits |
|---|---|---|
| 0 | 15.9 mm | Wide thumbs |
| 1 | 14.3 mm | Thumbs |
| 2 | 13.5 mm | Thumbs, wide index |
| 3 | 12.7 mm | Index, middle |
| 4 | 11.9 mm | Index, middle |
| 5 | 11.1 mm | Middle, ring |
| 6 | 10.3 mm | Ring |
| 7 | 9.5 mm | Ring, pinky |
| 8 | 8.7 mm | Pinky |
| 9 | 7.9 mm | Pinky |
| 10 | 7.0 mm | Small pinky |
| 11 | 6.2 mm | Very small pinky |
Sizes run backwards, which catches people out. Size 0 is the biggest and size 11 is the smallest. Brands can differ by up to a millimeter, so check their chart against your numbers before you order.
What to do if you are between two sizes
Go bigger. Always. A wide tip can be filed down the sides in about thirty seconds, and the shape still looks natural. A narrow tip cannot be stretched, and it will lift.
If the tip is wide at the cuticle but fine at the tip, file the back corners at an angle instead of the whole side. That keeps the curve and lets the tip sit flush against your skin.
How to make them last longer
Size is most of the job. These four steps are the rest.
Push back your cuticles and buff the shine off. Glue needs a slightly rough, dry surface to grab.
Wipe each nail with rubbing alcohol. Skip this and you are gluing onto natural oil.
Use glue, not the sticky tabs, for anything past a day. Tabs are for a night out. Glue is for two weeks.
Press each tip for thirty seconds. Roll it on from the cuticle edge forward so no air bubbles get trapped.
When it is time to take them off, soak in warm soapy water for fifteen minutes and lift gently. Never pry them off dry, since that takes layers of your natural nail with it. The full routine is in our press-on nails guide.
Frequently Asked Questions
Keep going: read the full press-on nails guide for application and removal, then pick a shape with the nail shape quiz.
