Buying a size when you cannot measure in person

When you cannot stand in the room with a tape measure, the last package is the measurement. An adult child ordering from another city can ask for a photo of the waist range printed on the current pull-on or brief. That photo is the size. A clothing tag, a remembered dress size, or the word the parent uses in conversation is a weaker source, and sometimes a different system entirely.

If the photo shows inches, match those inches to the listing you are about to buy. If the photo shows only a letter, match the letter on the same brand, and still read the inch line on the new page so you see what that letter means there.

Same letter, different inches

Depend Fresh Protection Adult Diapers for Women, XL, 26 count, states a waist of 45-54 inches. The recorded price was $23.48. Amazon showed that recorded price when the article was written. Depend Night Defense for women, Large, 14 count, states a waist of 38-44 inches. The recorded price was $15.88. Amazon showed that recorded price when the article was written. Both are Depend pull-ons for women. Large on the night listing stops at 44 inches. XL on the other listing starts at 45. A parent whose empty pack says 45-54 is on the XL listing, not the large one, even if someone in the family still says “large” out of habit. Check the Amazon listing before buying; its price, count, and size may have changed since this article was written.

Prevail Daily Protective Underwear, unisex, maximum, Large, 64 count (four packs of 16), lists Large as 44 to 58 inches. The page says day or overnight, with breathable zones and aloe. The recorded price was $53.67. Amazon showed that recorded price when the article was written. That Large range overlaps both of the Depend ranges above and matches neither of them exactly. Forty-four inches is the top of Depend Night Defense Large and the bottom of Prevail Large. Fifty-four is inside Prevail Large and is the top of Depend Fresh Protection XL. Without a waist number, picking “large” on Prevail because the old pack said large is how the wrong case shows up.

Amazon Basics Postpartum Incontinence Underwear for Women, maximum, XL, 15 count, is a store-brand pull-on. The bullets also list occasional urinary incontinence. The recorded price was $17.66. Amazon showed that recorded price when the article was written. The title says XL and postpartum. The title and notes recorded for that page do not include the 45-54 inch line that Depend Fresh Protection XL states. Do not treat the shared letters XL as a shared measurement.

If there is no package to photograph

Then you do not have a size yet. Wait for a waist measurement from someone who can use a tape, or order nothing in a pull-on until that number exists. A guard or a pad can be a separate shopping question, because those listings are not waist-sized in the same way. Depend Guards for Men, maximum, 104 count, is a cup-shaped pad in a pocket-sized pouch. The recorded price was $33.99. Amazon showed that recorded price when the article was written. Prevail Daily Pads, 13 inches, maximum, 39 count, is a length, not a waist. The recorded price was $19.36. Amazon showed that recorded price when the article was written. Buying one of those while you are missing a waist measurement fits when the person already uses a pad or a guard. If they have been in pull-ons, switching format is a question to ask them before the cart is submitted.

When the box arrives, compare the printed range to the photo before the carton is thrown out. The return window can catch a missed digit. Take the photo anyway, before the order is placed.

Related reading: How to use a size chart for absorbent underwear and How to reorder for a parent.