Netball Uniform Sizing Guide: Dresses, Skorts, Bodysuits & Bibs

Netball uniforms come in more garment types than almost any other team sport — dresses, skorts, bodysuits, and the bibs that mark player positions — and each one fits differently. Getting sizing wrong across a whole squad means mid-season reorders, players adjusting bibs between quarters, or a dress that rides up mid-shot. This guide walks through how to size each garment type correctly before you place a club or team order.

Netball Dresses

Dresses are the most size-sensitive garment in a netball kit because they combine bust, waist and length measurements in one piece. Measure around the fullest part of the bust and the natural waistline, then check the size chart’s garment length against player height — a dress that’s correctly sized around the body but too short in length is one of the most common reordering issues clubs run into. For younger age groups, err very slightly larger rather than smaller, since a fit-for-purpose stretch fabric will take up minor excess but can’t compensate for a garment that’s genuinely too small.

Skorts

Skorts — the skirt-short hybrid worn by most club and school teams as an alternative to dresses — are sized primarily on waist and hip measurement, with an inner short liner that needs enough room for full-speed movement without riding up. Because skorts are frequently worn by a wider age and body-type range within the same team, it’s worth taking individual waist measurements rather than assuming a single size runs consistently across every player.

Bodysuits

Bodysuits are the least forgiving garment to size, since they combine bust, waist, hip, and torso length into a single fitted piece with no separate components to adjust. Torso length is the measurement clubs most often get wrong — a bodysuit that fits the bust and waist correctly but is too short in the body will pull uncomfortably during shooting and defending. Always measure torso length from shoulder to base, seated, for the most accurate result.

Bibs

Position bibs (GS, GA, WA, C, WD, GD, GK) are sized more loosely than the rest of the uniform, since they sit over the top of a dress, skort or bodysuit and need to move freely during play. Bibs are typically ordered in fewer sizes than the rest of the kit — most clubs get by with two or three bib sizes covering the full squad, adjusted with side ties or elastic rather than exact-to-player fitting.

Sizing a Whole Team, Not Just One Player

Team sizing works differently to individual sizing. Rather than guessing sizes from memory or old registration forms, collect fresh measurements each season — players grow, join and leave, and last year’s sizing sheet is rarely accurate. If your club is placing a combined order that includes netball uniforms alongside other kit, our guide to ordering custom teamwear for your club covers the committee process for collecting sizes, setting a budget and managing timelines across a whole roster, which applies just as much to netball dresses and bibs as it does to jerseys.

It’s also worth comparing how sizing conventions differ between codes if your club runs multiple sports — netball dress sizing follows a different logic to, say, an AFL jersey sizing guide, where garments are unisex and sized more like a standard jersey chest measurement than a fitted dress.

Uniform Compliance for Competition

Before finalising colours and cut, check your association’s uniform policy. Most leagues, including those under Netball Australia’s uniform guidelines, set requirements around bib visibility, dress and skort length, and colour distinction between teams, and World Netball’s Rules of Netball govern uniform standards for representative and international competition. Confirming compliance before production avoids a costly reorder if a design doesn’t meet your competition’s requirements.

Common Sizing Mistakes to Avoid

A few mistakes account for most netball uniform reorders. The biggest is sizing from a single “team average” rather than individual player measurements, particularly for dresses and bodysuits where there’s no room to adjust after the fact. The second is measuring over bulky training layers instead of close-fitting clothing, which inflates every measurement and pushes players into a size too large. The third is leaving bib sizing as an afterthought — if your squad has grown since last season, check that your existing bib set still covers your largest and smallest players before assuming you can reuse them. Taking twenty minutes at the start of the season to remeasure the whole squad is far cheaper than a mid-season reorder once games have started.

Frequently Asked Questions

What’s the difference between a netball dress and a bodysuit?

A dress is a looser-fitting one-piece with a skirt section, while a bodysuit is a fully fitted one-piece without a separate skirt. Bodysuits are more common at representative level; dresses are more common for club and school teams.

How many bib sizes does a team need?

Most teams only need two to three bib sizes to cover a full squad, since bibs are adjustable and worn loosely over the rest of the uniform.

Should I size netball uniforms larger for growing juniors?

Yes — for junior teams, sizing slightly larger is generally safer than sizing exactly to current measurements, particularly for dresses and bodysuits where there’s no separate garment to let out.

Do skorts run the same size as dresses?

Not always. Skorts are sized on waist and hip only, while dresses factor in bust and length as well, so the same player can sometimes need a different size in each garment type.

Size your netball team correctly the first time — talk to the SRL Sports team about custom netball uniforms for your club: https://www.srlsports.com/custom-netball-uniform/