Schools or sports teams often have team shirts for purchase, but sizing can be a big question for many parents. It can be especially hard to know about sizing if your child is around age 5 and therefore in size 5t or 5. If you're wondering about the difference, 5T is toddler size 5, which is fractionally smaller than a regular 5.
Often these team shirts use youth sizing, which you likely haven't encountered before. Youth sizing goes from XS, S, M, L and occasionally XL. You might be wondering if size 5T or 5 is the same as youth small. Actually it's not. A better fit for your 5 year old child would be youth extra small (XS). I'll talk about that below so you get a better idea of why that is. First we will explain why XS often isn't available.
What if youth XS isn't available?
Don't stress out if size Youth XS is not available at your school or team store. Many of the t-shirt companies don't routinely offer the XS size, and even if they do, it may cost the school or team extra to offer that size. In that situation, simply get size Youth S instead. Yes, it will look too big on your child, but it's better than not having a team or school shirt if they're expected to have it.
Of course, if it's simply an optional fundraiser shirt that they are not expected to wear on field trips or so on, then you can consider whether you want to skip it this time around if size XS isn't available. But find out first if there are days or occasions where everyone is expected to wear the shirt. You don't want your child to be the only one without the team shirt if everyone else is wearing one.
Also, bear in mind all the children will be in the same situation. If your child is on a sports team of 5 year olds, or in a kindergarten class, every child there who is wearing a Youth Small team shirt (if XS isn't available) will have it looking too big on them. Your child won't be the only one!
If your child still needs new clothes for school, you might like to check out my article on the 6 best budget-friendly children's clothing stores.
What does it look like if a 5 year old wears a youth size small shirt?
For most 5 year old children, a youth size small shirt will look almost like a very short dress. It will come near the end of their shorts. I have seen entire kindergarten classes look like this on field trips.
Bear in mind that no child is exactly the same size, so if your child tends to be taller and larger for his or her age, or is in a size larger than 5T, a youth small will not look quite so large.
But in general, a 5 year old will fit a size Youth XS shirt best.
Why you might have thought 5T was the same as youth small
The reason you might have thought a size 5 or 5T was the same as youth small is that often the Youth Small is the smallest size offered in many sports teams and schools. What you didn't know was that not all t-shirt companies make youth XS, and even if they do, it can cost extra for the school or sports team to have the extra size available.
Kids grow quickly, so the good news is that if your 5 year old has to wear a youth small, your child can re-use the shirt next year if applicable.
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