Tennis Chain Sizing: How to Choose 18, 20 or 22 Inches

The length is the only decision you actually make when you buy a tennis chain, and it is the one that decides whether you wear the thing or leave it in a drawer. Get it right and the chain sits where you expected. Get it wrong and it either strangles the collar of every shirt you own or swings low enough to catch on things.

This guide covers the three lengths we stock, where each one sits, how to measure yourself in about a minute, and what to do when you land between two sizes.

The short answer

If you are buying one tennis chain and you want it to work with most of what you wear, buy 20 inches. It falls just below the collarbone, which is low enough to clear a crew neck and high enough to stay under a shirt when you want it to.

Go 18 inches if you want it sitting close at the base of the neck, and 22 inches if you want a deliberate drop on the chest or you are wearing it over a hoodie.

The three lengths we stock, and where each one sits

These three placements come straight from our size guide, and they are the only three lengths we make. There is no 16 inch and no 24 inch in the collection.

Length	Where it sits	Best for
18 inch	Base of the neck, at or just above the collarbone	A close fit, and wearing under a collar
20 inch	Just below the collarbone	The single-chain default, and layering
22 inch	At or just above the chest	A statement drop, or over thicker fabric

Two inches sounds like nothing written down. On the neck it is the difference between a chain that reads as part of your collar and one that reads as a piece of jewelry sitting on your chest.

How to measure, in order of reliability

Best: measure a chain you already own

If you own any necklace you like the fit of, this takes thirty seconds and it beats every other method. Lay it flat, clasped, in a single loop, and measure from one end of that loop to the other. Double that number. That is the length, and you now know exactly what 18 or 20 inches feels like on your own neck rather than in the abstract.

This is the method to trust because it accounts for your build, your posture and how you actually like to wear things, none of which a formula knows about.

If you have no chain: measure your neck

Wrap a soft tape measure, or a length of string you can measure afterward, around the base of your neck where a collar would sit. Keep it snug but not tight. Then add two to four inches depending on how far down you want the chain to fall: add two for a close fit, add four for a drop below the collarbone.

Treat the result as a starting point rather than an answer. It gets most people to the right one of our three lengths, which is all it needs to do.

What actually changes the answer

Four things move people off the 20 inch default, and it is worth knowing which one applies to you.

• Your build. A broader neck and shoulders take up length that a narrower frame does not, so the same chain sits higher. If you are heavier through the neck, size up rather than down.
• What you wear on top. A thick hoodie collar swallows a short chain completely. A crew neck tee sits high enough that 18 inches can disappear into the fabric. Thicker and higher collars need more length.
• Whether you layer. Layering needs a gap between pieces, and the gap has to be visible or it reads as a mistake. If a tennis chain is going to sit alongside something else, 20 or 22 inches gives you room to work with.
• Whether a pendant is going on it. A pendant adds its own drop below the chain, so the finished piece hangs lower than the chain length suggests. Our guide to what chain to wear with a pendant covers that pairing properly, including how the bail limits which chains will physically fit.

If you are buying for a man specifically, our men's guide to necklines and layers works through each collar type in more detail than there is room for here.

If you are between two lengths

Size up. A chain that is slightly long is a chain you can layer, tuck or wear over a thicker collar. A chain that is slightly short has one position and you are stuck with it.

The one exception is if you already know you dislike the feeling of jewelry moving around. In that case the shorter length sits tighter and stays put, and that is a real preference rather than a compromise.

If you do land on the wrong one, returns are open for 30 days on unworn, unused pieces in original condition and original packaging with all included materials, with proof of purchase. Returns need to be approved before they are sent, and we cover return shipping on approved returns with no restocking fee. It is worth reading our checklist on buying jewelry online safely before you order anywhere, ours included, because a clear returns route is the thing that makes a sizing decision low risk.

A word on width, and what we actually publish

Plenty of tennis chain guides give you a width ladder running from 3mm up to 8mm and ask you to pick. We are not going to do that, because we do not sell a ladder.

We publish one chain width: the 4mm Tennis Chain, where 4mm is the width of each stone and therefore, near enough, the width of the chain. It is the classic tennis proportion, and it is the width most people picture when they think of the style. Our other two tennis chains are patterned designs rather than plain stone lines, and we do not publish a millimeter figure for either of them, so we are not going to invent one here.

If you want to picture what 4mm looks like before you commit, our mm to carat size guide translates millimeter figures into something you can hold up against your own hand.

Which of our tennis chains come in which length

This is the part that usually decides it, because a length is only useful if something you want is made in it.

• 18 inch. The 4mm Tennis Chain at $500, in silver, gold or rose gold. Or the Rockstar Crown Spike Tennis Chain at $700 in silver.
• 20 inch. The 4mm Tennis Chain at $550, again in all three finishes. Or the Butterfly 'Dreamline' Tennis Chain at $900.
• 22 inch. One piece: the Rockstar Crown Spike Tennis Chain at $800 in silver.

So if 22 inches is the length you want in a tennis chain, there is exactly one to choose from, and it is a statement piece rather than a quiet one. If that is not the look you are after, the wider chains collection has longer designs that are not tennis chains.

Every piece is built on solid .925 sterling silver and set with D-color VVS lab-grown moissanite. If you want to understand what that grade is actually buying you on a chain, we wrote a full piece on what the VVS grade buys you.

Frequently asked questions

Where does an 18, 20 or 22 inch chain actually sit?

Eighteen inches sits at the base of the neck, at or just above the collarbone. Twenty inches falls just below the collarbone. Twenty-two inches falls at or just above the chest. Those three placements are what our size guide publishes, and they are the only three lengths we make.

How do I measure for a tennis chain without a tape measure?

Use a chain you already own. Lay it flat and clasped in a single loop, measure across the loop with a ruler, and double that figure. If you own no necklace at all, wrap a piece of string around the base of your neck, mark it, measure the string flat, and add two to four inches.

What tennis chain lengths does Jamilah Jewels sell?

Eighteen, twenty and twenty-two inches. The 4mm Tennis Chain comes in 18 and 20 inch, the Rockstar Crown Spike comes in 18 and 22 inch, and the Butterfly 'Dreamline' comes in 20 inch. We do not make a 16 inch or a 24 inch tennis chain.

Should I size up or down if I am between chain lengths?

Size up. A slightly longer chain can be layered, tucked or worn over a thicker collar, while a slightly short one only has the one position. The exception is if you dislike jewelry shifting as you move, in which case the shorter length stays put.

What width are Jamilah Jewels tennis chains?

The 4mm Tennis Chain is 4mm, measured across each stone. That is the only chain width we publish. Our Butterfly and Spike chains are patterned designs rather than plain stone lines and we do not publish a millimeter figure for them.

Are tennis chains unisex?

Yes. The style is the same piece whoever wears it, and the only thing that changes is the length you choose for your own build and neckline. All three of our tennis chains are sold in the same lengths regardless of who is buying.

Find your length

Measure a chain you already wear, pick the closest of our three lengths, and size up if you are caught between two. Then browse all moissanite tennis chains, or start with the 4mm Tennis Chain in 18 or 20 inch, which is the one most people buy first.

Once yours arrives, five ways to style a tennis chain covers what to wear it with. Standard shipping within the United States is free and fully insured on every order, with no minimum spend.