Comment mesurer son cou pour choisir la longueur de chaîne homme 2027

On a 5‘7” frame with a 15” collar, a 22” chain sits in the centre of the chest at the mid-sternum. On a 5‘10” frame with a 16” collar, the same chain sits higher, just below the collarbone. On a 6‘2” frame with a 17.5” collar, the chain barely covers the collarbone and rides up to the base of the neck.

This is why chain length is more important than chain width for most men’s necklace decisions, and why “what length should I get” is the most common pre-purchase question UK men ask in 2026.

This is the practical guide for measuring your neck and choosing the right chain length.

I run Monrich, a UK men’s jewellery brand. Disclosure first.

You can see the current men's chains line-up for reference as you read.

Once you have your measurement, the chains collection lists every length per piece, and the size guide has the conversion chart.

Standard men's chain lengths

UK men’s chain lengths typically come in these brackets:

• 16”: very short, fits like a thin choker on most men
• 18”: sits at the base of the throat / collarbone
• 20”: sits on the collarbone or just below
• 22”: sits mid-chest
• 24”: sits between mid-chest and lower chest
• 26”: sits at lower chest
• 28-30”: sits at upper abdomen (lower chest layering)
• 30”+: sits at lower abdomen (specialist hip-hop styling)

The most popular men’s chain lengths in UK 2026 are 20” and 22”, which provide flexibility across visibility levels (under or over shirt collar).

Where each length sits

For a man at 5‘10” (UK average male height) with 16” shirt collar size:

• 18” chain: sits at the base of the throat, like a slightly loose choker
• 20” chain: sits at the collarbone, visible at the V of an unbuttoned shirt
• 22” chain: sits at mid-chest, visible over a tee, hidden under a buttoned shirt
• 24” chain: sits at lower mid-chest, visible over a tee
• 26” chain: sits at lower chest, visible over a tee, sometimes layered position
• 28-30” chain: sits at upper abdomen, layered position over tee
• 30”+ chain: sits at lower abdomen, full statement length

Add 1-2” to chain placement for taller frames (6’+); subtract 1-2” for shorter frames (5‘8” and below).

How to measure your neck

Materials: - Soft tape measure or piece of string + ruler

Steps:

1. Wrap the tape measure or string around your neck where you want the chain to sit.

2. For a choker position (chain at base of throat): measure at the base of your neck where shirt collars sit. Typically 14-17” for most men.

3. For a collarbone position (chain on collarbone): measure with the tape sitting on top of your collarbones. Typically 17-20” for most men.

4. For a mid-chest position (chain at sternum): measure from the back of your neck down to where you want the chain centre to sit at front. Multiply this measurement by 2.

5. Note the measurement.

6. Add 1-2” for comfort (the chain shouldn’t sit at the absolute tightest length).

For pendant placement specifically: measure from the back of your neck, around to the front, to the exact point where you want the pendant to sit. Double that measurement to get total chain length.

Length vs frame size

For men 5‘4”-5‘7” (smaller frames): - 18-20”: collarbone area - 20-22”: chest area - Default recommendation: 20” for first chain

For men 5‘8”-5‘11” (average frames, UK male average): - 20-22”: collarbone to mid-chest - 22-24”: mid-chest to lower chest - Default recommendation: 22” for first chain

For men 6‘0”-6‘3” (taller frames): - 22-24”: collarbone to mid-chest - 24-26”: mid-chest to lower chest - Default recommendation: 24” for first chain

For men 6‘4” and above (very tall frames): - 24-26”: collarbone to mid-chest - 26-28”: mid-chest to lower chest - Default recommendation: 24-26” for first chain

These are starting points; personal preference and chest width also affect what length looks balanced.

Length vs use case

For under-shirt wear (chain hidden inside shirt with collar): - 22-24”: chain visible at the V of an unbuttoned collar but otherwise hidden - Most versatile for office and formal contexts

For over-shirt visible wear (chain on top of tee or open shirt): - 20-22”: collarbone-area placement - 24-26”: chest-area placement - Most versatile for casual contexts

For layering (two or more chains worn together): - Combine 18” + 22” for tight stack - Combine 20” + 24” for medium stack - Combine 22” + 26” for spread stack - Combine 24” + 28” for dramatic spread stack

For pendant chains: - 22-24” for pendant at mid-chest (most common) - 26”+ for pendant at lower chest - 18-20” for pendant high on chest near collarbone

Length for pendant placement

If the chain has a pendant, the length determines where the pendant sits on the chest. The pendant placement is the visual anchor of the necklace.

Pendant placement positions:

• High chest (just below the collarbone): 20” chain
• Upper sternum: 22” chain
• Mid sternum (most common pendant placement): 22-24” chain
• Lower sternum: 24-26” chain
• Upper abdomen: 26-28” chain

Most men’s pendant necklaces in UK 2026 are designed for 22-24” length, which places the pendant at the mid-sternum where it’s visible above an open shirt collar.

Note on pendant weight: heavier pendants (10g+) require thicker chains (2.5mm+ width) to support without strain. Don’t pair a thin chain with a heavy pendant.

The mirror test

The most accurate way to choose chain length isn’t a tape measure. It’s a mirror and an existing piece of string.

Stand in front of a full-length mirror in the shirt you’d most often wear with the chain. Take a piece of string, tie it loosely around your neck, and adjust the length until the front of the string sits exactly where you want the chain to sit. Mark the spot with a pen or your finger.

Now take the string off, lay it flat, and measure its length. That’s your ideal chain length.

This method captures a variable that pure neck measurement misses: how the chain interacts with your specific shirt collar, your specific neck length, and your specific shoulder line. Two men with identical neck circumferences can need different chain lengths because their visual “centre of chest” sits at different points relative to their collar.

Repeat the test with two or three different shirts (open-collar t-shirt, buttoned business shirt, sweater). If the ideal chain length is the same across all three, you have one confident chain length to order. If it varies meaningfully, you may need two chains in different lengths for different occasions, or you can compromise on a middle length that works acceptably in all contexts.

For chains with pendants, the mirror test is especially valuable because the pendant placement is the actual visual anchor. A pendant that sits at the wrong position (too high, blocked by collar; too low, sliding into stomach area when you sit) reads as awkward in every photo. The mirror test catches this before you order.