One tape measurement in, and his blanket size in each brand out — because the brands do not measure the same way. WeatherBeeta sizes in 3-inch steps, some brands only make even sizes, and Horseware measures to a different point and takes 4 inches off.
His blanket size
Size 77
| Brand, and how it reads the tape | Size |
|---|
How to measure
A size is a starting point, not a promise of fit. Cuts differ within a brand, too: some are made for stocky, broad-shouldered horses and some for high withers. Try it on a clean horse, watch him walk and graze in it, and check for pulling at the shoulders and the withers before the tags come off.
Size charts checked 2026-09-25.
Quick answer: a horse’s blanket size is his length in inches, measured with a soft tape from the centre of his chest, round the widest part of the shoulder, to the point of the buttock where the tail begins. Most average-size horses measure in the 70s, ponies in the 60s and warmbloods and drafts in the 80s. Between two sizes, go up. But the brands do not all read the tape the same way: WeatherBeeta sizes in 3-inch steps, some brands only make even sizes, and Horseware measures to the centre of the tail and takes 4 inches off.
How to use it
Put in the one measurement every brand starts from: the centre of the chest to the point of the buttock. You get his size on WeatherBeeta’s 3-inch run, which is also the run UK sizes in feet and inches follow (6’3″ is a 75), and his size in a brand that only makes even sizes. If you are buying Horseware, take the second measurement its guide asks for, to the centre of the tail, and its row fills in too.
Height is optional. If you add it, the tool checks the tape against Schneider’s size-by-height guide. That guide is a rough check, never the answer: two horses of the same height can be several sizes apart.
Why the same horse is a different size in different brands
A blanket size looks like a measurement, but it is a measurement read through a brand’s own chart. WeatherBeeta measures to the end of the rump and makes a size every 3 inches, with an extra 77 in the middle of its run. Horseware’s own guide starts at the same place and ends at the centre of the tail, then tells you to subtract 4 inches before you read its chart. Rutgers’ extension service notes that some companies only make even sizes, and then says to round to the nearest one, while Schneider’s and the University of Georgia’s extension say to go up. Measured with the same tape, one horse can come out as a 75, a 76, a 77 and a 78, and every one of those answers is right for its own brand.
That is why this tool shows every row instead of picking one, and names whose rule each row follows.
Measuring tips that save a return
Stand him square on level ground and have a helper hold the tape at the centre of his chest. Keep the tape level and follow the curve of his side. A tape pulled straight across the barrel reads short, and a short blanket is the one that rubs. If you have no tape, a length of baling twine does the job: mark it, then lay it flat beside a ruler.
Measure again before you buy a new brand, even if he has worn a size for years. Cut matters as much as size. A broad, stocky horse can need a cut made for his shoulders more than a bigger number, and a horse with high withers needs a blanket that clears them.