GSM, And What It Actually Tells You

GSM stands for grams per square meter. It's the weight of one square meter of the fabric.

That's the whole definition. Seven months ago I didn't know it. I had to look it up like everybody else.

Here's what I've worked out since — including the part most people selling you a hoodie will leave off.

What The Number Tells You

Weight. That's it.

A 400gsm fleece has more material packed into the same space than a 280 does. More yarn, more density, more in your hand when you pick it up. Two hoodies can look identical on a hanger and feel like different garments the second you lift them. That gap is the number.

What It Doesn't Tell You

Whether it's any good.

A heavy hoodie made from cheap short-staple cotton will still pill on you. Weight tells you there's substance. It doesn't tell you what the substance is.

That's why the composition sits next to the number and not instead of it. Ring-spun. Combed. Those words are doing work. Anybody selling you the weight alone is selling you half the information.

The Ranges, Plain

Under 280 is lightweight. Summer, layering under something, the gym. Dries quick, doesn't hold much warmth.

280 to 350 is midweight. Honestly the most useful range for most people most of the year.

380 and up is heavyweight. Holds its shape, holds a shoulder line, feels like something when you put it on.

Mine Is 356

The hoodie is 10.5oz fleece. In grams that's 356.

Look at where that lands on the bands I just gave you. Past midweight, short of where I said heavyweight starts. It sits in the gap between them, and I'm not going to pretend otherwise on my own page.

So here's the honest version. Those gram bands get thrown around for fabric generally. Fleece gets sold by the ounce, and at 10.5oz this sits at the heavy end of what hoodies actually come in — most of what's in your closet is probably lighter. That's why I call it a heavyweight hoodie and I'll stand on that.

What I won't tell you is that it's the heaviest thing out there. It isn't. There are heavier pieces on the market and mine is not one of them.

Two Things To Check On Any Product Page

If a brand doesn't publish the GSM at all, that's information too. The ones who paid for the weight tend to say the number.

And check whether the number is the finished garment or the fabric before it's brushed. Some listings quote whichever one reads higher.

The Short Version

GSM is a weight, not a grade. Read it next to the fiber and you stop buying off photographs.

Mine's 356. Now you know what that means — including the part where a bigger number isn't automatically a better hoodie.

If you want the conversion maths for reading other people’s listings, that’s in GSM and Ounces. What 356 feels like on your back is in this one.

The hoodie is $85 in black or cream, the tee is $48 in black or white. Same price at every size on both. I buy in small runs, so what the page shows is what I’ve got. US shipping is free on orders of $70 or more.