Women’s wetsuits | Girls wetsuits guide

Wetsuits for women are technology wise the same as men’s wetsuits. At least in the last few years women’s wetsuits are no longer available only in the cheap end models but are made from the best materials and have all the latest improvements. But even today some of the top of the line models still only have a men’s version. Reason for that is demand – on average there are fewer women that are so into their water sport that they would want to buy the best wetsuit there is. With less demand comes less money to invest in developing women’s wetsuits. Anyway, thing are much better now that they used to be so lets take a look at women’s wetsuits and how are they different from men’s.

How to choose a women’s wetsuit?

Check out our wetsuit and water temperature chart and decide what kind of wetsuit you need. If you are buying a short wetsuit (a shorty) then the quality is not all that important, since you will be using it in warm water anyway. But if you are looking to buy a fullsuit then while choosing women’s wetsuit you are basically looking for the same things as in men’s wetsuits:

1. Neoprene quality – the best neoprene is the lightest, warmest and the most flexible. Look for elastic, stretchy neoprene that will fit you better and will be much more flexible and comfortable to wear.
2. Stitches – if you are buying a fullsuit you want a blind stitched wetsuit – one that is sewn together using blind stitching technique. Using this type of sewing the needle never fully penetrates the neoprene so there are no holes that go all the way through your wetsuit and no holes for the water to come in. If you are buying a summer wetsuit this is not that important.
3. Sealed seams – again, if you are buying a fullsuit, look for seams that are liquid taped, liquid sealed (there are different names for this). This means that the seams are sealed with liquid rubber and are therefore waterproof. A wetsuit with sealed seams will be warmer than one without them.
4. Extra insulation – does the wetsuit have some sort of thermal lining on the inside.
5.  Zipper – a specially designed zipper and a shorter zipper means less water in your wetsuit through the zipper.

All these things are important when you are choosing either a woman’s or men’s wetsuit. What is different about women’s wetsuits is their shape. Since woman’s body is shaped differently also wetsuits must be shaped differently. There are two main differences – women’s wetsuit is wider in the hips and thighs area and is designed differently in the area of shoulders and chest. Women have narrower shoulders and bigger breasts so a wetsuit must be designed with that in mind. Choose couple of women’s models and try them on. Figuring out if the wetsuit fits or not is the same as with men’s wetties, just read this wetsuit sizing guide and how to put on the wetsuit guide.

On the other hand, if your body shape is not extremely curvaceous, you can also try on a small men’s wetsuit. I know a couple of women surfers that wear men’s wetsuits because they fit them best and because they want the best model there is. They use the extra stretchy ones – they follow the shape of your body better.

And last but not least – the colors and prints. Women’s wetsuits are getting more and more feminine with flowers, hearts and pink colors. I like to stick to neutral black wetsuits, but I’ll let you decide for yourselves.