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How much does a bespoke suit cost?
A bespoke two-piece suit costs from roughly $4,000 in Naples or Seoul to $12,000 and up in Paris or Milan, before tax and your chosen cloth.
Documented entry prices for a bespoke two-piece run from about $4,000 in Naples and Seoul to $12,000 and above in Paris and Milan, with London in between. Those are entry prices in a house cloth, before tax, and before the cloth you actually choose. The variation is driven by labour costs and overheads, not by construction.
The bands
| Where | Documented entry, two-piece | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Seoul | about $3,300–5,100 | A young trade; extensive hand work at lower labour cost |
| Naples | about €3,800–8,000 | The widest range; small workshops at the lower end |
| Florence | about €6,000–9,500 | Fewer houses; longer lead times |
| London | about £5,500–10,000 | Excludes UK VAT; Mayfair overheads |
| Milan | about €8,000–14,000 | At the top of the Italian market |
| Paris | about €11,000–18,000 | The most labour-intensive construction in Europe |
What the price does not include
- Tax, in most cases. UK and EU prices are commonly quoted excluding VAT to trade and export customers.
- Cloth beyond the house bunch. A cashmere blend or an exotic fibre can add substantially.
- Extra fittings beyond the house's normal number, at some houses.
- Shipping, and any duty on import.
- Alterations years later, though many houses do these free or cheaply for their own garments.
Why the range is so wide
Almost entirely labour cost and overhead. The construction of a Neapolitan coat and a Parisian one differ, but not by a factor of three; what differs by a factor of three is the cost of an hour of skilled tailoring and a square metre of retail space.
This is why the value proposition in tailoring runs geographically rather than by construction. A Seoul or Naples commission at a third of a Paris price is not a third of the work.
The second commission
Usually better and sometimes cheaper. The pattern has been corrected against a real body once, the house knows your posture, and fewer fittings may be needed.
It is also the reason the sensible first commission is a jacket or trousers rather than the most expensive thing you intend to own.
At a glance
Picture credits 1
- A finished suit in a fitting room: Original art · Il Sartoriale · Il Sartoriale · Il Sartoriale original art