Quick answer. A private label women’s underwear programme made in China typically starts at 2,000 pieces per style and colour, with trial orders negotiable from 1,000 pieces on selected styles. Sampling takes 7–10 days on an existing block and 12–18 days for a new pattern; bulk production is normally 45–60 days after sample approval. Your unit price is set mainly by four things: fabric weight and fibre, waistband construction, gusset construction, and how many sizes you cut. EU, US and UK size runs are cut to different pattern blocks — they are not one chart relabelled.
Who this guide is for
This is for brand owners, e-commerce sellers and importers putting together a women’s underwear range — briefs, bikinis, hipsters, thongs, boyshorts, seamless or lace — and who need to know what the order involves before they commit to a supplier.
It is not a supplier directory and it is not a price list. Any figure below is an indicative range for sanity-checking quotations. Cotton and freight move; your quotation is the only number that counts.
What “private label” actually covers — and how it differs from OEM and ODM
Buyers use these three terms interchangeably and then discover they meant different things. The distinction matters because it changes who owns the pattern, and therefore what you can take with you if you change supplier.
| Model | Who provides the design | Pattern ownership | Typical use |
|---|---|---|---|
| Private label | Supplier’s existing or adapted style, sold under your brand | Usually the supplier’s block | Fastest route to a first range; branding on labels, packaging and waistband |
| OEM | You — tech pack, size chart, fabrics and trims specified | Yours, if you have paid for pattern development | Established brands with a defined fit and a reorder history |
| ODM | Supplier develops from your brief or a reference sample | Negotiated — ask explicitly | Brands that want development capability without in-house pattern makers |
One practical point that is rarely written down: where the pattern block carries value, buy it. If your fit is your brand, paying for pattern development and owning the block is what lets you change supplier later without starting again.
What a women’s range usually includes
An eight-style starter range typically covers: classic brief, bikini, hipster, boyshort, thong, high-leg brief, a seamless style, and one lace or mesh style. Each additional style carries its own pattern cost and its own fabric minimum, so the number of styles — not the number of pieces — is usually what stretches a first order.
Fabric and construction matrix
| Fabric | Typical weight | Hand feel and behaviour | Where it fits | Cost vs cotton jersey |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single jersey, 100% cotton | 140–170 gsm | Breathable, minimal stretch, washes flat | Everyday briefs, maternity | Baseline |
| Cotton / elastane (95/5 or 92/8) | 160–200 gsm | Recovery in the waistband, better return after washing | Mainstream briefs and hipsters | +5–12% |
| Micro modal / elastane | 150–180 gsm | Very soft, drape-heavy, slightly cooler to touch | Premium comfort positioning | +20–35% |
| Bamboo viscose / elastane | 150–180 gsm | Silky, high moisture uptake, can pill if yarn quality is low | “Natural fibre” marketing lines | +12–25% |
| Nylon / elastane tricot | 160–200 gsm | Smooth, high stretch, laser-cuttable | Seamless, no-show, active | +15–30% |
| Raschel / jacquard lace | By yield, not gsm | Decorative, priced per metre of width | Fashion and occasion styles | +40% and up on the panel |
| Power mesh | 120–160 gsm | Firm, engineered stretch direction | Shaping panels, side panels | Panel-dependent |
Waistband construction — the single biggest quality variable
Four options, in ascending cost and descending failure rate:
- Elastic band (woven or knitted, plain). Cheapest, most common, visible on the outside. Ask for the elasticity loss after 20 cycles.
- Jacquard woven elastic with your logo. Adds a knitting minimum per design — a logo band on a 2,000-piece order is realistic; on a 1,000-piece trial it usually is not.
- Folded self-fabric with an internal elastic. Cleaner look, costs more in labour, hides the elastic.
- Bonded seam / ultrasonic. No stitching, best for seamless and no-show. Requires a dedicated line and typically the highest minimum.
Gusset construction — where fit complaints come from
The gusset lining is normally 100% cotton jersey at 130–160 gsm, either sewn in as a three-panel construction or bonded in seamless styles. Two specification points decide whether it works: the stitched or bonded seam at the front and rear ends (a bulk seam is the most common cause of a “scratchy” review), and whether the lining moves independently of the outer fabric. Specify both in the tech pack, in millimetres.
Size grading: EU, US and UK are different blocks
| EU (FR/ES) | UK | US | Body waist, typical | Hip, typical |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 34 | 6 | 2 | 60–63 cm | 87–90 cm |
| 36 | 8 | 4 | 64–67 cm | 91–94 cm |
| 38 | 10 | 6 | 68–71 cm | 95–98 cm |
| 40 | 12 | 8 | 72–75 cm | 99–102 cm |
| 42 | 14 | 10 | 76–80 cm | 103–107 cm |
| 44 | 16 | 12 | 81–85 cm | 108–112 cm |
| 46 | 18 | 14 | 86–90 cm | 113–117 cm |
| 48 | 20 | 16 | 91–96 cm | 118–123 cm |
Two things get missed. First, EU grading is not a linear progression — the step between sizes is roughly 4 cm at the waist and 4 cm at the hip, but the ratio of waist to hip changes across the range, so a block graded linearly fits badly at both ends. Second, extended sizes need a different block, not a bigger pattern. Grading a 38 up to a 48 without re-cutting the rise and the leg opening produces the classic “rides up and rolls down” complaint. Size designation itself follows EN 13402 / ISO 8559-2 in Europe; if you sell into multiple markets, state body measurements on the label rather than only the size number.
MOQ: what actually drives the number
MOQ is the sum of four fixed costs spread across your order, not a sales filter:
- Pattern and grading — per style, one-off.
- Dye-house minimums per colour — usually expressed in kilograms. Four colourways on one style can behave like four styles.
- Waistband and lace minimums — a jacquard logo band has its own knitting minimum; a lace panel has a per-width minimum.
- Line changeover — cutting and sewing are set per style and size run.
The standard way buyers reach volume without committing style by style is to combine styles that share one fabric and one colour into a combined order. Ask for a combined-MOQ quotation.
Sampling and lead times, stage by stage
| Stage | Typical time | Deliverable |
|---|---|---|
| Tech pack review and costing | 2–4 working days | Costed quotation with fabric and trim breakdown |
| Stock-block sample | 7–10 days | Design on an existing block — for trim and colour approval, not for fit |
| Custom development sample | 12–18 days | New pattern, lab dips, first fit round |
| Fit revision round | 5–8 days each | Revised sample |
| Lab testing | 5–10 working days | Test reports for the destination market |
| Bulk production | 45–60 days after sample approval | Finished goods plus pre-shipment inspection report |
| Sea freight, China to EU / US | 25–40 days | — |
The compliance layer
- Fibre composition labelling — EU Regulation 1007/2011 requires fibre names and percentages, in descending order, on the label. A 95/5 cotton-elastane brief labelled “cotton” is non-compliant.
- REACH Annex XVII entry 43 — restricted aromatic amines from azo colourants. This is the failure point on dyed lace and prints.
- Formaldehyde and pH limits — tested as part of OEKO-TEX Standard 100, Class II for direct-skin articles.
- Care labelling — washing, bleaching, drying, ironing and professional care symbols, following ISO 3758.
- EU Digital Product Passport — traceability data requirements phase in for textiles through 2026–2027. Buyers selling into the EU should be collecting structured material and origin data from their supplier now, not at the deadline.
Quality control for women’s underwear
Standard production inspection runs to AQL 2.5 on major defects and AQL 4.0 on minor defects, sampled against ISO 2859-1. For women’s underwear, add:
- Colourfastness to washing and to perspiration — the test that predicts a bleeding print or a discoloured gusset.
- Dimensional stability after three domestic washes — at 40 °C, the temperature most European consumers actually use.
- Elastic recovery after 20 stretch cycles on waistbands.
- Seam strength and stitch density at the side seams and gusset attachment.
- Needle detection — standard in most EU and US retail programmes.
Frequently asked questions
What is the MOQ for private label women’s underwear from China?
A working figure is 2,000 pieces per style and colour, with trial orders from 1,000 pieces on selected styles. Styles sharing the same fabric and colour can usually be combined to reach a combined minimum, which is the usual route for a first range.
How much does a custom women’s brief cost in China?
Indicative FOB ranges are roughly US$0.55–1.10 for a cotton or cotton-elastane brief, US$0.85–1.60 for micro modal or seamless, and higher for lace-panel and fashion constructions. Fabric weight, waistband type, gusset construction, number of colourways and packing each move the number. Treat these as sanity checks, not quotations.
Can I get a private label range without my own pattern?
Yes. Adapting an existing supplier block with your labels, waistband logo and packaging is the standard private label route and the fastest way to a first range. The trade-off is that the pattern block usually stays with the supplier, which limits how easily you can move the style elsewhere later.
Should I choose seamless or cut-and-sew for women’s underwear?
Seamless suits no-show, active and modern-positioning ranges and gives a cleaner silhouette, but carries higher minimums and fewer fabric options. Cut-and-sew is more flexible on fibre choice, colour and print, and is cheaper at lower volumes. Many ranges run both: seamless for the hero styles, cut-and-sew for the rest.
How long does a first women’s underwear order take?
Allow 7–10 days for a stock-block sample or 12–18 days for custom development, 5–10 working days for lab testing, 45–60 days of bulk production after approval, and 25–40 days of sea freight to Europe or the US. Four to six months from enquiry to a European warehouse is a realistic first-order plan.
Next step
Send us a tech pack, a reference sample or even a competitor style you want to match, together with your target market, size range and volume. We will come back with a costed quotation, a sampling timeline and the test list for your destination market — including which certificate names the production site.
Related reading: Seamless underwear manufacturing guide 2026 · Underwear MOQ and cost breakdown 2026 · Underwear size conversion chart (EU / US / UK) · EU Digital Product Passport for underwear importers · Women’s underwear OEM programme
Reference standards: OEKO-TEX Standard 100 · ECHA — substances restricted under REACH · EU Regulation 1007/2011 on textile fibre names
· Xiamen Unitex Trade Co., Ltd. — OEM & ODM underwear sourcing partner
Unitex Underwear (Xiamen Unitex Trade Co., Ltd.) — OEM/ODM underwear sourcing and supply-chain partner in Xiamen, China; in the trade since 2009, incorporated in 2013.