How Much Does It Cost To Get Pants Altered [Guide] – 3rd Floor Tailors (2024)

There exists such a thing as a perfect fit! With the rise in expressive fashion, we are all looking for ways to show who we are through our clothes. This is why many people tend towards tailors rather than ready-made clothes, especially for grand events. When your outfit looks like a photocopy of yourself, when your clothes already tell who you are, we can say they are well enough a perfect fit. We can’t step out looking like someone else; individuality must shine. Showing your personality, style, and individuality through your clothes would mean that the said outfit shows itself as a part of you. But how much does It cost to get pants altered?

Are Your Pants the Perfect Fit?

It is possible to have the best outfit, in the best design, made with the best material, yet something looks wrong when you are on it, and you can’t quite place your finger on it. The chances are that you have an issue with the fittings. Pants are a trending fashion piece that finds its way into our everyday clothing and has somehow not given up its place as a trending fashion item. It comes in different styles and designs that seem to “hit” every new season. It’s not a bad idea to want to be a part of the trend or catch up on some of that style; you have to do it right.

The first thing to note is that it’s not about the style, not the type, but it’s all about the fitting.

So, what do you do when you have the perfect pair of pants, but it just doesn’t fit? It’s time to get some alterations done!

Pants Alterations: Is It Expensive?

As much as your focus is on how much it costs to get pants altered, there are other things to consider when discussing clothing alterations, even before discussing the price. Some of these things might include your location and the area of the clothes you’re trying to alter. Or the tailor you go to have the alterations done on your clothes. Or even how quickly you need it done as well.

To think of altering your pants, you already understand that what is most important in an article of clothing is not the style, design, designer, the material used, or pattern; it is the fitting. An item of clothing is not beautiful on its own until it fits your body. This factor is what makes you stand out, and it leads us to find a good tailor.

Factors That Can Affect the Cost of Your Pant Alterations

Tailoring Services

Nothing says “good tailor” like perfectly fitting clothes. It would be best to consider before any other when getting pants altered is who will get it done for you. You do not want to make the mistake of having poor alterations done or your clothes ruined by an inexperienced tailor because they offer a lower price. Neither do you want to pay a whole lot more than you need to for your pants alterations? Besides, finding good tailor influences the price of the alterations or repairs, as getting an affordable and reliable tailor can be such a task. However, once you can bag a good one, it would be smooth sailing from there.

Location of the Tailor

The initial step is to look them up on Google to find out if the place they are is comfortable for you. Yes, Google “tailors in your location” and see how easy it will go. Getting a tailor in your community goes a long way for subsequent meetings. There are times when you need emergency alterations, and you need a tailor in your area to help you out of your fashion predicament. Having a tailor in your location makes it easier to get your clothes altered in little to no time at all.

Reviews

Next will be to go through their reviews. It helps to pick out which tailor would be best for you. Although it isn’t too trustworthy, you can look at their social media posts too. Reviews are a great way to know the efficiency of the tailor and how experienced they are with the services they offer. One other thing review help you know about the tailor is how well they treat their clients.

To be able to make the alterations is one thing; to have a smooth service process with a client is another. Reviews tell you about how you will be treated as a client and if they are the best tailor for you. Please pay attention to the reviews as well to ensure that they are genuine.

Make Contact

Once you have found the right tailor for you and have confirmed that they are in your location, the next step is to make contact and make arrangements for a successful alteration. After that, contact them, either through phone call or email, and ask them questions you would expect tailors to know at a particular skill level. Expertise differs, and so do styles of pants. Some pants come in complicated designs, and thus, not just any tailor can make alterations to them. Suit pants, for example, require the expertise of a tailor who can offer the right services that you need.

Make sure to ask the needed questions to be sure if your pants are in safe hands. If they are unable to answer it, you can try someone else more experienced. Something like, “is there a way for me to redo the hem of my jeans and retain the original hem?“, Anyone into sewing should know the answer. After that, take one or two clothes, like a jacket to fix the jacket sleeves, pants, or a dress shirt with shoulder straps that won’t hurt if they are not correctly done, and try them out.

Time-Bound

You should do well to pay attention to the time you asked for the service as well. Some designers usually have a lot of workloads and need to be booked way before you plan to use it. Some tailors charge more for the service if you need your clothes urgently. So, in addition to the range of listed prices, the price for time will also matter.

A good guide for this would be to see how busy some catering services are such that you can’t request urgent caterers except you are willing to pay more. The time it takes to get your pants altered would depend on what you want to alter. Specific alterations take more time than others to get done. If you want to have the best job done on your pants, it is imperative to give your designer or tailor enough time to get proper alteration done.

If you need your pants altered urgently, you can always pay for express delivery. While this might attract extra cost, it saves you time, and you get your pants altered as soon as possible.

How Much Does It Cost to Get Pants Altered: Part & Price to Consider for Clothing Alteration

For different articles of clothing, there are proper places to alter them that will not destroy the clothes in the end. For example, there is a guide to altering dress shirts; you can reduce the sleeve length at the cuff. Also, you can shorten the collar points, take in the sleeves to make it fit better by reducing the fabric. There is always a right way to do things in sewing.

Pants are a bit different, and some of them require a certain level of expertise. Parts like the zippers and buttons usually attract lesser costs that increase the overall size or work on the hem. Here are some things you can do for pants, that is, dress pants, jeans, chinos, and other trousers. You can fix the zipper, and the estimate you should expect to pay is $10-$20.

Another part of the pants that you might need to alter is the button or the buttonhole, which is relatively cheap and a quick DIY. If you’re terrible at sewing and you’re sure you will do a lousy job, it is most advisable that you get a tailor with the right experience to get it done for you. The price for this is about $5-$10.

Also, the hem is another place that gets altered without drastically ruining the pants. Although the prices can be higher for retaining the hem of jeans or maintaining the cuff, the range you should expect to pay is $10-$20. An alteration we cannot overlook is the rise in pants. To reduce it by 1-2″, you would need to have money at hand. It is an alteration that needs to be done carefully and gently to prevent ruining or damaging your pants. The price range for hem adjustments of this kind is usually between $20-$30.

For the leg of your pants, you can either take in the legs or taper them, depending on the size. To take in the leg, you’ll reduce the size to fit around the knee, the thighs, and the calf. This will go for a range of prices for this adjustment. You are expected to spend within a range of $15-$20.

The other adjustments for the legs, the tapering, involve creating a narrower look below the knee. It costs about $10-$20. The last possible adjustment without ruining your pants is the waist adjustment. It is one of the essential parts of your pants that determines your pants’ overall fitting and beauty. The waist could either be reduced to fit better or increased to sit better. Adjusting or altering the waist costs about $10-$20.

Doing It Yourself on These Clothes

With YouTube and “Help me” videos all over the internet, making alterations to your pants is much easier than it used to be, provided you have basic tailoring knowledge. As much as these videos are made to be as understanding as possible, they still require specific basic level knowledge needed to make successful alterations to your pants. If you have some knowledge of tailoring and sewing with needles, you might reduce the alteration cost. That is, it can be free!

Apart from the tools, you would be using like, needle and thread, buttons, zippers, and elastic bands, depending on what alterations you’re making. These items can be gotten in local stores for affordable prices, especially when compared to a tailor. You need to understand the size measurements and how they apply when making alterations as well.

Like I said, if you’re good with a sewing machine, it will be a breeze. Having a sewing machine can be very helpful with knowledge of tailoring. This way, one can alter anything on their clothes from jackets to shirts and shirt sleeves, various garments. And if you’re really good, even a suit jacket, sheath dress or wedding dress. All this with a low budget and right there in your home!

Final Thoughts

So, how much does it cost to get pants altered? To wrap it all up, we see that the price of clothing alterations between tailors and from clothes to clothes differs. Depending on the alteration being made and the tailor, the price differs. There are also times in the year where alterations are expensive to make. Tailors get busier as the year draws to a close, and bookings in advance will be a great way to save the cost on express deliveries on alterations.

The price for alterations on pants also varies depending on where you are altering. Over time, your familiarity with the tailor will help them take you into account, know your sizes for all articles of clothing and give you a discount.

So you can finally get those clothes out of your wardrobe and into a tailor’s shop or pick it up and do it yourself. When putting alterations on any garment, all these factors must be in mind. As a result, you will see how you will look in your best wearing affordable designs.

Bonus: Pants Alteration FAQ