Underwired versus wireless bras: it’s nice to have options! Both can provide comfort and support, assuming that your bra is a good fit for your body. Clients often ask us if one is better or more functional than the other. The short answer is, no, but each has different characteristics that can make them more or less suited to certain body shapes and individual personal preferences.

     A wired bra is built around a sturdier structure and will provide more lift, shaping, and projection than a wire-free style. If the cups are sized appropriately, the wires should lay flat against your breast bone in the center and your ribs on the sides. The poking and friction often associated with underwires happens when the wire frame is too small for the amount of breast tissue it needs to contain. Sufficiently roomy cups should not cause pain or irritation.

     If you’d like to bypass this issue entirely, though, a wire-free bra might be for you. These styles often allow breast tissue to sit more to the sides, and without wires to create an inward curve between the breasts, you get a bit less definition. They can be super comfortable, though! Unlike a fashion bralette, which is not really built for support, a “true” wireless bra uses seamed construction or foam molded cups to build a supportive structure for lift and shaping. (There’s no really concrete definition to separate a wireless bra from a bralette, but bralettes are generally more decorative with a stretchy pull-over-your-head construction.) If you’d like to give wire-free bras a whirl, we have a number of different options depending on where you fall on the size spectrum.