How can I try on clothes online before buying them?

You can try on clothes online before buying by using a virtual fitting room. nista is a free Chrome extension that lets you make an avatar from a few photos of yourself, then adds a "try it on" button to the online clothing stores you already shop at, so you can see a piece on your own proportions before you pay. Pair the try-on with the store's size chart, and you'll have a much clearer picture of how something will look and fit.

Key takeaways

• A virtual fitting room shows clothing from a product page on an avatar of you instead of on a model.
• nista is a Chrome extension that works on any online clothing store, including Zara, Aritzia, SSENSE, and Depop.
• Your nista avatar is made from a few photos of yourself and keeps your real proportions.
• nista is free; brands partner with nista and cover the cost.
• Virtual try-on is very close but not an exact sizing tool, so check the size chart too.

What does "trying on clothes online" actually mean?

When you shop in person, you try something on to answer two questions: does it look good on me? and does it fit? Online, the product photos only answer a third question: does it look good on the model?

A virtual fitting room closes that gap. Instead of imagining how a dress, jacket, or pair of trousers would sit on your body, you see the piece rendered on an avatar that shares your proportions. That's most useful for the "will this look right on me" question: silhouette, length, how loose or fitted a cut is, and how pieces work together.

How to try on clothes online with nista, step by step

1. Install the nista Chrome extension. Go to nista.com and follow the link to add the extension to Chrome on your computer.
2. Create your avatar. Upload a few photos of yourself. nista uses them to build an avatar that keeps your real proportions.
3. Shop the way you normally do. Open any online clothing store, whether that's a big retailer like Zara, a boutique like Aritzia, or a resale site like Depop.
4. Click "try it on" on a product page. The button follows you from store to store, so you don't need a different tool for every site.
5. Look at the result critically. Check where the hem lands, how wide the shoulders sit, and whether the overall shape suits the way you want to wear it.
6. Confirm your size with the store's size chart. Compare your measurements to the brand's chart (see how to know if clothes will fit online) before adding to cart.
7. Buy only what passed both checks. If the look and the size chart both say yes, you're ordering with far more information than a product photo alone gives you.

What a virtual try-on can and can't tell you

nista describes its accuracy as "very close": your avatar keeps your real proportions, and much of the team's research goes into rendering each piece of clothing accurately. That makes it a strong guide for style and proportion decisions.

It is not a guarantee of exact fit. Sizing still varies from brand to brand and even between styles from the same brand, and fabric stretch, lining, and personal comfort preferences are hard to judge from any screen. Treat the try-on as your mirror and the size chart as your tape measure, and use both. You can read more in how accurate is nista.

Why a browser extension works better than store-by-store tools

Some retailers have built their own try-on features, but those only work on that retailer's site. If you shop across several stores, a store-specific tool leaves you guessing everywhere else.

Because nista runs as a Chrome extension, the same avatar and the same "try it on" button come with you to any online clothing store. That makes it easier to compare a jacket from one shop against a similar one from another, all on the same version of you.

Is it free, and what happens to my photos?

nista is 100% free, with no hidden paywalls or subscriptions. Brands partner with nista and cover the cost, because shoppers who try things on tend to send fewer items back. See is nista free for details.

To build your avatar, nista collects the photos you upload along with things like product links and the try-on images it generates. The full details are in the privacy policy, which is worth a read before you start.

Start trying things on before you buy

The simplest way to stop guessing is to see clothes on yourself before you order them. Make your avatar once, then try on pieces from any store you shop. Get started with nista.