Cost per wear is simple: divide what you paid by the number of times you wear something. It is one of the most useful ideas in fashion — and one of the easiest to abuse.
A quick example
A ₹4,000 denim jacket worn four times a month for three years comes to about ₹28 per wear. A ₹900 trend jacket worn four times a month for six months is about ₹38 per wear — and then it is in a landfill.
Where it helps
- Choosing between a cheaper and a better-made version of something you wear constantly: jeans, work shoes, a winter layer.
- Spotting “bargains” that you will realistically wear twice.
Where it misleads
It only works if the wear count is honest. Nobody wears a sequinned lehenga forty times, and that is fine — occasion wear is allowed to cost more per wear. Do not use the maths to justify a purchase you were going to make anyway.
Try it
Compare two items side by side with the calculator below, including care costs like dry cleaning.
Try it yourself
