Crochet Abbreviations: US vs UK

The conversion table

How to tell which system a pattern uses

Most patterns state it. When one does not, there are four reliable tells.

1. Look for the abbreviation sc. If it appears anywhere, the pattern is US. There is no UK stitch abbreviated sc.
2. Look for the word treble. If trebles appear early and often but there is no sc, it is almost certainly UK.
3. Check the hook size units. A pattern quoting hook sizes as letters (H-8, J-10) is American. Millimeters alone are used everywhere and tell you nothing.
4. Check the yarn weight name. Aran, DK and 4-ply are British usage; worsted, sport and fingering are American. See the yarn weight chart.

One more clue: if the pattern says gauge it is American, and if it says tension it is British. They mean the same thing, and how to measure it is on our gauge and swatching page.

What happens when you get it wrong

You do not get a broken pattern. You get a fabric that is roughly half or double the height it should be, with the stitch counts still correct - which is why people get several inches in before something feels wrong.

A US double crochet is about three times the height of a US single crochet. Work a UK pattern's dc as a US dc and every row is three times too tall: a blanket comes out enormously long and thin, and a garment does not fit anything.

The abbreviations both systems share

Everything below is common ground. These mean the same thing in both traditions.

Turning chains, which differ by stitch height

A turning chain lifts the hook to the height of the row you are about to work. The number of chains depends on the stitch, which is one more reason a US/UK mix-up compounds.

• Single crochet (US): 1 chain, and it does not count as a stitch.
• Half double crochet (US): 2 chains.
• Double crochet (US): 3 chains, and it usually does count as a stitch.
• Treble (US): 4 chains.

Whether the turning chain counts as a stitch is the single most common source of a stitch count drifting by one per row. The pattern should say; if it does not, count your stitches after row three and again after row six.

Symbol charts sidestep the whole problem

International crochet symbol charts use a picture for each stitch - a cross for single crochet, a T with one bar for half double, and so on. Because the symbol shows the stitch height directly, a chart is unambiguous regardless of which country wrote it.

If you work from charts you never have to worry about US versus UK again. Learning to read one takes an afternoon and is worth doing before any large project from an unfamiliar source.

Converting a pattern safely

1. Establish the system before you buy yarn. Different stitch heights mean different yardage.
2. Write the conversion at the top of the pattern. dc = sc, tr = dc, and so on, in your own handwriting.
3. Work a swatch of ten stitches and five rows. If the fabric height looks wrong for the stitch name, you have the systems crossed.
4. Check the finished measurements against the stitch count. If the pattern says 40 stitches makes 8 inches and yours makes 12, stop.

The Craft Yarn Council publishes the American abbreviation standard that most US patterns follow, and it is the reference this table uses on the US side.