Backless Dresses

Twenty-six backless dresses, twenty of them floor-length. Between £40 and £200, sized XS to XL and UK 6 to 14.

Free UK delivery on every order, no minimum spend, and free 14-day returns.

Detail where the camera is

A backless dress works on a simple observation: at a wedding, a dinner or a party, you spend most of the evening seen from behind. During the speeches, on the dance floor, walking to your table. A dress that puts its detail at the front is doing its best work when nobody is looking.

It is also the most flattering way to show skin. The back is the one area that stays the same shape whether you are standing, sitting or halfway through dinner, which is more than can be said for anything cut low at the front.

The four backs we carry

  • Open back — a clean scoop or square, the most classic and the easiest to wear.
  • Cowl back — three styles. Draped fabric falling into a soft curve. The most elegant of the four and the most forgiving, since it drapes rather than exposes.
  • Halter with an open back — eight styles. The neckline takes the support, leaving the back free. The most secure option here.
  • Tie and lace-up backs — adjustable, which means roughly a size of give either way.

Eleven are black, with white, blue and yellow behind. Eight are satin, four lace, and eight are cut for wedding guests.

The question everyone asks

What do you wear underneath. Several of these styles have a built-in bra and the product page says so — those are the simplest choice and the ones we would recommend if you have not worn a backless dress before.

For the rest: a stick-on or adhesive bra, or nothing. Low-back bra converters exist but rarely sit well under a truly open back. Whichever you choose, wear it around the house for an hour first. A backless dress is not the place to discover at eight in the evening that something does not hold.

Sizing

These run XS to XL in letter sizes and UK 6 to 14 in the numeric ones, with full measurements in centimetres on the size guide. Our dresses are true to size.

Backless styles are less forgiving than most, because there is no back seam to take in. Order to your bust for a halter or cowl, and to your hip for a fitted or mermaid cut. Between two sizes, take the larger in satin and your usual size in stretch.

Delivery and returns

UK delivery is free on every order with no minimum spend, and takes around seven working days. Returns are free within 14 days with a prepaid label in the box.

Where to look next

By neckline: halter neck and one shoulder. By occasion: evening, wedding guest, night out.