Photograph the zip before you unpick anything. The old stitching is your pattern, and once it is out you will not remember how the tape sat under the facing.
Check it is really the zip. A slider that no longer closes the teeth behind it can sometimes be squeezed gently back into shape with pliers, and a missing bottom stop can be replaced with a few hand stitches. Both are quicker than a replacement.
Buy the same type. Coil, metal or moulded, and open-ended or closed-ended — an open-ended jacket zip and a closed dress zip are not interchangeable. Match the tape width and the weight to the garment.
Get the length right. Buy the same length, or longer. A closed-end nylon zip that is too long can be shortened from the bottom: stitch a new bar tack across the teeth and cut below it. A metal or open-ended zip cannot be shortened so easily, so match it.
Unpick carefully. Work slowly, note where the facing, lining and seam allowances were caught, and leave the surrounding seam intact where you can.
Tack the new zip in place by hand or with basting tape before machining. Pins slip on zip tape and a wandering zip is obvious in wear.
Use a zip foot, and stitch at the same distance from the teeth as the original — the old needle holes are still visible and are a good guide.
Test the slider before you close up any lining.
Questions people actually ask
The zip broke but the garment is fine.
That is the usual case, and replacing it is well worth the hour. Zips fail long before the fabric does.
Can I replace a zip without unpicking the lining?
Sometimes, working through the opening and finishing the last section by hand. It is fiddlier but avoids disturbing a lining that fits well.
Last reviewed 2026-08-11