Comfort Colors 1717: The Heavyweight T-Shirt Businesses Keep Choosing

When you’ve been in the blank tee world for a while, you start to notice which blank garments people actually reach for — not just once, but again and again.

The Comfort Colors 1717 Adult Heavyweight T-Shirt is one of those pieces.

It’s not flashy. It doesn’t chase trends. But what it does do is give you a comfort-first tee that feels lived-in from day one, holds up well in decoration, and feels like a $40 tee from the mall, for a quarter of the price.

At Sportswear.ca, we consistently see the 1717 as one of our top-selling tees month-after-month.

What Makes the Comfort Colors 1717 Stand Out

Comfort Colors has always been known for its premium feel — and the 1717 embodies that. It just feels like a top quality tee.

That unique feel comes from its design as a heavyweight, garment-dyed tee. It’s the sort of shirt people don’t want to take off, which is exactly why it resonates with customers of all ages.

A Closer Look at the Comfort Colors 1717

Here’s what you’re really getting with this tee:

Fabric & Build

• Weight: Heavyweight (about ~7.1 oz / 240 g)*
• Composition: 100% Ring-Spun Cotton
• Texture: Soft, plush, with that classic garment-dyed slub finish
• Fit: Relaxed and comfortable, not tight or stiff

(*Exact ounce weights can vary slightly by dye lot, but this is in line with Comfort Colors’ published specs.)

This isn’t a flimsy promotional tee. It’s a substantial, wearable shirt with a presence you can feel — and that matters when you’re distributing apparel to teams, employees, or customers.

Why the Comfort Colors 1717 Works So Well for Retail

It's popular with:

• Independent clothing brands
• Streetwear and lifestyle labels
• Bands, artists, and creators
• Breweries, cafés, and local shops
• Merch sellers who want repeat customers

When someone buys a shirt off a rack or online, they judge it in seconds. The 1717 passes that test almost immediately.

The Look: Vintage, Washed, and On-Trend

One of the biggest reasons brands choose the 1717 is the colour palette and finish. Comfort Colors’ garment-dyed shades have depth and character — they don’t look flat or overly bright.

For retail and merch brands, that means:

• Colours feel intentional, not generic
• Prints look more natural and less “plastic”
• The shirt already has personality before printing

That washed aesthetic fits perfectly with:

• Vintage-inspired graphics
• Minimalist branding
• Bold screen prints
• Distressed or hand-drawn artwork

It’s a blank that supports your design instead of competing with it.

How the 1717 Performs for Printing and Branding

While the 1717 is loved for its look and feel, it also performs well where it counts — on press.

Decorators and brand owners like it because:

• The cotton surface takes ink well
• Prints have strong contrast on washed colours
• The fabric doesn’t feel thin after printing
• Designs age nicely as the shirt is worn and washed

Because it’s garment-dyed, many brands lean into a soft-hand print style or slightly heavier ink application to complement the texture. The end result often feels more like a finished retail product than a decorated blank.

Fit: Relaxed, Easy, and Sellable

The fit of the Comfort Colors 1717 is another reason it works so well in retail.

It has a relaxed, classic silhouette — not boxy in a bad way, not slim, not oversized by default. It fits most people comfortably and predictably, which is critical when you’re selling to the public.

For brands, that means:

• Fewer fit complaints
• Easier sizing decisions for customers
• Better reviews and repeat purchases

Many brands size it true-to-size for a relaxed fit, or encourage customers to size up for a more oversized streetwear look.

Comfort Colors 1717 Size Chart

*in = Inch, dz = Dozen

Comparing the 1717 to a Standard Midweight T-shirt

This is why brands often price garments printed on the 1717 higher — customers perceive more value, and the shirt backs that up.

Real-World Feedback We Hear

One comment comes up again and again from brand owners and printers:

“People don’t treat it like merch — they treat it like a favourite shirt.”

That’s exactly what makes the Comfort Colors 1717 so effective. It doesn’t feel promotional. It feels personal.

And in retail, that difference matters.

Written by the Sportswear.ca team — specialists in blank apparel, corporate programming, and decoration-ready garments for Canadian businesses.