Waist Cincher vs. Waist Trainer: What’s the Difference?

In the quest for the perfect hourglass figure, you may have come across two different kinds of shape-enhancing garments: the waist cincher and the waist trainer. But what's the difference? Today, we're taking a deep dive into the waist cincher vs. waist trainer debate to discuss these two sculpting sensations and figure out which style is best for your unique needs, long-term goals and budget.

How Waist Cinchers and Trainers Are Similar

We've seen celebs like Kim Kardashian, Nicki Minaj and Lindsay Lohan promoting waist trainers on social media, touting them as waist-sucking wonder-workers that slim the midsection while highlighting the rear end. Both cinchers and trainers are worn around the waist and feature compression fabric to suck in the belly in order to alter the figure and serve as shapewear beneath clothing. Both waist cinchers and waist trainers have the same ultimate goal: to suck in your tummy and define your waist, creating a gorgeous hourglass figure. Both are designed to be worn for longer periods of time to "train" or tame the waist to your desired figure, including during the time you're working out. And both come with the added bonus of helping you improve your posture! If the word "waist trainer" immediately conjures up images of the tiny waists and pained faces of Victorian women, fear not. It's important to note that waist cinchers and trainers are NOT corsets. Though similar, these are modern garments that do not have the painful, rigid steel boning that are used in corsets. In fact, as you'll learn below, some waist cinchers don't have any boning, lacing or closures at all.

Waist Cinchers

The primary difference between waist cinchers and waist trainers is the fabric they're made of. Leonisa's advanced waist cinchers are latex-free and made with our trademark firm compression PowerSlim ® fabric to sculpt the torso and flatten the tummy in an instant. They also feature an inner layer of soft fabric, so they won't irritate your skin. Many have boning in the front, back and sides for a 360-degree figure enhancement. 

Shop Leonisa Waist Cinchers

One thing that sets waist cinchers apart from waist trainers is that there are many more styles available. For example, you can find waist cinchers with and without built-in boning as well as styles without a closure. If you intend to wear your cincher beneath your clothing more as a shapewear option than a figure-trainer, then you may want to select one of these styles, since they offer a smoother silhouette beneath your clothes.

Waist Trainers

Our waist trainers, on the other hand, are constructed from extra-firm yet lightweight latex material that sculpts your curves with extra compression as well as boning and hook-and-eye closures. They feature flexible front and back boning, which not only helps create that stunning hourglass silhouette, but also helps improve your posture. With latex on the outside and cotton on the inside, our waist trainers can also be worn to enhance results when you work out.

Discover Our Best-Selling Latex Waist Trainer

Which One Is Best for You?

As you can see, the difference between Leonisa waist cinchers and waist trainers is fairly negligible, but the difference between the two styles may vary from one brand to the next. Of course, one obvious reason to select a Leonisa cincher over a trainer is because it's made of latex-free materials, which makes it a better option for people with latex allergies or sensitive skin. Our latex-free waist cinchers are also more affordable than our waist trainers. We have a variety of different waist cinchers in our collection of shapewear, so be sure to explore the many different options available at Leonisa!