Hi my lovelies!
We are back at it again, comparing two dupes with my favorite (although terrible for my wallet), activewear brand. For this week, we have the Lululemon Align tank vs. the Amazon Lavento dupe vs. the Amazon Dragon Fit dupe.
The Align tank was released by Lululemon in November of 2019, and since then, has consistently sold out online, in-stores, across the world...everywhere. It’s become the hallmark of die-hard Align pant lovers to systematically stalk the Lululemon website for the scarce restocks of the Align tank, or the very occasional new color. The most coveted pieces are those which were released early on, like the Night Diver or Garnet Align tanks, which can be found on resale sites for as much as $200, despite initially retailing for $54 + tax.
Why is the Align tank so popular? It’s primary selling point is the Nulu material it is made out of, the same material as the famous buttery-soft Lululemon Align that every brand is constantly aspiring to mimic. It also doubles as a bra, with a built-in shelf bra, giving you a two-in-one deal, and many find it casual enough to use both as a non-athletic wear piece. However, it is definitely designed for those less endowed in mind, as the cut of the top can come quite low, and bring lots of attention to the ladies. Then again, if you don’t mind that attention, then it is definitely a flattering top regardless of the low-cute on all body types!
Now that I’ve hyped you up on the Align tank, you can probably understand why its constantly sold out...leading us to come to the part everyone really came for...the dupes!
On Amazon, I’ve managed to find three look-alikes from The Gym People, Dragon Fit and Lavento. The Gym People and Dragon Fit use the same stock photos, so I’m inclined to say that they are most likely sourcing from the same seller, which is why I only bought one of the two, and Lavento is one of our favorite AliExpress on Amazon sellers, who most definitely source from China and has a much wider array of color options than The Gym People and Dragon Fit, which only sell Black, White, and Gray Align tank dupes. In this review, I wanted to discover three things:
1) Are the Gym People/Dragon Fit and Lavento dupes the same?
2) How do these two dupes match up to the original Align tank in terms of…
a. Sizing and fit...?
b. Material...?
c. And...overall comfort/functionality?
Unfortunately, not everything was in stock on both Amazon and Lululemon when I decided to do this review, so I’ve had to make do with the sizes that they had.
From Amazon, I ordered (links below the photos):
From Lululemon, I ordered:
*Currently sold out*
As always, each category will have a winner, and I’ll have an overall conclusion in the bottom!
Note: Currently the Lavento tops aren't available from Amazon with Prime shipping :( But they often restock so hopefully if you like the style, the wait won't be too long! Alternatively, you can buy the same top from AliExpress here: https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_d87XP2F
First and foremost, the Lavento and Dragon Fit dupes are definitely not the same! As soon as I opened the packages, I could tell that they were completely different, so to the first question: Are the Gym People/Dragon Fit and Lavento dupes the same? The answer is a resounding NO!
Sizing and Fit
Moving on to our first category, we have sizing and fit! To be completely honest, I know I’m not the most well-endowed, but I find myself shying a bit away from the Align tank, just because it is fairly low cut. I wasn’t too sure what measurements would be the most helpful in this case, but I decided to measure the bottom of the tank, the width of the bust area, and the strap length as best as I could, the length from the V at the top of the tank to the bottom of the front of the tank, and the length from the arm holes to the bottom of the tank. Also, sorry for the terrible fit pics, I'm terrible at photo taking...for reference, I am roughly 5'3", 123 lbs with a 26" waist and 34C/D.
As to why I selected these particular measurements, the bottom of the align tank indicates how cinched the waist will be, and the width of the bust will give you an idea of how much space you’ll have around your ribcage/bust-line. The length measurements should give you an idea of how cropped the tank is overall, as well as how low the neckline comes. So, without further ado…here are the measurements!
Lululemon:
Size 6 Align Tank Fit:
Measurements:
Strap Length: 5”
Bottom Width: 13”
From V-neck to bottom length: 8.25”
Length from armpit: 7.5”
Bust Width: 13.5”
Size 8 Align Tank Fit:
Measurements:
Strap Length: 5”
Bottom Width: 14”
Bust Measurement: 14”
From V-neckline to bottom Length: 8.25”
Length from armpit: 8”
I tried both the Size 6 and Size 8 Align tanks, and found that I fit a Size 6 the best, as the size 8 led to some looseness around the waist. They were both quite low-cut on me, and reached to the top of my High Rise Align Shorts (which I immediately ripped off the tags after I finished taking pictures because I decided they are the most comfortable things in the world…). In terms of coverage, I felt fairly out there in both sizes, as I’m not as used to wearing low-cut tops, but both were still quite comfortable.
Size Large Fit:
Measurements:
Strap Length: 4”
Bottom Width: 13”
Bust Measurement: 13.5”
Length from Armpit: 7”
From V-neckline to bottom length: 8.5”
Interestingly enough, the Lavento Large seemed to be around equivalent to the Size 6, which worked out just fine for me. It is cropped shorter than the Align tank, with both the length of the overall top and the straps, shorter than the Align Tank, it also has much less of a plunging neckline, 8.5” inches instead of 8.25” compared to the Align Tank, coupled with the shorter straps, leads to great coverage. There was no gaping at the waist for me, which was definitely a bonus, but I didn’t feel like I was wrapped up too tightly either.
It does mean that because of the shorter straps, the top is slightly more cropped, so if you are a taller gal, it may be too short for comfort for you. The overall cut of this dupe isn’t exactly the same as the Align tank, with the straps not tapering out to be as thin, or the length as long, but if you want your ladies a bit more covered up than the Align tank, I would highly recommend this dupe!! It definitely does run small though, so size up!
Size Medium Fit
Measurements:
Strap Length: 4”
Bottom Width: 14”
Bust Measurement: 14.5"
From V-neckline to bottom length: 8”
Length from Armpit: 8”
The Dragon Fit medium fit more like the Size 8, but seemed to be even a little bit bigger, which surprised me given that I had just tried on the Lavento dupe in a Large. I immediately noticed how loose it was on me, even looser than the Size 8 align tank, and you can definitely see that in how loose the tank is at the bottom + some extra fabric below the bra band. However, from the front, when not looking at anything else, it definitely looks more similar to the Lululemon Align tank than the Lavento dupe. I would also say that this is definitely true to size, and I should have gotten a small instead of a Medium for a better fit!
Overall
I kind of found these hard to rank, maybe because I bought the wrong size in the Dragon Fit dupe, but to be completely impartial, the overall “look” of the Dragon Fit dupe is more similar to that of Lululemon, with its lower cut bust, and overall longer top, so I’ll give it the win in this category.
Winner: Dragon Fit
Material
Now that we are done with sizing, let’s take a look at the material composition of these different dupes! The Lululemon align tank is made of their buttery-soft Nulu fabric, which I have yet to find a complete dupe for. Lululemon keeps their fabric compositions patented, and I’m sure there is plenty they aren’t telling us in the description tag.
Dragon Fit: 80% Nylon, 20% Spandex
Lavento: 80% Nylon, 20% Spandex
Lululemon: 80% Nylon, 20% Lycra/Elastane (Body), 89% Nylon, 11% Elastane (Middle layer - aka the built-in bra)
The Dragon Fit and Lavento dupes interestingly enough say that they are made of the same fabric compositions, 80% Nylon and 20% spandex, however the two fabrics certainly feel very different. They are both quite stretchy, but neither have as brushed of a feeling as the Align Tank. The most notable thing though is that the Dragon Fit dupe is made of quite shiny material, much like what you would see in swimsuits, unlike the matte finish of the original align tank and the Lavento dupe.
The Lavento dupe, while not as brushed as the original align, is notably softer and has more of a brushed-feel compared to the slick, shiny quality of the Dragon Fit dupe. It’s quite difficult to capture the shiny texture in a photo, but I’ve tried my best in the measurement photos above!
For me, the winner in terms of the material composition is definitely the Lavento dupe!
Winner: Lavento Dupe
Comfort/Functionality
Personally, I found that the fabric of the Lavento dupes were just much more comfortable as a tank than the Dragon Fit, because of its brushed nature vs. the slick and slide fabric that the Dragon Fit dupes were made out of. I found the Lavento top also much more practical personally, because of its higher neckline, but for those who aren’t as body-shy as I am, any of the tanks will do.
Bra Bands: Top (Lavento), Middle (Dragon Fit), Bottom (Lululemon)
One thing that I do want to mention before ending this review though, is the built-in bra in all of the tanks. They all have different types elastic at the bottom of the built-in bra, which results in a very different kind of pressure around your rib-cage. The Dragon Fit dupe has the thickest elastic between the Align and Lavento dupes, while the Lavento dupes have the thinnest elastic. For me, having a big, thick piece of elastic isn’t all that comfortable, so I’m giving Lavento the win here.
However! If you are bigger busted (I’m roughly a 34C/D), you may find that a thicker elastic will give more support, albeit perhaps at the cost of comfort.
Winner: Lavento Dupe
The Conclusion?
For me, the overall dupe winner is Lavento, but Dragon Fit was the winner of the sizing/fit category, and looks much more like the Align dupe, so if you are looking for a more true to appearance dupe, I would go with the Dragon Fit, but if you are okay with getting a similar style, but not an exact dupe, and value comfort over exact style, I think the Lavento tank is a great staple for a workout wardrobe, regardless of its status as an Align Tank dupe or not!
Overall Winner: Lavento
As always, I hope this review was helpful, and thanks for checking out my blog!
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Caly Out!
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