Where these hooks come from
The recommendations are the crochet hooks listed for 86 UK-sold yarns on LoveCrafts, checked on 1 October 2026, from our guide to what hook size to use for DK, aran and chunky. For DK and aran, the band hook sits below the Craft Yarn Council’s crochet range on most of the yarns we checked (28 of 31 DK, 19 of 20 aran). The US and old UK names come from our sourced hook size chart, which also shows where published charts disagree.
When to go up or down a size
The band is a starting point. Paintbox’s DK toy patterns use 3 to 3.5mm for a firmer fabric, and several blanket patterns we checked drop a size for the border. Your pattern’s hook and tension win over the band: make a swatch, measure it, and change hook if your stitches per 10cm don’t match.