The t-shirt is the first real top most players put on after wipe. It costs 25 cloth at a Workbench 1, gives your chest and arms 15% protection, and sits under any jacket or chest armor so the protection stacks.
This t-shirt Rust guide covers the craft cost and blueprint, the exact protection numbers, how it compares to the longsleeve, shirt, hoodie and burlap shirt, what to wear over it, where to get one, and when it is the right pick over warmer tops.
- What It Is
- Stats
- Craft Cost
- Protection
- T-Shirt Compared
- What to Wear Over It
- How to Get One
- Loadouts
- Tips
- FAQ
What Is the T-Shirt in Rust?
The t-shirt is a cloth clothing item for the chest and arms. It is the cheapest top you can make at a Workbench 1, and the only one that needs nothing but cloth. No sewing kit, no leather, no metal.
Rust gives the chest two clothing layers. The under-layer is a t-shirt, longsleeve, shirt, hoodie, BDU shirt, burlap shirt or hide vest. The outer layer is a jacket, snow jacket, poncho or chest armor like the Metal Chest Plate. You wear one of each, and their protection adds up. Our Rust clothing guide covers every piece in both layers.
Protection only counts where you are hit. A t-shirt does nothing for a headshot or a leg shot, but every bullet, arrow or melee swing that lands on your torso or arms is cut by 15%.
Rust T-Shirt Stats
| Stat | T-Shirt |
|---|---|
| Craft cost | 25 Cloth |
| Workbench | Level 1 |
| Craft time | 30 seconds |
| Blueprint | 15 scrap to research, 15 scrap node on the Workbench 1 tech tree |
| Projectile protection | 15% |
| Melee protection | 15% |
| Cold protection | 6% |
| Bite protection | 5% |
| Radiation protection | 3% |
| Slot | Chest and arms, under-layer (stacks with jackets and chest armor) |
| Recycle | 15 Cloth (10 cloth at a safe zone recycler) |
| Stack size | 1 |
| Shortname / Item ID | tshirt / 223891266 |
The longsleeve is tshirt.long and the hoodie is hoodie. Every ID is in our full Rust item IDs list.
How to Craft a T-Shirt in Rust
- Place a Workbench 1. The t-shirt is a Workbench Level 1 item. A Workbench 1 costs 500 wood and 100 metal fragments.
- Get the blueprint. Put a t-shirt in a research table with 15 scrap, or unlock the t-shirt node on the Workbench 1 branch of the tech tree for 15 scrap.
- Collect 25 cloth. Pick wild hemp, grow your own, or harvest animals. Our Rust cloth guide lists every source.
- Craft it at the bench. It takes 30 seconds.
Because it needs no sewing kit, the t-shirt never competes with your armor for kits. That is its real advantage over the hoodie and pants, which each eat a kit.
Rust T-Shirt Protection
The t-shirt gives 15% projectile and 15% melee protection. That matches the longsleeve and the hide vest, and beats the burlap shirt by 5%. It adds only 6% cold, which is a weakness in the snow and a strength in the desert, where heavy clothing makes you overheat.
It is not radiation gear. At 3% it barely changes your rad intake, so for monuments with real radiation a hazmat suit replaces your whole outfit.
T-Shirt vs Longsleeve, Shirt, Hoodie and Burlap
| Item | Bullet | Melee | Bite | Rad | Cold | How to get it |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| T-Shirt | 15% | 15% | 5% | 3% | 6% | 25 cloth, WB1 |
| Longsleeve T-Shirt | 15% | 15% | 6% | 5% | 10% | 30 cloth, WB1 |
| Shirt | 17% | 15% | 5% | 6% | 6% | 25 cloth, WB1 |
| Hoodie | 20% | 15% | 6% | 5% | 8% | 40 cloth, 1 sewing kit, WB2 |
| BDU Shirt | 23% | 20% | 6% | 5% | 5% | Loot only |
| Burlap Shirt | 10% | 10% | 3% | 2% | 7% | 20 cloth, no workbench |
| Hide Vest | 15% | 15% | 8% | 3% | 5% | 10 leather, no workbench |
The honest answer: the t-shirt is a stepping stone. The longsleeve gives the same bullet and melee protection with 4% more cold for 5 more cloth, so it is the better pick anywhere cold. The collared shirt gives 2% more bullet protection for the same 25 cloth. The hoodie beats all of them at Workbench 2, and the loot-only BDU shirt is the best under-layer in the game.
Where the t-shirt still wins is the desert. Its low cold value keeps you from tipping into the Too Hot effect on a hot day.
What to Wear Over a T-Shirt
The t-shirt is an under-layer, so you can put any outer chest piece on top. Their protection adds together.
| Outer chest piece | Bullet alone | With t-shirt | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jacket | 15% | 30% | Cheap Workbench 1 kit |
| Road Sign Jacket | 20% | 35% | Budget PvP with no high quality metal |
| Snow Jacket | 20% | 35% | The snow biome |
| Metal Chest Plate | 25% | 40% | Everyday PvP |
| Ballistic Vest | 35% | 50% | When you loot one |
If you already have a chest plate, you can almost certainly afford a hoodie too, and that pair reaches 45%. A t-shirt under armor makes sense mid-wipe before your Workbench 2, or when you are saving sewing kits. See the full armor kits in our Rust armor guide.
How to Get a T-Shirt in Rust
- Craft it. The reliable route once you have the blueprint and a Workbench 1.
- Buy it. The clothing vending machine at Outpost sells t-shirts and longsleeves for a few scrap. Buy one, then research it so you never need to buy another.
- Loot it. T-shirts turn up in roadside crates and around low-tier monuments in the first hours of a wipe.
- Recycle spares. A recycler turns a t-shirt into 15 cloth, or 10 cloth at a safe zone recycler.
The t-shirt has hundreds of skins from the Item Store, Twitch drops and the Steam market. Skins change only the look, never the protection. See our Rust skins guide.
Best T-Shirt Loadouts
| Situation | Chest | Full kit |
|---|---|---|
| Wipe day | Burlap shirt or hide vest | Burlap or hide set, no workbench |
| Early wipe (WB1) | T-shirt | T-shirt, pants, bandana |
| Desert | T-shirt | Boonie hat, t-shirt, shorts |
| Budget PvP | T-shirt + Road Sign Jacket | Coffee Can Helmet, road sign jacket, t-shirt, pants, kilt |
| Snow biome | Longsleeve instead | Balaclava, snow jacket, longsleeve or hoodie, pants, boots |
Rust T-Shirt Tips
- Never run a bare chest. 15% less damage on every torso hit for 25 cloth is about as cheap as protection gets.
- Pick the shirt if you have its blueprint. Same 25 cloth, 17% bullets instead of 15%.
- Use the longsleeve in the cold. 10% cold for 5 more cloth.
- Upgrade at Workbench 2. The hoodie gives 20% and replaces the t-shirt in any serious kit.
- Save your sewing kits. The t-shirt needs none, so it is a good chest piece while you spend kits on pants, a kilt or a hoodie.
- Keep a spare in your base. Keep a few t-shirts in a box next to your sleeping bag so you never run back out with a bare chest.
- Remember the wipe. Clothing, blueprints and the base you keep them in all reset. Check when the next force wipe is.
Rust T-Shirt FAQ
How do you craft a t-shirt in Rust?
A t-shirt costs 25 cloth at a Workbench 1. It needs no sewing kit and takes 30 seconds to craft.
What workbench do you need for a t-shirt in Rust?
The t-shirt needs a Workbench Level 1. Before that, wear a burlap shirt (20 cloth) or a hide vest (10 leather), which need no workbench.
How much scrap is the t-shirt blueprint?
Researching a t-shirt costs 15 scrap at a research table. The t-shirt node on the Workbench 1 tech tree also costs 15 scrap.
How much protection does a t-shirt give in Rust?
The t-shirt gives 15% projectile, 15% melee, 6% cold, 5% bite and 3% radiation protection on the chest and arms.
Is the t-shirt or longsleeve better in Rust?
They have the same 15% bullet and melee protection. The longsleeve adds 10% cold instead of 6% for 5 more cloth, so it is better in cold biomes. The t-shirt is better in the desert because it keeps you from overheating.
Can you wear a t-shirt under armor in Rust?
Yes. The t-shirt is an under-layer, so you can wear a jacket, road sign jacket, snow jacket or Metal Chest Plate over it and the protection stacks. A t-shirt plus a Metal Chest Plate gives 40% bullet protection on the chest.
What do you get from recycling a t-shirt in Rust?
A monument recycler returns 15 cloth. A safe zone recycler returns 10 cloth.
What is the t-shirt item ID in Rust?
The t-shirt uses the shortname tshirt and the item ID 223891266.
Sources and Further Reading
- Description, recipe, item ID and workbench: Facepunch Wiki, T-Shirt
- Longsleeve comparison: RustClash, Longsleeve T-Shirt
- Outpost vending stock: Corrosion Hour, Outpost vending machine loot tables
- Research and tech tree prices: Facepunch, Pivot or Die update (November 2025)