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The particle size distribution (PSD) is a fundamental property that influences all aspects of phytoplankton ecology. In particular, the size (e.g. diameter d [μ m]) and sinking speed w [m/d] of individual particles are inextricable, but much remains unknown about how d and w are related quantitatively for bulk particulate matter. There is significant interest in inferring sinking mass fluxes from PSDs but doing so requires knowing how both mass and w scale with d . To this end, using both laser diffraction and imaging we characterized for the first time both sinking and suspended PSDs in the oligotrophic North Pacific subtropical gyre. Comparing these PSDs via a power‐law parameterization indicates an approximately linear w‐to‐d scaling, suggesting particles are more fractal‐like than sphere‐like in this respect. This result is robust across multiple instruments, depths, and sediment trap deployments, and is made comparatively precise by a high degree of replication.