The gas-phase structures of transition-metal dication (Zn(2+) and Cd(2+)) complexes with varying sized crown ethers, 12-crown-4 (12c4), 15-crown-5 (15c5), and 18-crown-6 (18c6), are investigated using infrared multiple photon dissociation (IRMPD) spectroscopy and quantum mechanical calculations. The measured spectra span the 750-1600 cm(-1) infrared range, utilizing light generated by a free electron laser, and are compared to predicted spectra calculated at the B3LYP/6-311+G(d,p) or B3LYP/Def2TZVP levels of theory. Spectra with the largest and most flexible crown ether, 18c6, indicate that the crown is highly distorted, wrapping in a tight cage-like structure around both dications studied. The 15c5 adopts a folded orientation for the Zn(2+) comlex yet is almost planar when complexed with the larger Cd(2+) ion. The Zn(2+)(12c4) spectrum has bands appearing at lower frequencies than the other systems, consistent with an open conformation such that the metal is exposed, lying above the center of mass of the crown ether ring. The open structures of the Zn(2+)(12c4) and Cd(2+)(15c5) complexes have implications for solvent interactions in the condensed phase. The conformation of each metal-crown complex is highly dependent on metal size, charge, and crown ether flexibility, such that a delicate balance of minimizing the metal-oxygen bond lengths but maximizing the oxygen-oxygen distances arises. These competing influences are reflected in both the spectra and lowest-energy conformations.