What haircut suits my face shape?
Stylists usually choose a cut to balance the face: volume where the face is narrow, and less where it is wide. A round face often gets height on top, a long face gets width at the sides, and a heart-shaped face gets fullness around the chin. That is a convention passed between stylists, not a rule or a measurement, so treat what follows as a starting point.
Pick your face shape above and the cuts, the place to add volume and what to go easy on appear. Nothing you choose is saved or sent.
How do I know my face shape?
If you are not sure, measure. Our face shape calculator takes four tape-measure numbers and names your closest shape in about three minutes. Judging by eye is unreliable: a study of 313 school children found that classifying face type by observation agreed only poorly with classifying it from measurements.
Once you have a shape, the calculator links straight here with it filled in.
Haircuts for each face shape
- Oval. Cuts to try: almost any length or cut works. Where to add volume: wherever you like it. What to avoid: nothing in particular; a heavy fringe can hide balanced proportions.
- Round. Cuts to try: cuts with height at the crown and length past the chin, with long layers. Where to add volume: on top, rather than at the sides. What to avoid: chin-length blunt bobs and round volume at the sides.
- Square. Cuts to try: soft layers and waves around the jaw. Where to add volume: around the face, softly, rather than at the jaw corners. What to avoid: blunt cuts that end right at the jaw.
- Oblong. Cuts to try: mid-length cuts with volume at the sides, often with a fringe. Where to add volume: at the sides, not on top. What to avoid: very long, straight hair with height on top.
- Heart. Cuts to try: chin to shoulder length with fullness around the chin. Where to add volume: at chin level, not at the crown. What to avoid: lots of height and volume at the crown.
- Diamond. Cuts to try: cuts with fullness at the forehead and chin, or hair tucked behind the ears. Where to add volume: at the forehead and the chin, not at the cheekbones. What to avoid: volume at the cheekbones.
Your hair matters more than your face
Face shape is one input, and often not the biggest.
- Texture. Curly and coily hair adds volume on its own, so a cut that relies on height at the crown may not need any help. Fine, straight hair may need layers to hold any volume at all.
- Density. A blunt cut can make low-density hair look fuller, while high-density hair often needs weight taken out. Our hair density test helps.
- Cowlicks and partings. Where your hair naturally falls can rule out a style, or suggest one. Our hair parting finder covers that.
- Upkeep. A cut that needs daily styling or trims every few weeks has to fit your life. Our short or long hair quiz weighs that up.
Why these are conventions and not rules
We do not know of a study showing that a particular haircut “suits” a face shape, and what suits someone is largely taste. The pairings here come from common styling advice about balance. We say so because a style guide should not pretend to be a measurement.
Taking it to a stylist
Bring a couple of photos of cuts you like on people with hair like yours, rather than a face shape chart. Tell the stylist how long you want to spend styling each day and how often you will come back for a trim. A good stylist will look at how your hair grows and falls, which no chart can.
Take it further in the HairLens app
The HairLens app matches a routine and products to your hair type and what it reads from your photos, including the products you already own.