The colors that look good on you match three traits, your undertone, how light or deep your coloring is, and how bright or soft it looks. Hold colors under your chin in daylight and watch your skin, not the fabric. Our free seasonal color analysis reads all three from a selfie.
Why some colors make you glow
A color right under your face reflects onto your skin and changes how it looks. A flattering color makes skin look smoother and more even, softens shadows and makes eyes look brighter. An unflattering one can deepen shadows under the eyes, bring out redness, or give skin a gray or yellow cast.
Studies of how people judge faces have found that small changes in skin color, such as a little more rosiness or golden warmth, change how healthy a face looks to others. Clothes near the face cause exactly these small shifts, which is why the right colors matter so much.
The three traits that decide your colors
1. Temperature, warm or cool
This is your undertone. Warm skin glows in golden colors, cool skin in blue based colors. Neutral skin sits in the middle and can wear a bit of both. Our guide to skin undertones explains how to find yours.
2. Depth, light or deep
Look at your hair, skin and eyes together. Light coloring looks best in lighter colors, deep coloring in deeper ones. Wearing colors much darker or lighter than your own coloring can overpower you or wash you out.
3. Clarity, bright or soft
Clear, high contrast coloring, such as very dark hair with light skin and bright eyes, looks great in vivid colors. Soft, blended coloring, where hair, skin and eyes are close together, looks better in muted, slightly grayed colors.
The at home color test
You need daylight, a mirror and some clothes or fabric in different colors. Scarves, towels and t shirts all work.
- Remove makeup and pull your hair back.
- Stand facing a window in daylight.
- Hold one color under your chin so it fills the space below your face.
- Look at your face, not the color. Check your skin, the shadows under your eyes and the whites of your eyes.
- Compare pairs. Try a warm and a cool version of the same color, for example coral against raspberry, or camel against gray.
- Keep the winners. The colors that make you look rested and clear are yours.
Taking photos helps, because it is easier to compare faces side by side. Our color analysis does this for you with its drape preview, which frames your face in four of your best colors and four to skip.
Colors by trait, a quick guide
| If your coloring is | Try | Use with care |
|---|---|---|
| Warm | Coral, camel, olive, rust, turquoise | Icy pastels, blue grays |
| Cool | Berry, navy, emerald, royal blue | Orange, mustard, golden brown |
| Light | Pastels, soft mid tones | Black, very deep colors |
| Deep | Rich jewel and earth tones | Pale pastels, light beige |
| Bright | Vivid, clear colors, high contrast | Dusty, muted colors |
| Soft | Muted, blended colors, low contrast | Neon, stark black and white |
Your color season
Seasonal color analysis combines the three traits into 12 seasons. Each family shares two traits.
- Springs are warm and clear, with fresh, sunny colors.
- Summers are cool and soft, with gentle, rosy colors.
- Autumns are warm and soft, with rich, earthy colors.
- Winters are cool and clear, with strong jewel tones and contrast.
Within each family, three seasons lean on a different trait, such as Light Spring, Warm Spring and Bright Spring. Our seasonal color analysis finds your season and shows you a 24 color palette with hex codes you can copy for shopping.
Common mistakes
- Judging under indoor light. Lamps make everything look warmer. Always test in daylight.
- Looking at the fabric. Watch your face. The prettiest color on the hanger is not always the best one on you.
- Only thinking about skin. Hair and eye color change your best colors as much as skin does.
- Letting makeup decide. Foundation and blush change how colors look. Test with bare skin.
- Thinking one trait is everything. A cool person can still need soft colors, and a warm person can still need bright ones.
Building a wardrobe around your colors
Once you know your best colors, a few rules make getting dressed easier.
- Pick two or three neutrals from your palette for coats, trousers, shoes and bags. Warm people might choose camel, olive and cream. Cool people might choose navy, gray and soft white.
- Pick four to six accent colors for tops, scarves and dresses. These are the colors near your face.
- Keep your best colors closest to your face. A flattering top or scarf matters more than trousers or shoes.
- Use less flattering colors lower down. Love mustard but it does not suit your face. Wear it as a skirt, trousers or a bag.
- Add one new color at a time, and check it in daylight before you buy more in the same shade.
Colors for work, events and photos
- For work, choose your deepest neutral as the base, such as navy or chocolate, with one of your accent colors near the face.
- For events, your clearest or richest accent color in a solid fabric makes the strongest impression.
- For photos, solid colors from your palette usually photograph better than busy prints, and medium depth colors look more even on camera than very pale or very dark ones.
What if you love colors that do not suit you
You can wear any color you love. Color analysis is a guide, not a rule. If a color does not flatter your face, keep it below the waist, add a scarf or collar in one of your colors, or use makeup from your palette to bring life back to your face. Often a slightly different version of the color, warmer, cooler, lighter or softer, gives you the look you love and suits you too.
Colors that suit almost everyone
If you are shopping for someone else, or want safe basics, a few balanced colors flatter most people.
- Teal, between blue and green.
- True red, neither orange nor blue.
- Soft white, neither stark nor creamy.
- Navy, softer than black.
- Jade and dusty pink, gentle and balanced.
For makeup that matches cool coloring, see makeup for cool undertones, and if your skin has a muted green cast, read our guide to olive skin.