Face Shape Calculator: What Haircut Suits Me?
Measure four things with a tape measure and this works out your face shape the way a stylist does, then gives you the cuts, the bangs and the styles to skip.
Hairstylists do not guess your face shape. They look at four measurements: how long your face is, and how wide it is at the forehead, the cheekbones and the jaw. The numbers tell them which cuts will balance your face and which ones will fight it.
This calculator does the same math. Measure four things, pick your jawline, and you get your shape plus the cuts and bangs to ask for.
How to measure your face
Use a soft tape measure, the kind used for sewing. No tape? Use a piece of string and hold it against a ruler afterward. Pull your hair back and look straight into a mirror.
Face length. From your hairline down to the tip of your chin, straight down the middle.
Forehead width. Across the widest part of your forehead, about halfway between your eyebrows and your hairline.
Cheekbone width. From the top of one cheekbone, just below the outer corner of your eye, across to the other.
Jaw width. From just below one ear to just below the other, at the widest point of your jaw.
Use the same unit for all four. Centimeters and inches both work, because the calculator compares the numbers to each other rather than to a fixed size.
The seven face shapes and what the numbers look like
Oval. Length is about one and a half times the cheekbone width. Forehead, cheekbones and jaw are close together, with the jaw slightly softer.
Round. Length and width are close, usually within a quarter. The jawline curves instead of turning a corner.
Square. Length and width are close, like a round face, but the jaw has a clear angle at the corner.
Heart. The forehead is the widest measurement and the chin is narrow and pointed.
Diamond. Cheekbones are widest, with a narrower forehead and a narrower chin.
Oblong. Length is at least one and a half times the width, with all three widths close together.
Triangle. The jaw is the widest measurement, wider than both the cheekbones and the forehead.
What haircut suits me?
There is one rule behind every answer: add where your face is narrow, and take away where it is wide.
A round face wants height and vertical lines, so layers start below the chin and volume sits at the crown. An oblong face wants the opposite, so a blunt lob and bangs cut the length down. A heart-shaped face wants weight near the jaw, which is why a chin-length bob works so well on it. A triangle face wants it the other way around, with fullness at the temples.
Bangs follow the same logic. Curtain bangs suit almost everyone because they add width at the forehead and softness at the cheek at the same time. Blunt, heavy bangs shorten the face, which helps an oblong shape and works against a round one. Our guide to bangs for round faces goes through it style by style.
Your hair type matters as much as your face shape. A cut that needs sleek, straight ends will not behave the same way on curls, so run the hair type quiz before you book, and take both answers to your stylist.
Three things people get wrong
Measuring over hair. Push everything back. Even a couple of inches of hair on the forehead changes the number.
Measuring the jaw at the chin. The jaw measurement is taken under the ears, at the widest point, not at the front of the chin.
Treating the result as a rule. Face shape narrows down the list of flattering cuts. It does not ban anything. If you love a style that is not on your list, ask your stylist to adapt it rather than skip it.
Frequently Asked Questions
Keep going: run the hair type quiz so your cut suits your curl pattern too, and the color analysis quiz for the hair colors that match your skin.
