Face shape and haircuts

What haircut suits me? Find your face shape, then see the cut on your own photo

Three questions tell you which of the six face shapes you are closest to. Each shape comes with the cuts that work with it and why. Then, because a chart can only get you to a shortlist, you put the shortlist on your own photo and look at the actual answer.

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Studio portrait of a woman with shoulder length dark hair, the starting photo
Starting photo
The same woman with a blunt bob
Blunt bob
The same woman with long hair and curtain bangs
Curtain bangs
The same woman with a long butterfly cut
Butterfly cut
The same woman with a classic pixie cut
Pixie

One studio portrait, four cuts, same face and same light. These renders use the same edit instruction HairGlam runs on your photo.

Find your face shape in three questions

Pull your hair back and stand in even light. Answer from a straight on mirror or a straight on photo, not from memory.

1. Is your face clearly longer than it is wide?
2. Where is the widest point?
3. How would you describe your jaw?

Prefer measurements? How to know your face shape uses a tape measure and four numbers.

The six face shapes, with cuts that work for each

What each shape is asking a haircut to do, and four cuts from the catalog that do it. Every cut opens a page you can try on your own photo.

Oval

Noticeably longer than it is wide, forehead a touch broader than the jaw, and the chin curves rather than corners. Almost everything works, which is less helpful than it sounds. Because there is nothing to correct, pick for interest instead: a blunt collarbone cut, curtain bangs, or long layers that start at the jaw. The one thing to watch is very heavy, flat length, which can drag an oval face into looking long.

Blunt BobBlunt BobClassic PixieClassic PixieShag Cut ShortShag Cut ShortWolf Cut ShortWolf Cut Short

Every cut that suits a oval face, with the reasoning for each.

Round

Length and width are close to equal, the widest point is the cheek, and the jaw is soft with no hard corners. You are adding vertical, not horizontal. A long layered cut past the collarbone, an A line bob that ends below the jaw rather than at it, and side swept or curtain bangs all lengthen the line of the face. The classic mistake is a blunt chin length bob, which parks a straight horizontal line at the widest point.

A-Line BobA-Line BobClassic PixieClassic PixieShag Cut ShortShag Cut ShortWolf Cut ShortWolf Cut Short

Every cut that suits a round face, with the reasoning for each.

Square

The jaw is roughly as wide as the forehead and it turns a corner rather than curving, with face length close to face width. Curves and diagonals soften those corners: a wavy lob, layers that begin below the jawline, a deep side part, or a textured shag. Avoid a blunt one length cut that stops exactly at the jaw, because it traces the corner you are trying to soften.

Layered BobLayered BobTextured PixieTextured PixieShag Cut ShortShag Cut ShortWolf Cut MidWolf Cut Mid

Every cut that suits a square face, with the reasoning for each.

Heart

Forehead and cheekbones are wider than the chin, which comes to a point, often with a widow's peak at the hairline. The geometry asks for weight low and less bulk high. A chin length bob or a lob with the ends turned under builds width where the face narrows, and curtain bangs or a side swept fringe cut the visible forehead down. Tight volume piled at the crown does the opposite.

Blunt BobBlunt BobPixie BangsPixie BangsShag Cut MidShag Cut MidWolf Cut ShortWolf Cut Short

Every cut that suits a heart face, with the reasoning for each.

Long or oblong

Clearly longer than it is wide, with forehead, cheeks and jaw at a similar width and no strong taper. Here you want horizontal, the opposite of the round face brief. Blunt bangs or a heavy fringe cut the vertical run in half. A shoulder or collarbone length cut with waves adds width at the sides. A long, poker straight center part with no layers is the one to skip, because it draws two more vertical lines.

Blunt Bob BangsBlunt Bob BangsPixie BangsPixie BangsShag Cut MidShag Cut MidCurtain Bangs LongCurtain Bangs Long

Every cut that suits a long face, with the reasoning for each.

Diamond

Cheekbones are the widest point, with a narrow forehead and a narrow chin. The job is to add width at the top and bottom so the cheekbones stop being the only thing with volume. A chin grazing bob puts fullness near the jaw. A side part with lift at the front, or a soft textured fringe, widens the forehead. Slicked back hair with all the volume at ear level exaggerates the cheekbones rather than balancing them.

Blunt BobBlunt BobPixie BangsPixie BangsShag Cut LongShag Cut LongCurtain Bangs MidCurtain Bangs Mid

Every cut that suits a diamond face, with the reasoning for each.

Three things that matter more than the chart

Face shape rules are guidelines written to be printed on one page. They are not laws, and three other factors will change your result more.

1. Hair texture and density

The same cut is two different haircuts on fine straight hair and on thick curls. A shag needs enough density to hold the layers apart, or the ends go stringy. A blunt bob is heavy and flattering on fine hair and can turn into a triangle on thick, coarse hair unless the stylist removes weight underneath. Curls shrink, often by several inches when dry, so a curly cut has to be measured with the curl in, not pulled straight.

2. Your hairline and growth pattern

This is the factor that quietly ruins otherwise sensible haircuts. A cowlick at the front hairline will split a blunt fringe every time it dries, no matter how it was cut. A widow's peak changes where a center part naturally falls. A high or receding hairline changes how much forehead a fringe actually has to cover. A crown whorl decides which side your hair wants to fall on, which is why a side part can feel wrong on one side and effortless on the other.

3. How much styling you will actually do

Be honest about mornings. A blunt bob wants a blow dry with a round brush most washes to keep the line clean. A curly shag wants product and a diffuser. A sleek high ponytail look on textured hair is a standing appointment with a flat iron. Long layers are the low effort option because they still read as a haircut when they air dry. The cut that suits you is the one that still looks like a haircut on a Tuesday.

So is the face shape chart wrong?

No, it is just narrower than it pretends to be. The six shapes are a fast way to generate a shortlist of three or four cuts worth considering, and that is genuinely useful when the alternative is scrolling for an hour. What the chart cannot do is account for your specific hairline, your hair's weight, or how a cut sits against your particular jaw. That is the part you have to see rather than read.

Then look at the shortlist on your own face

A cut you like on someone else is a cut on their bone structure. The only test that settles it is the same cut on your photo. This is what that looks like on one face.

The starting photo: a studio portrait with shoulder length dark hair
Starting photo
The same face with an A line bob
A line bob
The same face with a mid length shag
Mid shag
The same face with blunt bangs
Blunt bangs
The same face with a French bob
French bob

Same face, same light, four cuts that a face shape chart would sort into four different columns. Look at where each one ends against the jaw: that line is doing most of the work.

1

Upload one clear photo

Face the camera straight on in daylight with your hair pulled back off your forehead, so your hairline and jaw are both visible. Tap Upload Photo in the Hair Studio banner. There is no account to create, though a short setup runs the first time you open the app.

2

Run your shortlist

Search Discover for a cut by name, or use the Bob and Curly filter chips to narrow the grid. Cards are labeled cut and color together, like Long Straight with Espresso, so you can hold the color steady while you change the shape. If the shade is the part you are unsure about, the hair color try on page covers that on its own.

3

Compare, then decide

Save the two or three that work and look at them side by side in the Saved tab. The one that still looks right an hour later is usually the answer. Take it to your stylist as a reference photo of your own head.

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Questions about face shape and haircuts

What face shape do I have?
Pull your hair back, stand in even light and look at three things: how wide your forehead is, how wide your cheekbones are, and whether your jaw is angular or soft. Then compare the length of your face to its width. Length and width close together with a soft jaw is round. Length and width close together with a strong, straight jaw is square. Clearly longer than wide with a soft chin is oval; clearly longer with similar widths top to bottom is oblong. A wide forehead over a pointed chin is heart. Wide cheekbones between a narrow forehead and a narrow chin is diamond. The three questions above walk you through exactly this.
What haircut suits my face shape?
Round faces want length and vertical lines, square faces want curves and diagonals to soften the corners, heart faces want weight at the jaw and less at the crown, oblong faces want width from bangs or waves, diamond faces want width at the forehead and chin, and oval faces can go almost anywhere. Each shape above shows four cuts that follow that rule, and the face shape guides list every cut in the catalog that fits.
Does face shape really matter?
It matters less than the internet suggests. Face shape is a decent way to predict where a cut will add width and where it will add length, and that is worth knowing. It is not a rule. Hair texture, density, your hairline and the amount of styling you will actually do change the result more than the shape of your jaw does. Treat the chart as a way to generate a shortlist, then look at the shortlist on your own face.
What haircut makes your face look thinner?
Length and vertical lines. A cut that falls past the jaw, layers that start at or below the cheekbone, an off center part that puts a diagonal across the forehead, and soft waves rather than volume at the sides all pull the eye downward. The cut that does the opposite is a blunt bob that stops at the widest part of the cheek, because it draws a horizontal line straight across it.
What if I am between two face shapes?
Most people are. The chart has six tidy categories and real faces sit between them, usually oval leaning round or square leaning oblong. When you are between two, take the shortlist from both and start with the cuts that appear on both lists. Those are the safest place to begin, and they are also the ones least likely to depend on getting the styling exactly right.
Do bangs suit my face shape?
Bangs are a forehead decision more than a face shape decision. A long forehead, a high hairline or an oblong face are the classic cases where a fringe helps, because it shortens the vertical run of the face. Round faces usually do better with curtain or side swept bangs than with a heavy blunt fringe, which adds one more horizontal line. And a cowlick at the front hairline will fight any fringe, whatever your face shape.
Do the same rules apply to men's haircuts?
Yes. Bone structure does not read gender. A round face still wants height on top and tight sides, a long face still looks longer under a tall quiff, and a square jaw still reads stronger with a hard part and a high fade. The vocabulary changes, the geometry does not.
How does HairGlam decide what suits me?
It does not decide, it shows you. You upload one photo, pick a cut, and the app regenerates that photo with the new hair while keeping your face, your hairline and your skin tone. You end up looking at the actual answer for your face instead of a general rule about faces like yours, which is the part a chart cannot do.
Is HairGlam free?
The app is free to download and you can try it without paying. HairGlam Pro is an auto renewing subscription, weekly, monthly, or yearly, that unlocks unlimited try ons and the full catalog of 299 styles, colors and makeup looks. You can cancel any time in your App Store account settings. It runs on iPhone with iOS 15.1 or later.

Keep reading on your shape

How to know your face shape

Four measurements, a mirror and a piece of tape, plus the faster way to skip all of it.

Haircuts for a round face

Where the length has to fall, which bob works, and why the chin length blunt cut fights you.

Haircuts for an oval face

The shape that suits most cuts, and how to choose when nothing is ruled out for you.

Hairstyle try on

How the render works, what makes a good photo, and what to expect from the result.

Face shape guides

Round face

Measure your face length and your cheekbone width. On a round face the two numbers are close, usually within about ten

Oval face

Face length is roughly one and a half times your cheekbone width. The forehead is marginally wider than the jaw, and t

Square face

Your three widths, forehead, cheekbones and jaw, come out within roughly a centimetre of each other, and the jawline t

Heart face

Your forehead measures wider than your cheekbones, and both are clearly wider than your jaw. The chin is narrow and sl

Diamond face

Cheekbone width is your largest measurement, clearly greater than both forehead and jaw, and the chin comes to a point

Oblong face

Face length is more than about one and a half times your cheekbone width, and forehead, cheekbones and jaw all measure

Stop guessing from a chart

Take the two or three cuts your face shape points to and see them on your own photo, before a stylist commits you to one of them.

Download on the App Store

Free to download. iPhone, iOS 15.1 or later.