What hair color suits me?

What the 3 questions cover

Each question looks at one trait, and each trait shapes a different part of your result.

1. Undertone. That's the constant warm or cool tint sitting under your skin's surface. It decides whether your shades go golden or ash.
2. Natural hair depth. By depth we mean how light or dark your hair grows on its own, anywhere from pale blonde to black. It decides how light or dark your five shades will be.
3. Eye color. This one fine-tunes the picks within your color family, so the shades flatter your eyes as well as your skin.

Which hair colors look best on you?

The most flattering shades for you agree with your undertone and stay near your natural depth. Your hair frames your face, so when a tone works with your skin, it tends to look effortless and natural.

Golden shades usually suit warm undertones. Ash shades usually suit cool undertones. Ash shades are built on a smoky, faintly gray base instead of a gold one.

Golden or ash: why undertone leads

Undertone comes first because it picks the direction of your whole result. If gold looks better against your skin than silver, you're most likely warm, and your shades will lean golden. If silver wins, you're most likely cool, and your shades will tilt ash.

How light or dark your skin is says nothing about your undertone. Fair skin can run warm and deep skin can run cool, so judge by gold and silver instead of by surface color.

Keeping close to your natural depth

Hair that moves no more than about two shades lighter or darker than what grows on your head usually looks natural. Your brows, lashes and skin already suit your own depth, so a small change keeps the look balanced.

A bigger jump can leave your hair looking out of step with your brows and skin. That's why your five shades stay close, with some a little lighter and some a little darker than your own color.

Eye color and your final picks

Eye color comes last because it doesn't change your color family. It just helps pick which shades within that family flatter your eyes best.

Your result has two parts. The family tells you which direction suits you, golden or ash, and the five shades are the colors to try first.

Testing a shade before you commit

A mirror check in daylight is an easy way to try a shade before anything touches your hair. Phone cameras and indoor bulbs both distort color, so daylight shows it more truly.

1. Stand near a window, in daylight, mirror in hand.
2. Hold a hair swatch in that shade near your hairline.
3. Watch your face, not the color. When the shade fits, your skin looks clear and even.
4. Line up two of your shades next to each other so the contrast is easier to spot.

The quiz is only a first step. A mirror test in daylight, or a sit-down with a color expert, can confirm the answer.