What season am I? Find your color season in three steps
How to find your color season: undertone, value and chroma, the twelve seasons at a glance, a two-minute mirror test and common mistakes.
The short answer
Your season combines undertone, value and chroma, matched to one of twelve palettes. Test in daylight with a bare face, holding warm and cool, light and deep, soft and bright colors by your face.
- Your season is a guide for shopping and styling, not a rulebook.
Your color season is the group of twelve palettes, three each for spring, summer, autumn and winter, that best matches your natural coloring. To find yours, work out your undertone (warm, cool or neutral), your value (light or deep) and your chroma (soft or bright), then match the combination to one of the twelve seasons.
Step 1: undertone
Undertone is the warm, cool or neutral tint under your skin. Try the five-question test in our guide to skin undertone. Warm leans golden or peachy, cool leans pink or blue, neutral is a mix.
Step 2: value
Value is how light or deep your overall coloring is. Look at the contrast between your hair, skin and eyes. Light coloring with low contrast tends toward light seasons, and deep coloring or high contrast tends toward deep seasons.
Step 3: chroma
Chroma is how soft or bright your coloring is. Soft, muted coloring looks best in muted colors, while clear, vivid coloring can wear bright colors.
Match to one of the twelve seasons
| Family | Seasons | Core feel |
|---|---|---|
| Spring (warm, bright) | Light, True, Bright | Warm, fresh, clear |
| Summer (cool, soft) | Light, True, Soft | Cool, muted, gentle |
| Autumn (warm, rich) | Soft, True, Deep | Warm, earthy, deep |
| Winter (cool, clear) | Deep, True, Bright | Cool, high contrast, vivid |
Each season page shows the full palette, the best neutrals, metals and makeup shades.
A two-minute mirror test
- Sit by a window in daylight with a bare face and your hair pulled back.
- Hold a warm color (camel, coral) and a cool one (navy, berry) beside your face.
- See which one makes your skin look clearer and your eyes brighter, and which makes you look tired or sallow.
- Repeat with a light color and a deep one, and a soft color and a bright one.
Our guide to what colors look good on you goes through this in more detail. You can also try the Color Studio quiz for a quick match.
Common mistakes
- Choosing a season based on hair color alone, which may be dyed
- Judging in warm or colored lighting
- Deciding from one photo
- Wearing makeup or a tan that changes how you look
- Forgetting that colors you love can be worn away from your face
Colors are a guide, not a rulebook
Your season shows which colors flatter you most, but you can wear anything you love, especially lower on your body or with the right makeup. Think of it as a shortcut for shopping and styling.
Take it further
The Season Edit walks you through a fifteen-minute draping test and gives you twelve season profiles, a workbook, wallet cards and a guide to carrying your season into makeup, hair, metals and nails.
Read next: Gel Nail Kit for Beginners: What to Buy First · How to Remove Gel Polish at Home Without Damage · Gel vs Dip Powder vs Acrylic — Which Lasts Longest
Questions people ask about this
How do I find out what season I am?
Work out your undertone (warm, cool or neutral), your value (light or deep) and your chroma (soft or bright), then match the combination to one of the twelve seasons. A daylight draping test with colored fabric helps.
Can my color season change?
Your natural coloring changes slowly, with age, grey hair or tanning. Many people stay in the same season, but hair color changes can make another season look better.
What if I am between two seasons?
That is common. Choose the one where more colors work, or use the palette that overlaps, and keep neutrals that suit both.
Is color analysis accurate?
It is a guide based on contrast and undertone, and it works best in daylight with a clean face. Different analysts sometimes disagree, so trust what you see in the mirror.
