✨ Lipstick Guide
What Lipstick Color Is Best for My Skin Tone?
The 4-season cheat sheet. Find your shade in 30 seconds.
Lipstick is the easiest way to test your color season. The right shade makes your skin glow and your teeth look whiter, while the wrong one makes you look tired. Pick a warm shade if your skin is warm, or a cool shade if your skin is cool. Then choose light or dark based on your features.
The 30-second rule
Before scrolling: there are exactly two questions to answer.
1. Is your undertone warm or cool? If gold jewelry brightens you, you're warm. If silver, cool.
2. Are your features light or deep? Pale skin + light hair = light. Darker hair + skin = deep.
Now read the section that matches you. Skip the rest.
Spring (warm + light): coral, peach, warm pink
Springs glow in lipsticks with warm undertones and a sense of brightness.
- Drugstore: Maybelline 'Are You Reddy For This?', Revlon 'Coral Berry'
- Mid-range: NARS 'Schiap', Glossier Generation G in 'Like'
- Splurge: Charlotte Tilbury 'Bond Girl', Hermès Rouge in 'Pink Boisé'
Why it works: warm corals brighten Spring's golden undertone. Cool berries can look harsh.
Summer (cool + light): rose, soft mauve, dusty pink
Summers look best in lipsticks with cool, soft, blended undertones.
- Drugstore: Maybelline 'Touch of Spice', Revlon 'Pink Truffle'
- Mid-range: MAC 'Faux', NYX Soft Matte in 'Stockholm'
- Splurge: Charlotte Tilbury 'Pillow Talk', Rare Beauty Soft Pinch in 'Bliss'
Why it works: muted cool pinks match Summer's softness. Bright corals look loud.
Autumn (warm + deep): brick, terracotta, brown-red
Autumns glow in earthy, deep, warm-toned lipsticks.
- Drugstore: Maybelline 'Toasted Brown', NYX 'Spicy'
- Mid-range: MAC 'Chili', Fenty Stunna in 'Uninvited'
- Splurge: Charlotte Tilbury 'Walk of Shame' or 'Bond Girl', Tom Ford 'Devoré'
Why it works: brick reds and warm browns echo your hair and eye tones. Pure pinks fight your warmth.
Winter (cool + deep): true red, berry, plum
Winters were made for the dramatic lipstick moment. Bold cool reds, deep berries, jewel-toned plums.
- Drugstore: Maybelline 'Red Revival', Revlon 'Cherries in the Snow'
- Mid-range: MAC 'Ruby Woo', NARS 'Cruella'
- Splurge: Charlotte Tilbury 'Red Carpet Red', Tom Ford 'Cherry Lush'
Why it works: clear cool reds play off Winter's high contrast. Warm corals look orange against you.
The 5 universal nudes, one per skin depth
If you want a nude that works regardless of season, pick the one closest to your skin's depth.
- Fair: Glossier 'Cake', NARS 'Honolulu Honey'
- Light-medium: Charlotte Tilbury 'Pillow Talk', MAC 'Velvet Teddy'
- Medium: Fenty 'Freckle Fiesta', NARS 'Anita'
- Medium-deep: MAC 'Whirl', Pat McGrath 'Suburbia'
- Deep: Pat McGrath 'McMenamy', Fenty 'Ya Dig?!'
The trick: a nude should look like your lips, only better. If it gives you "concealer face," it's too light or too pale.
A quick test without buying anything
Before spending money on lipsticks, take the 5-question lipstick quiz. It uses the same logic above to recommend your category. Or scan your face on Glowprint for a personalized shortlist matched to your actual skin tone.
How to test a lipstick before you commit
The tube lies. Here's how to know a shade works before it's in your bag for good.
Swatch on your face, not your hand
Your hand and your lips aren't the same color. Swatch near your mouth in daylight and check whether your teeth look whiter and your skin brighter, or duller and more yellow.
Match the undertone, then the depth
Warm tones glow in coral, brick, and terracotta; cool tones in rose, berry, and blue-red. Once the undertone's right, pick a depth that suits the moment: a soft nude for day, a richer shade for night.
Frequently asked questions
Quick answers to what people ask most. Want a definitive read on your own coloring? The free face scan gives you your season, palette, and the colors to skip in 30 seconds.
How do I pick a lipstick for my skin tone?
Match the undertone, not just the shade name. Warm skin glows in coral, peach, terracotta, and brick. Cool skin pops in rose, berry, mauve, and true red. Neutral skin can wear both.
What lipstick suits a fair, cool skin tone?
Soft roses, mauves, and berry shades flatter fair cool skin without overwhelming it. Skip orange-based corals, which can read harsh and pull the warmth your skin doesn't have.
What's the most universal lipstick shade?
A 'your lips but better' rosy nude in your undertone, plus a red picked to your season (blue-red for cool, tomato or brick for warm). Those two cover most occasions.
How do I find my exact lip shade?
Start from your color season, since it sets your undertone and depth. Glowprint gives you your season plus makeup picks, so you stop buying lipsticks that look great in the tube and wrong on you.
Get the precise answer in 30 seconds
This guide gets you close. Glowprint scans your actual face and gives you the verified result: color season, face shape, undertone, celebrity match, makeup picks, and a full glow up plan.
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