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what kind of face shape do i have

You can get a pretty accurate idea of your face shape in a few minutes at home, using just a mirror and (optionally) a measuring tape.

Quick takeaway

Most people fall into one of these main face shapes: oval , round, square, rectangle/oblong, heart, or diamond.

You’ll figure yours out by comparing what’s widest (forehead, cheekbones, or jaw) and whether your chin and jaw look more soft or angular.

Step 1: Set up a “neutral” view

  • Tie or pin hair fully away from your face so your hairline and jaw are visible.
  • Look straight into a mirror in good, even light, or take a front-facing selfie with your head not tilted and your mouth relaxed.
  • If you like numbers, have a soft measuring tape ready (the flexible kind used for sewing).

Step 2: Measure or visually compare

You can do this either by eye or with measurements.

  1. Forehead width
    • Look for or measure the widest part of your forehead (usually halfway between brows and hairline).
  1. Cheekbone width
    • Look straight ahead and find the widest point across your cheeks; if measuring, go from the outer part of one cheekbone to the other.
  1. Jawline
    • Notice if your jaw looks sharp/strong or soft/rounded; to measure, go from just below your ear to the middle of your chin and double it.
  1. Face length
    • Compare how long your face looks versus how wide it is; with a tape, measure from the center of your hairline to the tip of your chin.

You don’t need perfect numbers—just enough to tell what’s relatively longer or wider.

Step 3: Match to common face shapes

Use these “if this, then that” checks while looking at your face (or selfie outline).

Oval

  • Face is longer than it is wide, with gently rounded edges.
  • Forehead is a bit wider than the jaw, and chin is slightly rounded rather than pointy.

If your face feels like a smooth, elongated egg shape, it’s probably oval.

Round

  • Face length and width are very similar.
  • Cheeks are typically the widest part, with a soft, curved jaw and no sharp angles.

If you can almost draw a circle around your face outline, you’re likely round.

Square

  • Forehead, cheekbones, and jawline are very close in width.
  • Jawline looks strong and more angular, with a flatter bottom rather than a narrow point.

If your face outline looks like a box with a clear, strong jaw, you’re probably square.

Rectangle / Oblong

  • Face is clearly longer than it is wide.
  • Forehead, cheekbones, and jaw are closer in width like a square face, but stretched longer vertically.

If it feels like a taller version of a square—long and straight-sided—it’s likely rectangle/oblong.

Heart

  • Forehead (and sometimes cheekbones) is the widest part.
  • Jawline tapers to a narrower, sometimes slightly pointed chin (like an upside-down triangle).

If your face looks wider at the top and clearly narrows toward the chin, you’re likely heart-shaped.

Diamond

  • Cheekbones are the widest point of the face.
  • Forehead and jawline are narrower, with a more pointed chin and sharper overall angles.

If your face outline looks like a diamond or rhombus—wide in the middle, narrow at top and bottom—it’s probably diamond.

Simple decision path (no measuring needed)

Follow this quick logic while looking in the mirror:

  1. Is your face longer than it is wide?
 * Yes → Go to step 2.
 * No, it’s about as wide as it is long → Go to step 3.
  1. For longer faces
    • Are your forehead, cheekbones, and jaw about the same width, with a fairly straight outline? → Rectangle/oblong.
 * Is your forehead a bit wider than your jaw, with a softly rounded chin? → **Oval**.
  1. For faces that look more “even” in height and width
    • Is your jaw soft and round, with full cheeks? → Round.
 * Is your jaw straight or clearly angular, with similar width forehead–cheeks–jaw? → **Square**.
  1. If your face clearly narrows toward the chin
    • Widest at the forehead, tapering to a narrow chin → Heart.
 * Widest at the cheekbones, with narrower forehead and jaw and a sharper chin → **Diamond**.

A quick example story

Imagine someone whose selfie shows:

  • Forehead a bit wider than the jaw,
  • Cheekbones gently curved, not dramatically wide,
  • Face clearly longer than it is wide,
  • Chin softly rounded, not pointy.

They might think they’re “round,” but matching to the criteria, they actually fit oval , which is why lots of different hairstyles tend to suit them.

Bonus: tools if you want auto-analysis

If you’d rather not eyeball it, there are online face-shape analyzers where you upload a clear front-facing photo and get a suggested face shape (oval, round, square, heart, diamond, etc.).

These use facial landmarks (forehead, cheekbones, jaw, chin) to compare your face to typical shape patterns and can be a nice second opinion if you’re unsure.

If you’d like, you can describe your forehead (wide/narrow), cheekbones (prominent/soft), jaw (sharp/round), and whether your face feels longer or more circular, and I can help you narrow it down even more. Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.