Discovering your skin’s true undertone is the single most important step in personal care, yet it’s often the most overlooked. It’s the secret to finding the perfect foundation, the lipstick that makes your teeth look whiter, and the clothing colors that make your skin glow. Forget the endless guesswork and expensive mistakes. This comprehensive guide cuts through the noise and provides a practical, step-by-step methodology to definitively determine whether your undertone is cool, warm, or neutral.
This isn’t about your skin’s surface color, which can change with a tan or a blush. It’s about the subtle hue that comes from beneath your skin. Think of it like this: your skin’s surface color is the paint on the wall, but your undertone is the color of the primer underneath. This guide will help you see the primer, not just the paint.
The Foundation of Your Beauty: What Is an Undertone?
Your skin’s undertone is the natural color from the layers beneath your skin. It remains constant throughout your life, regardless of how pale or tan you get.
- Cool Undertones: Skin has hints of pink, red, or blue. You might notice you blush easily or that your skin has a rosiness to it.
-
Warm Undertones: Skin has hints of yellow, gold, or peach. You might notice a golden glow or a subtle peachy hue.
-
Neutral Undertones: Skin has a mix of cool and warm tones, or sometimes no distinct undertone at all. This is a balanced, versatile undertone.
This guide is structured to be a practical checklist. Follow each section, perform the tests, and record your observations. By the end, you’ll have a clear and accurate assessment.
The Vein Test: The Easiest First Step
This is the most common and often the most reliable initial test. It works because the thin skin on your wrist allows the color of your veins to show through.
How to do it:
- Find the right spot: Look at the inside of your wrist, where the veins are most visible. Ensure you’re in natural daylight. Avoid fluorescent or yellow-toned lighting, which can skew the results.
-
Observe the color:
- If your veins appear blue or purple: You likely have a cool undertone. The blue/purple color indicates the presence of cool tones (blue and red) beneath your skin.
-
If your veins appear green or olive: You likely have a warm undertone. This isn’t because your veins are actually green. The yellow-toned skin of a warm undertone acts like a filter over the blue color of your veins, making them appear green.
-
If you can’t tell if they are more blue or more green: You likely have a neutral undertone. Your veins might appear a mix of both, or they might be difficult to distinguish.
Practical Application: If your veins are unmistakably blue, you’ve got a strong signal. If they’re clearly green, that’s another powerful clue. If you’re on the fence, that’s a data point for “neutral.”
The Jewelry Test: Gold vs. Silver
This test leverages the way different metals interact with your skin’s undertone. The right metal will make your skin look more vibrant and healthy, while the wrong one can make it appear dull or sallow.
How to do it:
- Gather your tools: Find both a piece of silver-colored jewelry (like a silver necklace or a white gold ring) and a piece of gold-colored jewelry. You can also use a small piece of silver foil and a small piece of gold foil if you don’t have jewelry.
-
Conduct the test: Hold each piece of metal against your skin, ideally on your face or neck, as these areas are less likely to have sun damage. Look in a mirror.
-
Analyze the results:
- If silver-toned jewelry makes your skin look brighter, more alive, and more radiant: You have a cool undertone. The cool tones in the silver complement the cool tones in your skin.
-
If gold-toned jewelry makes your skin look healthier, more vibrant, and gives it a natural glow: You have a warm undertone. The warmth in the gold enhances the golden tones in your skin.
-
If both silver and gold look good on you: You have a neutral undertone. This is the most versatile undertone, and you can wear both metals equally well.
Concrete Example: Jane holds a silver earring up to her earlobe. Her skin looks fresh and rosy. She then holds a gold earring up, and her skin looks a bit sallow and tired. Jane has a cool undertone. Mark holds a gold chain against his neck, and his skin looks radiant and healthy. He tries a silver chain, and his skin looks a little washed out. Mark has a warm undertone. Sarah tries both and feels both look great. She’s a neutral.
The Sun Test: How Your Skin Reacts to the Sun
This test is a classic indicator of your skin’s underlying pigment and its reaction to UV light. It’s a powerful clue for many people.
How to do it:
- Recall your history: Think back to how your skin typically reacts to sun exposure.
-
Determine your tendency:
- If you tend to burn easily and have difficulty tanning: You likely have a cool undertone. Your skin lacks the golden, protective pigment that helps produce a tan.
-
If you tan easily and rarely burn: You likely have a warm undertone. Your skin has higher levels of yellow/golden pigments (melanin) that naturally protect it and produce a tan.
-
If you sometimes burn and sometimes tan: You likely have a neutral undertone. Your skin has a balanced response to the sun, and your experience can vary.
Note of caution: This test is based on a general tendency. If you use sunscreen consistently, your experience might be skewed. Rely on your memory from times you were exposed to the sun without protection.
The Paper Test: Eliminating the Noise
This test helps you isolate your undertone by using a stark white contrast. It’s an excellent way to neutralize the surrounding colors and see your skin’s true hue.
How to do it:
- Gather your tool: Find a piece of pure white paper. A printer paper or a tissue is perfect. Avoid off-white or cream-colored paper.
-
Prepare your skin: Ensure your skin is clean and free of makeup.
-
Perform the test: Hold the paper up to your face, specifically against your jawline or cheek. Look at your reflection in a mirror.
-
Observe the contrast:
- If your skin appears pinkish or rosy next to the white paper: You have a cool undertone. The paper makes the redness in your skin more apparent.
-
If your skin appears yellowish or golden next to the white paper: You have a warm undertone. The paper highlights the golden or peach tones in your skin.
-
If your skin appears gray or ashy next to the white paper: You might have a neutral undertone, or you might be an olive undertone, which is a subcategory of neutral/warm. This gray or ashy appearance is a key indicator of olive tones.
-
If you see a mixture of both pink and yellow tones: You have a neutral undertone. Your skin has a balanced mix of both warm and cool pigments.
Example: Sarah holds the white paper to her jawline. Next to the crisp white, her skin looks noticeably pink. This is a clear indicator of a cool undertone. David holds the paper to his face, and his skin looks visibly yellow and golden next to it. He has a warm undertone.
The Color Test: Black vs. Brown
This test is about how colors interact with your skin’s undertone, especially around the face. The right color will make your features pop and your skin look fresh. The wrong color can make you look tired or washed out.
How to do it:
- Gather your tools: Find two plain shirts, one true black and one true brown. If you don’t have them, use scarves or even large pieces of fabric.
-
Conduct the test: Stand in front of a mirror in natural light. Drape the black fabric over your shoulders, near your face. Then, do the same with the brown fabric.
-
Analyze the results:
- If the black fabric makes your skin look radiant, your eyes look brighter, and your features more defined: You likely have a cool undertone. The sharpness of the black complements the pink/blue hues in your skin.
-
If the brown fabric makes your skin look healthier, your features softer, and gives you a warm glow: You likely have a warm undertone. The earthy tones in the brown harmonize with the golden/peachy tones in your skin.
-
If both colors look good on you: You have a neutral undertone. You can pull off a wide range of colors from both the warm and cool families.
The Lipstick Test: The Ultimate Indicator
This is a powerful and very practical test because it forces you to look at a color directly on your skin. The right lipstick will make your entire face look better, while the wrong one will look jarring.
How to do it:
- Choose your shades: Get two lipsticks: a true blue-based red (a cool red) and a true orange-based red (a warm red). The cool red might look a bit purplish or pinkish in the tube. The warm red will look more like a brick or fiery red.
-
Apply and observe: Swipe each lipstick on your lips.
-
Analyze the results:
- If the blue-based red makes your teeth look whiter and your skin brighter: You have a cool undertone. The blue tones in the lipstick complement the blue/pink tones in your skin.
-
If the orange-based red makes your skin look more radiant and your face pop: You have a warm undertone. The warm tones in the lipstick harmonize with the golden tones in your skin.
-
If both shades look good on you: You have a neutral undertone.
Pro-tip: This test is great for confirming a suspicion. If you think you’re cool and the blue-based red is a knockout, you’ve got your answer.
Putting It All Together: A Comprehensive Summary
Now, it’s time to compile your findings. Go back through each test and create a tally.
Test
Cool
Warm
Neutral
Vein Test
Jewelry Test
Sun Test
Paper Test
Color Test
Lipstick Test
If you have a clear majority in one column, that’s your undertone. For example, if you checked “Cool” for five of the six tests, you are definitively cool-toned. If your checks are fairly evenly distributed between cool and warm, you are neutral.
The Sub-Categories of Undertones
Once you’ve determined your primary undertone, you can delve a little deeper.
For Cool Undertones:
- Fair/Porcelain Skin: You have a very pale, pinkish undertone. You burn easily and rarely tan.
-
Medium/Olive Skin: Yes, you can have olive skin with a cool undertone. This often presents as a slightly gray or ashy tone. Your veins will still look more blue than green.
For Warm Undertones:
- Golden Undertones: Your skin has a distinct yellow or golden hue. You tan easily and have a natural glow.
-
Peachy/Apricot Undertones: Your skin has a more orange or peachy warmth to it.
For Neutral Undertones:
- True Neutral: You have a perfect balance of cool and warm tones. Both silver and gold look good, and you can wear a wide variety of colors.
-
Olive Undertones: This is a sub-category of neutral, often considered a mix of warm and cool with a greenish-gray overtone. People with olive skin can often wear both warm and cool colors but look particularly stunning in certain shades of green and jewel tones. The paper test, where your skin can look slightly gray or ashy, is a key indicator.
The Impact on Your Personal Care Routine
Knowing your undertone is the key to making smarter, more effective personal care choices.
Makeup:
- Foundation: This is the most crucial application. Cool-toned foundations have pink or red bases. Warm-toned foundations have yellow or golden bases. Neutral foundations have a balanced mix. The right foundation will disappear into your skin, creating a seamless, natural look. The wrong one will leave a visible line and make your skin look either ashy or overly yellow.
-
Blush: Cool undertones look best with pink, plum, or berry shades. Warm undertones are flattered by peach, coral, and terracotta shades.
-
Eyeshadow: Cool undertones shine in shades of blue, gray, silver, and purple. Warm undertones look stunning in bronze, gold, copper, and earthy browns.
-
Lipstick: Stick to your test results. Cool undertones should seek out blue-based reds, pinks, and plums. Warm undertones should choose orange-based reds, corals, and peaches.
Hair Color:
- Cool Undertones: Best with cool-toned hair colors like ash blonde, platinum, jet black, and shades with a blue or violet base.
-
Warm Undertones: Best with warm-toned hair colors like golden blonde, caramel, auburn, and shades with a red or orange base.
Fashion:
- Cool Undertones: Look great in jewel tones: sapphire blue, emerald green, ruby red, and deep purples. Neutrals like white, charcoal gray, and navy also work well.
-
Warm Undertones: Look great in earthy tones: olive green, mustard yellow, brick red, and peach. Neutrals like cream, brown, and camel are also fantastic.
-
Neutral Undertones: You are a color chameleon! You can wear most colors, but you look particularly good in both warm and cool shades.
Final Thoughts on a Flawless, Actionable Guide
This guide has been designed to be a practical tool. There’s no need to memorize complex color theory. Simply follow the steps, perform the tests, and record your observations. Your skin’s undertone is a constant, and once you know it, you can apply this knowledge to every aspect of your personal care routine, from finding the perfect foundation to choosing the right clothes. This is the last guide you’ll ever need on the subject.