Question 1: What color are the veins on your wrist?

Take 13 quick questions to find your warm, cool, olive, or neutral undertone. Plus get tips on your season and best makeup, hair, and wardrobe colors

Your skin tone helps you pick foundation, lipstick, hair color, and even the metal of your jewelry. The key is undertone. It stays the same whether you tan or lighten. This guide explains the basics and gives you clear steps to identify your undertone at home. You will also see what to expect from our quiz and how we built it.

Skin tone vs. undertone

Skin tone is the depth you see on the surface. Fair, medium, deep. It changes with sun exposure. Undertone sits beneath the surface. Cool, warm, neutral, or olive. It does not change with seasons. Knowing both helps you select base makeup, hair shades, and wardrobe colors that look balanced rather than washed out.

Quick ways to check your undertone at home

Use natural daylight where possible. Clean your face and remove makeup that can tint the skin.

1. White paper test. Hold a plain white sheet next to your face. If your skin looks rosy next to it, you likely lean cool. If it looks golden or peachy, you likely lean warm. If it looks balanced, you may be neutral.
2. Vein glance. Look at the veins on your inner wrist. Blue or purplish often reads cool. Greenish often reads warm. If you see both or it is hard to tell, you may be neutral.
3. Jewelry check. Try simple silver and gold pieces. If silver flatters you more, that suggests cool. If gold looks better, that suggests warm. If both work, consider neutral or olive.
4. White vs off-white. Some people look best in bright white. Others glow in cream. Bright white often suits cool. Cream often suits warm. If both look fine, you may be neutral.
5. T-shirt drape. Place a cool top like true blue next to a warm top like tomato red. If one clearly lifts your face and the other dulls it, note the winner.

These are rule-of-thumb checks. They are helpful starting points, not strict tests. For a deeper wardrobe match, see our color suggestions for your wardrobe.

The four common undertones

• Cool. Pink, red, or bluish cast. Often suits silver jewelry and cool colors. Examples: berry lipstick, ash hair tones, jewel clothing colors.
• Warm. Yellow, golden, or peachy cast. Often suits gold jewelry and warm colors. Examples: coral lipstick, golden or honey hair, earthy clothing colors.
• Neutral. Balanced mix of cool and warm. Can wear a wide range. You may still prefer slightly cool or slightly warm families once you test.
• Olive. Neutral with a muted green cast. Often looks best in softened, less saturated hues and certain metallics. If typical warm or cool palettes feel off, consider olive.

Foundation matching tips

• Test along the jawline in daylight. The right shade blends into both face and neck without lines.
• Use brand codes. C or cool often means pink or rosy. W or warm often means golden or yellow. N or neutral sits between. Some brands offer olive tags.
• Let swatches sit a few minutes. Some formulas oxidize and deepen slightly.

If you want a step-by-step product approach, our makeup ideas based on face and undertone can help.

Hair color pointers

• Cool undertones. Ash brown, cool black, icy blond, burgundy.
• Warm undertones. Golden blond, honey brown, copper, caramel, warm black.
• Neutral undertones. Many shades work. Match depth to your skin tone and eye color.
• Olive undertones. Muted, smoky shades often look natural. Avoid overly red tones if they make skin appear sallow.

Jewelry and metals

Silver often complements cool undertones. Gold often complements warm undertones. If both look good, you may be neutral or olive. If you want a quick decision, try our focused guide on gold or silver jewelry.

How this quiz works

The quiz estimates undertone using a mix of visual preferences and simple at-home signals. It does not depend on one question. It looks for patterns.

• Signal groups. We ask about lighting, metals, clothing swatches, and how your skin reads next to white or cream. Each group is weighted rather than counted as right or wrong.
• Cross-checks. If you pick silver and bright white, that leans cool. If you also prefer tomato red over true blue, the score softens toward neutral. These checks reduce false hits from a single answer.
• Skin depth vs undertone. A few items separate depth from undertone. This helps if you tan easily or wear self-tanner.
• Result output. You get an undertone label and next steps for makeup, hair color, and clothing so you can try it in real life.

How we created the quiz

• Research base. We started from widely used at-home cues like the vein, jewelry, and white paper checks. We reviewed clear consumer explanations, including Healthline’s undertone overview, and simplified them into plain language.
• Question design. Each question avoids medical claims. Options use neutral wording. We removed overlapping terms such as pale vs light and used clearer families like fair, medium, and deep.
• Testing. We piloted with a small group across different skin depths and hair colors. We checked agreement between quiz outcomes and real-world try-ons like silver vs gold, white vs cream, and blue vs red tops.
• Limitations. Room lighting changes how colors read. Screens shift color. Mixed undertones exist. Results are guidance, not a diagnosis. If you have skin concerns, see a dermatologist.

Lighting and common mistakes

• Check in daylight or near a window. Warm bulbs can make everyone look golden. Cool bulbs can make everyone look pink.
• Look at your whole face and neck. A small swatch can mislead.
• Consider hair dye and self-tanner. They can shift how colors read against your skin.
• Do not force a label. If nothing fits, you may be neutral or olive. Build your personal palette from what flatters you most.

Skin health basics that affect color choices

Undertone guides styling. Skin type guides care. If you are choosing products, consider your type as well as your undertone. If you are unsure, try our quick skin type check. For sun protection, look for broad spectrum, SPF 30 or higher, and water resistance when needed. Reapply as directed. If you have ongoing skin concerns, speak to a dermatologist. See the American Academy of Dermatology guide to sunscreen for details.

Further reading

For a clear summary of undertones and at-home checks, see Healthline. For sunscreen selection and SPF basics, see the American Academy of Dermatology.

Note. This guide is for style and product selection. It is not medical advice.