Best color analysis tools for clothes and makeup

Has someone ever complimented the way a color brings out your eyes? Or maybe you looked in the mirror and couldn’t figure out why your skin needed another swipe of blush. Welcome to the world of color analysis. When you wear shades that clash with your natural undertones, your skin can look tired and dull. But when you find the right colors, your skin pops.

Virtual color analysis

These digital tools take the guesswork out of building a wardrobe and buying makeup. You don’t have to spend hundreds of dollars on a professional consultation anymore. Free websites and smart apps can now scan your face and tell you exactly which shades to wear.

The magic of seasonal color analysis

Seasonal color analysis matches your skin, hair, and eye color to a specific palette. The seasonal system as the name implies, categorizes by season: Spring, Summer, Autumn, and Winter. The seasons are further broken down into 12 sub-categories like Cool Winter or Soft Autumn.

Identifying your season, makes for productive shopping trips. It will also make your closet a repository of clothes that you will actually wear, rather than impulse purchases that looked good on the mannequin but completely wash you out.

Best AI tools for clothing

There are dozens of apps out there, but I prefer starting with the ones that offer simple, accurate results without a steep learning curve.

Colorwise.me
This website is completely free and seriously one of the best places to start. You upload a selfie, pinpoint your exact skin, hair, and eye colors, and the algorithm identifies your season. It even generates a custom digital palette for you to reference.

My Best Colors
This is the mobile companion to Colorwise.me. You can take your custom palette on the go. The best feature is the live camera mode. You just point your phone at a piece of clothing while shopping, and the app tells you if the color belongs in your season.

Vivaldi Color Lab
This app is fantastic for virtual draping. Draping is the process of placing different colored fabrics right under your chin to see how your skin reacts. Vivaldi lets you do this digitally. You can swipe through dozens of shades in seconds to see which ones make your eyes sparkle.

Dressika
Dressika offers automatic AI season detection. It acts as a personal pocket stylist, helping you build a capsule wardrobe around the specific tones that make your skin pop.

Finding your makeup match

Makeup is tricky to get right unless of course you are at a Sephora or Credo Beauty where you can try before you buy. A lipstick that looks stunning on your best friend might look entirely wrong on you. Two snaps for AI makeup tools that are solving this problem.

Maybelline Foundation Finder
Say goodbye to swatching foundation on your wrist. This web tool uses advanced AI to analyze your skin tone and recommend your perfect foundation shade.

YouCam Makeup
This app lets you test out lipsticks and blushes that align with your seasonal color analysis. You can try on a Cool Winter berry lip or a Warm Autumn brick red in real time. The app tracks your facial features in order to provide an accurate assessment.

Set yourself up for color success

Digital tools are only as good as the photo you provide. You need to set the stage for an accurate reading. Bad lighting will give you bad results.

Follow these quick steps before you upload your photo:

• Stand facing a window for bright, natural daylight.
• Turn off those overhead yellow room lights.
• Pull your hair back if it is dyed or highlighted.
• Take a completely makeup-free selfie.

Once you know your colors, cleaning out your closet is actually fun (no professional stylist required!). You get to keep the pieces that make you shine and confidently donate the rest.