How to Pick Sunglasses for Your Face Shape

The right sunglasses will highlight your best features and boost your confidence, but with so many frame shapes and styles, picking the right pair of sunglasses to match your face shape quickly becomes overwhelming.

To further frustrations, sunglasses aren’t exactly one-size-fits-all in terms of fashion: those pink oversized vintage shades that look glamorous on your best friend will likely leave you looking bug-eyed and tacky.

The key to selecting the perfect pair comes down to choosing the right sunglasses for your face shape. The ideal sunglasses will enhance your best features—you just have to know what to look for.

Keep in mind: these guidelines are general in nature and should never be considered universal law; when it comes to picking your perfect specs, the only concrete rules are your own personal style and what makes you feel the best in your skin.

Sunglasses for Round Faces

If your face has a soft chin line, full cheeks, and a forehead that’s proportional in width and length, then you have a round face. Like Kristen Dunst and Cameron Diaz, your gentle, circular appearance radiates youth and a playful spirit.

Pick sunglasses with angular lines

When shopping for sunglasses, your goal is to offset your subtly rounded features with more angular, geometric shapes. Sunglasses that are rectangular, square, cat-eye, or butterfly will all serve to sharpen your softer features by having lenses that add dimension and form.

Models that feature a straight-across brow line are especially complimentary on round shapes because they contrast with the face’s gentle curve. 

Those with round faces will also likely look stunning in sunglasses with particularly dark frames, as bolder lines tend to narrow the face by bringing its contours closer to that of a balanced oval.

Generally speaking, ladies with round faces will want to avoid round frame sunglasses. For example, round vintage-style frames will likely serve to accentuate the face’s curved shape and play into an overall imbalance in composition. Narrow frames will also have a generally less-flattering fit on round face shapes, so aim for specs that exceed the face in overall width, slightly oversized sunglasses will look the best!

Emerson

Sunglasses for Square Faces

The square face is characterized by its strong, angular features and proportional composition.

Like Jennifer Aniston and Minnie Driver, those with square face shapes boast an assertive jawline, a forehead of an equal width and length, and a chin that is broad, pronounced, and angular. Because of its sharp features, the square face is commonly seen in high fashion.

Round sunnies are your sweet spot

The square face looks best in styles that work to soften its angular features. To achieve this, keep your eyes peeled for glasses with rounded or curved frames.

The best sunglasses that suit you will have a width that matches the width of your face. Frame shapes with oval, round, or teardrop frames will make your best features pop by adding an elegant softness to your angular look. 

Both colorful frames and rimless sunglasses frame square face shapes nicely, too. The perfect pair of sunglasses will sit high on your nose, which serves to gracefully lengthen your boxier facade.  

Women with square faces will want to avoid boxy or narrow frames that over exaggerate the face’s natural angles. Sharp corners, petite frame structures, and glasses that exceed the width of your head will also be less flattering.

Tate

Nevada

Sunglasses for Heart-Shaped Faces

If you have a broad forehead and strong cheekbones with a narrow, delicate chin, heart-shaped is most likely your closest face shape. Characterized by a facade that gradually narrows from top to bottom, this face shape can be seen on celebrities like Katie Holmes, Rachel Bilson and Christina Ricci.

Rimless shades are perfect for this face shape

The heart-shaped woman’s goal is finding sunglasses that balance the upper-half of her face while visually anchoring her delicate lower chin.

With that in consideration, rimless sunglasses are absolutely made for you. Sunglasses with frames that are constructed of neutral-colored metal or clear plastic are also ideal, as they effectively balance out your more delicate chin.

Frame wise, those with heart-shaped faces have a lot of room for play. They can wear sunglasses that are round or rectangular, petite, and low-set are all especially ideal. Rectangular sunglasses with neutral tones and modestly-sized vintage frames will also likely bring out your best features. 

With a broad forehead and slender chin, you’ll likely want to steer clear of bulky frames which add visual weight to the upper portion of your face. In the same sense, avoid overly embellished or heavy glasses. You’ll also want to avoid frames with sharp or pointy outlines and frames that hide the eyebrows.

Bexley 

Sunglasses for Oval Faces

If your forehead, jaw, and chin are all proportionate with a facial length that is slightly greater than its width, you likely have an oval shaped face. The shape generally features a slightly rounded chin with cheekbones that serve as the face’s widest point. Celebrities known for their oval faces include Natalie Portman and Kylie Minogue.

Your face shape can style any frame

Those with the coveted, well-balanced oval face should select specs that do not disturb the harmonious proportions which are already present. The good news is that oval faces can pull off nearly any frame, so there’s plenty of room to play. 

With that in mind, square or rectangular sunglasses will likely be particularly complimentary, as they’ll contrast nicely with your slightly rounded features. You’ll also want to consider frames that fall in line with the eyebrows, as this will add composition and depth to your elongated, oval face.

As the most versatile face shape, there are few sunglasses that are truly unflattering on the oval face. That said, it’s advised that you avoid frames with a width that is far shorter than the width of your face, as this will create a visual imbalance. In a similar sense, steer clear of drastically oversized glasses which will dwarf your features and overwhelm your appearance. Hint: Don’t let sunnies cover your brow, oval face shapes need their features shown.

Madison