Face Shape Guide

Here’s How to Find the Right Hat For Your Face Shape


Finding the right hat for your face shape can be like trying on pants... they may have the same sizes on the tags, but they don’t fit the same way. After all, the same hat can look great on one person but not quite communicate the same sense of personality on the next. And that’s OK because there’s a perfect hat for every face shape and personality.

 

Before you ask how to find the right hat, you first need to ask yourself “What kind of face shape am I working with?”

Knowing how to find a hat for your face shape has two significant parts. First, measure your head by using a measuring tape or something flexible. A headphone set or charger cord would even work to go around the circumference of your head like a soft measuring tape. If you didn't use a traditional soft measuring tape, lay what you've measured flat against a toolbox measuring tape or ruler to get the size. The second part of finding the right hat is accounting for the shape of your face and understanding what styles of hats can accentuate your best features.


There are six basic face shapes. Along with them, we’ve listed basic guidelines for which types of hats might best flatter your look. 


It's important to remember that everyone is different, and these are just guidelines. Ultimately, the best hat for you is the one that you feel comfortable wearing and that flatters your features.


Here’s How to Find the Right Hat For Your Face Shape


Finding the right hat for your face shape can be like trying on pants... they may have the same sizes on the tags, but they don’t fit the same way. After all, the same hat can look great on one person but not quite communicate the same sense of personality on the next. And that’s OK because there’s a perfect hat for every face shape and personality.

 

Before you ask how to find the right hat, you first need to ask yourself “What kind of face shape am I working with?”

Knowing how to find a hat for your face shape has two significant parts. First, measure your head by using a measuring tape or something flexible. A headphone set or charger cord would even work to go around the circumference of your head like a soft measuring tape. If you didn't use a traditional soft measuring tape, lay what you've measured flat against a toolbox measuring tape or ruler to get the size. The second part of finding the right hat is accounting for the shape of your face and understanding what styles of hats can accentuate your best features.

 

There are six basic face shapes. Along with them, we’ve listed basic guidelines for which types of hats might best flatter your look. 

It's important to remember that everyone is different, and these are just guidelines. Ultimately, the best hat for you is the one that you feel comfortable wearing and that flatters your features.


Long

Round

1. HIGH FOREHEAD AND EXTENDED HAIRLINE
: Forehead height contributes significantly to length.

2. FACE LENGTH > FACE WIDTH:
A length-to-width ratio typically greater than 1.5C:1.

3. NARROWER CHEEKBONES:
Cheekbones are not the widest part of the face, and cheek width is close to jaw width.

4. EXTENDED CHIN:
The chin region adds substantial length, often being more prominent.

5. OVERALL PROPORTIONS:
An elongated vertical appearance with narrower horizontal width compared to oval or round shapes.

For those with a long face, a hat with a low crown and a wide brims can help shorten the length of the face. A fedora with a short crown and a wide brim, a pork pie hat, or a wide-brimmed sun hat are good options to shorten the potentially exaggerated effect of a long face.

Avoid beanies for this very reason.

1. SIMILAR LENGTH AND WIDTH.
The height of your face to cheek is greater than forehead and jaw.

2. SOFT, ROUNDED JAWLINE.
A round face has a gentle, curved jaw without defined angles or sharp points.

3. SIMILAR LENGTH WIDEST PART.
The distance from face and width (at the cheeks) are nearly equal.

4. ROUNDED FOREHEAD
and gentle hairline contour.

If your features match, you likely have a round face shape!

It’s easy to remember what to wear with a round face. Lean toward hats with exactly the opposite features– here, angular, rather than rounded, styles work best. For people with a round face, hats with a low crown and a wide brim will help elongate the face and give it a more angular appearance.
 

A fedora or a trilby with a wide brim or a tall top hat or high crown hat are good options. A retro-style like a  or cloche will work, while a beanie hat pulled low over your face will elongate it.

Square

Heart

1. SIMILAR LENGTH AND WIDTH.
The height of your face to cheek is greater than forehead and jaw.

2. SOFT, ROUNDED JAWLINE.
A round face has a gentle, curved jaw without defined angles or sharp points.

3. SIMILAR LENGTH WIDEST PART.
The distance from face and width (at the cheeks) are nearly equal.

4. ROUNDED FOREHEAD
and gentle hairline contour.

If your features match, you likely have a round face shape!

A square face has the benefit of strong, angular facial features, which can be overly exaggerated with hats that sport similar angles. 

To avoid overkill, soften them a bit with a hat with rounded lines can soften the angles and help balance the face. A fedora with a rounded crown, a bucket hat, or a wide-brimmed sun hat for women can work well.

1. WIDE FOREHEAD:
Widest section, broad top. Measures width X.

2. BROAD CHEEKBONES:
Wide and high, creating a prominent curve.

3. TAPERED JAW:
Tapers significantly from the cheekbones down.

4. POINTED CHIN:
Narrow, defined focal point.

SUMMARY:
Wide at the top (forehead and cheekbones), tapering to a narrow jaw and pointed chin, forming an inverted heart.

A heart-shaped face, which is exactly how it sounds, benefits best from a hat with a medium brim that is wider at the bottom will help balance the proportions of the face.

Hats such as a baseball cap, newsboy, or fedora. That’s because a nice, clipped brim or angle will de-accentuate the wideness of your upper face and the narrowness of your jaw.

Avoid floppy brims, as the extra volume around the top of your face may appear exaggerated. You’ll look best in hats with wide brims, western & cowboy hats, sun hats, or hats that cut across the forehead, to shorten the potentially exaggerated effect of a long face. Avoid beanies for this very reason.


Oval

Diamond

1. FACE LENGTH.
Total vertical length is significantly longer than total width. (Approx. 1.5x width)

2. FOREHEAD WIDTH.
Is generally slightly wider than the jawline, but narrower than cheekbones.

3. CHEEKBONE WIDTH.
Typically the widest point of an oval face shape.

4. GENTLY ROUNDED JAW & CHIN.
Soft, curved contours; no sharp angles or square structure.

OVAL FACE PROPORTIONS: Balanced, symmetrical features with smooth contours.

An oval face is considered to be the ideal face shape and can wear almost any style of hat. People with oval faces can choose from a variety of hat styles, including fedoras, sun hats, and wide-brimmed hats.

1. MEASURE FOREHEAD:
Narrower than cheekbones.

2. CHEEKBONES ARE WIDEST POINT:
High and prominent. (Note: This text appears on both the left and right sides of the face in the image).

3. JAWLINE IS NARROW:
Similar width to forehead, tapering to a pointed chin.

For a diamond-shaped face, how you wear the hat may be as important as which hat you wear.

Because a diamond face has width around the top part of the head and a narrower jawline, wearing a hat further back on the head can mitigate the potential for a shortened face. 

Pick a beanie or pull-on you can style further back or something with a shallow crown, like a pork pie.



Despite what we say, the final decision rests with you. “How to find the right hat” has everything to do with your level of confidence, and how much you enjoy the way you look when you’re wearing it. Factors like your numerical hat measurements, and whether your face shape is more akin to Brad Pitt than Kanye West, will also come into play.


Comfort and confidence are paramount when choosing the correct hat for your face shape, so take any advice on the topic with a grain of salt. Ultimately, if you feel good wearing something, that’s probably the hat or cap you should purchase.


Sometimes that’s a bold choice, like a bright blue Tropic 504 Ventair by Kangol that you just wear on the weekends when you’re out on the golf course with your friends. Or perhaps it’s something less eye-catching in the style or color department, but it’s the kind of hat that you wear every day because it’s comfortable, and you feel like it’s just meant to be a part of your look.


Whatever you decide you want, you will find it (and others like it– everybody likes options) at Hats.com, where we work hard to keep you covered.