The Best Sunglasses for Your Face Shape

Have you ever seen a pair of sunglasses on someone else and thought, “I want those!” — but when you try them on yourself, you find they don’t look quite the same on you? Yep, we’ve been there.

It’s just a fact of life that sunglasses — or any glasses for that matter — won’t look the same on everyone. That’s because everyone has a different face shape. Your personal face shape (along with your bone structure) will play a huge role in how sunglasses sit, look and feel on your face. So as much as you may want to rock a certain style of sunglasses, if they’re not designed to complement your face’s contours, it will just be money down the drain.

Which brings us to the question we all seem to face at some point: How do we each determine which sunglass styles are best for our unique facial shapes? Here’s a handy guide to check out before you shop for your next pair of shades.

The Five Face Shapes … Sort Of

The first order of business: determining into which of these five general categories your individual face shape falls:

●        Round

●        Oval

●        Triangular

●        Heart

●        Square

Here’s the thing you’ll want to remember: Don’t take these shapes too literally. No one’s face shape is an actual circle or square. The trick is to examine your face in a mirror and decide what shape yours most looks like.

Admittedly, some people’s face shapes will be easier to determine; for others, these are just general (but effective) guidelines to follow. For instance, a pointed chin and wider forehead probably means your face shape is on the triangular side. On the other hand, if the bottom half of your face is about the same width of the top half when you smile, you might have more of a square face.

Read on to get a better idea of what signs to look for in determining which shape category your face falls. Once you feel you’ve got a good idea of what it might be, take a look at our tips for picking the right sunglass pair.

The Best Glasses for Round Faces

A rounder face has softer angles, slightly wider cheekbones and an equally wide forehead and jaw. In other words, it’s all about the curves.

Style suggestions:

●        Glasses that offer shape and structure typically look great on a rounder face.

●        Check out frames that are bold, with angular lines to give your face shape definition.

●        Make sure the bottom of your frames hits just above your cheekbones.

The Best Glasses for Oval Faces

If you’ve identified your face as oval, get ready for people to be envious. Because of a narrower forehead and jaw with slightly wider cheekbones, this is the face shape where people usually get to have the most fun playing with a wider variety of frame designs.

Style suggestions:

●        To accentuate your wider cheekbones and facial features, go for an oversized, exaggerated frame.

●        A bold frame works great with this face shape since you’ve got the strong cheekbones to handle it.

●        If you love colors and texture, go for it! Use them to your advantage for a bold look.

The Best Glasses for Triangular Faces

“Angular” is the key descriptor, here. If you have this shape, you’ve got a great, wide jaw structure and narrower width through the forehead.

Style suggestions:

●        Try out mirror-opposite frames that are bold on top and light on the bottom.

●        Choose frames with a thicker, detailed upper portion and thinner bottom portion.

●        Balance your wider jawline with a pair of sunglasses that is slightly wider than your jaw.

●        Aviators, cat- or winged-eye sunglasses work great with these features.

The Best Glasses for Heart Faces

If you have a heart-shaped face, your forehead is the widest part, with features that gradually narrow through to the jaw. You are also blessed with high cheekbones and a look that comes off as “sweet.” What’s just as sweet is the versatility you have in your sunglass choices.

Style suggestions:

●        Go for a pair of sunglasses that is slightly wider than your forehead to create facial balance.

●        Detailing or texture on the lower portion of the sunglasses works well for you.

●        Consider a modified Wayfarer or winged-out frames that slightly jut out to compliment your features.

The Best Glasses for Square Faces

If you’ve got equally wide cheekbones, forehead and jaw with more angled lines to your face, your face is likely square-shaped. Once again, opposing shapes in your sunglasses is what you want to complement your striking features (sounds counterintuitive, but it works!).

Style Suggestions:

●        Balance and soften your angular features with round or rounded frames

●        When in doubt, go for a frame that is thinner vs. thicker

●        Make sure the width of your frames is slightly wider than your cheekbones to create harmony among your features.

Acima: A Better Sunglasses Shopping Option

Now that you’ve nailed down your face shape and the corresponding tips + tricks to best play up your features,1 it’s time to shop! And hopefully we’ll brighten your day with this news: When you shop at a retailer that offers Acima (and there are lots!), you’ll find your perfect new pair of sunglasses that not only fits your face, but fits within your budget.

If you’ve never looked into Acima before, take a few minutes to see how our lease-to-own* options provide you with affordable lease renewal payments and shield you from the downfalls of shopping with credit. So you can feel as good as you’re about to look.