✦ AI-Powered Shade Matching

Find your perfect shade across every brand

ShadeMatch uses advanced color science to analyze your skin tone and match you to the ideal foundation shade — no matter which brand you shop.

200+
Foundation Shades
20+
Beauty Brands
CIEDE2000
Color Science
AI
Skin Analysis

Three ways to find your shade

Whether you want to scan your skin, translate from a shade you already own, or browse by brand — ShadeMatch has you covered.

1

Scan Your Skin

Take or upload a well-lit selfie. Our AI analyzes your skin tone and undertone, then recommends the best foundation shades across all supported brands.

2

Translate a Shade

Already know your shade in one brand? Select it and we'll instantly find the closest matches in 20+ other brands using lab-grade color science (ΔE).

3

Shop Directly

Tap "Buy" on any match to see real-time pricing and availability at major retailers. We surface the best deals so you never overpay.

4

Save Your Scans

Sign in to save your skin analysis and shade matches. Up to 4 scans are kept in My Scans — new ones automatically replace the oldest.

Everything you need for the perfect match

ShadeMatch is built around precision color science and real-world shopping.

🔬

CIEDE2000 Color Matching

We use the industry-standard CIEDE2000 ΔE formula — the same metric used in professional color labs — to calculate perceptual similarity between shades. A ΔE below 1.0 is considered a perfect match.

🎨

Undertone Detection

The AI doesn't just match darkness — it also identifies your undertone (warm, cool, or neutral) so your recommended shades won't pull orange or ashy on your skin.

📍

Real-Time Retail Pricing

See live prices from Sephora, Ulta, and more. We surface the lowest available price so you always get the best deal on your matched shade.

🧴

Oxidation Warnings

Some foundations oxidize (darken) after application. We flag shades that are known to oxidize so you can account for it when choosing your match.

📂

Scan History

Your last 4 scans are saved to My Scans. Revisit past results, compare different lighting conditions, or share your matches — with automatic rotation so storage stays tidy.

🔒

Private & Secure

Sign in with Google, Apple, or Email. Your photos are stored securely and used only for skin tone analysis. You can delete your images and account data at any time.

Step-by-step documentation

Everything you need to get the most out of ShadeMatch.

📸 Skin Tone Scan

Use the scan feature to let AI analyze your skin and recommend foundations.

1

Open the Scan screen

From the home screen, tap Scan Your Skin. This takes you to the Skin Tone Scan screen.

2

Upload or take a photo

Tap Upload Photo to choose a photo from your camera roll, or use your device's camera to take a fresh selfie. For best results, follow the on-screen tips.

3

Wait for analysis

The AI will scan six facial keypoints to extract your skin tone in Lab color space, then calculate undertones. This typically takes 3–6 seconds.

4

Review your matches

Results show the top foundation matches ranked by ΔE (color difference). Lower ΔE = closer match. Each result shows the brand, product name, shade name, match percentage, and undertone.

📸 Best photo tips: Use natural lighting near a window. Keep your face centered and avoid heavy shadows. Remove heavy makeup if possible for the most accurate tone reading.

🔄 Shade Translation

Already know your shade? Find it in any other brand.

1

Open Translate a Shade

From the home screen, tap Translate a Shade. You'll see a list of supported brands.

2

Select your brand

Scroll or use the search bar to find your brand (e.g. MAC, Fenty Beauty, NARS). Tap it to see the products.

3

Select your product and shade

Choose the specific foundation product (e.g. Studio Fix Fluid), then pick your exact shade from the list (e.g. NC42). Each shade shows a color swatch and undertone tag.

4

View cross-brand matches

Sign in to unlock all match results. You'll see every supported brand with the closest shade, ΔE score, match percentage, and buy options. Sign-in is free and takes seconds.

Understanding ΔE: ΔE (Delta E) measures perceptual color difference. ΔE < 1.0 is considered an exact match (indistinguishable to the human eye). ΔE 1–2 is a very close match. ΔE > 3 may be noticeable on skin.

🛍️ Shopping & Pricing

Find the best price for your matched shade.

1

Tap Buy on any match

On the shade match results screen, tap the Buy button next to any result. This shows real-time prices from Sephora, Ulta, and brand websites.

2

Compare retailers

We pull live pricing for each shade. Prices update regularly. Some brands offer membership discounts (Sephora Rouge, Ulta Platinum) that may not be reflected in the listed price.

3

Check oxidation warnings

Some shades are flagged with an Oxidizes +X badge. This means the shade typically darkens by that ΔE amount after wearing for 2–4 hours — consider sizing up slightly.

📂 My Scans

Access and manage your scan history.

1

Sign in to use My Scans

My Scans requires an account. Sign in with Google, Apple, or Email from any screen by tapping the Sign In button in the top right.

2

View past scans

Your last 4 skin scans are saved automatically. When you exceed 4, the oldest scan is removed to make room. Tap any scan to see its full results, including the extracted skin tone, all shade matches, and the date it was taken.

3

Delete a scan

To remove a scan from your history, open it and tap Delete. This permanently removes the scan and all associated data from our servers.

🔒 Account & Privacy

Your data stays private and secure.

1

Creating an account

Accounts are free. Sign in with Google (recommended for speed), Apple, or your email address. We never sell your data or share it with beauty brands.

2

Photo privacy

Photos you upload are stored securely and used only to extract skin tone data and improve your shade recommendations. We never share or sell your images. You can delete your data anytime from Settings.

3

Deleting your account

To delete your account and all associated data, contact support at support@shadematch.app. We'll process your request within 30 days.

💡 Tips for Best Results

Get the most accurate shade match every time.

Use natural lighting

Artificial lighting (warm bulbs, fluorescents) casts color onto your skin. Move near a window with indirect daylight for the truest skin tone reading.

Clean, bare skin works best

If possible, scan before applying foundation or with very light coverage. Heavy foundation changes the detected tone significantly.

Center your face in the frame

The AI samples six key facial points (forehead, both cheeks, chin, nose bridge, and neck). Make sure your whole face is visible and centered.

Try at different times of day

Your skin tone can shift slightly with sun exposure, hydration, and season. If results feel off, try again in different lighting or at a different time of day.

Common questions

Quick answers to things people ask most.

Yes. Scanning your skin tone and browsing shades is completely free. Creating a free account unlocks shade translation results and saves your scan history. There are no paid subscriptions.
We currently support MAC, Fenty Beauty, NARS, Maybelline, Estée Lauder, L'Oréal, Too Faced, Clinique, Charlotte Tilbury, Bobbi Brown, Armani Beauty, Lancôme, Urban Decay, Dior, and more — 20+ brands in total. New brands are added regularly.
We use the CIEDE2000 color formula — the industry standard for perceptual color difference — to compare shades in Lab color space. Results with ΔE below 1.0 are considered exact matches by professional color scientists. Accuracy depends on lighting quality in your scan photo.
Yes. Your photos are stored securely on our servers and used to analyse your skin tone and improve your shade recommendations over time. We never share or sell your images, and you can permanently delete your photos and account data at any time via Settings → Delete Account.
Signing in is required to save your scan history and view full cross-brand translation results. Sign-in is completely free and takes under 10 seconds with Google or Apple. We use authentication to prevent abuse of the API.
ΔE (Delta E) is a measure of perceptual color difference. ΔE = 0 means identical colors. ΔE below 1.0 is imperceptible to the human eye. ΔE 1–2 is very close. ΔE above 3 may appear slightly different on skin. ShadeMatch uses the CIEDE2000 formula, the most accurate standard available.
A few things to try: retake the scan in better natural lighting, scan with bare or minimal-coverage skin, and check oxidation warnings (some shades darken after application). If results still feel off, contact us at support@shadematch.app — user feedback helps us improve the AI.

We're here to help

Reach out any time — we typically respond within one business day.

✉️

Email Support

For questions, bugs, account issues, or data deletion requests.

support@shadematch.app
🐛

Report a Bug

Found something broken? Tell us what happened and we'll fix it fast.

bugs@shadematch.app
💄

Request a Brand

Don't see your brand? Request it and we'll prioritize adding it.

brands@shadematch.app

Response time: We aim to respond to all support emails within 1 business day (Mon–Fri, 9am–6pm PT). For urgent issues, please include "URGENT" in your subject line.

For account deletion or data export requests, we are required by law to process them within 30 days of receiving your request.