The three sections
| Third | From | To |
|---|---|---|
| Upper | Hairline | Brow line |
| Middle | Brow line | Base of the nose |
| Lower | Base of the nose | Bottom of the chin |
The lower third is often divided further: the upper lip is commonly described as about one third of it and the lower lip and chin as about two thirds.
How to measure your facial thirds
- Take a straight-on photo with your head level and your face relaxed.
- Mark four horizontal lines: the hairline, the brow line, the base of the nose and the bottom of the chin.
- Measure the distance between each pair of lines and compare the three sections.
If the three distances are close to equal, the proportions are considered balanced. Hexum calculates this automatically as one of its 34 metrics.
What facial thirds do and do not tell you
- It is a guideline, not a rule. The equal-thirds idea comes from classical art. Real faces vary, and attractive faces are often not perfectly equal.
- The hairline is hard to define. A receding or changing hairline, or a fringe, makes the upper third unclear in a photo.
- Angle matters. Tilting the head up or down changes the apparent length of each section.
What can change how your thirds look
Your bone structure is mostly fixed, but how the sections look is not. A haircut or a change in hair fullness shifts the upper third. Becoming leaner changes how the lower third looks, and facial hair or grooming changes the chin area. For a consistent reading, always scan with the same angle and hair position.
See how thirds fit with facial symmetry and the other metrics in the looksmaxxing app overview.
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