Hairstyles for pear-shaped faces: add weight to the upper half

Hairstyles for pear-shaped faces: put the weight on top

They all carry their volume high: lift at the crown, some width at the temples, lighter hair near the jaw.

Reading an outline, you compare top and bottom. Narrow above and wide below reads as a trapezoid, and the bottom edge is what you notice. Width added up top shrinks that gap; more hair at the jaw widens it.

That is the reverse of hairstyles for heart-shaped faces: a heart face is wide at the forehead, so its weight goes low.

It is salon know-how; no study has tested it.

What a pear-shaped face looks like, and a note on names

ForeheadCheekbonesJawFace length

• Jaw widest: clearly wider than the forehead, narrowing upward.
• Forehead narrowest: a small upper face over a fuller lower face.
• A broad chin: a squarish jaw and rounder cheeks.

To measure, compare jaw ÷ cheekbone width (near or above 1) with forehead ÷ cheekbone width (clearly lower). No source gives a cutoff; measuring is explained in how to find your face shape, and a free face report from one front-facing photo gives your face shape too. A square face also has a wide jaw, but a forehead almost as wide.

Names vary between sources: “triangle” can mean this jaw-widest face or the opposite, a wide forehead over a narrow chin. Here pear and triangle both mean jaw widest. One guide calls it less common.

Adding to the upper half: crown, temples, layers

• Lift at the crown: blow-dry the roots upward, or add a soft root perm.
• Layers that start high: cut from near the crown so the top has body and the hair lightens going down.
• Width at the temples: let the hair above the ears stand out a little, not pressed flat.
• A side parting with volume: one side lifts and sweeps across, adding height and width.
• Long hair parted in the middle: the two lines draw the eye up, as long as the roots have lift.

Jaw length or longer both work. What matters is where the volume sits.

Around the jaw: lighter and softer

The jaw is already the widest point, so hair here has one job: add no width.

• Light, broken-up ends: thin the ends at jaw height rather than leaving a solid block.
• A gentle curve: ends turned slightly in, not puffed out.
• A few strands when tied up: leave some hair by the chin with a ponytail or bun.

Long, straight hair with no lift does the reverse: flat on top and hanging outside the jaw, it traces the taper exactly.

Short hair and bangs for a pear-shaped face

Short hair is the most direct route, since the top holds more of the hair:

• A pixie with side-swept bangs: lift and a slanted fringe move the weight up.
• A textured crop: height on top, sides not too thick.
• If you prefer it very short: medium length and volume on top, as a side-swept fringe, a textured quiff or a pompadour; with curls, build the volume high.

Bangs widen the forehead fastest. Thick bangs to the brows add weight there; side-swept bangs widen it on a slant; wispy bangs need some lift to do anything.

With a beard, keep it neat and close, or go clean-shaven.

Cuts to use sparingly on a pear face, and frames

• Blunt cuts ending at the chin: their heavy edge meets the widest point.
• Sleek, flat tops: no weight up top, so the taper shows more.
• Curls that puff out at the jaw: volume where the face is already widest.

Hair type is covered in the main face-shape hair guide. Frames pull upward too: cat-eyes with a detailed top rim or slightly wide rectangles. Details live in the frames guide.

FAQ

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