Autumn Color Palette
The autumn color palette, also called the fall color palette, is the warm, muted side of seasonal color analysis. The autumn color season splits into three: Soft Autumn, True Autumn and Deep Autumn. All three lean warm and earthy, and each is led by a different trait: softness, warmth or depth.
Find out which season you areThe three Autumn seasons
Warm undertones and rich, earthy color. Autumns come alive in shades with spice and soil in them: olive, rust, camel, teal.
- All 35 colors, light to dark
Soft Autumn
Muted Autumn Soft first, warm second: dusty, grayed-down warm colors like dusty olive and faded terracotta. See the Soft Autumn palette - All 38 colors, light to dark
True Autumn
Warm Autumn Warm first, soft second: the warmest Autumn, earthy colors like cardinal red and mustard gold. See the True Autumn palette - All 37 colors, light to dark
Deep Autumn
Dark Autumn Deep first, warm second: dark, warm colors like burnt brick and deep aubergine, for high contrast. See the Deep Autumn palette
Autumn color palette for clothes
The capsule wardrobe of each Autumn, by color
All three Autumn wardrobes start from the palette's core neutrals, with two or three signature colors layered in. A cream shirt and olive or forest-green trousers appear in every Autumn capsule, and a camel coat anchors both Soft and True Autumn.
The mood shifts from season to season. Soft Autumn adds a sage-green blouse and an apricot dress, True Autumn a rust top and a mustard dress, and Deep Autumn a dark brown coat, a deep rust top and an aubergine dress.
Prints lean on natural motifs such as leaves, ovals and wood. Soft Autumn keeps them gentle and low in contrast, True Autumn adds paisley at medium contrast, and Deep Autumn goes large and bold with high value contrast.
Autumn colors to wear
Signature colors of each Autumn
- Soft Autumn Muskmelon · Fern · Golden Apricot · Garnet Rose · Leaf Green
- True Autumn Fall Leaf · Cardinal · Spinach Green · Butterum · Mustard Gold
- Deep Autumn Rio Red · Summer Fig · Grape Royale · Nugget Gold · Ivy
Each Autumn season has five signature colors, shown here next to the colors at least two Autumns avoid.
Cool, icy or stark colors are the common miss.
Colors to skip
Autumn skin tone and complexion
Undertone and contrast of each Autumn, next to its neutrals
- Soft Autumn
- Undertone
- warm-neutral
- Contrast
- low-medium
- True Autumn
- Undertone
- warm
- Contrast
- medium
- Deep Autumn
- Undertone
- warm-neutral
- Contrast
- high
Autumn skin has a warm or warm-neutral undertone: sand or yellow in Soft Autumn, obviously golden in True Autumn, and golden or bronze in Deep Autumn. Depth ranges from fair to tan in Soft Autumn, fair to dark in True Autumn and light to deep in Deep Autumn.
Contrast rises through the family: low to medium for Soft Autumn, medium for True Autumn, high for Deep Autumn. Eyes in all three often show iris freckles or uneven borders.
Two complexion clues: Soft Autumn skin can look yellowish against true black and dull against vivid color. True Autumn skin takes on a bronzy glow in rich colors.
Autumn vs spring: the two warm families
Signature colors side by side
- True Autumn Fall Leaf · Cardinal · Spinach Green · Butterum · Mustard Gold
- True Spring Coral · Dandelion · Green Flash · Bachelor Button · Bird Of Paradise
Autumn and Spring are the two warm families, both with a yellow-based undertone. Autumn colors are muted and earthy, Spring colors bright and clear: a mustard that looks sunny and clear suits True Spring, while the same mustard aged down into ochre suits True Autumn.
Autumn makeup, hair color and more
Lip shades and hair colors from each Autumn guide
Each Autumn season has its own guides to makeup shades, hair colors, nail colors, outfits and celebrity examples. Men use the same seasonal palettes, mostly through suiting neutrals, shirts and ties.
Autumn color analysis: am I an autumn?
- Soft Autumn Soft first, warm second: dusty, grayed-down warm colors like dusty olive and faded terracotta.
- True Autumn Warm first, soft second: the warmest Autumn, earthy colors like cardinal red and mustard gold.
- Deep Autumn Deep first, warm second: dark, warm colors like burnt brick and deep aubergine, for high contrast.
Signs that point to Autumn: warm or warm-neutral skin, gold looking richer than silver, and hair that shows golden, red or caramel highlights in the sun. Cool or icy colors also tend to look faintly off on you.
To narrow it down, try a full-strength mustard gold: if it looks alive and rich, lean True Autumn; if it needs dusting down, lean Soft Autumn. Dark brown to black-brown hair with strong contrast against the skin points to Deep Autumn.
The free color test weighs hue, value, chroma and contrast and names your closest season when your answers point clearly to one.
Autumn color palette questions
Is the fall color palette the same as the autumn color palette?
Yes. Fall and Autumn are two names for the same color family, so fall color analysis and autumn color analysis lead to the same three seasons: Soft, True and Deep Autumn.
What is a fall skin tone?
A fall skin tone is an Autumn one: a warm or warm-neutral undertone, often golden, sand or bronze, on skin anywhere from fair to deep. Contrast runs from low to high depending on the season.
Can an Autumn wear black?
Pure black is hard for most Autumns. Soft and True Autumn both list Jet Black as a color to avoid, and Deep Autumn can wear it in small amounts. Chocolate brown, warm charcoal, deep olive or bottle green give the same depth with more warmth.
Should Autumns wear gold or silver?
Gold. Gold and bronze are on all three Autumn lists, ideally in a brushed, hammered or antiqued finish rather than high shine. Soft and Deep Autumn can also wear pewter, and Soft Autumn white gold.
Which Autumn are you?
Put it into practice: 16 questions in about 4 minutes, free, no photos, no sign-up.