Season comparison
Light Spring vs Light Summer: how to tell the difference
Both palettes side by side, the colors they genuinely share, and the one thing that actually decides it — undertone.
Light Spring and Light Summer are both light, medium-clarity seasons; the only axis that separates them is undertone — Light Spring is warm, Light Summer is cool. Their palettes overlap on 6 of Light Spring’s 16 colors and 10 of Light Summer’s; the widest gaps are Light Spring’s Melon Sorbet and Light Summer’s Watery Rose.
What’s the difference between Light Spring and Light Summer?
The 12-season system runs on three axes — undertone, depth and clarity. Light Spring and Light Summer are both light, medium-clarity seasons, so everything below the one row marked as the split is common ground.
| Undertone — the split | Light Springwarm (golden/yellow-based) Light Summercool (pink/blue-based) This is where the two seasons part company. |
|---|---|
| Depth | Light Springlight Light Summerlight Identical — this axis cannot tell you apart. |
| Clarity | Light Springmoderately clear Light Summermoderately clear Identical — this axis cannot tell you apart. |
| Best metals | Light SpringGold Light SummerSilver Different verdicts, and undertone is exactly what splits these two — the jewelry test is a real tiebreaker here. |
| Signature neutral | Light SpringWarm Ivory #FBF0DC Light SummerSoft White #F6F4F0 The color each season reaches for instead of black. |
| Palette lightness (mean L*) | Light Spring82 Light Summer78 Mean L* of each 16-color palette. Light Spring runs 4 points lighter. |
| Palette saturation (mean C*) | Light Spring33 Light Summer23 Light Spring runs 9 points more saturated. |
| Palette warmth (mean b*) | Light Spring+18 Light Summer−6 Positive is yellow, negative is blue — the numeric version of warm versus cool. |
Light Spring vs Light Summer: the two palettes side by side
Sixteen colors each, with hex values. This is the comparison most articles on these two seasons never actually show you.
The Light Spring palette
Light Spring coloring is warm (golden/yellow-based), light in depth, and moderately clear.
Peach Blossom#FFB59E Buttercream#F7DC8E Spring Aqua#8FD6C6 Warm Ivory#FBF0DC Coral Pink#F99787 Melon Sorbet#FFA588 Pistachio#B8D8A0 Soft Turquoise#7CCFD0 Baby Marigold#FBC65F Powder Peach#FAD0BB Fresh Leaf#9CCB76 Clear Sky#9CCEE8 Rosy Nude#EFAF9C Honeydew#DCE8A9 Apricot Cream#FFC498 Periwinkle Mist#A9B8E8
The Light Summer palette
Light Summer coloring is cool (pink/blue-based), light in depth, and moderately clear.
Powder Blue#A7C7E7 Ballet Rose#F3B8C8 Sea Glass#B5DED4 Lavender Mist#C5B8E0 Cool Lemon#F2E6A2 Dusty Aqua#8FC6CE Rose Quartz#E8A9BD Wisteria#A99BD1 Soft Sky#B9D6EE Cool Mint#A8DEC6 Petal Pink#F5CCD9 Heather#B790B8 Light Denim#7FA6CC Watery Rose#DE8FA8 Cloud Lilac#D4C6E8 Spearmint#8FCDB4
Where the Light Spring and Light Summer palettes agree
Every color in one palette was measured against every color in the other in CIELAB. 11 pairings came back close enough to call the same color: 6 of Light Spring’s 16 have a near-identical counterpart in Light Summer’s palette, and 10 of Light Summer’s have one going back the other way. These are the colors you can wear whichever of the two you turn out to be.
Left: Light SpringRight: Light Summer
Clear Sky#9CCEE8 Powder Blue#A7C7E7 6.9 ΔE apart
Clear Sky#9CCEE8 Soft Sky#B9D6EE 7.7 ΔE apart
Spring Aqua#8FD6C6 Spearmint#8FCDB4 8.2 ΔE apart
Spring Aqua#8FD6C6 Cool Mint#A8DEC6 9.0 ΔE apart
Soft Turquoise#7CCFD0 Dusty Aqua#8FC6CE 9.4 ΔE apart
Spring Aqua#8FD6C6 Sea Glass#B5DED4 10.7 ΔE apart
Periwinkle Mist#A9B8E8 Light Denim#7FA6CC 10.9 ΔE apart
Honeydew#DCE8A9 Cool Lemon#F2E6A2 11.5 ΔE apart
Buttercream#F7DC8E Cool Lemon#F2E6A2 11.7 ΔE apart
Periwinkle Mist#A9B8E8 Wisteria#A99BD1 11.8 ΔE apart
Periwinkle Mist#A9B8E8 Lavender Mist#C5B8E0 13.0 ΔE apart
Where Light Spring and Light Summer split
This is the section that decides it. 10 of Light Spring’s colors and 6 of Light Summer’s have no near equivalent in the other palette — and because the gap runs along undertone, these are the exact swatches to hold against your face when you cannot decide. The shared colors above will look fine either way, which is precisely why they are useless as a test.
Each color below is listed with the closest thing the other season has to it, and how far apart the two measure. The bigger the number, the more that color belongs to one season and not the other.
Light Spring only — 10 of 16
The 5 furthest from anything in the Light Summer palette:
- Melon Sorbet#FFA588Nearest Light Summer color: Cool Lemon — 38 ΔE away
- Baby Marigold#FBC65FNearest Light Summer color: Cool Lemon — 37 ΔE away
- Coral Pink#F99787Nearest Light Summer color: Watery Rose — 37 ΔE away
- Peach Blossom#FFB59ENearest Light Summer color: Ballet Rose — 33 ΔE away
- Rosy Nude#EFAF9CNearest Light Summer color: Ballet Rose — 28 ΔE away
Light Summer only — 6 of 16
The 5 furthest from anything in the Light Spring palette:
- Watery Rose#DE8FA8Nearest Light Spring color: Rosy Nude — 32 ΔE away
- Rose Quartz#E8A9BDNearest Light Spring color: Powder Peach — 30 ΔE away
- Ballet Rose#F3B8C8Nearest Light Spring color: Powder Peach — 27 ΔE away
- Petal Pink#F5CCD9Nearest Light Spring color: Warm Ivory — 25 ΔE away
- Heather#B790B8Nearest Light Spring color: Periwinkle Mist — 23 ΔE away
Can a Light Spring wear Light Summer colors?
Partly, and the split is measurable rather than a matter of taste. 10 of the 16 Light Summer colors sit close enough to something in the Light Spring palette to borrow freely — starting with Light Summer’s Powder Blue (#A7C7E7), which measures 6.9 ΔE from Light Spring’s Clear Sky (#9CCEE8). The remaining 6 are where Light Summer pulls away along undertone, and those are the ones that read as almost-right on a Light Spring.
It runs the same way in reverse: 6 of Light Spring’s colors are fair game for a Light Summer, and 10 are not. Neither palette is the better one — they are different answers to different faces.
How do I know if I’m Light Spring or Light Summer?
Only test the axis that separates them. Everything else is common ground and will give you an answer that fits both. Do this in daylight near a window, with no makeup on, and watch your skin rather than the fabric.
1. Gold beside silver
Light Spring is warm and wears gold; Light Summer is cool and wears silver. Hold both metals to your jaw and look for the one that leaves your skin even rather than grey. Then repeat it with fabric: Light Spring’s Warm Ivory (#FBF0DC) against Light Summer’s Soft White (#F6F4F0). The full method is in the undertone guide, and the free undertone quiz will run it for you.
2. The head-to-head
The cleanest single test on this page: put Light Spring’s Melon Sorbet (#FFA588) next to Light Summer’s Watery Rose (#DE8FA8). Those two measure furthest from each other’s palettes of anything either season owns, so whichever one your face prefers is the strongest signal available without a full analysis.
Light Spring — the test colors
Light Summer — the test colors
What a Light Spring and a Light Summer wear differently
Same three axes, applied to the things you buy. Where the two seasons agree, the advice is interchangeable; where they do not, this is what changes.
| Lipstick | Light Springsheer peach, coral pink and warm rose — glossy over matte Light Summercool rose, soft berry and pink nude — sheer and fresh |
|---|---|
| Blush | Light Springpeachy pink with a golden glow Light Summercool pink with a satin finish |
| Foundation | Light Springwarm or golden undertone, light coverage — let the freshness through Light Summerrosy or neutral undertone; keep coverage airy |
| Hair color | Light Springstay light and warm: golden blonde, honey, light caramel — avoid ashy or inky depth Light Summercool and light: ash blonde, beige blonde, light ash brown — golden warmth fights you |
| Jewelry | Light SpringGold Light SummerSilver |
| Wardrobe | Light Springlight warm layers over crisp warm-white; color near the face, softness everywhere else Light Summertonal pastels head-to-toe; swap black for grey-blue or soft white |
Deeper on each: Light Spring makeup and Light Spring hair, or Light Summer makeup and Light Summer hair.
Light Spring vs Light Summer: common questions
What is the difference between Light Spring and Light Summer?
Light Spring and Light Summer are both light, medium-clarity seasons, and the only axis that separates them is undertone — Light Spring is warm, Light Summer is cool. In palette terms that shows up as 10 of Light Spring's 16 colors and 6 of Light Summer's having no near equivalent on the other side — for example Light Spring's Melon Sorbet (#FFA588) and Light Summer's Watery Rose (#DE8FA8).
Can a Light Spring wear Light Summer colors?
Some of them, and the count is exact: 10 of the 16 colors in the Light Summer palette have a near-identical counterpart in Light Spring's, so those are safe to borrow. The other 6 are where Light Summer pulls away — wearing those is what makes a Light Spring look slightly off rather than lit. Borrow the overlap, skip the rest.
How do I tell if I'm Light Spring or Light Summer?
Test the axis that separates them, which is undertone. Drape gold beside silver in daylight: Light Spring is warm, Light Summer is cool, and gold versus silver is the fastest tell. Run it in daylight with no makeup on, and watch your skin rather than the fabric.
Do the Light Spring and Light Summer palettes share any colors?
Yes — measured in CIELAB, 6 of Light Spring's 16 colors have a near-identical match in Light Summer's palette, and 10 of Light Summer's have one in Light Spring's. The closest single pairing is Light Spring's Clear Sky (#9CCEE8) against Light Summer's Powder Blue (#A7C7E7), 7 ΔE apart. Those are the colors you can wear either way while you decide.
Does a Light Spring or a Light Summer wear gold?
Light Spring: gold. Light Summer: silver. Different verdicts, and undertone is exactly what splits these two — the jewelry test is a real tiebreaker here. In daylight, hold both metals to your jaw and watch your skin rather than the metal — the right one leaves you even, the wrong one leaves you grey.
What if I'm somewhere between Light Spring and Light Summer?
That is a normal place to land — these two are on this list precisely because they are confused constantly. Live in the overlap: the 11 near-identical pairings between the two palettes work either way. Then judge yourself on undertone alone, in daylight, using the colors each season does not share with the other. Those are the only colors that can actually tell you apart.
Which colors should I avoid if I'm Light Spring rather than Light Summer?
Light Spring should steer clear of jet black, burgundy, charcoal; Light Summer should steer clear of jet black, pumpkin, mustard. The avoid lists are a useful cross-check: if one season's "avoid" colors are the ones you already know look bad on you, that is a vote for the other season.