Season comparison
Light Spring vs True Spring: how to tell the difference
Both palettes side by side, the colors they genuinely share, and the one thing that actually decides it — depth and clarity.
Light Spring and True Spring are both warm seasons; they split on depth and clarity: Light Spring is light and moderately clear, True Spring is medium in depth and clear. Their palettes overlap on 5 of Light Spring’s 16 colors and 6 of True Spring’s; the widest gaps are Light Spring’s Warm Ivory and True Spring’s Warm Violet.
What’s the difference between Light Spring and True Spring?
The 12-season system runs on three axes — undertone, depth and clarity. Light Spring and True Spring are both warm seasons, so everything below the two rows marked as the split is common ground.
| Undertone | Light Springwarm (golden/yellow-based) True Springwarm (golden/yellow-based) Identical — this axis cannot tell you apart. |
|---|---|
| Depth — the split | Light Springlight True Springmedium This is where the two seasons part company. |
| Clarity — the split | Light Springmoderately clear True Springclear and true This is where the two seasons part company. |
| Best metals | Light SpringGold True SpringGold Same verdict — jewelry cannot settle this pair. Judge on depth and clarity instead. |
| Signature neutral | Light SpringWarm Ivory #FBF0DC True SpringWarm Cream #F8ECD4 The color each season reaches for instead of black. |
| Palette lightness (mean L*) | Light Spring82 True Spring69 Mean L* of each 16-color palette. Light Spring runs 13 points lighter. |
| Palette saturation (mean C*) | Light Spring33 True Spring52 True Spring runs 20 points more saturated. |
| Palette warmth (mean b*) | Light Spring+18 True Spring+27 Positive is yellow, negative is blue — the numeric version of warm versus cool. |
Light Spring vs True Spring: 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 True Spring palette
True Spring coloring is warm (golden/yellow-based), medium in depth, and clear and true.
Coral Rose#F2706A Marigold#F5C95A Leaf Green#8FC36B Warm Peach#F4A26B Chartreuse Bud#E8D24B Jade Pool#5BC2A8 Clear Ocean#5BB6D6 Shell Pink#F2A6B0 Watermelon#E86A8A Terracotta Sun#C9602F Tomato Red#E04B3A Golden Apricot#F0A040 Kelly Green#3FA45B Turquoise#2FB5B0 Warm Violet#8E6BC0 Daffodil#FFD44F
Where the Light Spring and True Spring palettes agree
Every color in one palette was measured against every color in the other in CIELAB. 6 pairings came back close enough to call the same color: 5 of Light Spring’s 16 have a near-identical counterpart in True Spring’s palette, and 6 of True Spring’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: True Spring
Fresh Leaf#9CCB76 Leaf Green#8FC36B 3.6 ΔE apart
Baby Marigold#FBC65F Marigold#F5C95A 5.5 ΔE apart
Soft Turquoise#7CCFD0 Turquoise#2FB5B0 12.6 ΔE apart
Spring Aqua#8FD6C6 Jade Pool#5BC2A8 12.8 ΔE apart
Clear Sky#9CCEE8 Clear Ocean#5BB6D6 13.8 ΔE apart
Baby Marigold#FBC65F Golden Apricot#F0A040 15.4 ΔE apart
Where Light Spring and True Spring split
This is the section that decides it. 11 of Light Spring’s colors and 10 of True Spring’s have no near equivalent in the other palette — and because the gap runs along depth and clarity, 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 — 11 of 16
The 5 furthest from anything in the True Spring palette:
- Warm Ivory#FBF0DCNearest True Spring color: Shell Pink — 32 ΔE away
- Buttercream#F7DC8ENearest True Spring color: Warm Peach — 27 ΔE away
- Pistachio#B8D8A0Nearest True Spring color: Leaf Green — 26 ΔE away
- Honeydew#DCE8A9Nearest True Spring color: Leaf Green — 25 ΔE away
- Peach Blossom#FFB59ENearest True Spring color: Shell Pink — 25 ΔE away
True Spring only — 10 of 16
The 5 furthest from anything in the Light Spring palette:
- Warm Violet#8E6BC0Nearest Light Spring color: Periwinkle Mist — 36 ΔE away
- Tomato Red#E04B3ANearest Light Spring color: Melon Sorbet — 36 ΔE away
- Watermelon#E86A8ANearest Light Spring color: Coral Pink — 32 ΔE away
- Terracotta Sun#C9602FNearest Light Spring color: Melon Sorbet — 31 ΔE away
- Kelly Green#3FA45BNearest Light Spring color: Fresh Leaf — 22 ΔE away
Can a Light Spring wear True Spring colors?
Partly, and the split is measurable rather than a matter of taste. 6 of the 16 True Spring colors sit close enough to something in the Light Spring palette to borrow freely — starting with True Spring’s Leaf Green (#8FC36B), which measures 3.6 ΔE from Light Spring’s Fresh Leaf (#9CCB76). The remaining 10 are where True Spring pulls away along depth and clarity, and those are the ones that read as almost-right on a Light Spring.
It runs the same way in reverse: 5 of Light Spring’s colors are fair game for a True Spring, and 11 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 True Spring?
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. Do deep colors ground you or swallow you?
Hold Light Spring’s deepest color, Coral Pink (#F99787), against True Spring’s, Warm Violet (#8E6BC0). If the deeper of the two anchors your face and sharpens your features, you belong to the deeper season. If it takes over — your eyes and mouth recede and the garment arrives before you do — you belong to the lighter one.
2. Does bright read vivid or harsh?
Hold Light Spring’s most saturated color, Baby Marigold (#FBC65F), beside True Spring’s, Tomato Red (#E04B3A). If the clearer color makes your eyes come forward, you are the clearer season. If it looks like it is shouting over you — the color wins, your face goes flat — you are the softer one.
3. The head-to-head
The cleanest single test on this page: put Light Spring’s Warm Ivory (#FBF0DC) next to True Spring’s Warm Violet (#8E6BC0). 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.
Undertone will not separate these two — Light Spring and True Spring share it. If you are not yet certain you are in the right half of the system at all, settle that first with the undertone guide or the free undertone quiz, and come back to depth and clarity once it is answered.
Light Spring — the test colors
True Spring — the test colors
What a Light Spring and a True Spring 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 True Springtrue coral, warm poppy and peachy red — clear, never muted |
|---|---|
| Blush | Light Springpeachy pink with a golden glow True Springfresh coral or warm peach |
| Foundation | Light Springwarm or golden undertone, light coverage — let the freshness through True Springgolden undertone; a touch of warmth beats a touch of pink |
| Hair color | Light Springstay light and warm: golden blonde, honey, light caramel — avoid ashy or inky depth True Springgolden — honey, copper-kissed caramel, warm chestnut; skip ash tones and blue-black |
| Jewelry | Light SpringGold True SpringGold |
| Wardrobe | Light Springlight warm layers over crisp warm-white; color near the face, softness everywhere else True Springclear warm color as the main event; camel and warm cream as your "blacks" |
Deeper on each: Light Spring makeup and Light Spring hair, or True Spring makeup and True Spring hair.
Light Spring vs True Spring: common questions
What is the difference between Light Spring and True Spring?
Light Spring and True Spring are both warm seasons, and they split on depth and clarity: Light Spring is light and moderately clear, True Spring is medium in depth and clear. In palette terms that shows up as 11 of Light Spring's 16 colors and 10 of True Spring's having no near equivalent on the other side — for example Light Spring's Warm Ivory (#FBF0DC) and True Spring's Warm Violet (#8E6BC0).
Can a Light Spring wear True Spring colors?
Some of them, and the count is exact: 6 of the 16 colors in the True Spring palette have a near-identical counterpart in Light Spring's, so those are safe to borrow. The other 10 are where True Spring 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 True Spring?
Test the axis that separates them, which is depth and clarity. Hold Light Spring's Coral Pink against True Spring's Warm Violet and watch whether the deeper one grounds your face or swallows it. Hold Light Spring's Baby Marigold against True Spring's Tomato Red: if the brighter one reads vivid you are the clearer season, if it reads harsh you are the softer one. Run it in daylight with no makeup on, and watch your skin rather than the fabric.
Do the Light Spring and True Spring palettes share any colors?
Yes — measured in CIELAB, 5 of Light Spring's 16 colors have a near-identical match in True Spring's palette, and 6 of True Spring's have one in Light Spring's. The closest single pairing is Light Spring's Fresh Leaf (#9CCB76) against True Spring's Leaf Green (#8FC36B), 4 ΔE apart. Those are the colors you can wear either way while you decide.
Does a Light Spring or a True Spring wear gold?
Light Spring: gold. True Spring: gold. Same verdict — jewelry cannot settle this pair. Judge on depth and clarity instead.
What if I'm somewhere between Light Spring and True Spring?
That is a normal place to land — these two are on this list precisely because they are confused constantly. Live in the overlap: the 6 near-identical pairings between the two palettes work either way. Then judge yourself on depth and clarity 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 True Spring?
Light Spring should steer clear of jet black, burgundy, charcoal; True Spring should steer clear of jet black, dusty mauve, icy grey. 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.