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Warm Autumn vs Deep Autumn (True Autumn vs Dark Autumn)

The same autumn hues at two depths: pumpkin orange and olive green for one, burnt orange and deep olive for the other.

Find what fits me best

Warm Autumn and Deep Autumn side by side

Warm Autumn

Its best colors

  • pumpkin orange #CC5500
  • olive green #708238
  • mustard #D4A017
  • terracotta #C0603A
  • warm teal #1F7A6E
  • chocolate brown #6B4226

Its neutrals

  • cream #F5E8C8
  • camel #C19A6B
  • warm khaki #A88F59
  • tobacco brown #8B5A2B
The full Warm Autumn palette →

Deep Autumn

Its best colors

  • burnt orange #B7410E
  • deep olive #556B2F
  • mustard gold #C99A06
  • deep teal #005F5F
  • chocolate brown #5C3A21
  • brick red #A52A1A

Its neutrals

  • cream #F5E8C8
  • dark khaki #6B5B3A
  • warm charcoal #3F3A35
  • espresso #3C2A1E
The full Deep Autumn palette →

The difference test

Undertone

Warm Autumn leans warmer

Hold mustard under your chin, then deep teal. A Warm Autumn glows in the golden one and looks a little grey in the teal; a Deep Autumn tends to look just as good in deep teal, because depth matters more to it than gold.

Depth

Deep Autumn is deeper

Compare olive green with deep olive, then terracotta with brick red. If the darker twin sharpens your eyes and jawline, you lean Deep Autumn; if it looks heavy and the medium one looks alive, you lean Warm Autumn.

Chroma

Similar clarity

Both palettes are rich and saturated. Dusty, greyed shades such as warm taupe flatten both, and clear, bright ones such as hot coral look loud on both; the twins that decide sit at the same intensity, only at different depths.

Contrast

Similar contrast

Deep Autumn coloring often shows a little more contrast between hair and skin, but both palettes keep a moderate gap and neither needs black with pure white: a Warm Autumn finds enough edge in tobacco brown with cream, a Deep Autumn in espresso with cream.

  1. 1

Step 1 / 1

Take a selfie in daylight

Face a window, without makeup if you can, hair as it naturally falls. Daylight and no filter keep your real skin tone — colored lamps and beauty filters change the result.

🙂

Your selfie is used for your reading and saved in your private Color Suite only if you go on to a try-on. Never shared, never used for training.

Warm Autumn, also called True Autumn, and Deep Autumn, also called Dark Autumn, are neighbors, and their palettes look like the same autumn at two depths. Both are warm, both wear rich, saturated earth tones rather than dusty ones, both share chocolate brown and cream, and both look sallow in icy pastels. Auburn or warm brown hair with brown eyes can fit either description.

Two things separate them. The first is depth: Deep Autumn coloring is darker overall, from the hair to the eyes, and needs colors heavy enough to match. The second is how much warmth leads. For a Warm Autumn, warmth is everything, so the most golden colors flatter most. For a Deep Autumn, warmth comes second to depth, and a few cooler, darker shades such as deep teal look at home on it.

Almost every color has a twin: pumpkin orange and burnt orange, olive green and deep olive, terracotta and brick red, mustard and mustard gold, warm teal and deep teal. The test comes down to which twin your face prefers.

Colors the two autumns share

Chocolate brown is in both palettes, and cream is a neutral for both, so a chocolate coat over a cream sweater suits either season. Mustard and mustard gold are close enough that most mustard knits work for both, and copper, bronze and gold are the metals of both.

Between the twins there is room for a middle shade: an olive between olive green and deep olive, a rust between pumpkin orange and burnt orange, a teal between warm teal and deep teal. If you are not sure yet, buy in that middle range.

Moving a wardrobe a shade deeper or lighter

From Warm to Deep Autumn, keep the hue and darken it. Pumpkin orange becomes burnt orange, olive green deep olive, terracotta brick red, warm teal deep teal. Camel steps down to dark khaki, tobacco brown to espresso, and warm khaki to warm charcoal.

Going the other way, lighten in the same steps. Metals shift a little too: polished yellow gold and brass suit the brighter warmth of a Warm Autumn, antique gold and bronze the deeper one. Heavy textures such as leather, velvet and dense wool sit well on a Deep Autumn; a Warm Autumn wears them too, in lighter browns.

How to tell if you are a Warm Autumn or a Deep Autumn

  1. 1

    Collect the color twins

    Find a medium and a dark version of the same hue: olive green and deep olive, or terracotta and brick red. Add chocolate brown as a control, since it suits both.

  2. 2

    Face daylight with makeup off

    A window at midday works best. If your hair is dyed or highlighted, tie it back or cover it, because it changes how deep you look.

  3. 3

    Hold each twin, medium first

    Switch between the two several times. The right depth makes your eyes clearer and your skin smoother; the wrong one either swallows you or looks washed out.

  4. 4

    Check mustard against deep teal

    If mustard clearly beats deep teal, warmth leads and Warm Autumn is likelier. If they look equally good, depth leads.

  5. 5

    Get your season from a selfie

    Use the reading on this page: one daylight selfie, the button "Find what fits me best", and you get your season out of 12 for free.

FAQ

Are True Autumn and Dark Autumn the same as Warm and Deep Autumn?

Yes. True Autumn is another name for Warm Autumn, and Dark Autumn another name for Deep Autumn. Different schools of color analysis use different names for the same twelve seasons. Whichever names you know, the palettes and the test on this page are the same.

Can a Warm Autumn wear Deep Autumn colors?

Many of them, especially the medium-dark ones such as deep olive and chocolate brown. The darkest pieces, like espresso or warm charcoal near the face, can look heavy on a Warm Autumn and pull color from the cheeks. Keep those for trousers, shoes and bags.

Can a Deep Autumn wear camel and pumpkin orange?

Yes, though they are not its strongest colors. Camel is a little light for deep coloring and can look washed out at the collar; dark khaki or chocolate brown does the same job better. Pumpkin orange works, but burnt orange, its deeper twin, usually looks richer.

Is black ever okay for either autumn?

Black is among the worst colors of Warm Autumn. A Deep Autumn can wear it more easily, because its coloring is dark enough to hold it, but espresso and warm charcoal still flatter more. For evening, chocolate brown or espresso gives an outfit the same weight as black.

Which hair colors suit Warm Autumn and Deep Autumn?

Warm Autumns usually shine in copper, auburn, golden brown and warm chestnut. Deep Autumns suit rich dark brown, espresso and dark chestnut, sometimes with a subtle copper glint. Lightening a Deep Autumn too far, or darkening a Warm Autumn to near-black, tends to look like a wig.

What lipstick suits a Warm Autumn compared with a Deep Autumn?

Warm Autumns look best in terracotta, warm coral-brown and pumpkin-toned lips. Deep Autumns can go darker: brick red, deep rust and chocolate brown. The same logic holds for the eyes, with olive and bronze shadow for one and deep olive, espresso and deep teal liner for the other.

Does a tan change whether I read as Warm or Deep Autumn?

It can. A deep summer tan darkens the skin for a few weeks, and a photo taken then may read deeper than your coloring is the rest of the year. If you tan easily, run the free reading again once the tan has faded and compare the two results.