Eye Shape Attractiveness: Which Shapes and Features Stand Out
Almond eyes are the shape most often called the most attractive, but shape is only part of the story. In a 2024 StrawPoll vote reported by Glam, almond eyes got more than twice as many votes as round eyes. That's a popularity poll, though, rather than a scientific study.
The research on eye shape attractiveness looks at smaller details that any shape can have: a slight upward tilt, bright whites, a clear ring around the iris and how far apart the eyes sit. Below, we compare the seven common eye shapes and the features raters actually respond to. We don't sell surgery, lenses or makeup, so there's nothing to push here. If you're curious about your own face.
Which eye shape is most attractive?
There's no single most attractive eye shape backed by research. Almond eyes win popularity polls and beauty lists, but that reflects opinion rather than measurement.
What studies do measure is eye features. In one study, 80 people rated photos of the eye area of 60 women. Eyes with a taller visible iris and a stronger upward, outward tilt of the eye and eyebrow scored higher, with moderate to strong links (Prantl et al., 2019). Almond and upturned eyes often have that slight lift, which may be part of why they do so well in polls. That last point is our reading, not something the study tested.
Eye colour, which many people assume matters most, did surprisingly little in research. When 80 raters scored the eye areas of 60 women, iris colour wasn't linked to how attractive the eyes looked, even though raters often said they liked blue (Gründl et al., 2012). So an attractive eye shape is less about a label and more about how the eye sits, opens and catches the light.
The 7 eye shapes and how each one comes across
Most people fit one main shape, although many eyes mix two, such as hooded and upturned. The descriptions below are general beauty and anatomy knowledge, not study results, so read them as a guide to spotting your shape.
Almond eyes
Almond eyes are a little longer than they are tall, with corners that taper to a soft point, and a small part of the iris usually tucks under the upper and lower lids. They're often seen as balanced and classic, which is why so many lists put them first.
Round eyes
Round eyes show more of the iris, often with some white visible above or below it, so they tend to look open, bright and youthful. One study found that a taller visible iris went with higher scores (Prantl et al., 2019), which fits the open look of round eyes, though it didn't test round eyes by name.
Hooded eyes
Hooded eyes have a fold of skin from the brow area that covers the eyelid crease when your eyes are open, so the lid looks smaller and the eyes often come across as soft or sultry. None of the studies we checked compared hooded eyes with other shapes.
Monolid eyes
Monolid eyes have no visible crease on the upper lid, so the lid looks smooth from lash line to brow. They're common in East Asian faces, where they often read as clean and sleek. One study didn't compare monolids with creased lids, but it did look at 322 photos of young East Asian women. It found that attractive eyes had a larger eye opening compared with how much upper lid showed, and the authors said these ideals differ from those in Caucasian faces (Patel et al., 2022).
Upturned eyes
Upturned eyes have outer corners that sit a little higher than the inner corners, and they're the shape behind trends like "fox eyes" and "cat eyes." They often look lifted and alert. This shape has the most research behind it of all the shapes, which we cover in the canthal tilt section below.
Downturned eyes
Downturned eyes have outer corners that sit slightly lower than the inner corners, so they often look gentle, calm or a little sleepy. The tilt research doesn't make them unattractive; it only suggests that a slight lift tends to score a little higher in photos.
Deep-set eyes
Deep-set eyes sit further back in the face, under a more prominent brow bone, so they can look intense, and in looksmaxxing forums they're often called "hunter eyes." That label comes from online communities, not from the studies in this article.
Does canthal tilt make eyes more attractive?
Yes, a slight upward tilt seems to help, since several studies link more canthal tilt (the angle between the inner and outer corners of the eye) with higher attractiveness.
In one experiment, researchers edited photos of women's faces to make the tilt at the inner corner of the eye stronger, and judges picked the edited face over the original 93% of the time (Bashour & Geist, 2007). The Prantl study above found the same direction: a stronger upward, outward tilt of the eye and brow went with higher scores. A 2026 study of 3,517 Asian adults also found that higher AI beauty scores went with more canthal tilt and a taller eyelid opening, and human ratings broadly agreed (Wang et al., 2026). That study is new and relies on AI scores, so treat it as supporting evidence rather than proof.
One practical note from general knowledge, not a study: tilt changes a lot with camera angle and head position. If you want to judge yours, use a straight-on photo with your head level.
Eye features that matter more than shape
Three features show up again and again in the research: clear eye whites, a defined ring around the iris, and the spacing of the eyes. Each of them can matter as much as the shape itself.
Bright eye whites
Clearer whites make eyes look younger, healthier and more attractive. Researchers found that older women tended to have darker, redder and more yellow whites, and when they edited photos to make the whites clearer, the faces looked younger, healthier and more attractive. When they made the whites darker or redder, the opposite happened (Russell et al., 2014). The Gründl study found the same thing: whiter whites went with a younger look and higher scores.
The limbal ring and pupil size
A dark, clear ring around the iris makes eyes more attractive. This ring, called the limbal ring, is where the coloured part of the eye meets the white. Because it becomes less prominent with age, researchers describe it as a rough signal of youth and health. In one study, faces with a dark, distinct limbal ring were rated more attractive than the same faces without one, and this held for male and female faces and for male and female raters (Peshek et al., 2011).
Pupil size played a part too. In the Gründl study, larger pupils went with a younger look and higher attractiveness scores (Gründl et al., 2012).
How far apart your eyes are
Spacing matters, and the sweet spot looks a lot like an average face. Across four experiments, researchers kept the same features and only changed where they sat on the face. Faces looked best when the distance between the eyes was about 46% of the face's width, and the distance from the eyes to the mouth was about 36% of the face's length (Pallett, Link & Lee, 2010). Those numbers match an average face, so eyes that sit in balance with the rest of the face tend to look best.
Men vs women: do the same eye features matter?
Mostly yes, but the evidence for men is thinner, because most eye studies use women's faces.
For women, a slight upward tilt seems to be the clearest signal. In a study of 42 celebrity faces, attractive women had more canthal tilt than attractive men. The same study found no difference between the sexes in eye width or the distance between the pupils (Liu, Salinas & Sharaf, 2023).
For men, the findings are limited. The limbal ring effect held for male faces as well as female ones (Peshek et al., 2011), so clear, defined eyes seem to help everyone. Another study found that brown-eyed faces looked more trustworthy than blue-eyed ones, but when the researchers recoloured the eyes on the same male faces, eye colour stopped mattering. The face shape that tended to come with brown eyes was doing the work (Kleisner et al., 2013).
How to tell if your eyes are attractive
The easiest way is to look at a clear, straight-on photo and check a few features, not just your shape.
Take a photo in soft daylight with your head level and your face relaxed, and then ask yourself four questions. Do your eye whites look clear rather than red or yellow? Is the dark ring around your iris easy to see? Do your outer corners sit level or slightly higher than your inner corners? And do your eyes look evenly spaced for your face? If the answer to most of these is yes, your eyes have the features raters tend to score higher, whatever your shape.
As a general rule, tired eyes, harsh light and phone cameras can change all of these, so don't judge yourself on one photo.
Check your eyes in context
Your eyes always work together with your brows, nose, cheekbones and jaw. Upload a clear, front-facing photo to our free AI attractiveness test to see how your overall facial proportions score. There's no surgery or product pitch.
Studies on eye attractiveness at a glance
These are the ten studies used in this article.
| Study | What they tested | What they found |
|---|---|---|
| Prantl et al., 2019 | Eye-area photos of 60 women, rated by 80 people | A taller visible iris and more upward, outward tilt scored higher |
| Bashour & Geist, 2007 | Women's faces with extra tilt at the inner eye corner | The edited faces were picked 93% of the time |
| Wang et al., 2026 | Eye measurements of 3,517 Asian adults vs AI beauty scores | More canthal tilt and a taller eye opening went with higher scores |
| Russell et al., 2014 | Clearer vs darker, redder eye whites | Clearer whites looked younger, healthier and more attractive |
| Peshek et al., 2011 | Faces with and without a dark limbal ring | Faces with the ring were rated more attractive |
| Gründl et al., 2012 | Iris colour, pupil size and eye whites in 60 women | Colour didn't matter; larger pupils and whiter whites did |
| Pallett, Link & Lee, 2010 | How far apart the eyes and mouth sit | Best at about 46% of face width between the eyes |
| Patel et al., 2022 | 322 eye photos of young East Asian women | Ideals differ from those in Caucasian faces |
| Liu, Salinas & Sharaf, 2023 | 42 celebrity faces, women vs men | Attractive women had more canthal tilt |
| Kleisner et al., 2013 | Brown vs blue eyes and trust | Face shape, not eye colour, drove the effect |
Almond eyes may win the polls, but no eye shape is the most attractive in every face. The research points to features any shape can have: a slight upward tilt, clear whites, a defined ring around the iris and eyes that sit in balance with the face. Hooded, monolid, round and deep-set eyes can all look striking when those details line up. Eye shape attractiveness is really about how your eyes work with the rest of your face.