Caesar Cut: 14 Styles, Face Shapes and What to Ask For

A Caesar cut is a short men's haircut with about an inch of hair on top, combed straight forward into a short, blunt, horizontal fringe, over short tapered or faded sides. It is the shortest cut that still has a fringe, which is exactly why it works: the straight line across the forehead does all the styling, so you get a sharp shape with almost no product and no morning routine.

The detail most guides skip is that the fringe, not the fade, decides whether a Caesar suits you. The sides are where barbers show off, but the length and height of that front line are what change the shape of your face. Get the fringe right and any side treatment in the gallery below will work. Get it wrong and no fade will save it.

What is a Caesar cut?

A Caesar cut is a short, even crop with the top cut to roughly 1 to 1.5 inches and brushed forward from the crown, ending in a straight fringe that sits high on the forehead, usually an inch or more above the eyebrows. The sides and back are short, often half an inch or less, and blend into the top.

Would this suit me?

What it is not matters just as much:

• Not a buzz cut. A buzz is one clipper length all over with no fringe. A Caesar keeps enough length on top to comb forward and cut a line.
• Not a crew cut. A crew cut is pushed up and back off the forehead. A Caesar goes forward.
• Not a French crop, though it is its closest relative. A French crop usually carries more length on top and a heavier, more textured fringe. A Caesar is shorter and flatter, and its fringe is a clean line rather than a choppy one.

The name comes from Julius Caesar. The Roman biographer Suetonius wrote that Caesar was so bothered by his baldness that he combed his thin hair forward from the crown to hide it. Two thousand years later the same move is still the point of the cut: forward hair covers a high or receding hairline.

Want to see it first? Preview a new hairstyle on your own photo.

Caesar cut vs French crop vs buzz cut vs crew cut

These four get mixed up in the barber's chair more than any other short cuts. The quickest way to tell them apart is direction and the fringe.

If you like the Caesar but want the sides even tighter, a buzz cut fade is the next step shorter. If you want more to play with on top, go to the French crop.

14 Caesar cut styles, one change at a time

Every picture below keeps the Caesar itself the same: an even top combed forward and a straight fringe across the forehead. What changes is one thing per photo, either how the sides are finished or what the hair on top is doing. The first four change only the sides, from a soft taper to a high skin fade. The rest change the texture on top or add a beard.

Gallery14 photos · tap to enlarge

Would this suit me?

Would this suit me?

Would this suit me?

Would this suit me?

Would this suit me?

Would this suit me?

Would this suit me?

Would this suit me?

Would this suit me?

Would this suit me?

Would this suit me?

Would this suit me?

Would this suit me?

Would this suit me?

Which side finish should you pick?

Pick the sides by how much contrast you want with the top. A plain taper keeps the cut soft and office-friendly. A skin fade makes the top look darker and denser, which helps fine hair, and it reads younger and sharper. Here is how the main options compare.

The fade height is the hardest part to picture before the clippers come out. Our fade haircut simulator shows each height on your own photo.

Which face shape does a Caesar cut suit?

A Caesar suits oval, square and heart-shaped faces best, works on round faces with tight sides, and needs a longer fringe on long faces. Because it is so short, there is no hair to hide behind, so the fringe height and the side finish have to do the correcting.

If you have not measured your face, our face shape guide walks you through it.

Round face

Would this suit me?

The Caesar is one of the better short cuts for a round face, as long as the sides are tight. A mid fade takes width off the sides of the head, and a short fringe that stops high on the forehead keeps the face from looking shorter. Ask for a touch more length at the crown so there is a little lift. Avoid a heavy, low fringe: on a round face it cuts the face in half.

Oblong or long face

Would this suit me?

A long face is the one case where you want the fringe lower and fuller, closer to the eyebrows, because it shortens the forehead. Keep the sides at half an inch or longer. A high skin fade on a long face adds height to an already tall shape, so skip it.

Square face

Would this suit me?

A square jaw is what the Caesar was made for. The straight fringe echoes the straight jawline, and the short top keeps the attention on the bone structure. Keep the sides on a low taper so the head does not look narrow above a wide jaw.

Receding or thinning hairline

Would this suit me?

This is the original reason for the cut. Hair combed forward from the crown covers a receding hairline and thin temples far better than anything combed back. Ask the barber to leave the front corners slightly longer so they fall over the temples, and keep the top short so thin hair does not separate. If you want to see how your hairline looks under different cuts first, try our hairline filter.

Not sure which face shape you are?

Measure it in under a minute below. Your face width, forehead width and jaw width decide which row of the table above applies to you.

Does a Caesar cut work on curly, wavy and coily hair?

Yes, and on coily hair it is a classic. The 1990s barbershop Caesar is a short, even coily top brushed forward with a crisp line-up across the forehead, often worn with 360 waves. Wavy and curly hair work too: keep the top a little longer, around 1.5 inches, so the curl has room, and cut the fringe dry so it does not shrink up after you wash it. For more short cuts that work with curl, see our curly hair guide for men.

Straight, thick hair is the easiest of all. Fine straight hair works if you add texture on top and a skin fade on the sides, which makes the top look denser.

Mistakes that cost you a month of regrowth

A Caesar is short enough that a mistake takes three to four weeks to grow out. These are the ones that happen most.

1. Asking for "a Caesar" and nothing else. Barbers interpret it anywhere from a buzz with a line-up to a French crop. Say the top length and the fringe height in inches.
2. A fringe cut too short. If the fringe stops at the hairline, you have a buzz cut, and the forward shape disappears. Keep at least half an inch at the front.
3. A wavy fringe line. The whole cut hangs on that line being straight. Ask for it to be cut with scissors or a trimmer at the end, not just clipper-over-comb.
4. Wet-cutting curly hair. Curls shrink when they dry, and a fringe cut wet on curly hair can jump half an inch.
5. The wrong fade for your face. A high skin fade on a long face makes it longer. Check the table above before you sit down.

How to ask for a Caesar cut

Bring a photo, but also say the numbers. Barbers work in inches and guard sizes, and a photo alone does not tell them your hair type or face shape. This is the sentence to say:

How to style a Caesar cut

Styling takes under a minute. Towel dry, rub a pea-sized amount of matte paste or clay between your palms, push the hair forward from the crown with your fingers, then press the fringe flat with your fingertips. For a messier, textured version, rough up the top with the clay and leave the fringe line alone. On coily hair, use a brush and a light cream to push the hair forward.

Plan a trim every three to four weeks. A Caesar loses its line before it loses its length.

Can you see a Caesar cut on yourself for free?

The manual method is everything above: the right photo, the numbers and the sentence for the barber. It works well if you already know a short forward fringe suits you. The wall it hits is that you cannot see that fringe on your own forehead, with your own hairline and face shape, until it has been cut, and then it takes a month to grow back.

That is what our men's hairstyle try-on is for. Upload one selfie and see the Caesar on your own face before the clippers come out. The first look is free and needs no card. After that, plans start at $9 a month, with a seven-day refund.

The Caesar is the best short cut for anyone who wants to look sharp with almost no effort, and the kindest one for a receding hairline. Spend your words in the chair on the fringe: even top, straight line, about an inch above the brows. Pick the side finish from the gallery to match your face, and book the next trim before you leave.