Side Bangs: 10 Looks and the Right Length for Your Face

Side bangs are a fringe cut on a diagonal and swept to one side from a deep part, short near the part and longest at the far cheek. They suit almost every face shape and hair type, and they are the easiest bang to grow out, because at full length they simply become face-framing layers.

The part most guides skip: you do not get to choose the side. Your hairline already has, and a side bang cut against it will flip back every morning. Get the side right, cut the bang longer than you think, and the rest is styling.

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What are side bangs?

Side bangs are a triangular section of hair at the front hairline, cut on an angle and worn swept across the forehead toward one side. They cover part of the forehead, never all of it, so one eyebrow stays fully visible. That partial cover is what makes them forgiving: there is no hard line across your face to fight with.

Side-swept bangs and side bangs are the same cut. Stylists sometimes use "side-swept" for a longer, softer version that blends into layers, but ask for either and you get a diagonal fringe from a side part.

If you have been told bangs are high maintenance, that is mostly about blunt bangs. A side bang hides a week of growth because its length is already uneven by design.

Your hairline picks the side, not you

Look at where your hair parts when it air-dries without a brush. That is your natural part, and the side it falls toward is where a side bang wants to go. Most people also have a cowlick at the front hairline that pushes hair one way. Cut the bang so it sweeps with that push, never against it.

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Here is the test before any scissors come out. Wet your hair, comb everything forward over your face, then let it dry without touching it. The front section will split and drift in one direction. That direction is your bang. If a stylist wants to put your bang on the other side because it "balances your face", ask them to watch it dry first. A bang cut against a cowlick lifts at the root and springs back to the side it prefers, usually by lunchtime.

The second rule: the deeper the part, the more dramatic the sweep. A part about 1.5 inches off center, above the arch of your eyebrow, is the classic spot. Go further out and the bang gets heavier and more retro. Stay closer to center and it drifts toward curtain bangs.

Side bangs by face shape

Side bangs work on every face shape. What changes is the length at the longest point and how much hair goes into the bang. Not sure of your shape? Measure it here first.

Round faces

A diagonal line is exactly what a round face needs. The angle breaks up the width and draws the eye down and across instead of around. Keep the longest point at the cheekbone or below; a short, heavy bang sits like a horizontal band and makes the face read wider. Pair it with length past the chin.

Square faces

Go long and wispy. A side bang that ends near the lip creates a soft curve that cuts across the corner of the jaw. Avoid a thick bang with a crisp edge, which repeats the angles you are trying to soften.

Heart faces

This is the face shape side bangs were made for. The bang covers part of a broader forehead and ends at the cheekbone, the widest point, which evens out a narrower chin.

Long faces

Here a side bang does the opposite job: it shortens. Cut it heavier, with the longest point between the eyebrow and cheekbone, so more of the forehead is covered. Our face shape guide goes deeper on each shape.

Side bangs by hair length

Side bangs with long hair

Long hair is where side bangs look most effortless. Cut the bang long, to the top of the lip, and let it flow straight into face-framing layers so nothing looks stuck on. This is also the version with the longest grace period between trims. If you want more ideas for long lengths, see our guide to hairstyles for long hair.

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Side bangs with layers are the natural pairing. The bang becomes the first layer, and each layer below it starts a little lower. Without layers, a long bang on one-length hair can look like a stray piece that fell out of a ponytail.

Side bangs with medium hair

At shoulder length or on a lob, a cheekbone-length side bang gives the cut a shape it would not have on its own. It works especially well on a layered bob or any of these shoulder length haircuts, where the bang lines up with the angle of the ends.

Side bangs with short hair

On a pixie, the side bang is the whole point of the cut. Keep the sides short and leave 3 to 4 inches at the front so it can sweep across to the eyebrow. That longer front section is what keeps a short cut soft rather than severe, and it gives you options: sweep it for a polished look or push it back when you want an edge. For more short shapes, browse our boyish haircuts.

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Side bangs by hair texture

Straight hair is the easiest canvas, and the bang will fall exactly where it was cut. Every other texture needs a bit more length and a bit more thought.

Wavy hair. Cut the bang dry or at least check it dry, about half an inch longer than the target. Waves shrink and bend, and a side bang on 2a hair or 2b hair should follow the wave, not fight it with a flat iron every day.

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Curly hair. Side bangs work on curls if the stylist cuts curl by curl while dry. Leave at least an inch more than you want to see, because curls spring up. On 3a hair a curly side bang looks great pushed over with a little gel. On tighter patterns, a side bang is usually better as face-framing curls than as a true fringe.

Fine hair. Keep the bang thin. Taking too much hair from the crown to make a thick bang leaves the rest of your hair looking sparse.

Thick hair. Ask for the bang to be thinned from underneath with point cutting, or it will sit like a wedge.

How to ask for side bangs

Bring a photo, and say where the longest point should land using a face landmark, not a length in inches. "Cheekbone" means the same thing to every stylist; "a few inches" does not. Then say which side, and why.

Ask them to cut it slightly long, then trim it dry once you have seen it fall. You can always take more off. You cannot put it back.

How to cut side bangs at home

If you already have face-framing layers, cutting side bangs yourself is realistic. If you are starting from one-length hair, go to a stylist for the first cut and maintain it at home.

How to style side bangs

Style the bang first, while it is still damp, before the rest of your hair. Once a bang dries in the wrong direction, it stays that way until you wet it again.

Blow-dry it with the nozzle pointing down, brushing the bang across your forehead to the side with a flat brush, then flip the brush and dry it the opposite way for a few seconds. Brushing it back and forth kills the cowlick's grip at the root. Finish by sweeping it to the side and hitting it with the cool setting to set it. Use heat protection and a moderate heat setting, as the American Academy of Dermatology recommends, since the bang gets styled every day and takes the most heat of any section.

On day two, do not restyle the whole head. Wet just the bang, blow-dry it again, and you are done in two minutes. When you want it off your face, a side bang tucks behind the ear or pins back neatly, which works well with half up half down hairstyles.

Side bang mistakes and what they cost

• Cutting against your natural part. Costs you a bang that lifts and flips every day. The only fix is growing it out.
• Cutting it wet. Hair shrinks as it dries, so a bang cut at the cheekbone wet can land at the eyebrow dry, and on wavy hair even shorter.
• Too much hair in the section. Taking the bang from too far back on the head makes a heavy wedge that stops sweeping and starts sitting.
• Cutting it straight. A side bang cut straight across and then pushed sideways is just a crooked blunt bang. The diagonal has to be in the cut.
• Reaching for thinning shears. If you want the softer, piecey version, the fix is point-cutting the ends rather than thinning the body, which is the same rule that governs messy bangs.
• Going short on a round face. A short, heavy side bang reads as a horizontal line and widens the face. Keep it at the cheekbone or below.
• Skipping trims. Side bangs forgive growth, but past a couple of months they fall into your eyes. A quick trim every four to six weeks keeps the shape.

See it on your face before you cut

Everything above is how to get side bangs right on paper: the natural part test, the length for your face shape, the texture allowance. It gets you close. What it cannot tell you is how a bang will actually look across your forehead, with your features, before the scissors come out. That is the wall. A photo of someone else with side bangs shows her face, not yours, and a bang is the one cut where an inch changes the whole picture. The bangs filter exists for exactly this step.

Side bangs gallery: 10 looks by length and weight

Every photo below holds the same cut, a diagonal side bang from a deep part, and changes one thing: how long the bang is, how much hair is in it, or what it is paired with. Use it to point at the exact length you want.

Gallery10 photos · tap to enlarge

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The short version

Side bangs are the lowest-risk bang there is. Let your hairline choose the side, set the longest point with a face landmark, cheekbone for most faces, and cut it longer than you think, dry. If you like it, trim every four to six weeks. If you do not, give it two months and it turns into face-framing layers nobody will know were ever bangs. For a messier, more textured take on the same idea, look at the shag haircut, which is built around a similar swept fringe.