What the Numbers and Letters in Foundation Shades Mean
Published 27 October 2026 · Foundation Shades
In most foundation ranges, the number in a shade tells you how light or deep it is, and the letters tell you its undertone. Each brand sets its own scale, though. A 220 is light in Maybelline Fit Me and deep in Juvia’s Place, so a number only compares shades within one range.
The same number in six brands
Here is how deep the shade numbered 220 is in six ranges in our data:
| Range | Shade | Lighter than … of the shades in our data |
|---|---|---|
| Maybelline Fit Me Matte + Poreless | 220 Natural Beige | 82% |
| Rare Beauty Liquid Touch Weightless | 220C | 71% |
| Fenty Beauty Pro Filt’r Soft Matte | 220 | 54% |
| Kosas Revealer SPF 25 | Medium Neutral 220 | 41% |
| KVD Vegan Beauty Lock-It Powder | 220 Rich Deep | 13% |
| Juvia’s Place I Am Magic | 220 Dakar | 8% |
The Maybelline, KVD and Juvia’s Place colours come from retailer swatches in January 2021. The other three were checked on the brands’ own websites in October 2026.
To compare across brands, use measured colour instead of the number. The shade finder does this for every range we hold.
What ten brands’ codes mean
Where a brand explains its own codes, the table gives its meaning. Where it doesn’t, we say what our data shows.
| Brand | Example | The number | The letters |
|---|---|---|---|
| MAC | NC25, NW25 | Depth; lower is lighter | NC leans golden, NW leans pink or rosy, N is neutral |
| Estée Lauder Double Wear | 2W1 Dawn | First digit is the intensity level, lightest at 1; the last digit is a finer step of depth | C is cool or pink, W is warm or yellow, N is neutral |
| L’Oréal True Match | W0.5, C10 | Depth; in our data W0.5 is among the very lightest and C10 among the very deepest | C is cool (blue or pink), W is warm (yellow or golden), N is a mix |
| Clinique | WN 76 Toasted Wheat | Not explained by Clinique | WN is warm neutral, CN is cool neutral |
| Fenty Beauty | 220 | Depth; the lower the number, the lighter the shade family | No letters on Pro Filt’r Soft Matte |
| Tarte face tape | 12N, 37G | Depth, from fair at 12 to very deep at 64 | B cool or rosy, N balanced, S warm golden, H warm peach, G very warm golden or olive, W very warm rosy |
| Rare Beauty Liquid Touch | 100W | Depth; shades run from 100W to 570N | W, N and C; Rare Beauty describes 100W as light with warm golden undertones |
| Maybelline Fit Me | 128 Warm Nude | Not explained by Maybelline; in our data the hundreds overlap | None; some names say “Warm” |
| Kosas Revealer | Medium Neutral 220 | A shade number | Depth and undertone are spelled out in the name |
| NARS Natural Radiant | L4 Deauville | A step within each group, then a place name | Groups L, M, MD and D; in our data they run from lightest (L) to deepest (D) |
The same letter can mean different things. Tarte’s W is a very warm rosy shade, while Estée Lauder’s W is yellow. And MAC uses warm and cool the other way round from most brands, which our guide to MAC NC and NW explains.
How to use a shade code
Within one range, the number tells you which way to move. If your shade looks too light, the next number up is the next shade to try. Check the shade list first, because a few ranges jump in depth between groups of numbers.
Across brands, the code won’t carry over. Type the shade you wear into the shade finder and it gives the closest shade in every other range, ranked by measured colour. Each brand page lists every shade we hold for that brand, with its listed undertone.
Questions
How do I know my right foundation shade?
Start with your depth and undertone, then test two or three shades on your jaw in daylight. Our guide to testing a foundation match at home shows the steps.
What do the numbers mean in Maybelline Fit Me?
Maybelline doesn’t publish a key. Our guide to Maybelline Fit Me shades shows how the numbers behave in our data.