Many studies show that people incorrectly guess their skin type. We aim to empower you to make informed skincare decisions by accurately identifying your skin type using our AI and dermatological questionnaire. The first step to skin health is identifying which of these barriers are preventing you from having your healthiest and most glowing skin.
The 8 Color-Coded Skin Conditions
The 8 Color-Coded Skin Conditions is a dermatological scale developed by Universkin. This analysis applies to facial skin only. It is a revolutionary skin typing system that was developed in 2013 by the Universkin scientific team and unveiled for the first time at the 2015 IMCAS Congress. With more than 1.8 million formulas in 57 possible concentrations, the 8 Color-Coded Skin Conditions assessment has evolved from our scientific team to guide our medical community in choosing the right formula for each skin type. This skin analysis is empowering skin health doctors around the world to provide unbiased and credible information for their patients' skin conditions and compose skincare formulas adapted to their specific skin needs.
8
colour-coded skin conditions
1.8 million
possible formulas
57
possible concentrations
1,500+
doctors trained by Universkin
Better together: All our doctor community information is shared via the secured platform, skinXs. The anonymized data collected helped us develop one of the most accurate skin image analysis.
How it works
Three steps, like a visit to your skin doctor
5–7 min
Our online skin type analysis takes 5-7 minutes and will help you accurately identify your skin type. It's a 3-step process that mimics a skin health professional visit. We see, listen, and ask the right questions about your skin.
01
Step 1 · Scan
It all starts by scanning your face photo and getting a preliminary skin analysis.
02
Step 2 · Quiz
According to the photo analysis of your face, a dermatological dynamic quiz will focus on going deeper into the skin conditions identified.
03
Step 3 · Health history
A series of questions about allergies and health history will provide additional information that will help us better understand you and your skin.
Retake the skin type quiz every 2 months and adjust your skincare routine accordingly, as your skin type should improve. For best results, follow up with a Universkin approved medical provider.
Stop guessing your skin type.In 7 minutes, know exactly what your skin needs.
Used by 1,500+ doctors trained by Universkin, it measures the 8 barriers to skin health, so your routine targets exactly what holds your skin back. You will discover:
Your 8 color scores, and why your skin acts the way it does.
Your phototype on the Fitzpatrick scale.
Your skin thickness and sensitivity.
The ingredients best suited to your skin.
Your results can change with the seasons, and improve with the right routine.
The 8 barriers to skin health
We measure what makes skin unhealthy.
The signs we measure are the 8 main barriers to skin health:
01Yellow
Yellow
Oxidative stress, UV-affected skin
Pink
Wrinkles and skin laxity, loosening, enlarged pores, scars
Redness
Inflammation-prone, fragile and sensitive skin, couperose and rosacea-prone skin
Blue
Skin barrier conditions: dehydrated skin
Grey
Keratinization conditions: Dull skin with bumps, blackheads and whiteheads prone skin
Orange
Hyperseborrhea or excessive sebum production conditions: Oily skin
Brown
Hyperpigmentation conditions, such as melasma, dyschromia, post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation, dark spots or pigment alteration.
More is being learned every day about the causes of skin aging. Aging skin has molecular pathways that lead to sagging, fragile, and wrinkled skin. There are two main types of aging:
Intrinsic aging is caused by your genetics and normal cellular metabolism
Extrinsic aging is caused by exposure to sun, light, pollution, and other insults that turn on destructive pathways in the skin that lead to aging.
Read moreRead less
Poor lifestyle habits increase the risk of skin aging. Both intrinsic and extrinsic skin aging can be prevented or treated with anti-aging ingredients such as antioxidants and retinoids. Lifestyle habits such as ultraviolet light, stress, lack of fruits and vegetables in the diet, smoking, vaping, and pollution exposure turn on harmful pathways that injure the skin. Inflammation also turns on these aging pathways by causing free radicals that damage cell structures, leading to skin aging. Dehydration can also lead to increased skin aging. We know that cellular senescence, autophagy, and exposure to pollution can also age skin.
Red + Blue = Inflammation-prone skin + Dehydration
Red = Inflamed-prone skin is sensitive skin. Sensitive skin is more susceptible to inflammation in the form of acne, rosacea, redness, and stinging. Anti-inflammatory cosmeceutical ingredients soothe inflamed skin, but it is necessary to discover the source of inflammation to treat it properly.
What is Inflammation? Inflammation occurs when cell signaling molecules cause dilation of blood vessels, leading to skin redness known as erythema. The redness is caused by the fact that you can see more blood through the skin when the blood vessels are bigger.
Read moreRead less
What Causes Inflammation? Many different cell signaling molecules cause inflammation, such as cytokines, arachidonic acid, bradykinin, histamine, prostaglandins, activation of Toll-like receptors, and interleukins. In addition to causing dilation of blood vessels, histamine also causes swelling and itching.
It is complicated to learn all of the inflammation pathways that cause inflammation to occur. The important thing is to know what is causing these inflammatory pathways to get turned on. Once inflammation starts, regardless of the cause, the various pathways can turn each other on, causing an endless cycle of inflammation.
What types of inflammation are seen on the face? Acne, rosacea, skin stinging, skin itching, skin tenderness, or a pink/red discoloration are all types of inflammation seen on the face. Other types of inflammation can be seen in hypersensitive skin. Skin allergies can also be associated with inflammation.
Why is inflammation bad for skin health? Inflammation causes free radicals and turns on destructive skin pathways that lead to thinning of the skin and wrinkles. Inflammation also stimulates melanocytes to make pigment(melanin) in skin types prone to an uneven skin tone. Inflamed skin often causes an uneven skin tone and wrinkles.
Blue = Dehydration
Dehydrated Skin is Dry Skin. Dehydrated skin contains less water than healthy skin needs. This occurs because there is an increased amount of water that evaporates off the skin. This is known as transepidermal water loss (TEWL). Increased TEWL results in dry, dehydrated skin. An impaired skin barrier allows water to evaporate off the skin. A dehydrated skin with a weak skin barrier is more likely to experience inflammation, uneven skin tone, and wrinkles.
Why is Skin Dehydration Bad for Skin Health? Dehydrated dry skin feels rough and looks dull. The rough edges of the skin cells cause friction when touching wool, fabric, and other rough surfaces, creating a destructive shearing force on the skin's surface. This leads to small cracks in the skin, allowing entry of irritants, allergens, microbes, chemicals, and pollutants, causing inflammation. Dry skin tends to itch in many people, and scratching the skin leads to inflammation and, in susceptible skin types, dyspigmentation and an uneven skin tone.
Read moreRead less
In dehydrated skin, the upper layers of the stratum corneum (outermost layer of the skin) do not desquamate properly and heap up on the surface, making it rough, uneven, and a poor reflector of light. This is why dry skin looks dull and loses radiance. Darker skin types with dry skin get an ashy tone due to the retained transparent dead skin cells seen over pigmented skin cells.
Skin dehydration causes the other barriers to worsen. In other words, dry skin leads to inflammation, pigmentation, and skin aging. This is why skin dehydration and inflammation are the first targets of any good skincare routine for healthy skin.
Also, it is important to note that depending on your skin tone (dark vs. fair), the inflammation will be expressed in your skin in a different way: In fair phototypes, it will be expressed as redness, while in darker phototypes, it will be expressed as pigment, as inflammation will trigger melanin creation immediately. This is why darker phototypes are statistically more at risk of developing post-inflammatory pigment alteration than clear phototypes.
Brown = Pigmentation
Skin types with dark spots are defined as skin with an uneven skin tone. Uneven skin tone may be called dyschromia, hyperpigmentation, post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation, dark spots, or pigment alteration.
If you have dark spots on the skin and uneven pigmentation, you need skin lightening ingredients to even the melanin distribution in your skin.
Read moreRead less
Causes of Dyspigmentation and Hyperpigmentation: An uneven skin tone is caused by excessive production of melanin by skin cells called melanocytes. Melanocytes increase the production of the pigment melanin and/or increase the transfer of melanin-containing melanosomes into skin cells. The increased skin pigment production results in an uneven skin color due to uneven light reflection in different areas of the skin due to differences in the distribution of melanin pigment.
Skin Problems: An uneven skin tone is caused by many factors. One common cause of an uneven skin tone is inflammation. Inflammation also stimulates melanocytes to make pigment(melanin) in skin types prone to an uneven skin tone. Inflamed skin often causes an uneven skin tone and wrinkles.
Other skin disorders that cause an uneven skin tone are melasma, acne, eczema, tinea versicolor, hemochromatosis, and any skin disorder that causes inflammation.
We recommend that you begin your personalized skincare routine for at least 8 weeks. Your skin type will improve with the proper formula, and your skincare needs will change.
Our advice does not replace an in-person or online consult with your physician. Information on this website is provided for educational purposes and does not create a doctor-patient relationship.
Capture standardized selfies (front and optional side profiles).
Step 2 :
Get a medical-grade skin analysis of 50+ parameters—powered by AI, validated by dermatologists.
Step 3 :
Receive your personalized treatment protocol, clinically tailored to your skin’s unique needs.
By clicking “Start”, you agree to upload your photos for an AI-powered skin assessment and personalized skincare recommendations. Universkin will process your data in line with its Terms & Conditions and Privacy & Patient Information Policy.
0%
Your Photo Is Loading
Your Photo Is Loading
No face detected in the image
Please upload a clear frontal photo with a visible face.
Frontal Face*
Invalid File!
Front view with key facial markers.
Tips for the Best Photo
Face the Camera Directly
Use Good Lighting
Keep Your Skin Bare
Neutral Expression
Hair Pulled Back
High-Quality Image
Show Neck & Décolleté for targeted skincare advice.
Next
0%
Your Photo Is Loading
Your Photo Is Loading
No face detected in the image
Please ensure your face is clearly visible in the frame
Right Side Profile(Optional)
Invalid File!
Right profile silhouette for side view positioning.
Tips for the Best Photo
More Accuracy for Your Skin Analysis
Better Evaluation of Pores & Redness
Improved Personalized Recommendations
Back
Skip
0%
Your Photo Is Loading
Your Photo Is Loading
No face detected in the image
Please ensure your face is clearly visible in the frame
Left Side Profile (Optional)
Invalid File!Invalid File!
Left profile outline, mirrors right side for consistency.
This process involves a structured evaluation of over 50 parameters relevant to skin function and appearance. It has been developed with input from dermatology experts and is supported by a dataset of approximately 100,000 facial images. These reference profiles span a wide spectrum of Fitzpatrick phototypes, ethnicities, age groups, and clinically documented skin concerns. By comparing your image against these medically contextualized benchmarks, we generate a precise and individualized understanding of your skin.
Image Processing and Feature Extraction
We're currently preparing your image by correcting uneven lighting, adjusting color balance, and identifying any obstructions such as hair, glare, or shadows. Once the image is stabilized, we isolate key facial zones, such as the forehead, cheeks, and nose, so that each region can be assessed independently. To achieve this, we utilize a convolutional neural network trained for facial landmark detection and regional segmentation, which enables us to precisely localize facial features even under suboptimal imaging conditions.
Establishing Your Skin Profile
Now that your facial zones are mapped, we're determining key individual parameters that guide the rest of the analysis: visual skin age, gender expression, ethnicity classification, Fitzpatrick phototype, and skin thickness. We estimate these traits using a deep ensemble model that integrates texture analysis, pigment distribution, vascular patterns, and structural cues, such as facial volume and fine line density. This step enables us to interpret all subsequent findings within the correct biological context.
Analyzing Skin Concerns Across Key Domains
Now that we've established your skin profile and segmented key facial regions, we’re entering the core phase of the assessment: evaluating distinct skin concerns such as pigmentation, hydration, aging, and inflammation.Each concern is analyzed through a combination of deep convolutional neural networks and predictive classification models trained on dermatology-labeled data. These models detect both visible skin markers—like pore size, redness, and fine lines—and non-visible indicators, such as dehydration risk or barrier vulnerability, based on contextual traits like phototype, age, and skin thickness. For each concern, we’re assigning a dysfunction score based on observed conditions and risk indicators. These scores help prioritize your skin needs, ensuring that your treatment plan targets not just symptoms, but root causes.
Radiance & Oxidative Stress (Yellow Zone)
We’re examining skin clarity, signs of dullness, fatigue, and early UV-related changes that can reduce overall luminosity.
Aging & Structural Changes (Pink Zone)
We assess early fine lines, elasticity, and volume shifts to detect subtle signs of structural aging and collagen loss.
Redness & Inflammatory Sensitivity (Red Zone)
We identify redness patterns, vascular reactivity, and inflammatory signs that may point to sensitivity, rosacea, or barrier dysfunction.
Dryness & Dehydration (Blue Zone)
We evaluate hydration levels and barrier performance by analyzing surface texture, suppleness, and dryness risk based on skin thickness.
Oiliness & Pore Visibility (Orange Zone)
We measure sebum activity and pore appearance, particularly in the T-zone, to understand oil balance and congestion tendencies.
Texture & Surface Irregularities (Grey Zone)
We assess skin smoothness and evenness by detecting subtle roughness, bumps, or scarring that affect tactile and visual texture.
Acne & Blemishes (Green Zone)
We analyze lesion types—comedones, pustules, or papules—and determine the presence and distribution of breakout activity.
Pigmentation & Spot Formation (Brown Zone)
We detect uneven melanin distribution, sun spots, and post-inflammatory pigmentation to assess tone uniformity and discoloration risk.
Eye Contour
We examine the eye area for fine lines, puffiness, dark circles, and volume loss, using localized high-resolution mapping to detect early signs of fatigue and aging.
Neck & Décolleté
We assess this often-overlooked area for photoaging, pigmentation, dehydration, and texture changes, ensuring your skincare plan supports both facial and extended skin health.
Prioritizing Skin Concerns
We’re now compiling all evaluated data—individual skin traits, regional analysis, and dysfunction scores—to determine which concerns are most relevant for your skin at this time. Our system ranks these concerns using a multi-criteria decision model that weighs both current severity and predictive vulnerability.
Generating Your Summary
We’re now compiling everything into a clear, structured report. This includes a profile of your skin’s overall health and your top-priority concerns. Each concern is summarized with contextual explanation—why it’s important, how it was detected, and what it implies for your skin's function and future.
We’re applying the final checks—your summary will be ready in just a few seconds.
Analysis Complete
Your skin summary is ready.
Frontal Face
Front view with key facial markers.
Right Side Profile
Right profile silhouette for side view positioning.
Left Side Profile
Left profile outline, mirrors right side for consistency.
These photos will be used to analyze your skin's condition and provide personalized skincare
recommendations.
Please review our Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy, which explain how your data will be used and protected.
Your personal health information is important for providing the most accurate skin wellness assessment. We protect your privacy in accordance with applicable laws.
Your health background helps us tailor your skincare safely and effectively, avoiding ingredients that may not suit your medical profile.
✖
Pregnant
Take HRT (Hormone Replacement Therapy)
Take Birth Control Pill
Use IUD (Intrauterine Device)
Menopausal State
Treated for Breast Cancer
Treated for Skin Cancer
Treated for Adenocarcinoma Cancer
Treated for Acne Rosacea
Currently Has Cold Sores
Allergies
Select Allergies
Food allergies
Fruit
Rice
Garlic
Oats
Meat
Milk
Peanuts
Fish or Shellfish
Soy
Tree nuts
Wheat
Hot peppers
luten
Eggs
Tartrazine
Sulfites
Other
Medication(s) allergies
Balsam of Peru
Tetracycline
Dilantin
Tegretol
Penicillin
Cephalosporins
Sulfonamides
Aspirin / Non-steroidal anti-inflammatories
Local anaesthetics
Other
Environmental factor(s) allergies
Pollen
Cats / Dogs
Sun
Insect stings
Mould
House dust mites
Other
Contact allergies
Perfume
Cosmetics
Nickel
Gold
Chromium
Cobalt
Formaldehyde
Fungicide
Latex
Chemicals
Dimethylaminopropylamine (DMAPA)
Paraphenylenediamine (PPD)
Other
Other Allergies
+
Medical Conditaions
Medications
Image Quality Score
More info
Your Attributes
Gender
Skin Age
Eye Color
Ethnicity
Phototype
A classification system that determines how your skin reacts to UV exposure. Ranges from I (very fair, burns easily) to VI (very dark, rarely burns). Helps assess sun sensitivity and pigmentation risks.
Skin Thickness
Thin Skin
More delicate, prone to fine lines, sensitivity and faster moisture loss.
Thick Skin
More resilient, less prone to fine lines but may have more visible pores and deeper wrinkles over time.
Skin Type
Normal
Balanced oil and moisture levels, few skin concerns.
Dry
Lacks moisture, prone to roughness, flaking and sensitivity.
Oily
Excess sebum production, often leading to shine and enlarged pores.
Combination
Oily in some areas (T-zone) and dry in others (cheeks).
Sensitive
Prone to redness, irritation, and reactions to skincare products.
Overview of Skin Wellness
The patient's skin exhibits moderate signs of aging, visible redness, and dryness. There are also
signs of mild oiliness and uneven skin texture. The patient's skin is prone to acne, specifically
acne rosacea, and shows signs of hyperpigmentation.
Skin Wellness Indicators
yellow
- Focus Area
pink
- Focus Area
red
- Focus Area
Unlock Your Skin Insights
To access your full skin report and tailored suggestions, please sign in.
blue
- Focus Area
orange
- Focus Area
grey
- Focus Area
green
- Focus Area
brown
- Focus Area
eye
- Focus Area
neck
- Focus Area
Prioritize Your Skin Goals ()
You can only select up to 3 options.
Discover Skincare Routine
Tell Us About Your Skin
Our analysis is based on your photo but you know your skin best.
Share any additional concerns or observations, so we can refine your results even further.
