No matter your hair length, there's no shortage of styling options for you. And although people tend to think that those with long hair get to have more fun–since there's more length to experiment with–women with short hair have plenty of styles to choose from, too. It's all about having fun, a creative eye, and a few (or 70+) inspiration pictures for reference.
Let's get one thing straight, though: Short hair is not one-size-fits-all. The term "short hair" is widely encompassing and refers to everything from buzz cuts with fades to lobs that veer on the longer side. If your hair length falls anywhere in between or you're wishing it would, then this article is for you.
Below, we showcase 72 of our favorite short hairstyles for women as seen on celebrities. Plus, we share some styling tips, too.
Meet the Experts
-
Kylee Heath is a hairstylist and a member of the R+Co Collective.
-
Aaron Grenia is a professional hair expert and the co-founder of IGK Hair Care.
Short and Flippy
If you like the look of a flipped bob but don't have the length for it, you can still work those ends! Take Jessie Buckley's cropped cut as the perfect example.
Heartthrob Haircut
Gracie Abrams may be dating a total heartthrob, but she's pretty easy to fall in love with, too. Her short cut is reminiscent of all the '90s dreamboats.
Shoulder-Length Beachy Waves
Recreate Jenna Ortega's look by adding a few loose waves to your hair. The style is giving effortless, beachy vibes.
Subtle Fade
Low-maintenance, high impact, and max glam, Adwoa Aboah's subtle fade looks even more badass when paired with a dramatic eye look.
Retro Flipped Bob
Lizzo is a hair chameleon and has rocked every style imaginable. However, this retro flipped-out bob is undoubtedly one of our favorites.
Wet Lob
Another wet look in the books is Rosalia's drenched lob. Parted to the side and dressed up with shades and a bold lip, this look is for the baddies.
Icy Blonde Bob
Kourtney Kardashian is inspiring us to play around with cuts and colors. Her new icy blonde blunt bob is super edgy and cool.
Overgrown Pixie
Florence Pugh's grown-out pixie is serving all sorts of incredible, choppy texture. The darker roots emphasize the ultra-cool look while also creating the appearance of greater density.
Modern Marilyn Bob
Zendaya is also leaning into the beauty of bobs right now. Her hair is currently even shorter! But this look?! It's all about voluminous, bouncy curls.
Layered Bob With Full Bangs
Lily Allen's layered bob and fringe combo frames her face spectacularly. We love how the brow-skimming fringe and cheek-bone-length layers spotlight her gorgeous features.
Tousled Lob with Side Part
Lana Condor's messy lob is perfect for a night out with friends. Equal parts fun and stylish, the best way to achieve this style is by spritzing some volumizing powder into the roots and throughout the middle layer of your hair.
Blunt Mini Bob
Before her flippy lob , Hailey Bieber debuted a chic layer-free mini bob featuring a middle part and blunt ends. She can do it all.
Two-Toned Tresses
If you don't want to fully commit to a bold color, experiment with dying your ends, like Kaia Gerber did here.
Deep Side Part With Texture
Even though it's a grow-out style , we're still obsessed with this side-swept bob. If you're currently growing out a pixie crop, let Cara be your inspo.
Blunt Bob With Texture and Bangs
If you're after something universally flattering, look no further. Yara Shahidi's curly bob hairstyle suits round-, oval-, square-, heart- and diamond-shaped faces.
Sleek Pixie With Side Bangs
Sabrina Dhowre Elba opts for a more sculpted approach with a neat pixie and side-swept bangs. We love how the style illustrates the versatility of a pixie with long bangs.
Asymmetric With a Slight Undercut
Taraji P. Henson has given us several aspirational short-hair looks, but this asymmetrical crop with a shaved side is one of our favorites.
Fluffy Pompadour
Oh, hello, shiny pompadour. We're used to seeing Alicia Keys with long braided hair, but we're very much enjoying this cropped 'do she's been known to sport.
Wet-Look Bob
One of our favorite looks on model Irina Shayk is this seriously daring choppy bob and fringe combo. One word: fierce.
Tousled and Short
This windblown crop of Kerry Washington's is giving us serious just-stepped-out-of-the-convertible vibes.
Curly Pixie
Ruth Negga's haircut makes for ideal inspiration for anyone with naturally curly hair. "If you have curly hair, rock your natural texture," advises Heath. "I love [using an air dry cream] to help the hair air dry. Work with your texture, rather than fighting it."
Center-Parted Bob
Kelly Rowland has had short hair for a while, but one look of hers that really turned heads was this even shorter, sleeker bob complete with a center part.
Styled Pixie
Kate Hudson makes growing out a buzz cut look effortless with this textured crop adorned with a simple black headband at the 2018 Golden Globes.
Bob With Short Bangs
Solange Knowles' short hairstyle will suit diamond-, oval-, and square-shaped faces.
According to Grenia; the key to a similar style starts in the shower. "Prep curls using a hydration-boosting shampoo and conditioner and for best results, leave the conditioner in the hair for an extra five to ten minutes, brush well, and rinse. Using a microfiber towel, gently squeeze excess moisture from the hair." Allow to air-dry and you're golden.
Side-Parted and Short
The Crown's Claire Foy proves a simple quiff can make a short haircut look seriously cool. And might we add, her bejeweled top pulls the entire look together in a rather regal way.
Bleached Pixie
Zoë Kravitz proves how striking a pixie cut can look, especially when it's super blonde. Note the mussed-up texture, which makes it look both effortless and cool.
Blunt Bob With Bangs
Sam Rollinson shows how a micro bob can look seriously cool, plus the piece-y fringe frames her face.
'90s Short With Bangs
If you think short hair and baby bangs don't mix, check out Keke Palmer's pixie with a petite fringe and think again.
Undercut With Swoop
The side shave and the quiff are very reminiscent of Miley Cyrus, but that's not a bad thing. We love this cut and color on Katy Perry.
Blunt Lob With Side Part
Not content with simply having super-short hair, Nicole Richie has also gone for that super-platinum blonde we love.
Pixie With Texture
Michelle Williams is arguably the queen of the short haircut. This platinum crop is a stunning iteration of her shorter 'dos, and it might well be our favorite.
Pixie Afro
Lupita Nyong'o's short haircut suits oval- and heart-shaped faces.
Avant-Garde Buzz
Here's how to own a buzzcut: project confidence by drawing even more attention to the style with buzzed-in designs on one side of the head.
Slicked Back and Flipped
Slick it back to the gods à la Lori Harvey with a playful and exaggerated flip at the ends.
Spiky Pixie
The best way to rock a short crop is to add product and spike the hair sky-high. To achieve a similar look, make sure you ask for it to be cut long at the front, so you have length to play with.
Center-Parted Wavy Lob
This ultra-flattering blunt bob on Jourdan Dunn actually suits most face shapes. And if you have some texture to work with, don't be afraid to play with it. "There are so many great products that enhance your natural waves or curl while preventing frizz," Heath says. "You can use an anti-humidity spray on your curls once they are dry, too."
Blown-Out Pixie
Jennifer Hudson keeps it short, spiky, and chic with this pixie cut. Use some hair pomade or texture cream to keep the front cool and piecey.
Super-Blunt Bob
Coco Rocha has tried out many different hairstyles in her time, but we do love this short, sharp bob on her. The '90s-style fringe is definitely something we can get on board with, too.
Slightly Side-Parted Bob
We can feel ourselves growing more sophisticated just by looking at this sleek bob on Regina King.
Natural Pixie
A slightly longer pixie allows you to show off your natural texture. Just be sure to use a conditioning cream to keep the hair well-hydrated.
Center-Parted and Ear-Length
Hikari Mori is the first person to make us swoon over this haircut since Shawn in Boy Meets World.
Buzzed on the Sides
This short platinum shave has been in Cynthia Erivo's rotation for a while, and we can certainly see why.
Tousled Pixie
Remember when Natalie Portman shaved her head for her role in V for Vendetta ? While the star was growing her hair back, she also ended up with this gorgeous pixie crop.
Pixie With Length
Halle Berry rocks a seriously punk-rock fringe in the front of her short, angular 'do.
Chin-Length Bob With Heavy Bangs
Taylor Swift's bob hairstyle is great for square-, diamond-, oval- and heart-shaped faces.
Natural and Classic
We love all of Viola Davis' hair looks, but her natural curls with subtle red coloring might just take the cake.
Middle Part With Fluffy Texture
Queen Bey has been wearing her locks long for a while, but let's not forget this great honeyed bob moment. If you have natural curls, try air-drying hair to achieve this look. "Using a towel, begin ‘scrunching’ hair to compress and encourage the natural curl pattern," advises Grenia. "Where desired, pick up one to two inch sections, twist hair in the natural direction of the curl, and gently compress. This is a great way to even [bring] out curl pattern and add texture to areas where hair may naturally be straighter."
Combed Forward Pixie
We just love the contrast of this icy blonde hue against Jessie J's peaches and cream skin tone.
Straight Up and Styled
Comedy queen Leslie Jones' pompadour is equal parts cool, quirky, and trendy.
Side-Part With Slight Waves
Charlize Theron's short, side-swept cut suits heart-, diamond- and oval-shaped faces.
Old Hollywood
Rihanna's classy 'do is giving us major Old Hollywood vibes a la Mia Farrow. Perhaps it's the straight across baby bangs?
Tousled and Short
Anne Hathaway's short haircut is longer on top, which gives her the flexibility to play with her parting and the texture to mix up her hairstyle on the daily.
Side Part With Length On Top
Morena Baccarin shows us how to pull off the perfect pageboy cut.
Chin-Length
Mia Wasikowska's side-parted bob looks soft because the unfinished ends balance out the sleek texture.
Classic Blowout
Camilla Belle's curled bob is a great example of a retro-inspired style that doesn't feel completely dated.
Short With a Single Braid
Think you can't embrace braids with short hair? Think again. Here, Carey Mulligan used a small fishtail braid to pull the hair off her face. Clever.
Blown-Out and Slicked Back
Long layers slicked back like Demi's are a chic style for any occasion.
Betty Boop
Channel your favorite flirty cartoon character by styling your hair in similar loopy designs—just make sure you have a strong-hold hair gel on hand to lock every pin curl into place.
Short With a Headband
Another queen of the short haircut, Ginnifer Goodwin got the headband memo.
Side-Parted With a Retro Twist
Jessica Alba's wavy, tousled chop is effortlessly chic, especially with her honey blonde color.
Razor-Cut Ends
Rita Ora's shaggy, front-combed pixie is making us re-evaluate our relationship with the term "combover."
Bang-Length
The fringe on Sienna Miller's cut is a cute way to do the super-short crop.
Asymmetric With Natural Texture
Amandla Stenberg's natural curl pattern gives way to the prettiest, face-framing spiral bangs.
Bob With a Blowout
We're loving the ease of Gabrielle Union's blown-out bob and swept side bang.
Air-Dried and Short
If you're into just-rolled-out-of-bed hair, Thandiwe Newton's textured pixie will be right up your alley.
Retro Bob
Lily Collins knows how versatile a bob is. Wear it sleek, textured, or style it with retro Marcel-esque waves for a party.
Bob With Subtle Beach Waves
Calling all beach wave lovers : Ciara's deep side part is the ultimate way to show off that texture.
Longer on Top
Trust Tilda Swinton to go for something a little more left field. This quiffed short crop is made all the more dramatic by the shade of bold blonde.
Accessorized
Even a super-short haircut like Emma Watson's can take an accessory. A small decorative comb is an easy way to elevate your look.
Long Pixie
When Kate Moss stepped out with this haircut in 2001, everyone dashed to the salon. The beauty of this look is that it hasn't lost its power, and it's as chic and modern today as it was then.
Piece-y Pixie with Bangs
We take your basic pixie and raise it a pixie with side-swept bangs. Cardi B proves just how cool this look can be and takes it up a notch by styling her bangs in a piece-y style that screams rock n' roll.
Lob With Birkin Bangs
Megan Fox's chic lob with overgrown Birkin bangs was a big switch up from her signature long, dark locks—but that caramel blonde hue with dark roots looked equally gorgeous.
Read the original article on Byrdie
