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Harmony · Front view · Face Shape

Midface Ratio

Pupil spacing divided by the vertical distance from pupil level to the upper lip.

What is measured

The calculation

Interpupillary distance ÷ pupil-level-to-Cupid’s-bow height

Front view / Measurement guide

Midface Ratio: front-view measurement illustrationAn original schematic showing A: Pupil spacing; B: Pupil-to-upper-lip height. Lines identify the landmarks used; the drawing is not to scale.AB

Follow the measurement

Select a label to focus on its line. Select again to show all measurements.

Schematic illustration, not to scale. Lines show the measurement construction; this is not an ideal face or a scored result.

Why it matters

This links the spacing of the eyes to the height of the central face. It explains why moving the same eyes farther apart or shortening the eye-to-lip span can create a more compact arrangement.

  • Lower: a taller eye-to-lip span relative to pupil spacing.
  • Higher: a shorter eye-to-lip span relative to pupil spacing.

Where the idea comes from

FaceIQ adaptation

FaceIQ combines two distances into a compactness ratio. Pallett and colleagues experimentally studied eye spacing and eye-to-mouth distance, but their denominators differ from this formula. [1]

A worked example

64 units between pupils ÷ 64 units from pupil level to upper lip = 1.00. Increasing only the vertical span to 70 lowers the ratio to 0.91.

Example values explain the calculation. They are not a target range and are not measurements of the schematic above.

Research & further reading

The sources below explain the history or related evidence. FaceIQ’s score weights and reference ranges are model settings; these papers do not collectively validate the scoring system.

  1. [1] Pallett, Link & Lee · 2010

    New “Golden” Ratios for Facial Beauty

    Four experiments varied eye spacing and eye-to-mouth distance in face images. Preferences depended on feature arrangement. The tested ratios and stimuli do not validate every FaceIQ measurement or a universal ideal.

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