How to Pick the Best Nail Shape for Your Hands

Ever wonder what nail shape you should ask for at the salon? Does the length of your fingers or the width of your nail bed matter? Getting a manicure is one of the ultimate self-care activities, but that's not to say it doesn't require some hard decision-making.

Aside from which color to choose, your nail shape can significantly impact the final look of your mani. Some shapes tend to make your fingers look longer, while others make them look wider or more natural. According to experts, your nail shape should follow the natural shape of your cuticle line and accentuate your natural finger shape. Here's what nail artists and manicure experts shared with us.

Mary Lennon is the president and co-founder of Côte, a company that specializes in a nail polish line that's free of the toxins and allergens often associated with the most popular brands.
Amy Lin founded sundays, a New York City-based nail care brand based on the values of individuality, simplicity, and wellness.
Chelsea King—a licensed manicurist and nail artist in Long Beach, California—is a member of VaultBeauty, an online network of cosmetic professionals nationwide.
Deborah Lippmann is a celebrity manicurist and founder of an eponymous line of award-winning products for nails, hands, and feet.

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Round

Round nails mirror the contour of the nail with a circular edge at the tip. If your fingers are short, round nails should be your go-to shape. "It softens and slims the look of wide nail beds and helps shorter fingers look elongated," says Amy Lin.

To achieve this shape, take your file and follow the natural shape of your nail. For best results, make sure the sides are straight and the top edge is rounded.

Ideal for: Short fingers with wide nail beds

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Oval

The oval shape is similar to an almond, but the tip is filed to mimic an egg-like appearance. This elongating shape works well for small hands with shorter fingers. "It tends to make the nail look longer since it's filed in on the sides," says Mary Lennon, "which adds length and subtle drama."

To achieve an oval shape, file how you would for a round shape but make the shape taller and more narrow on the sides.

Ideal for: Small hands with short fingers

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Square

Square nails are straighter on the sides with a blunt top edge. With square nails, you run the risk of your hands looking shorter and stubby because it gives "the illusion of a wider nail bed," says Chelsea King, "but if you have narrow nail beds and long fingers, square nails look very chic because of their sharp edges."

Get the nail shape by filing in a straight line.

Ideal for: Long fingers with narrow nail beds

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Squoval

"A squoval [square-oval] shape is the easiest shape to maintain," King insists. "For most people, it's the way their nails naturally grow, so the upkeep is just about evening out the shape,"

"To get this shape, trim nails [with nail clippers] to the length you want in a square shape, and then use a nail file to round the corners," adds King. This shape is flattering on every finger type because it's the most natural, but it looks best on nails that are not longer than the fingertip.

Ideal for: Any finger type

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Almond

"An almond-shaped nail is slim on the sides and wide on the base, coming to a rounded peak," says Deborah Lippmann. "This shape will lengthen and make short fingers look slim."

To get the look, file the sides and make sure the tip is narrow, so the free edge mimics a peak shape.

Ideal for: Short, wide fingers

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Stiletto

Stiletto nails are dramatic, long, and filed to a pointed tip. According to Lennon, it's the toughest to maintain because it's the most susceptible to breakage and requires longer, stronger nails.

To create this look, file the sides into a tapered point on the free edge. This shape looks best on long nails, but to maintain it, you need gels or acrylics to reinforce the nails.

Ideal for: Long fingers

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Coffin or Ballerina

Mimicking the shape of a coffin or a ballerina pointe shoe, this shape is tapered on the sides. For this shape, nails "are narrower than your typical square shape with a squared-off tip," Lippman says.

This shape works well for those with naturally strong, long nails and slim fingers. To create it, simply square off the free edge.

Ideal for: Slim fingers with strong nails

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Lipstick

The lipstick shape is one of the most popular among Instagram influencers due to its Insta-worthy ability to make fingers look longer. This shape is flattering on long and short nails.

To achieve this look, try filing "your nails at an asymmetrical angle and creating a diagonal slant that looks like a lipstick bullet," says Lin. "The shape was originally made popular by artist Park Eunkyung of Unistella Nails."

Ideal for: Short fingers with long or short nails

How to Keep Your Nails Shaped at Home

As for keeping one's nail shape at home—whether they're polished or not—Lennon offers these tips:

Use a finer-grit nail file that is less aggressive as the nails grow out, and you touch up the initial shape.
"Make sure when shaping with a file to keep all motion in one direction and to avoid a 'sawing back and forth' motion," advises Lennon. "This gives more control and minimizes tearing at the raw edge, which can actually make the nail jagged and cause polish chipping." Lennon adds that one-direction swipes allow for sealing and smoothing the edge as you file.
Once nail filing is done, apply an additional coat of a Quick Dry Top Coat ($21, coteshop.com), "with that all-important swipe across the tip edge to seal," Lennon continues. This refreshes the shine and protects your nail shape and manicure for days to come.

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