Google AR Tool Lets You See What You’d Look Like With a Different Hair Color

Google introduced new AR beauty tools on Wednesday that tackle two prime areas in beauty: hair color and foundation. Finding the right hair shade often takes trial and error, and the perfect foundation match can be hard to track down. Google wants to simplify the process by bringing AR straight to smartphone search results—so when you search “L’Oreal hair color” or “Fenty Beauty foundation,” you can preview how your hair and skin would look with certain products.

Google started rolling out AR try-ons for shoppers three years ago with lipstick and eyeshadow shades, and has expanded out from there. Starting Wednesday, Google shoppers can see AR beauty features on mobile browsers, including Safari. 

While I wasn’t able to access the foundation try-ons, which Google says apply to brands like Covergirl, Dior Beauty, Fenty Beauty, Laura Mercier, and Makeup by Mario, I did test the hair feature. Right now, only L’Oreal hair products apply, although Google indicated that Splat and Revlon would be available soon.

To try on any hair color, I first had to give Google access to my camera. Google reassured me that during this experience, it would not store or collect any biometric information, it would not use the video for training purpose and my video feed would stay on my device.

The AR seemed to cast a net around my head and didn’t really get my hairline right. I have black hair, and trying on L’Oreal Paris Feria Hyper Platinum Advanced Lightening System Bleach didn’t work how I expected—the combination of the light blonde with my hair turned it into a static mass of gray. 

Google did add a warning that try-on accuracy could vary with light dye colors. Still, even darker colors, like brown, appeared to coat my hair and hint at the color it was underneath instead of completely changing it. 

AR hair shades could be useful to assess how well a user likes a color, by taking a product from its shade on the box to how it could potentially look on a person. Plus, it’s fun to use and experiment with, and it’s built into Google search. However, the technology isn’t real enough at the moment to be helpful to everyone.