How Grade The Fade scores a haircut
The scanner is deduction-based. It starts from a clean sheet and takes points off for faults it can see, which is why the same cut gets the same grade twice.
Photograph the finished cut
Side profile, even light, no filter. The scanner reads the fade line, the blend gradient, the neckline and the line-up, so the angle matters more than the camera.
The scan runs against a reference chart
Every scan is compared against a visual reference chart rather than graded in a vacuum. That is what keeps a 74 meaning the same thing this week as it did last week.
Deductions, not vibes
Scoring starts high and comes down for specific faults: a hard line, a broken blend, an uneven neckline, asymmetry between sides. A visible hard line caps the score at 74 no matter how clean the rest is.
You get the breakdown
The score comes with the deductions that produced it, so a barber can see exactly which pass cost them points and fix it on the next head.
Common questions
Why did my cut cap at 74?
A visible hard line — an unblended step between guard lengths — caps the grade at 74. It is the single most common deduction and the fastest one to fix: the blend between your first and second guard needs more work.
Does the app grade every hair type the same way?
No. Wave patterns run through Grade The Waves, which scores depth, definition and spread on their own scale. The skin and scalp scanner detects skin tone across three Fitzpatrick ranges so reads stay accurate rather than defaulting to one baseline.
Is the Barber Chart free?
Yes. All 165 reference cuts are free to browse, in the app and on this site, with no account required.
Who is the app built for?
Barbers first. The scoring exists to give a professional an honest read on their own work. Clients use it to browse the chart, learn what to ask for, and follow the championship.