A dated haircut can completely shift the way your face and features are perceived, and not always in a flattering way. Outgrown layers and heavy and outdated shapes can drag your features downward, emphasize areas you’d rather soften, or create a harsher frame around the face. Even if you love your current length or style, haircuts that once felt stylish can start to age your look as trends evolve and your texture or face shape changes. The wrong cut can take away volume where you need it, add bulk where you don’t, or make your overall style appear less polished and vibrant.
You don’t have to abandon the hairstyle you love to achieve a fresher, more youthful appearance. Often, it’s simply a matter of updating the shape by adding movement, adjusting the layers, or lifting the ends to transform your entire look. To help you look your most current and confident this year, here are eight dated haircuts experts say you should avoid.
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1. Blunt Bangs
Blunt bangs can appear dated when they’re cut too thick, too straight across, or too heavy for the rest of the hairstyle. This rigid shape can shorten the face visually, emphasize forehead lines, and clash with modern, more textured cut trends. When bangs lack softness or movement, they can make the overall style feel severe and reminiscent of older haircut eras instead of current shapes.
2. Harsh Short Pixie
A harsh short pixie—one with very blunt edges, extreme texture, or stiff shaping—can quickly age your look because it lacks the softness and fluidity that define today’s pixie cuts. Severe lines can make facial features appear sharper, emphasize fine lines, and highlight areas you may prefer to soften. Without texture or movement, the cut can feel rigid and outdated, rather than modern and effortless.
3. ’90s Rachel Cut
The classic ’90s Rachel cut, with its exaggerated, face-framing layers and voluminous blowout styling, instantly dates your look because it’s so strongly tied to a specific era. While it's iconic, its chunky, high-maintenance layers can overwhelm modern styling trends. On many hair textures, the cut can also look overly styled and difficult to maintain, making it feel more nostalgic than fresh.
4. A-Line Bob
An A-line bob—short in the back and sharply longer in the front—can feel dated because its dramatic, angled shape was a major trend in the early 2010s. The harsh lines and stark angle can make the cut look overly geometric and less natural than today’s softer, more relaxed bob variations. When combined with something like flat ironing, the cut can appear overly architectural and out of step with the undone, effortless looks that are currently popular.
5. Blunt Shoulder-Length Cut
A blunt shoulder-length cut can look dated because it often hangs heavily and lacks the airy movement that makes medium-length styles feel current. The sharp, uniform line can create a boxy effect that drags the face downward, especially if the hair naturally flips or separates at the shoulders. Without layers or shaping, the cut can appear stiff and old-fashioned rather than sleek and contemporary.
6. Overly Layered Medium Cut
An overly layered medium cut can look dated because the choppy, heavily stacked layers often create a shape that lacks the soft movement seen in more modern hairstyles. Excessive layering can thin out the ends too much, causing hair to appear wispy, uneven, or flat at the crown. This older style also tends to emphasize frizz and makes styling more difficult, leaving the overall look less polished and more reminiscent of early-2000s trends.
7. Mushroom Cut
The mushroom cut, which is similar to a bowl cut but with more abrupt contrast between the top and sides, looks dated because of its stark, disconnected shape. The exaggerated volume on top paired with really short or flat sides creates a silhouette that’s strongly associated with past decades.
8. Bowl Cut
A bowl cut often looks dated due to its perfectly rounded shape, which lacks the texture and movement that define modern hairstyles. The uniform line around the head can feel childlike or overly retro, and it doesn’t adapt well to most face shapes. Without any layering or variation, the cut tends to look flat and artificial, making it difficult to style in a way that feels contemporary.
