Shades EQ toner guide
Underlying pigment by level
Short answer
Every level lifts to an underlying pigment, and you tone with its opposite: level 10 shows pale yellow (tone with violet), 9 yellow (violet), 8 yellow-orange (blue-violet), 7 orange (blue), 6 red-orange (blue-green), 5 red (green) and 4 red-violet (yellow-green). Tone for the warmth you actually see in each zone, not only the shade you want.
The levels
| Level | Name | Underlying pigment | Corrective tone |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10 | Ultra pale blonde | Pale yellow | Violet |
| 9 | Very light blonde | Yellow | Violet |
| 8 | Light blonde | Yellow-orange | Blue-violet |
| 7 | Medium blonde | Orange | Blue |
| 6 | Dark blonde | Red-orange | Blue-green |
| 5 | Light brown | Red | Green |
| 4 | Medium brown | Red-violet | Yellow-green |
| 3 | Dark brown | Violet | — |
| 2 | Darkest brown | Blue-violet | — |
| 1 | Black | Blue | — |
The chart lists no corrective tone for levels 1 to 3.
Hair rarely lifts evenly
Assess roots, mids and ends separately. Their levels and warmth depend on previous color, application, porosity and scalp heat. Darker regrowth next to previously lightened lengths can leave the roots darker and warmer, but during virgin lightening scalp heat can make roots lift faster and lighter.
When the zones differ a lot, tone by zone: a formula for each, with an application order chosen for the actual zones. Porous ends often go on last.
Going darker: replace the missing warmth
Shades EQ only deposits, so a target can be the same level or darker, never lighter. When going darker from a light canvas, replace the missing warmth, or the result can turn hollow, green or muddy. The warmth that is usually missing, as a starting point:
- 10 to 9: gold
- 10 to 8: gold or gold-copper
- 9 to 7: gold-copper
- 10 to 7: copper, usually as a separate filler (3 levels darker)
There are two ways to put the warmth back:
- Warmth in the final formula. For a small step darker, the warm shade goes into the toning formula itself.
- A separate filler. For a bigger step, such as 3 or more levels darker, fill first as its own step, then tone. Redken’s filling education discusses filling about ½ to 1 level lighter than the target and working in stages.
Either way, choose the fill for the target, the pigment still left in the hair and its condition, and strand test before the full application.
Sources
Checked against Redken US materials, October 2026.