Cosmetology Haircoloring Practice Questions
Haircoloring makes up 5 of every 50 questions on a Tigertest Cosmetology practice test. Here are 10 of the 20 questions on it, each with the answer and the reason.
Updated by the Tigertest team. These sets follow the NIC theory exam only: 110 items, 100 scored, 90 minutes (outline effective July 1, 2022). PSI states, including California from April 1, 2026, use a 120-minute outline. This bank is not weighted to PSI.
1. On the 1 to 10 level system, level 1 is:
- A.Medium brown
- B.Black
- C.Lightest blonde
- D.Dark brown
Answer: B. The level system rates how light or dark a color is: level 1 is black and level 10 is the lightest blonde. Level describes darkness only, not tone.
2. Which level is the lightest on the 1 to 10 level system?
- A.Level 7
- B.Level 12
- C.Level 1
- D.Level 10
Answer: D. Level 10 is the lightest blonde on the standard scale. Level 1 is black and there is no level 12 on the system.
3. The three primary colors are:
- A.Red, yellow and blue
- B.Yellow, blue and green
- C.Red, green and blue
- D.Orange, green and violet
Answer: A. Red, yellow and blue are the primary pigments: they cannot be made by mixing other colors, and every other color comes from combining them. Orange, green and violet are secondaries.
4. Mixing equal parts of red and blue produces which secondary color?
- A.Green
- B.Brown
- C.Violet
- D.Orange
Answer: C. Red plus blue gives violet, red plus yellow gives orange, and yellow plus blue gives green. These three are the secondary colors.
5. Which color neutralizes unwanted orange tones?
- A.Violet
- B.Red
- C.Blue
- D.Green
Answer: C. Blue sits opposite orange on the color wheel, so a blue base cancels orange. Complementary colors neutralize each other.
6. Which color neutralizes unwanted yellow tones?
- A.Violet
- B.Green
- C.Orange
- D.Blue
Answer: A. Violet is opposite yellow on the color wheel, which is why violet-based toners and purple shampoos cancel yellow in blonde hair.
7. Unwanted red tones are neutralized with a base of:
- A.Orange
- B.Blue
- C.Violet
- D.Green
Answer: D. Green is the complement of red, so a green or ash-green base cancels unwanted red. Blue cancels orange and violet cancels yellow.
8. Which developer volume gives the standard one to two levels of lift?
- A.40 volume
- B.20 volume
- C.10 volume
- D.30 volume
Answer: B. 20 volume is the standard developer for permanent color, giving one to two levels of lift with full gray coverage. 10 volume deposits with little lift, 30 gives two to three levels and 40 gives three to four.
9. 20 volume hydrogen peroxide is what percent strength?
- A.12 percent
- B.6 percent
- C.3 percent
- D.9 percent
Answer: B. Volume counts the oxygen the peroxide releases: 10 volume is 3 percent, 20 volume is 6 percent, 30 volume is 9 percent and 40 volume is 12 percent.
10. Which haircolor coats the hair shaft and is removed by the next shampoo?
- A.Demipermanent
- B.Permanent
- C.Semipermanent
- D.Temporary
Answer: D. Temporary color has large pigment molecules that sit on the cuticle and rinse off with one shampoo. Semipermanent lasts four to six shampoos and the others are permanent.
Practice all 20 haircoloring questions, and the rest of the 200-question bank, in the free Cosmetology training sets. Questions you miss come back until you have mastered them.
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