Style Showdown is the elimination mode of Dress To Impress. Instead of one long round with a star rating, a small lobby plays several rounds, a challenge twists each one, and the lowest-voted player goes home until three finalists remain. The mode launched on March 1, 2025 and was overhauled on July 4, 2026, when more than 100 items entered rotation and a new Style Star rank system arrived.
This guide covers the rules, the rewards for each placement, the Style Star ranks, and every challenge the wiki lists, including the ones that have been removed. The standard mode works differently; for that, read the how to win guide.
How a Style Showdown match works
- 1Queue. Enter the queue ring in the Style Showdown Lobby. When 6 players are queued, everyone in the ring is teleported to the game server. The wiki lists the maximum as 7 players (it was 10 before).
- 2Theme and challenge. Each round picks a theme and a random challenge. Up to Winter 2025 a short skippable cutscene played first.
- 3Dress up. The timer is 3 minutes, or less depending on the challenge.
- 4Runway. Everyone walks the runway, then players are placed on pedestals to vote.
- 5Voting. Each player votes for 3 people when more than 6 are playing, 2 when fewer than 5 are playing, and at least 1 otherwise. The wiki adds that unused votes are deducted from the total votes the player has.
- 6Elimination. If more than 3 players remain, the lowest-voted player is eliminated. A pop-up then shows how many Style Stars you earned that round.
- 7Grand finale. With three players left, the one with the most Style Stars wins.
Lana hosts the mode, and the Lady Gaga collaboration added her as a co-host for a few weeks.
Rewards
| Placement | Cash | Stars | Other |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | 200 | 100 | A random Style Showdown Set piece you do not own, plus the "Style Showdown Winner" badge |
| 2nd | 100 | 50 | |
| 3rd | 67 | 33 | |
| Each round survived | 20 | Style Stars |
The wiki also lists Baddie Pass points and XP among the rewards. Before Summer 2025 Part 4, only the winner earned Cash (100 instead of 200). The Cash page confirms the 20 per round and 200 for first place.
The Style Showdown Set has three items: the Showdown Dress, Showdown Gloves and Showdown Headpiece. You need to win three matches to complete it, because each win gives one random piece. The set is free, permanent and listed as obtainable by winning only. The wiki says its design was inspired by an outfit Kylie Jenner wore at the 2022 Thierry Mugler Exhibition.
Style Star ranks
Style Showdown has its own ranks, separate from the 14 standard ranks in the main game. They were added in the July 4, 2026 overhaul and are earned with Style Stars.
| Rank | Style Stars needed |
|---|---|
| New Contestant | 0 to 40 |
| Runway Rookie | 40 to 90 |
| Entry Competitor | 90 to 175 |
| Chic Challenger | 175 to 350 |
| Top Competitor | 350 or more |
The standard ranks run from New Model to Fashion Goddess and are earned with regular Stars, which come from votes in normal rounds. The Baddie Pass can also give Stars; see the Baddie Pass guide.
Challenges in rotation
A challenge changes the rules of a round. These are the ones in the rotation after the July 4, 2026 update:
| Challenge | What happens |
|---|---|
| Vote Reveal | Shows every player's votes on stage in random order |
| Speed Round | The 3-minute timer drops to 1 minute 30 seconds |
| Double Elimination | After one elimination, another low-voted player is also eliminated |
| Random Item | Each player gets a random item that cannot be removed until the next round |
| Item Lock | You cannot remove items once you equip them |
| Mystery Theme | The theme is shown scrambled and unscrambles as the round goes on |
| Out for Lunch - Back Soon! | Lana's Salon (hair, face and nails) is closed for the round |
| Red Light Green Light | Stop moving when the screen goes red. Since July 4, 2026, a stunned player also loses one equipped item |
| Lights Off | The map is darker |
| Lock In | A button locks your outfit for good, and the round is a few seconds shorter |
| Witches | Everyone must wear the Witch Hat and Broomstick |
| Mermaids | Everyone must wear the Mermaid Queen Tail and Arms |
| Pose Sync | Two low-voted players play a pose-matching minigame (unavailable since August 16, 2025) |
| Infected, Technical Difficulties | Listed as TBA |
Removed from rotation: Item Limit (max 6 to 8 items, removed January 10, 2026), Desaturate (colors fade to black and white, removed January 10, 2026) and Frostbite (icy room with skates, removed July 4, 2026).
Limited: Zombieboy, exclusive to the Lady Gaga collaboration. The map becomes a graveyard, random players turn into zombies and can pass the zombie look to others.
The mode's release history of challenges: six at launch (Vote Reveal, Speed Round, Double Elimination, Random Item, Item Lock, Pose Sync), then four added July 19, 2025, Zombieboy on August 16, 2025, Lights Off on October 18, 2025, and Frostbite, Lock In and Witches on January 10, 2026.
What changed on July 4, 2026
The 2026 overhaul touched the mode in four ways, according to the wiki. More than 100 items were added to the rotation, the Style Star rank system arrived, the Mermaids challenge replaced Frostbite, and two existing challenges were reworked: Red Light Green Light now takes an equipped item from a stunned player, and Random Item was updated too (it used to assign one random item to every player at the start of the round).
The developer has said the mode does not update with every main-game update, so new challenges can be months apart.
Immunity Idols and Double Elimination
Lana's dialogue refers to Immunity Idols. When a player uses one, Lana announces that the player lives to see another round. The wiki ties the idol to Pose Sync, where an idol keeps both players in the round, but it does not list how idols are earned, so do not plan around one. Double Elimination is the opposite pressure: two players leave in one round, so a bottom-two vote count is no longer safe.
Seasonal versions
Summer Showdown first ran on July 19, 2025 and returned in 2026, with its own challenges and the same rewards. A Spooky Showdown also exists for Halloween. Check the Halloween 2026 guide for what the current event offers.
Tips from the rules
The wiki does not publish a strategy for this mode, so the tips below come straight from the rules and have not been proven in play.
- Read the challenge first. Item Lock and Random Item punish a rushed outfit; Lock In ends editing early.
- Speed Round gives half the time. Start from a base you can finish in 90 seconds.
- Match the theme, then the challenge. Voters score the look they see, not the effort.
- Stay out of last place. Elimination looks only at the lowest vote count. A decent middle-of-the-pack finish keeps you alive.
- Aim for the finale. The finale rewards the most Style Stars, so earlier rounds matter.
- Check the theme list. The themes guide covers how to read hard themes quickly.
Common mistakes
- Treating it like a normal round. The timer is shorter and the lowest vote count is eliminated.
- Leaving Lana's Salon for last. During Out for Lunch, it closes for the round.
- Moving during Red Light Green Light. Since July 2026 you also lose an item.
- Expecting Pose Sync. The wiki lists it as unavailable.
- Waiting for a full lobby of 7. The queue starts when 6 players are in the ring.
FAQ
How many players are in Style Showdown?
The queue teleports the ring to a server when 6 players are queued. The wiki lists 7 as the maximum, down from 10.
How do you get the Style Showdown Set?
Win three Style Showdown matches. Each win gives one random piece of the Dress, Gloves and Headpiece that you do not already own.
How much Cash does Style Showdown give?
20 Cash per round survived and 200 Cash for first place. Second place gets 100 and third gets 67.
What are Style Stars?
The currency that decides the finale and your Style Showdown rank. Rank names run from New Contestant to Top Competitor.
Is Pose Sync still in Style Showdown?
No. The wiki lists it as unavailable since August 16, 2025.
