How Much Do Cosmetologists Make?
Cosmetology is the widest beauty license, and what it covers differs by state: New York folds nail and esthetics services into it, Florida defines it as head, face and scalp work with skin and nails as separate specialties. The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reports hair, skin and nails as three separate jobs. Which of the three pays more depends on the state.
The figure usually quoted, $35,790 a year, counts employees only. The Occupational Outlook Handbook puts 48% of barbers, hairstylists and cosmetologists in self-employment, and the wage survey leaves them out.
Nationally, nails at $35,760 are almost level with the combined job. The gap between the three varies by state.
The ZIP tool shows the combined hair and cosmetology job; skincare and nails differ by state
Enter a ZIP code to see the BLS median for the combined hair and cosmetology job in your area. It covers employees only. No agency publishes self-employed pay by area, so nothing below is a local figure for people who work for themselves.
Sources: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025, SOC 39-5012 by area; the Census ZIP-to-county file; USDA rural-urban codes. BLS reports a median in 452 of 528 areas, and the other 76 use the state median. One step is modeled: where the calculator uses your area, it applies the employed pay level to self-employed earnings, because no agency publishes self-employed pay by area. Your ZIP code is not sent or stored.
Skincare pays the most of the three jobs in 38 of 47 places (46 states and DC) with all three figures
By our own count from the BLS state file, skincare is the highest of the three in 38 of those 47 places, nails in 5 and the combined job in 4. The table holds the combined job, which covers employees only, and one-person beauty salons, whose gross comes before rent, supplies and tax. The three jobs split differently by state. BLS May 2025 medians for employees in Texas are $30,680 for the combined job, $49,250 for skincare and $34,040 for nails. In Florida they are $29,530, $43,880 and $37,840. In Alaska they are $32,150, $41,240 and $47,890, so nails lead there.
| State | Hairdressers, hairstylists and cosmetologists, median a year (BLS May 2025) | One-person beauty salon, average gross (Census 2024) |
|---|---|---|
| United States | $35,790 | $30,831 |
| Highest five | ||
| Washington | $59,510 | $44,031 |
| Oregon | $57,580 | $39,812 |
| District of Columbia | $54,570 | $25,082 |
| South Dakota | $49,800 | $40,908 |
| Vermont | $48,650 | $41,792 |
| Lowest five | ||
| Louisiana | $26,030 | $21,783 |
| Mississippi | $27,560 | $20,601 |
| Arkansas | $28,830 | $25,521 |
| Alabama | $29,150 | $24,013 |
| Wyoming | $29,170 | $34,551 |
| Most people employed in this job | ||
| California | $38,660 | $36,817 |
| Florida | $29,530 | $31,404 |
| Texas | $30,680 | $29,918 |
| New York | $35,760 | $29,289 |
| Pennsylvania | $36,790 | $28,154 |
| New Jersey | $36,150 | $30,494 |
Medians are BLS May 2025 state figures for employees; the self-employed are not surveyed. Solo figures are Census Nonemployer Statistics 2024 for NAICS 812112, which covers one-person beauty businesses of all kinds, before rent, supplies and tax. The 38 of 47 is our count from the BLS state file; Hawaii, Vermont, Virginia and Wyoming lack at least one of the three figures.
The full license covers the most, and what it covers depends on your state
Nationally, nails at $35,760 and the combined job at $35,790 are $30 apart, and skincare is higher at $45,330. All three are BLS May 2025 medians for employees. Holding a cosmetology license does not mean earning the skincare or nails median: those medians describe people employed in those jobs. Rules differ by state, and New York's law is the clearest we read: it folds nail and esthetics services into cosmetology. Check your state board.
The calculator below works out your own numbers. No official or trade source we could use publishes commission rates or booth rents, so this page prints none.
Work out what a year looks like before tax
Put in your own price, customers, weeks and tips to see a year two ways: on commission, or in your own booth or suite. The starting values are examples, so change them to match your week.
- Services you do in a year$69,000
- Your share$34,500
- Tips+ $13,800
Example figures from the sources named, checked in November 2026. Rent, products and insurance are not deducted; subtract yours. With a ZIP code, the price follows that area's level.
The IRS lists hair, skin and nail work as three separate tipped occupations
Tipping is the most-asked cosmetologist pay topic on our chart, at 156 phrasings. Here is what the IRS says, and what one esthetician reported on video. This page does not say what anyone should tip.
Entry 603, "Barbers, hairdressers, hairstylists, and cosmetologists": "Provide beauty or barbering services like cutting, coloring, styling hair, scalp treatments, shaving." Entry 601, "Skincare specialists": "Provide skincare treatments to face and body to enhance appearance." Entry 605, "Manicurists and pedicurists": "Clean and shape customers' fingernails and toenails; may polish or decorate nails."
The IRS sets that limit on the deduction for qualified tips, and the rules have conditions. This page reports what the IRS says and is not tax advice.
The IRS sets this limit for people who work for themselves. A tax professional who knows your situation can tell you how it applies.
Ashley Mulica, who works solo, received a $20 tip on a $454 day. That is one person's own report, not a rate.
Hairstylists published their numbers; no one on the skin or nail side published a full year from 2023 to 2026
Cosmetology is a license, not a job title, and the people who publish their books call themselves hairstylists. We did not check anyone's license. Ashley Mulica is the one skin-side card, for a single day. Each figure is the person's own report, and none is a figure for all cosmetologists.
Our arithmetic from $102,000 in services on a 50/50 split. Ten years a stylist; the salon provides space and product. Tips were not discussed.
Valentine's week 2026, over 15 clients. She said not every week is this busy.
She charges $100 to $125 a facial and received a $20 tip. This is one day, not a yearly figure.
BLS does not publish pay by experience; the lowest-paid tenth in the combined job earn under $27,040
BLS reports pay in percentiles, not by years in the job, and only for employees. The closest official marker for the low end is the 10th percentile, which is not the same thing as a starting wage. The license comes before any pay, and each state sets its hours.
One employed worker in ten earns less than these BLS May 2025 figures in each job. The self-employed are not surveyed, so these numbers say nothing about someone building their own book of customers.
Texas and California set 1,000 hours, Florida 1,200 and Washington 1,600. Those hours come before you can start, and no source we could use publishes what the school costs.
Measured by us in November 2026, from Google's US suggestions. Counts show how many distinct phrasings appeared, not how many people searched.
Cosmetologist pay questions
If you offer hair, skin or nails on your own, take deposits and bookings online without chasing messages.
Online booking, deposits and reminders in one place, so your customers can book while you work.
- A booking page that works as the link in your Instagram bio
- Each service with its own length and price: a facial, a manicure, a blowout
- A deposit at booking, and a reminder before the appointment
- Tap to Pay on iPhone, to take a card at the chair or the treatment bed
Sources
Where every number on this page comes from, with the release and a link.
- Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025: Hairdressers, Hairstylists, and Cosmetologists (39-5012), Skincare Specialists (39-5094), Manicurists and Pedicurists (39-5092), national, state, metro and nonmetro areas, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2026-05-15 Employees only; the self-employed are not surveyed. BLS does not separate cosmetologists from hairstylists.
- Occupational Outlook Handbook: Barbers, Hairstylists, and Cosmetologists, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics The 48% self-employed share.
- Nonemployer Statistics 2024: Beauty Salons (NAICS 812112), national, state and county, U.S. Census Bureau, 2026-09-29 Gross receipts of businesses with no paid employees, before rent, supplies and tax. The code covers one-person beauty businesses of all kinds.
- 2020 Rural-Urban Commuting Area Codes, ZIP code file, USDA Economic Research Service Used by the ZIP tool to label an area urban core, suburban, small city or rural.
- 2020 ZCTA to County Relationship File, U.S. Census Bureau, 2021-12-09 Connects a ZIP code to its county in the ZIP tool.
- Occupations that customarily and regularly received tips on or before Dec. 31, 2024, Internal Revenue Service, 2026-06-28 Entries 601 Skincare specialists, 603 Barbers, hairdressers, hairstylists, and cosmetologists, and 605 Manicurists and pedicurists.
- One Big Beautiful Bill Act: tax deductions for working Americans and seniors (no tax on tips), Internal Revenue Service, 2026-11-09 Qualified tips deductible for 2025 through 2028, up to $25,000; for the self-employed no more than net income from the trade; phases out above $150,000 of modified AGI ($300,000 joint); tips must be voluntary.
- Topic no. 761, Tips: withholding and reporting, Internal Revenue Service, 2026-10-12 The 2025 through 2028 tax years.
- Atlanta hairstylist, street interview, YouTube, Salary Transparent Street, 2025-06-16 Commission stylist, 50/50 split.
- Beajah Renee, a week as a self-employed hairstylist, YouTube, 2026-02-19 One week, gross, including tips.
- How Much $$ I Make in a Day as an Esthetician, Ashley Mulica, YouTube Published October 2024. Her own report of one day.
- Apply for a cosmetologist license: operator, esthetician, manicurist and combined course hours, Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation Read November 2026.
- License requirements: cosmetology, esthetics and nail hours, California Board of Barbering and Cosmetology Read November 2026.
- Get your cosmetology license: cosmetologist, esthetics and nail hours, Washington State Department of Licensing Read November 2026.
- Florida Statutes, Chapter 477: Cosmetology, The Florida Legislature Hours, specialties and scope wording. Read November 2026.
- New York General Business Law, Section 400, New York State Senate Scope of cosmetology and esthetics. Read November 2026.
- 19 NYCRR 162.1: nail specialty hours, Cornell Legal Information Institute The 250-hour nail specialty. Read November 2026.
- Stripe pricing, standard US card rate, Stripe, 2026-10-25 the card processor kiwilaunch uses; quoted for the 3% card fee in the calculator
Not tax, legal or financial advice. Prices, pay and what you keep vary by state and city, licensing rules differ by state, and the tax rules on tips have conditions. A tax professional who knows your situation can answer for you.