How Much Do Nail Techs Make?
The number usually quoted for nail tech pay counts employees only, and 23% of nail techs work for themselves.
So this page sets the employee median beside what one-person nail salons take in and what the top tenth of employees earn, with a ZIP code tool and a calculator for commission or booth rent.
Which figure fits you depends on whether you earn an hourly wage or commission in someone's salon or rent your own booth.
Employed nail techs in Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue earn a median of $50,800, 42% above the national $35,760
The tool shows the employed median for your area and one-person salon receipts for your county. BLS reports this job in 211 of 528 areas, so many ZIP codes show the state figure. No agency publishes self-employed pay by area.
Sources: BLS OEWS May 2025, SOC 39-5092, by area, employees only; Census Nonemployer Statistics 2024, NAICS 812113, by county, gross receipts before rent, supplies and tax, for 2,255 counties; the Census ZIP-to-county file; USDA rural-urban codes. BLS reports a median for 211 of 528 areas, and the other 317 use the state figure. Your full ZIP code is not sent or stored.
Employed nail tech medians run from $25,720 in New Mexico to $60,790 in Hawaii, on a small sample there
Texas has about a seventh of California's employed nail techs (5,340 against 39,210), yet one-person nail businesses in Texas gross more before rent, supplies and tax ($43,361 against $26,775). BLS counts only employees and Census only one-person businesses, so the two figures measure different people. Neither agency says why the states differ. Hawaii ($60,790) and Nebraska ($56,940) top the BLS list on small samples.
| State | Manicurists and pedicurists, median a year (BLS May 2025) | One-person nail salon, average gross (Census 2024) |
|---|---|---|
| United States | $35,760 | $41,294 |
| Highest five | ||
| Hawaii | $60,790 | $40,512 |
| Nebraska | $56,940 | $48,250 |
| Washington | $49,900 | $33,471 |
| Maine | $48,540 | $37,636 |
| Alaska | $47,890 | $47,467 |
| Lowest five | ||
| New Mexico | $25,720 | $42,679 |
| Georgia | $26,910 | $45,001 |
| Arkansas | $27,690 | $49,762 |
| Pennsylvania | $27,990 | $26,324 |
| Louisiana | $28,170 | $38,067 |
| Most people employed in this job | ||
| California | $36,630 | $26,775 |
| New York | $34,660 | $22,457 |
| New Jersey | $36,370 | $25,899 |
| Texas | $34,040 | $43,361 |
| Massachusetts | $35,470 | $29,763 |
| Connecticut | $34,720 | $25,002 |
First column: BLS OEWS May 2025 state medians for SOC 39-5092, employees only. Second column: Census Nonemployer Statistics 2024, NAICS 812113, average gross receipts of one-person nail salons, before rent, supplies and tax.
Nail techs are paid by the hour, by commission, or rent a booth and keep the price
No official or trade source we could use publishes a commission rate or a booth rent, so this page prints neither. The calculator's commission preset uses 50% as an example, and its booth preset leaves rent for you to subtract.
The last public trade survey we could read, NAILS Magazine's Big Book for 2014-15, reported average service income of $645 a week and $129 in tips. It is more than a decade old. It was an online survey of readers, and what we read gave no sample size.
Work out what you would take home before tax
Put in your own price, services, days, weeks and tips to see a year before tax. Choose commission or booth rent, then change each example to match your work.
- Services you do in a year$60,000
- Your share$30,000
- Tips+ $9,000
Checked November 2026. Rent, products and insurance are not deducted; subtract your own. With a ZIP code, the price follows that area's level of employed nail tech pay; no agency publishes self-employed pay by area, so this step is our estimate.
Tipping is the most-asked nail tech pay topic, and manicurists are on the IRS list of tipped jobs at entry 605
The IRS lists this job among occupations that customarily received tips, and it allows a deduction on qualified tips. No official source publishes how much nail techs receive.
Entry 605 describes the job this way: "Clean and shape customers' fingernails and toenails; may polish or decorate nails." Its examples are "Nail technician, fingernail sculptor, nail painter." The related SOC code is 39-5092.
The IRS sets the deduction at up to $25,000 for those tax years. This page quotes the IRS and gives no tax advice.
A self-employed nail tech faces two limits under the IRS rule: the $25,000 cap and the net income from the trade.
We found no official figure for an average tip. The tip field in the calculator is an example for you to change.
What working nail techs say they made in one week
These are two one-week gross figures, with no net and no full year, and the place is not stated in either. We found no nail tech publishing a full year we could check.
She says "I made $960", a figure from her scheduling app, and that $15 deposits per set would take it over $1,000. She quotes $65 for a medium set on sale and gives no net figure.
Her days ran $538, $180, $260, $515, $480 and $70, and she gives the grand total as $2,043. She gives no expenses or net figure.
BLS does not publish pay by experience; the lowest-paid tenth of employed nail techs earn under $28,920
BLS reports $28,920 a year at the 10th percentile and $34,010 at the 25th for employed nail techs, and the self-employed are not surveyed. These figures show the low end of employee pay and do not say how long anyone has worked.
BLS puts the 25th percentile at $34,010 and the 75th at $41,650 for manicurists and pedicurists in May 2025, employees only.
Oregon asks for 241 hours plus 40 of laws and career development. Rules differ, so check your state board.
Alabama also accepts 1,200 hours as an apprentice. New York has a 250-hour course, Florida 180 hours for manicure and pedicure, and Virginia 150 hours in a licensed school.
Measured by us in November 2026. Nail tech school drew 107 phrasings, plus 238 that name a place; we measured it and left it off the chart.
Nail tech pay questions
If you rent your own booth or suite, take deposits and bookings online without chasing messages.
Let clients book online, pay a deposit and get a reminder before they come in.
- A booking page where clients pick a gel manicure, a full set or a fill.
- A deposit at booking for a full set or any other service.
- Reminders that go out before each appointment.
- Clients can book a fill online while you are with another client.
Sources
Where every number on this page comes from: the agency, salon or nail tech who published it, with a link.
- Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025: Manicurists and Pedicurists (39-5092), national, state and area, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2026-05-15 Employees only; the self-employed are not surveyed. 211 of 528 areas report a median; the other 317 use the state figure.
- Occupational Outlook Handbook: Manicurists and Pedicurists, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Page modified August 2026. 23% of manicurists and pedicurists are self-employed.
- Nonemployer Statistics 2024: Nail Salons (NAICS 812113), national, state and county, U.S. Census Bureau, 2026-09-29 Gross receipts of businesses with no paid employees, before costs and tax. Counts one-person nail salons.
- Occupations that customarily and regularly received tips on or before Dec. 31, 2024, Internal Revenue Service, 2026-06-28 Entry 605: Manicurists and pedicurists. Example titles: nail technician, fingernail sculptor, nail painter.
- 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.
- Independent contractor guidance for nail salons, California Division of Labor Standards Enforcement Read November 2026. Gives no commission rate.
- Nail salon workers: wage and hour rights, U.S. Department of Labor, Wage and Hour Division Read November 2026. Gives no booth rent.
- The Big Book 2014-2015, NAILS Magazine An online survey of NAILS readers. More than a decade old; sample size not found.
- Three nail salons' published price lists, Various NAB Nail Bar, Orchid Nails & Spa and Happy Nails Salon & Spa, below. Starting prices as published, not earnings.
- Pricing, NAB Nail Bar, Las Vegas, Nevada Read November 2026.
- Prices, Orchid Nails & Spa, Edgewater, Maryland Read November 2026.
- Prices, Happy Nails Salon & Spa, Clearwater, Florida Read November 2026.
- How much I make in a Week as a 18 year old Nail Tech!, Solaii, YouTube September 2023.
- week in my life 17 clients + how much i made, KaylaNailedIt, YouTube August 2026.
- Manicurist license: school and apprentice hours, Alabama Board of Cosmetology and Barbering Read November 2026.
- Get a nail specialty license, New York Department of State Read November 2026.
- Nail technician licensing requirements, Connecticut Department of Public Health Read November 2026.
- Virginia licensing requirements, barbers and cosmetology, Virginia Department of Professional and Occupational Regulation Read November 2026.
- Nail technology license, Oregon Health Licensing Office Read November 2026.
- Apply for a manicurist license, Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation Read November 2026.
- License requirements: nail hours, California Board of Barbering and Cosmetology Read November 2026.
- Get your cosmetology license: nail hours, Washington State Department of Licensing Read November 2026.
- Florida Statutes, Chapter 477: Cosmetology, The Florida Legislature 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.