5 Salon Pricing Mistakes Every Hairstylist Should Avoid

My claim to fame in the beauty industry is definitely pricing education.

Back in 2019, I remember not having anything to post one day, so I threw together a quick before and after photo and slapped the price right on the image for everyone to see. I did it because the client was driving me crazy. She was constantly questioning the cost of her appointments and eventually had her husband come into the salon and yell at me for charging too much.

Looking back, maybe it was a little petty. You couldn't see her face, but the frustration behind the post was real.

The point wasn't to embarrass anyone. The point was to educate people on what actually goes into the services they ask for. Clients see the final result, but they don't see the years of education, the product costs, the consultation, the skill required and the pressure that comes with trying to meet increasingly high expectations.

As social media has evolved, those expectations have only gotten bigger. Clients are bringing in inspiration photos from Instagram, Pinterest and now even AI-generated images. Some of these photos aren't even real. Even stylists are using editing tools to make their work look more polished online.

All of that being said, despite all of the changes in our industry, I still see the same hairstylist pricing mistakes over and over again. Let's talk about the five biggest pricing mistakes I see stylists and salon owners making and how to fix them.
 

Pricing Mistake #1: Charging Different Clients Different Prices

In my last article, we talked about emotional discounting and how much it can cost your business. It wouldn't fly in a fast food restaurant. Imagine if every customer paid a different amount for the same meal. It would be impossible to manage and impossible to track.

Yet stylists do it every day. One client gets a discount because they've been coming forever. Another gets a discount because they're a friend. Someone else gets charged less because they're difficult. Before you know it, everyone is paying something different and you have no idea what your services are actually worth.

I highly recommend reading the article and scheduling a price increase for October first if you're 80% booked or more. If you're not 80% booked yet, focus on that first. Becoming booked and busy is one of the building blocks to confidently charging more.
 

Pricing Mistake #2: Failing to Calculate Your Hairstylist Hourly Rate

Pricing Mistake #3: Not Knowing Your Hourly Rate

This is one of the most important numbers in your business. If you don't know your hourly rate, you're guessing. 

Start by figuring out how many hours you actually work behind the chair each week. Then take your average weekly service sales and divide them by the number of hours you worked. For example: $2,500 in weekly service sales divided by 25 hours worked equals $100 per hour. Now you know what you're currently charging on average.

The next step is determining whether that number is actually profitable. Pull a Profit and Loss Statement from your accountant or bookkeeping software and look at your net profit compared to your total income.

A lot of stylists stop at revenue. Revenue is great, but revenue is not profit. You need to know what is left after your expenses are paid. As a general rule:
 

• Less than 5% profit is a warning sign.
• 10-15% profit is healthy.
• 20% or more is excellent.

Many stylists and salon owners are shocked when they realize they're bringing in a lot of money but only keeping 1-2% after expenses. If your profits are low, don't immediately raise your prices. First, look at your numbers:
 

• Review your product costs.
• Review your rent.
• Review payroll.
• Review subscriptions.
• Review education expenses.
• Review marketing expenses.
• Review every recurring charge coming out of your account.

Then compare those expenses to your revenue over the last 12 months. Your pricing should come from your numbers, not what the salon down the street is charging or what feels right in the moment.
 

Pricing Mistake #4: Ignoring Hair Color Product Costs and Service Standards

Full Color

• 2 bowls
• 3 oz color + 3 oz developer

Root Melt

• 1 bowl
• 1.5 oz color + 1.5 oz developer

Gloss

• 2 bowls
• 2 oz color + 2 oz developer

Mini Custom Highlight

• 1 bowl
• 2 oz bleach + 2 oz developer

Half Custom Highlight

• 2 bowls
• 4 oz bleach + 4 oz developer

Full Custom Highlight

• 3 bowls
• 6 oz bleach + 6 oz developer

Full Heavy Custom Highlight

• 4 bowls
• 8 oz bleach + 8 oz developer

When those allowances are exceeded, we charge an additional $28 per bowl.

It doesn't have to be complicated. Having standards like this keeps things fair for your clients and profitable for your business.
 

Pricing Mistake #5: Charging Correctly But Still Wondering Where All Your Money Went

I see this all the time. A stylist is bringing in great money and still feels broke. The problem isn't always pricing, sometimes it's spending.

If every dollar that comes in immediately goes back out, no amount of charging more will ever feel like enough. Take a hard look at your ordering habits.
 

• Review your salon supplies.
• Review your subscriptions.
• Review your tools.
• Review your inventory.
• Review everything you're purchasing on a regular basis.

One of the easiest ways to improve profitability is by making smarter purchasing decisions. That's why I always recommend taking a look at Marlo Beauty Supply.

Their pricing on salon essentials, color accessories, developer, tools and everyday supplies is hard to beat. Small savings on products you already buy every week can add up to thousands of dollars over the course of a year.

When you charge correctly, control your product costs and stop overspending, it becomes a whole lot easier to actually keep the money you're making.

Pricing is one of the most important skills you can learn behind the chair. You can be incredibly talented, booked out for months and still struggle financially if your numbers don't make sense.

Take some time this month to look at your pricing, your product costs and your spending habits. Pull your Profit and Loss Statement. Look at what you're actually making, not what you think you're making. The answers are usually right there in the numbers.

And while you're at it, take a look at where you're buying your supplies. Small savings add up fast when you're ordering every week. Marlo Beauty Supply has become a go-to resource for salon essentials, color accessories, tools and everyday supplies that help keep costs under control without sacrificing quality.

At the end of the day, making more money isn't always about taking more clients. Sometimes it's about keeping more of what you're already earning.
 

Gina Sicard (@iamginabianca), Pro2Pro Editorial Contributor
Gina is a veteran salon owner with a proven track record of building strong salon cultures, delivering meaningful education and mentoring top performing stylists. Gina’s mission is to provide inspiration, resources and real world strategies for salon owners and stylists who want to grow.