Hair salon prices

Other hair salon prices

Beyond the adult haircut, what the same chains charge.

By session length: 10 min

Who we priced

Walk-in hair salon chains set prices per franchise, not nationally, so the same brand can differ by several dollars between neighbouring towns.

Birds Barbershop from $41 Short Cut · chain's posted minimum · 27 services · October 2026 Bishops Cuts/Color $35–$56 Short · 29 locations · 23 services · October 2026 Fantastic Sams $22.99–$35 Haircut · 10 locations · 163 services · October 2026 Great Clips $15–$30 Haircut · 4,294 locations · 12 services · October 2026 Sport Clips $25–$30 Varsity haircut · national price list · 2 services · August 2026

Not here Supercuts, Cost Cutters, Hair Cuttery publish no prices. We don't guess, so they aren’t here.

Across 3 chains that post one, the typical adult haircut is $28 (the median), from $15 to $56. Beyond that: kids' haircut $13–$30, senior haircut $13–$39, trim services $5–$19, styling $13–$220, colour and chemical services $5–$175. The side-by-side bars below show where each chain's own price sits.

Adult haircut, side by side

Almost every salon menu is built around one number: the standard adult haircut. Kids' and senior cuts are discounted against it, trims are priced as a fraction of it, and styling and chemical services sit above it. That makes the base cut the only figure worth comparing directly between brands.

Near you

4,359 checked locations across 51 states. State pages show that state's own spread rather than a national average.

What you're paying for

What's included

• The base cut price covers the cut and a basic finish. At most walk-in chains the shampoo, the blow-dry and any iron styling are separate lines on the menu.
• Clipper work sold under its own name (a buzz, a skin fade, a neck trim, a line up) is priced as its own service rather than bundled into the cut.
• Nothing chemical is included. Color, highlights, gray blending, perms, smoothing and bond treatments are all priced separately, and most brands want them booked rather than walked in.
• Some brands add a surcharge for long or thick hair, so the base figure describes a standard cut rather than every head of hair.
• No published price includes a tip.

Choosing a chain

• Walk-in chains sell a fixed price and a short wait: no appointment, no consultation, the same number for everyone in the chair. Appointment-led salon chains sell time with a named stylist and price against that.
• Check what the quoted price covers before the first visit at a full-service brand. Some menus quote cut only, others quote wash, cut and blow-dry as one line.
• If you want the same stylist each time, check whether the brand takes stylist requests. Several walk-in chains queue by next available instead.
• Chemical work is often quoted per hour or as a starting price, so the menu number is a floor and the total depends on how long the service runs.

What moves the price

• The franchise owner sets the price, so the specific salon matters more than the brand.
• Whether a shampoo and blow-dry are included in the line you booked.
• Hair length and thickness, where the brand charges extra for them.
• Add-ons taken in the chair: beard trim, brow wax, conditioning or bond treatment.
• Stylist grade, at the brands that price by stylist level.
• Metro salons price above rural ones for the same service.

Ways to pay less

• Book the cut alone and wash at home. The shampoo and blow-dry lines are usually the difference between the menu price and the bill.
• Stretch the gap between cuts with a cheaper service. A neck trim or bang trim costs a fraction of a full cut and buys a few weeks.
• Ask for the kids' or senior rate rather than waiting to be offered it. The cutoff ages are brand-set and staff do not always check.
• Check the brand's app or check-in tool before you go. Walk-in chains run coupons there that are not posted in the salon.
• Decide on add-ons before you sit down; they are offered at the chair, where they are easiest to accept.

Menu terms

What the words on a hair salon price list mean.

Trim

A short tidy-up of one area (neck, beard or bangs) rather than a full cut. Priced well below the base cut.

Buzz

One clipper guard taken over the whole head. The cheapest full-head service on most menus.

Fade

Clipper work that shortens gradually toward the neckline. A skin fade takes it down to the skin and is often a separate, higher-priced line.

Line up

Squaring off the hairline at the front and temples. An add-on, not a cut.

Blowout

Wash and blow-dry into a finished style, with no cut. Sold on its own or as an add-on.

Gray blending

Color that softens gray rather than covering it completely. Cheaper and shorter than all-over color at most salons.

Balayage

Hand-painted lightening that grows out without a hard regrowth line. Priced above standard highlights because it takes longer.

Bond or plex treatment

An additive used during or after chemical work to limit damage. Almost always a separate charge.

Keratin smoothing

A treatment that relaxes frizz for a period of months. One of the most expensive lines on a walk-in menu.

When an independent beats a chain

An independent barber or stylist is usually the better choice when the relationship matters more than the queue: a stylist who remembers what you asked for last time, does the same cut without a fresh explanation, and can be booked at a set hour. Independents also handle work the walk-in chains do not really compete on (textured and curly hair, detailed barbering, corrective color), and their prices for those services are often no higher than a chain's, because the chain is pricing an appointment slot it does not specialize in. The chains win on predictability: a published price, extended hours, no appointment, and a location in most towns.

Before you pay

• The published price is set by the franchise owner, so check the specific salon rather than the brand.
• A shampoo or blow-dry is usually a separate line, not part of the cut price.
• Kids' and senior discounts have brand-set age cutoffs that vary.

Other price lists