Hair Salon Valuation Multiples and What a Hair Salon or Barber Shop Is Worth
Enter the salon's revenue and owner earnings and read a range benchmarked to what hair salons and barber shops actually closed at, whether you are setting an asking price or checking a salon for sale before you make an offer.
Estimated business value
Method breakdown
What moves this number
Estimate, not a certified appraisal. Your figures are not stored.
The median US hair salon or barber shop sold for $115,500 across 2021 to 2025, based on 879 closed BizBuySell sales, on median revenue of $298,401 and median owner earnings of $70,225. Half of sales landed between 1.25x and 2.34x seller discretionary earnings, or 0.26x to 0.65x revenue, after a median 182 days on the market.
On an SBA loan the most a buyer can pay themselves at the median price is about $49,185 a year, so the median salon is a purchase for a stylist or barber who keeps working the chair. That is still about $13,400 more than the $35,790 median stylist wage, on roughly $13,317 of cash at closing. This is a benchmark and an estimator, not a certified appraisal.
Salons and barber shops, median asking price against sale price
2021
2022
2023
2024
2025
$87.5k
0.90
$89k
0.94
$129k
0.92
$105k
0.89
$165k
0.92
BizBuySell, hair salons and barber shops sold 2021 to 2025. Light bar median asking price, dark bar median sale price, average sale to ask below each year.
Closed transactions
01What hair salons and barber shops actually sold for
These are 879 hair salons and barber shops reported sold across the five years 2021 to 2025. The source describes them as mostly independently owned, with franchise units included, and notes they often sell to skilled stylists and barbers who want to own the shop they work in. Nail salons, spas and tanning salons are counted separately (section 07). If you have been pricing from a listing site's instant estimate, our comparison of BizBuySell valuation alternatives explains what those tools leave out.
Median sale price
$115,500
What the middle hair salon or barber shop actually closed at, 2021 to 2025
Median asking price
$125,000
What the same sold salons and shops were listed at
Median revenue
$298,401
Annual service and retail revenue of the middle salon sold
Median owner earnings (SDE)
$70,225
Seller discretionary earnings, a 23.5 percent owner margin
| Hair salons and barber shops, 2021 to 2025 | Lower quartile | Median | Average | Upper quartile |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Earnings multiple, sold | 1.25x | 1.77x | 2.04x | 2.34x |
| Earnings multiple, current listings | 1.41x | 2.13x | 3.56x | 3.20x |
| Revenue multiple, sold | 0.26x | 0.41x | 0.51x | 0.65x |
| Revenue multiple, current listings | 0.37x | 0.60x | 0.93x | 0.96x |
| Owner earnings, sold | $42,968 | $70,225 | $100,887 | $120,089 |
| Owner earnings, current listings | $50,000 | $80,971 | $119,077 | $150,000 |
| Revenue, sold | $165,854 | $298,401 | $468,778 | $563,317 |
| Revenue, current listings | $150,000 | $294,116 | $428,448 | $523,198 |
Source: BizBuySell hair salon and barber shop business valuation benchmarks, 879 businesses reported sold on the platform 2021 to 2025, read October 2026. Shaded rows are current and recent listings at their asking prices. The listing earnings multiple average (3.56x) sits above its own upper quartile because a few listings ask far more than the rest. Benchmarks, not quotes.
Three things stand out. First, the readings disagree, and you should know which one the other side is quoting. The median multiple is 1.77x and the average 2.04x, but the median sale over the median earnings is only 1.64x. Multiplying medians gives $124,298, 7.6 percent above the median sale; the revenue route, $298,401 at 0.41x, gives $122,344, 5.9 percent above. The median price, the median earnings and the median multiple come from different salons, and averages of ratios sit above ratios of medians.
Second, listings are priced higher than salons sell for. Salons on the market now report median owner earnings of $80,971, 15.3 percent above the sold set, and ask a median 2.13x against 1.77x paid, 20.3 percent more. Sold salons closed at an average 0.91 of their asking price. The sellers who did close asked 1.78x the median earnings, so expect a listing at 2x or more to come down.
Third, the salons that sell are small. A quarter of them produced $42,968 or less of owner earnings, which is about one full-time stylist's pay, and sold revenue starts at $165,854 for the lower quartile. At that size the buyer is buying a chair, a lease and a few loyal clients, and the price reflects it: 1.25x on $42,968 is $53,710.
If you are working out how to calculate SDE for the salon in front of you, start with the owner's own chair. An owner who cuts thirty clients a week without a separate paycheck is doing work a buyer will have to do or pay for. Separate one-time costs from the payroll and commission that repeat, then find your row in section 05.
| Year | Median sale | Median ask | Sale to ask | Average SDE multiple | Average revenue multiple | Median revenue | Median SDE | Margin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | $87,500 | $114,450 | 0.90 | 1.70x | 0.49x | $275,000 | $65,111 | 23.7% |
| 2022 | $89,000 | $99,000 | 0.94 | 1.92x | 0.45x | $252,620 | $63,000 | 24.9% |
| 2023 | $129,000 | $147,000 | 0.92 | 2.03x | 0.52x | $352,979 | $72,475 | 20.5% |
| 2024 | $105,000 | $121,000 | 0.89 | 2.25x | 0.50x | $285,383 | $72,300 | 25.3% |
| 2025 | $165,000 | $179,000 | 0.92 | 2.13x | 0.60x | $360,000 | $92,000 | 25.6% |
Source: BizBuySell, same page. The 2025 median sale of $165,000 was 57.1 percent above 2024 while median revenue rose 26.1 percent and owner earnings 27.2 percent, and 88.6 percent above 2021. The source attributes the rise to return to office traffic since 2023. Prices rose faster than earnings, so the 2025 median sold at 1.79x its median earnings against 1.45x in 2024.
Our calculation
02The median salon finances easily, but only as a job you keep doing
Most small business buyers use an SBA 7(a) loan, so what a lender will finance sets a practical ceiling on price. The table runs a business only loan at 10.5 percent over 10 years, 1.25x debt service coverage and a 10 percent injection against the median $70,225 of owner earnings. Salons almost always lease their space, so there is no building loan here. Everything in it is computed here, not quoted.
SBA-supportable price at two owner draws, against the median sale
Scale $0 to $250,000
$56,132
What $70,225 supports at a $60,000 draw (black line).
$115,500
What the median salon sold for.
$165,926
What it supports at a $40,000 draw.
| Owner draw the buyer takes | Left for debt service | Supportable price, 10 years |
|---|---|---|
| $0 (buyer takes no salary) | $70,225 | $385,513 |
| $30,000 | $40,225 | $220,822 |
| $40,000 | $30,225 | $165,926 |
| $49,185 (the most a buyer can draw at $115,500) | $21,040 | $115,500 |
| $50,000 | $20,225 | $111,029 |
| $60,000 | $10,225 | $56,132 |
| $80,000 | Below zero | Does not finance |
Computed here. Annual loan constant 0.16192 for 10 years at 10.5 percent. Supportable price is (SDE minus draw) divided by 1.25, divided by the loan constant, divided by 0.90. Illustrative arithmetic, not a loan offer or a credit decision.
The loan itself is not the problem. At $115,500 the debt service is about $16,832 a year and the median earnings cover it 4.17 times, which leaves $53,393 before the owner pays themselves. Work it backwards with the lender's coverage cushion and a buyer can draw at most about $49,185. Drawing $60,000 takes $81,040 of earnings, and $80,000 takes $101,040, close to the average salon rather than the median.
Set that against the payroll alternative. The BLS median wage for hairdressers, hairstylists and cosmetologists is $35,790 and for barbers $38,210. A stylist who buys the median salon and keeps a full book can take home about $13,400 more than the median stylist on payroll, while the loan builds equity. The rate can tighten it: SBA caps variable rates on loans of $50,000 to $250,000 at prime plus 6 points, and at 12.75 percent the most a buyer can draw falls to about $47,173.
Cash to close on the median salon
$13,317
A $115,500 purchase at 10 percent down is an $11,550 injection and a $103,950 loan. Loans of $150,000 or less carry an 85 percent guaranty, so the guaranteed portion is $88,358 and the FY2026 upfront fee of 2 percent is $1,767. Add the lease deposit, retail inventory at closing and a few weeks of working capital for payroll or commission on top.
The lower quartile salon
$53,710
That is the lower quartile multiple on lower quartile earnings of $42,968. Those earnings support only $16,293 at a $40,000 draw and do not cover a $60,000 draw at all, so a salon this size rarely finances on its own numbers. These deals close in cash, with a seller note, or with a buyer who keeps a second income while the book grows.
The lender may value it in house
Under SOP 50 10 8.1 the lender may value the business itself when the price is $350,000 or less and buyer and seller are not closely related. Almost every salon sale sits under that line, so your estimate and the lender's own analysis may be the only valuations in the deal.
Prepaid packages and gift cards are owed
Gift cards, prepaid service packages and memberships sold before closing are services the buyer must deliver with no cash coming in. Count them from the point of sale report and agree on a credit at closing, or the buyer pays for the same haircuts twice.
A seller note keeps the seller in the chair
A seller who carries part of the price and stays on for a transition period has a reason to introduce clients to the new owner. In a business where clients follow people, that handover is worth more than a few points of price.
Sources: SBA SOP 50 10 8.1 (changes of ownership: valuation). SBA 7(a) maximum interest rates. FY2026 upfront guaranty fees (SBA Information Notice 5000-872051). BLS OEWS May 2025. A summary for pricing, not legal or lending advice.
What makes salons different
03You buy a client book, a team that can leave and a lease
A salon looks like a fixtures business and prices like a relationship business. The chairs and dryers are worth little once they are unbolted. What carries the price is clients who keep booking, stylists they book with, and a location they can reach. Each needs its own evidence before you agree a price.
The client book
Clients follow stylists, not signs. What a buyer pays for is the share of clients who rebook with the salon rather than with one person. Ask for the booking system export: active clients by stylist, visits per client, rebooking rate and new clients per month for two years. A salon where one stylist holds half the book is worth that stylist staying.
The pay model
Commission, hourly and booth rental salons are three different businesses at the same revenue. A commission salon books every service as its own revenue and pays stylists a share. A booth rental salon books only the chair rent. The SDE can look similar while what you actually own, and how easily it walks out, is very different.
The lease
A salon is a location business. Walk-in traffic, parking and the plumbing already run to each shampoo bowl are expensive to move. Read the remaining term, renewal options, rent as a share of revenue, the personal guaranty and whether the landlord must consent to an assignment. A short lease can cost a buyer the whole book.
Owner earnings as a share of revenue, sold salons
2021
23.7%
2022
24.9%
2023
20.5%
2024
25.3%
2025
25.6%
BizBuySell median revenue and median owner earnings by year of sale. 2023 is the outlier: the salons sold that year had the highest revenue before 2025 but the thinnest margin, 20.5 percent.
Booth rental means buying a rent roll
In a booth rental salon, independent stylists pay weekly or monthly rent for a chair, set their own prices and keep their own clients. The salon's revenue is the rent. A buyer is purchasing the rent stream and the lease, and every renter can move down the street the week after closing. Read each booth agreement for term and notice, and check that renters really operate independently, because the IRS common-law test looks at who controls the work.
The establishment license starts over
In Texas, TDLR says a barbering or cosmetology establishment license cannot be transferred to a new owner; the buyer files a new application (Texas Occupations Code 1603.2204). Most state boards treat a sale the same way, and the buyer's own cosmetology or barber license may matter too. Put the license timeline in the purchase agreement so the doors stay open on day one.
Sources: BizBuySell hair salon and barber shop benchmarks, 2021 to 2025. Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation, establishment change of ownership. A summary for pricing, not legal or tax advice. Licensing and worker classification rules are set by each state.
Our calculation
04What the salon is worth if you will not cut hair in it
Seller discretionary earnings include the owner's pay, and in most small salons and barber shops the owner works the busiest chair. A buyer who will not do that has to pay someone who will. The rows below use the Bureau of Labor Statistics national median wages for May 2025, plus employer FICA.
The same $115,500 price
1.64x
to an owner who keeps cutting
3.64x
stylist hired to replace the owner
6.45x
salon manager hired, absentee owner
| Who does the owner work | Earnings left | Price as a multiple | SBA-supportable price, 10 years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Owner keeps working the chair | $70,225 | 1.64x | $115,500 at a $49,185 draw |
| Owner stops cutting, hires a stylist ($38,528) | $31,697 | 3.64x | $174,007 at no owner draw |
| Owner stops cutting, hires a barber ($41,133) | $29,092 | 3.97x | $159,705 at no owner draw |
| Absentee owner, salon manager hired ($52,307) | $17,918 | 6.45x | $98,363 at no owner draw |
Computed here. BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, national estimates for May 2025: hairdressers, hairstylists and cosmetologists (SOC 39-5012), median $35,790 a year, 305,710 payroll jobs; barbers (SOC 39-5011), median $38,210, 15,000 payroll jobs, low because most barbers are self-employed; first-line supervisors of personal service workers (SOC 39-1022), median $48,590, 114,110 jobs. Plus 7.65 percent employer FICA.
To an owner who keeps cutting, $115,500 is 1.64x earnings, inside the middle half of sales. Replace the owner's chair with one hired stylist and the same price is 3.64x; hire a salon manager and step away, and it is 6.45x, with only $98,363 supportable even if you never pay yourself. That is below the median price. Compare it with the gym valuation page, where a hired general manager breaks the median deal the same way. A salon becomes an investment you do not work in at around the upper quartile, $120,089 of owner earnings, or with several locations under one manager.
Find your row
05What a salon at your earnings is worth
Each row takes an earnings level and prices it at the lower quartile, median and upper quartile multiple, next to what an SBA buyer could finance on a 10 year business loan at a $40,000 and a $60,000 owner draw.
| Owner earnings (SDE) | At 1.25x | At 1.77x | At 2.34x | SBA, $40,000 draw | SBA, $60,000 draw |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| $42,968 (lower quartile sold) | $53,710 | $76,053 | $100,545 | $16,293 | Does not finance |
| $60,000 | $75,000 | $106,200 | $140,400 | $109,794 | Does not finance |
| $70,225 (median sold) | $87,781 | $124,298 | $164,326 | $165,926 | $56,132 |
| $92,000 (2025 median sold) | $115,000 | $162,840 | $215,280 | $285,463 | $175,670 |
| $120,089 (upper quartile sold) | $150,111 | $212,558 | $281,008 | $439,663 | $329,869 |
Computed here. SBA columns on the same terms as section 02, before working capital. "Does not finance" means the earnings do not cover the draw. Illustrative arithmetic, not a loan offer.
The pattern is the reverse of most industries. From the median up, a buyer drawing $40,000 can finance at least the upper quartile price, and well past it at the 2025 median earnings, so the loan rarely limits what a salon sells for. What limits it is the salary the buyer needs and the risk that clients follow a departing stylist. At $92,000 of earnings, the 2025 median, a $60,000 draw still finances $175,670, which is why prices jumped once earnings did. If your numbers sit between rows, the estimator at the top of the page will place them.
Value drivers
06What moves a salon between the quartiles
The distance between the lower and upper quartile multiple is 1.25x to 2.34x, which on $70,225 of earnings is the difference between $87,781 and $164,326. The scale shows where the published readings fall, and how far replacing the owner's chair pushes the same price.
Salon earnings multiples on one scale
0x to 4x
1.25x
Lower quartile
1.64x
Median sale over median SDE
1.77x
Median multiple
2.34x
Upper quartile
3.64x
Median price with a stylist hired
BizBuySell hair salon and barber shop benchmarks, 2021 to 2025. Dark band, 1.25x to 2.34x, the middle half of sales. The 1.64x and 3.64x readings are computed here.
Revenue and size
BizBuySell states that a salon with sales over $500,000 may sell for an earnings multiple near 2.34 or higher, while a less popular shop with sales of $165,000 would likely sell closer to the lower quartile of 1.25. Those thresholds sit near the sold revenue quartiles of $165,854 and $563,317.
Owner chair hours
An owner who works the busiest chair five days a week is a large part of the SDE and most of the client book. A salon whose owner books few clients and manages a stable team sells toward the upper quartile, because the revenue survives the handover.
Stylist tenure and retention
Long-tenured stylists with their own clients are the business. Ask how long each one has been there, what share of revenue each produces and whether any have signed nonsolicitation agreements where state law allows them. A stylist leaving in the first year can take a fifth of the book with them.
Rebooking and retail
A high rebooking rate means revenue is already on the calendar on closing day. Retail product sales add margin without chair time. Both show up in the booking and point of sale reports, and both support a higher multiple than the same revenue from walk-ins.
Pay model and classification
Booth renters are often independent contractors, which keeps payroll off the books but means the salon does not control their clients or schedules. If renters are treated like employees, the IRS common-law test and state rules can reclassify them, with back payroll taxes. A clean, documented model is easier to finance.
The lease and rent
Rent is usually the largest fixed cost after stylist pay. A long lease with renewal options at a rent the chairs can carry supports the multiple; a lease with a year left and no option can stop an SBA loan entirely.
Same margin, different multiple, illustrative
$48,538
$165k revenue
about 1.25x on $38,831
$115,500
Median salon
sold, 1.64x on $70,225
$302,880
$550k revenue
about 2.34x on $129,436
Computed here. Earnings at the median 23.5 percent owner margin, multiples from BizBuySell's size statement (near 2.34 or higher above $500,000 of sales, near 1.25 at $165,000). Revenue rises 3.3 times; value rises 6.2 times.
Against other beauty and personal care businesses
07Hair salons against nail salons, spas and tanning salons
Hair salons and barber shops are the smallest business in the group by median price, and they sell at 1.64x on the medians, level with jewelry stores. Nail salons earn 44.4 percent more ($101,412) and sell for 29.9 percent more ($150,000), at 1.48x, the lowest effective multiple in the table; nail salon valuation shows why that price finances even with a hired manager. Spas sit at the other end: 52.1 percent more earnings, 107.8 percent more price, 2.25x. BizBuySell reads hair salons as priced in line with the sector for their size, not discounted. SDE multiples by industry shows the whole market.
| Category | Median revenue | Median SDE | Average SDE multiple | Median sale over median SDE | Owner margin | Median sale | Sale to ask |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hair salons and barber shops | $298,401 | $70,225 | 2.04x | 1.64x | 23.5% | $115,500 | 0.91 |
| Nail salons | $429,000 | $101,412 | 1.76x | 1.48x | 23.6% | $150,000 | 0.87 |
| Tanning salons | $245,101 | $65,383 | 2.22x | 1.91x | 26.7% | $125,000 | 0.90 |
| Massage businesses | $548,642 | $107,301 | 2.30x | 1.93x | 19.6% | $207,500 | 0.88 |
| Spas | $466,636 | $106,792 | 2.29x | 2.25x | 22.9% | $240,000 | 0.89 |
| Other beauty and personal care | $441,132 | $106,000 | 2.30x | 1.84x | 24.0% | $195,000 | 0.90 |
| Health food and nutrition | $492,798 | $100,000 | 2.51x | 2.00x | 20.3% | $200,000 | 0.98 |
| Jewelry stores | $463,061 | $131,207 | 2.05x | 1.64x | 28.3% | $214,757 | 0.88 |
| Clothing and accessory stores | $500,000 | $103,668 | 2.30x | 1.93x | 20.7% | $200,000 | 0.95 |
Source: BizBuySell beauty and personal care comparisons, 2021 to 2025. Owner margin and median sale over median SDE computed here.
Outside the beauty group, salons sit near other small service businesses where the owner is part of the product: dry cleaners and laundromats both sold at a median $250,000, more than twice the median salon, because their equipment and route revenue stay when the owner goes.
Methods
08The five ways a hair salon gets valued
You will meet most of them in one sale. The lender counts earnings after the owner's salary, a salon group talks EBITDA, an equipment dealer quotes resale value, and a stylist buying a first salon usually starts from SDE. Knowing which one the other side is using is most of the negotiation.
Seller discretionary earnings multiple
The primary method for an owner-run salon or barber shop and the one an SBA lender underwrites. Normalized SDE times a multiple, where half of all sales landed between 1.25x and 2.34x. Normalize first: the owner cutting hair without a paycheck, family on payroll, personal cars and phones, and product taken home.
Revenue multiple
Salons sold at a median 0.41x revenue and an average 0.51x. Use it as a cross-check only. Revenue in a booth rental salon is chair rent, not services, so the same revenue multiple on a rent roll and on a commission salon describes two very different businesses.
Adjusted EBITDA multiple
Multi-location salon groups and franchise operators are priced on EBITDA after a market salary for a manager. For one location it rarely fits: paying a salon manager at the BLS median cuts the median earnings from $70,225 to $17,918.
Price per chair
Some buyers check price against working chairs or stations. It is a sanity check at most. An empty chair adds nothing, and a chair rented to an independent contractor is worth the rent it brings in, not the services performed in it.
Asset approach
The floor for a salon that is losing money: chairs, dryers, shampoo bowls and fixtures at used resale value, plus retail inventory at cost and any lease value. A buyer paying close to that figure is buying a fitted space, not earnings.
Our guide to business valuation for an SBA loan lists what the lender will ask for, and business valuation cost shows what each kind of report costs. On a $115,500 salon, a $1,500 to $8,000 calculation engagement is 1.30 to 6.93 percent of the price, and a $5,000 to $15,000 conclusion of value is 4.33 to 12.99 percent, which is why most salon deals start from an estimate.
Questions
Hair salon valuation questions, answered against the sold record
How much is a hair salon worth?
The median US hair salon or barber shop sold between 2021 and 2025 went for $115,500, on median revenue of $298,401 and median owner earnings of $70,225. Half of all sales landed between 1.25x and 2.34x owner earnings, which on $70,225 is $87,781 to $164,326. The client book, stylist retention and the lease decide where a salon lands.
How much is a hair salon business worth?
Most hair salon businesses sell for 1.25 to 2.34 times seller discretionary earnings, or 0.26 to 0.65 times revenue, based on 879 closed sales from 2021 to 2025. The median closed at $115,500. Salons with sales above $500,000 and a team that does not depend on the owner trade toward the top of that band.
How much is my salon worth?
Start from your seller discretionary earnings: net profit plus your own pay, interest, depreciation and one-time costs. Multiply by 1.25x to 2.34x, the middle half of sold salons, and check it against 0.26x to 0.65x of revenue. Our estimator runs the same comparison against closed sales in a few minutes.
What multiple do hair salons sell for?
Hair salons and barber shops sold at a median 1.77 times seller discretionary earnings and an average of 2.04x across 2021 to 2025, with a lower quartile of 1.25x and an upper quartile of 2.34x. On revenue the median was 0.41x and the average 0.51x. In 2025 the average earnings multiple was 2.13x.
How do you value a hair salon?
Normalize the owner earnings, then apply a multiple between about 1.25x and 2.34x, higher for salons above roughly $500,000 of sales with a stable team. Check it against revenue at 0.26x to 0.65x, look at who holds the client book, and test what an SBA lender would finance at the salary you need.
How much is a barber shop worth?
Barber shops are counted with hair salons in the closed-sale data, and the combined median sold for $115,500 at 1.64 times median owner earnings. A barber shop with $70,000 of owner earnings typically sells for about $87,500 to $164,000. Shops where the owner cuts most of the heads sit at the low end.
What percentage of revenue is a salon worth?
Sold salons and barber shops closed at a median 41 percent of annual revenue and an average 51 percent, with a middle half from 26 to 65 percent. The median sale over the median revenue was 39 percent. Revenue is a cross-check, because booth rental and commission salons book revenue very differently.
How much does a hair salon owner make?
The median salon sold between 2021 and 2025 produced $70,225 of owner earnings on $298,401 of revenue, a 23.5 percent margin. In 2025 the median rose to $92,000 on $360,000 of revenue. Those earnings usually include the owner working a chair, so they are pay for a job as much as profit.
Can you get an SBA loan to buy a hair salon?
Yes. At the $115,500 median the loan is about $103,950, and the median $70,225 of earnings covers the debt service 4.17 times. The limit is the owner salary: a buyer can draw at most about $49,185 a year at that price. Below $350,000 the lender may value the salon in house.
Do booth rental salons sell for less?
Usually, per dollar of revenue. A booth rental salon sells a rent roll: independent stylists pay for chairs and own their clients, so they can leave with them. Buyers price it on the rent the chairs bring in and the lease, not on the services performed. Commission salons with retained clients sell for more.
Does a salon license transfer to a new owner?
Usually not. In Texas, TDLR says a barbering or cosmetology establishment license cannot be transferred to a new owner, and the buyer must file a new application. Most state boards work the same way. Build the licensing timeline into the closing date so the salon can keep operating under the new owner.
How long does it take to sell a hair salon?
BizBuySell reports a median of 182 days on the market for hair salons and barber shops that sold, about six months from listing to an accepted deal. Landlord consent to assign the lease, a new establishment license and any franchisor approval usually add weeks before closing.
Do hair salons sell for the asking price?
Close to it. Sold salons and barber shops closed at an average 0.91 of their asking price, and the median sale of $115,500 was 92.4 percent of the $125,000 median ask. Current listings ask a median 2.13x earnings against 1.77x paid, so a salon listed at today's median should expect to come down.
How much does a hair salon valuation cost?
A calculation engagement from a credentialed appraiser typically costs $1,500 to $8,000, and a full conclusion of value $5,000 to $15,000. On a $115,500 salon that is a large share of the price, which is why most salon deals start from an estimate against closed sales and an SBA lender's in-house review.
Benchmarks behind the estimate
Buying or selling an owner-run service business
Know the range before you sign a letter of intent
Enter revenue and owner earnings, for your own salon or barber shop or for one you are considering, and read a value range against real salon sales. An estimate in a few minutes, before you pay a broker or an appraiser.