How to price salon services: calculate instead of guessing

Most beauty specialists set prices by looking at competitors: "others charge €35 for a manicure, so I will too". The problem is that others may pay less rent, work faster, or simply not calculate either. A price copied from your neighbour can mean working a full day and earning as if you'd worked half of it.

Below is a calculation that needs a sheet of paper and 20 minutes.

Step 1. List your monthly costs

Everything you pay regardless of how many clients you have:

• rent for the premises or your chair, utilities, internet;
• software and systems (booking, accounting, phone);
• accountant, bank, insurance;
• training, advertising, workwear;
• equipment replacement — the lamp, the e-file or the chair will break one day, so set money aside every month.

Don't include materials (gel, colour, disposables) here — you'll add them to each service separately.

Example: €600 a month.

Step 2. How much you want to take home

Not "whatever's left", but what you need to live on and to set aside for holidays and sick days. This isn't greed — it's the condition for still doing this job two years from now.

Example: €1,500 a month.

Step 3. Add taxes

You'll pay income tax and social security (Sodra) contributions on your income. The exact percentage depends on your business form and income level — your accountant is the best person to tell you (we covered individual activity and the business certificate in 2026 in a separate article).

In this example we'll assume you set aside 20 % of income for taxes. So your work needs to bring in:

(€600 + €1,500) ÷ 0.8 = €2,625 a month.

Step 4. Real hours with clients — not 160

This is where almost everyone gets it wrong. A month doesn't have 160 hours with clients. There are cancellations, gaps between visits, empty mornings, preparation, cleaning, messages and bookkeeping.

An honest calculation:

• you work 5 days with 6 hours of client time each = about 120 hours a month;
• realistic occupancy is 70 % (for a new specialist it can be 50 %);
• 120 × 0.7 = 84 paid hours.

Step 5. What your hour is worth

€2,625 ÷ 84 h = about €31 an hour.

That's your minimum price for an hour of work. Service price = duration in hours × hourly rate + materials.

Example: a gel polish manicure takes 1 h 30 min and €3 of materials. 1.5 × €31 + €3 = about €50.

What if the market pays €40?

The calculation often shows a price higher than is usual in your area. That doesn't mean the formula is wrong — it means one of three things has to change:

1. Time. If the same manicure took 1 h 15 min, the price would be 1.25 × 31 + 3 = €42. A faster technique, a better-prepared station and fewer gaps between clients lower your cost directly.
2. Occupancy. At 80 % occupancy you'd have 96 hours, and your hourly rate would drop to about €27. Empty hours are your most expensive cost: reminders, deposits and easy online booking help here (more in our article on no-shows).
3. Service mix. Services with a higher value per hour (complex designs, colouring, treatment packages) balance out cheaper ones.

If none of the three works, it's worth asking honestly whether the price your area pays will suit you for longer than a year.

How to show prices to clients

• Tie price to time, not to the name. Long hair takes more time, so the price should be different. Clear options ("short / medium / long hair") mean fewer arguments at the till.
• "From" beats nothing. If the price depends on the design, show the lowest and explain what makes it go up.
• Round numbers. €45, not €44.90 — a beauty service isn't a supermarket.
• Specialist levels. In a salon with several specialists, a senior specialist can cost more — the client pays for experience and speed.

In edapi you can add up to 12 price options to a service (for example, by hair length). On the public page such a service shows as "from €X", and the client picks a specific option when booking. The same service can also be priced separately for each specialist.

When to review prices

At least once a year, and every time your rent, material costs or occupancy change. If your calendar is full three weeks ahead and nobody complains, that's usually a sign the price is too low, not that everything is perfect.

What to do tomorrow

1. List your monthly costs, excluding materials.
2. Write down your target income and, after checking with your accountant, your tax percentage.
3. Count your real client hours last month.
4. Calculate your hourly rate and compare it with your current prices.
5. If the gap is big, pick one of the three routes: time, occupancy or service mix.