Pick the service, type its price and say how it went: see the tip, what anyone else who worked on you gets, and what you pay in all, from the norms etiquette and money guides publish. American customs, in dollars.
Haircut, blowout or style · a $60 example · happy
Tip $1220% of $60, the usual for a haircut. You pay $72 in all.
What the guides say
Norms quoted from the Emily Post Institute, NerdWallet (with the Etiquette Institute of Washington), Reader’s Digest, Southern Living, Parade, Kiplinger, Bustle, Bankrate and The Protocol School of Texas. Checked 2026-09-27. Ours: which level “how did it go” picks, and adding the tips up.
Quick answer: tip your hairdresser or colourist 20% of the service price (15% if it was not quite right, 25% if you are thrilled), your nail tech 15 to 20%, your lash tech 20% and whoever does your wax, brows or facial 15 to 20%. Give $5 to anyone else who washed or dried your hair, and tip on the full price even with a discount.
How to use it
Pick the service, type its price and tap how it went. The answer is the tip in dollars, what you pay in all, and the tip at all three levels so you can see the range. If someone else washed, rinsed or dried your hair, tap how many. Open “A second person, a discount, the owner, the holidays” when a colourist and a stylist both worked on you, when you paid less with a deal or a gift card, when the owner did your hair, or when it is your holiday visit. Under the answer are the words of the guides the numbers come from.
The tip, by service
Tipping is a custom, not a rule, so every number here is quoted from at least two etiquette or money guides, and where they disagree you see the range. The three levels are the low end, the usual and the top of what those guides say; which one “how did it go” picks is ours.
| Service | Not quite right | Happy | Thrilled |
|---|---|---|---|
| Haircut, blowout or style | 15% | 20% | 25% |
| Colour, highlights or balayage | 15% | 20% | 25% |
| Manicure or pedicure | 10% | 15% | 20% |
| Lash extensions or a fill | 15% | 20% | 25% |
| Waxing or brows | 15% | 20% | 20% |
| Facial | 15% | 20% | 20% |
- Hair: the Emily Post Institute gives “15-20%, ask to be split among those who served you”. NerdWallet: “The tipping standard is usually 20%.” Southern Living: “20% should be the starting point.” Reader’s Digest stretches it to 25%: “Go for the low end if you aren’t quite as happy, and the high end if you’re thrilled with your new look.”
- Colour: NerdWallet’s salon expert suggests going above 20% “for hand-painted highlights, corrective coloring and hair extensions”.
- Nails: the guides disagree most here. The Emily Post Institute says “Manicurist: 15-20%”; the etiquette expert NerdWallet quotes on nails says “You can give 10% for good service, 15% for great service and then 20% or more for exceptional service” (NerdWallet). So the calculator runs from 10% to 20%, with 15% as the usual.
- Lashes: The Etiquette Institute of Washington puts eyelash extensions in its 15 to 20% group (NerdWallet); Bustle says “around 20-25 percent”, for the detail the work takes.
- Waxing, brows and facials: “Facial, Waxing, Massage: 15-20%” (Emily Post Institute); Bankrate gives facials 18 to 20%. No guide we read goes above 20% for these, so “thrilled” stays at 20% and more is your call.
Everyone who worked on you
“Tip anyone who touches your hair” is the rule NerdWallet’s two experts share. For the person who shampoos you or rinses your colour, NerdWallet says “about $3 to $5”, Southern Living “$5 is often suitable”, and Reader’s Digest “For shampooing, a $5 tip is typical”, so the calculator adds $5 each. When a colourist and a stylist both work on you, each gets a tip on their own service: Southern Living’s example is “if your haircut was $45 and your color was $75, you’d tip at least $9 to the stylist who cut your hair and $15 to your colorist.”
The owner, a discount, a bad result
The owner: tip them as you would anyone. “Old-school rules say you don’t have to tip the owner of the salon if they’re doing your hair because they get all the revenues. But times have changed” (Reader’s Digest), and “it’s always appropriate to tip” (Southern Living). The etiquette expert Diane Gottsman adds that “some salon owners may not expect, or accept a tip”: if you are not sure, ask at the front desk.
A discount, a deal or a gift card: tip on the full price. “The consensus is to tip the standard 20% of the original, non-discounted price” (Southern Living); “Yes, even if it is already paid for with a gift certificate or you got it on sale via a promotion at the salon or on Groupon” (Reader’s Digest); “tip on the full amount of what it WOULD be” (a stylist in Parade).
Not happy with it: tip at the low end and say something. NerdWallet: “it’s OK to leave closer to 15%, but do not skip the tip”; Reader’s Digest goes as low as “around 10%” and adds that you should “politely express your concerns to your stylist”, who can usually put it right.
At the holidays
For the people who do your hair or nails all year, the holiday thank-you is bigger: “Up to the cost of one salon visit divided for each staff member who works with you” (the Emily Post Institute), “The cost of one visit” (Kiplinger, which applies the same rule to nails), or a gift. Reader’s Digest suggests a smaller step, adding “an extra 10% to 15%” to your usual tip. Only in once a year? Kiplinger suggests “about $20” at your December visit.
Cash is kindest: “Cash is instant, while electronic payments could take several days or weeks for employees to receive” (NerdWallet), and the salon pays a card fee on a tip left by card.
Five worked examples
An $80 haircut you are happy with, and someone else washed your hair: $16 to your stylist (20% of $80) and $5 for the assistant, $21 in tips. You pay $101 in all.
A $45 cut and a $75 colour by two people: $9 to your stylist and $15 to your colourist, $24 in tips. You pay $144 in all.
A $45 pedicure: $4.50 if it was not quite right, $6.75 if you are happy, $9 if you are thrilled.
A $150 balayage on a $100 new-client deal: the tip is on the full $150, so $30 at 20%. You pay $130: the $100 you paid, and the $30 tip.
A $150 set of lash extensions you love: $37.50 (25%). You pay $187.50 in all.
Common mistakes
- Tipping on the deal price. The work was the same, so the tip is on the full price.
- Forgetting the assistant. The person who shampooed you or rinsed your colour is tipped separately, usually $5.
- Skipping the tip when it went wrong. Tip at the low end and say what is wrong: most stylists want the chance to fix it.
- Not tipping the owner. That rule is out of date; most owners who do your hair are paid like any stylist.
- One tip for two people. A colourist and a stylist each get a tip on their own part of the bill.
More on Needle Style
Booking a new look? See very layered medium hair over 50, brown hair with silver highlights, dark caramel balayage, short gel nail designs and classic and hybrid lashes.
Norms quoted from the Emily Post Institute, NerdWallet, Reader’s Digest, Southern Living, Parade, Kiplinger, Bustle, Bankrate and The Protocol School of Texas. Checked 2026-09-27. Tipping customs shift, so we re-read these every three months.
FAQ
How much should you tip a hairdresser?
20% of the service price is the usual: NerdWallet calls it the standard, and Southern Living calls it the starting point. The range is 15% if it was not quite right to 25% if you are thrilled. Tip anyone else who washed or dried your hair about $5.
How much do you tip a hair stylist for colour or balayage?
The same 15 to 25%, on the colour service’s own price, and toward the top for hand-painted highlights, corrective colour or extensions. If a colourist did the colour and someone else the cut, each gets a tip on their own part.
How much do you tip a nail tech?
15 to 20% is the Emily Post Institute’s range, and NerdWallet’s nail expert starts at 10% for good service. On a $45 pedicure that is $4.50 to $9, with $6.75 (15%) as the usual.
How much do you tip a lash tech?
About 20%: The Etiquette Institute of Washington puts lash extensions at 15 to 20%, and Bustle says 20 to 25%. On a $150 full set that is $30, or $37.50 if you love them.
Do you tip the salon owner?
Yes. The old rule that you don’t tip the owner is out of date, and guides now say it is always appropriate. A few owners don’t take tips: if you are not sure, ask at the front desk.
Do you tip on the full price with a discount or Groupon?
Yes: tip on what the service would have cost at full price, even when a deal or a gift card paid part or all of it. The work was the same.
Do you tip the person who shampoos your hair?
Yes, separately: about $3 to $5, and $5 is typical. Tip more if they also did the blow-dry.
How much do you tip a hairdresser at Christmas?
Up to the cost of one visit, or a gift, split among the people who work on you. If you only go once or twice a year, about $20 at your December visit is enough.