Personal Care and Service · Holland code RCS
Hairdressers, Hairstylists, and Cosmetologists
Provide beauty services, such as cutting, coloring, and styling hair, and massaging and treating scalp. May shampoo hair, apply makeup, dress wigs, remove hair, and provide nail and skincare services.
Also called: Cosmetologist, Hair Stylist, Hairdresser, Stylist, Beautician, Beauty Specialist, Hair Artist, Hair Dresser.
O*NET 39-5012.00
At a glance
- US median annual pay
- $35,790
- Middle half earn $30,120 to $48,830. BLS OEWS, May 2025.
- Preparation needed
- Job Zone 3 of 5
- Medium preparation. Zone 1 is little or none; zone 5 is graduate-level.
What the work involves
The tasks workers in this occupation rate as most important, from the O*NET survey.
- Keep work stations clean and sanitize tools, such as scissors and combs.
- Schedule client appointments.
- Bleach, dye, or tint hair, using applicator or brush.
- Cut, trim and shape hair or hairpieces, based on customers' instructions, hair type, and facial features, using clippers, scissors, trimmers and razors.
- Shampoo, rinse, condition, and dry hair and scalp or hairpieces with water, liquid soap, or other solutions.
- Update and maintain customer information records, such as beauty services provided.
- Analyze patrons' hair and other physical features to determine and recommend beauty treatment or suggest hair styles.
- Massage and treat scalp for hygienic and remedial purposes, using hands, fingers, or vibrating equipment.
Skills and knowledge it leans on
Skills
- Active Listening3.9 / 5
- Speaking3.8 / 5
- Critical Thinking3.4 / 5
- Active Learning3.3 / 5
- Reading Comprehension3.0 / 5
- Monitoring3.0 / 5
Knowledge areas
- Customer and Personal Service4.7 / 5
- Sales and Marketing4.2 / 5
- English Language3.6 / 5
- Administration and Management3.3 / 5
- Education and Training3.2 / 5
- Public Safety and Security3.0 / 5
Importance ratings on O*NET’s 1 to 5 scale. Higher means the occupation depends on it more.
Who tends to enjoy it
How strongly this occupation draws on each of the six Holland interest types, which is the same profile the career interests test compares you against.
- Realistic73
- Investigative9
- Artistic37
- Social45
- Enterprising38
- Conventional49
The same work abroad
Other countries classify jobs differently, so these are the closest matches through the international ISCO-08 standard, not exact equivalents.
European occupation titles (ESCO)
- hairdresser · DE Friseur/Friseurin · FR coiffeur/coiffeuse
- performance hairdresser · DE Film- und Theaterfriseur/Film- und Theaterfriseurin · FR coiffeur spectacle/coiffeuse spectacle
- aesthetician · DE Kosmetiker/Kosmetikerin · FR esthéticien/esthéticienne
- hair removal technician · DE Epilator/Epilatorin · FR épileur/épileuse
- manicurist · DE Fingernagelkosmetiker/Fingernagelkosmetikerin · FR manucure
- pedicurist · DE Fußpfleger/Fußpflegerin · FR pédicure
Closest UK occupation groups (SOC 2020)
- Hairdressers and barbers (6221)129,300 employed
- Beauticians and related occupations (6222)90,100 employed
- Tailors and dressmakers (5413)12,000 employed
Employment is the UK Annual Population Survey for April 2025 to March 2026, all workers in the group, which can be broader than this one occupation.
Japan
Japan classifies jobs in its own way. The closest category that names the same work is “理容・美容師”, which may be narrower or broader than this occupation.
- Median monthly pay
- ¥260,000
- Middle half earn ¥215,900 to ¥349,400 a month.
- Workers in the category
- 49,670
- Regular employees in firms of ten or more.
Scheduled monthly pay before tax, excluding overtime and bonuses, so it is not comparable to the annual figures above. Source: Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, Basic Survey on Wage Structure 2025, via e-Stat, under the Japanese Government Standard Terms of Use. The category match was made by hand.
Pay across Europe, for the whole group
Median annual earnings of all employees in “Service and sales workers”. This is the broad ISCO group this occupation falls in, not the occupation itself, so treat it as context for the wage level, not as a salary for this job.
| Country | Median pay |
|---|---|
| Belgium | €32,957 |
| Sweden | €32,596 |
| Netherlands | €29,198 |
| Austria | €29,068 |
| Germany | €27,471 |
| Ireland | €26,978 |
| Italy | €24,995 |
| France | €24,971 |
| Spain | €18,303 |
| Portugal | €10,656 |
| Poland | €7,579 |
Eurostat Structure of Earnings Survey, businesses with ten or more employees outside public administration, in euro and not adjusted for the cost of living. Reference years differ between sources: the US, Japan and Europe figures on this page come from different survey years, so compare them as rough levels, not to the euro or yen.
Exposure to AI
This occupation sits in the lower third of the 774 occupations scored, with an exposure score of -0.68. The scores are standardized across those occupations, so 0 is the average and a score of 1 is about one standard deviation above it.
Our note on reading it: the dataset links AI applications to the abilities that occupations require, so the score reflects overlap between the two. It is a comparison between occupations, not a forecast about jobs. It does not say whether exposure means tasks are replaced or workers get more done with the tools, and it says little about one employer or one role.
Source: Felten, E., Raj, M., & Seamans, R. (2021). Occupational, industry, and geographic exposure to artificial intelligence: A novel dataset and its potential uses. Strategic Management Journal, 42(12), 2195-2217. Matched to this page by 6-digit SOC code (39-5012).
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