Barbers


Overview

Barbers

Introduction

Barbers shampoo, cut, trim, and style hair and shave, trim, and shape beards. While barbers are formally trained to perform other services such as coloring and perming hair, most barbers in barbershops do not offer these services. Barbers may also call themselves barber-stylists, and a few may even refer to themselves as tonsorial artists, an old-fashioned term that is derived from a Latin word meaning "to shear." Approximately 158,686 people are employed at barbershops, according to the data analytics firm IBISWor...

Quick Facts


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Median Salary

$36,150

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Employment Prospects

Good

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Minimum Education Level

High School Diploma|Some Postsecondary Training


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Experience

Part-time job


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Skills

Business Management|Interpersonal|Mechanical/Manual Dexterity


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Personality Traits

Creative|Hands On|Outgoing

Earnings

Incomes vary widely depending on a barbers experience, the location of the shop, the number of hours worked, tipping habits of the clientele, and whether or not a barber owns the business. The personality and initiative of a barber also impacts the ability to draw a loyal following. The U.S. Department of Labor reported that, in May 2023, the median annual income for full-time, salaried barbers...

Work Environment

Barbers generally enjoy pleasant work surroundings. The barbershop environment is usually friendly, clean, and comfortable. Many barbers can set their own hours, and although many work Saturdays, they typically take Sundays and weeknights off. Of course, this depends largely on the schedules of their clientele; barbers whose clientele consists mostly of retirees rarely find the need to work eve...

Outlook

Employment for barbers will grow faster than the average for all careers from 2022 through 2032, according to the U.S. Department of Labor. As the U.S. population continues to grow, demand will increase for basic hair-care services. Additionally, many job openings will also result from the need to replace retired workers. The outlook for this profession will be different for various cities, sta...