Cosmetology careers combine personal service, creative work, and hands-on technical skills. In U.S. official statistics, the closest occupation is Hairdressers, Hairstylists, and Cosmetologists (SOC 39-5012). The measures below describe that occupation, with dates and source programs kept explicit because workforce, wage, demographic, and projection estimates are not interchangeable.
Contents
- Workforce size and employment settings
- Pay levels and wage distribution
- Employment outlook and annual openings
- Workforce demographics
- Daily work context and physical demands
- Work activities and occupational requirements
Workforce size and employment settings
The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Occupational Outlook Handbook reports about 595,000 hairdressers, hairstylists, and cosmetologists employed in 2025. The same BLS profile reports that self-employed workers accounted for 48% of employment. That is a substantial indicator of independent work, booth rental, business ownership, or other self-directed arrangements in the occupation. BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook
By industry, BLS reports that personal care services accounted for 45% of employment in 2025, while retail trade accounted for 5%. The industry figures show that cosmetology work is concentrated in personal-care businesses but is not limited to salons and similar services. BLS reports the associated median hourly wages in those two settings as $17.39 in personal care services and $14.84 in retail trade in May 2025. BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook
Another BLS table counted 260,460 hairdressers, hairstylists, and cosmetologists in Personal Care Services in May 2024. That is an industry-specific employment count, not a total for the occupation. BLS Data tables for OEWS industry charts
O*NET presents additional industry and workforce estimates. Its current industry profile places 47% of the occupation in “Other Services except Public Administration” and 53% in other industries, including Retail Trade. Its 2024 summary lists 575,200 employees. These figures use a different reference program and vintage from the BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook estimate, so they should be read as separate published estimates rather than combined into one total. O*NET Industries; O*NET occupational summary
Pay levels and wage distribution
O*NET’s national wage data for 2025 place the occupation’s average annual wage at $35,790. The reported median annual wage is also $35,790, while the wage distribution extends from $27,040 or less for the lowest-paid 10% to $71,190 or more for the highest-paid 10%. O*NET National Wages
The middle of the distribution provides more detail than a single average. The 25th-percentile annual wage was $30,120, and the 75th-percentile annual wage was $48,830 in 2025. In hourly terms, the reported 10th-percentile wage was $13.00, the 25th-percentile wage was $14.48, the 75th-percentile wage was $23.48, and the 90th-percentile wage was $34.23. These are published wage points for the occupation, not a promise of starting pay or take-home income for every cosmetologist.
| Wage measure | 2025 amount |
|---|---|
| 10th-percentile annual wage | $27,040 or less |
| 25th-percentile annual wage | $30,120 |
| Median annual wage | $35,790 |
| 75th-percentile annual wage | $48,830 |
| 90th-percentile annual wage | $71,190 or more |
Work setting matters in the BLS May 2025 figures. The median hourly wage was $17.39 in Personal Care Services and $14.84 in Retail Trade. Because these measures describe different industry groups, comparing them can help prospective workers think about employment setting as well as occupation. BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook
Employment outlook and annual openings
The published outlook is positive, but the exact estimate depends on the projection program and reference vintage. O*NET projects 607,400 employees in 2034, 6% employment growth from 2024 to 2034, and 75,800 annual job openings over that period. O*NET National Employment Trends
BLS’s occupational projections table reports 595.0 thousand jobs in 2024 and 640.9 thousand in 2034. It lists an employment increase of 45.9 thousand jobs, a 7.7% projected employment change, and 73.4 thousand annual openings over 2024–2034. BLS Occupational projections and worker characteristics
The BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook separately projects 8% growth from 2025 to 2035. The dates and estimates should remain attached to their source: O*NET’s 2024–2034 trend, BLS’s 2024–2034 projections table, and the handbook’s 2025–2035 outlook are separate forecasts. BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook
| Projection source | Base and forecast period | Employment or growth measure | Annual openings |
|---|---|---|---|
| O*NET | 2024–2034 | 6% growth; 607,400 projected in 2034 | 75,800 |
| BLS projections table | 2024–2034 | 595.0k to 640.9k; 7.7% change | 73,400 |
| BLS handbook | 2025–2035 | 8% growth | Not stated in supplied measure |
Annual openings are not identical to net new jobs. They describe the projected number of openings over a year and can include opportunities created by employment growth as well as the need to replace workers who leave the occupation. The supplied figures support a strong openings outlook, but they do not establish that every opening is in the same state, employer type, or specialty.
Workforce demographics
The BLS Current Population Survey (CPS) annual average counted 726,000 employed hairdressers, hairstylists, and cosmetologists in 2024. The CPS estimate is a separate annual-average measure from the BLS and O*NET employment counts above. BLS CPS annual averages
Women represented 91.3% of employed workers in the 2024 CPS annual average. The reported racial distribution included 76.7% White workers, 13.7% Black or African American workers, and 5.1% Asian workers. The table also reported 21.1% Hispanic or Latino workers. Hispanic or Latino is an ethnicity measure and can overlap with the race categories, so these percentages should not be added together as one mutually exclusive total. BLS CPS annual averages
These demographic figures are annual-average estimates for employed people. They describe the distribution reported by the CPS for 2024; they do not measure licensing enrollment, the entire training pipeline, or every person who identifies with cosmetology work outside the occupation’s statistical definition.
Daily work context and physical demands
ONET work-context responses emphasize direct, sustained interaction. In the **2026 ONET update**, 94% of occupational responses reported face-to-face discussions with individuals and teams every day. 88% reported contact with others in the constant-contact category, and 88% reported physical proximity as very close, near touching. Dealing with external customers or the public was extremely important for 85% of responses. O*NET occupational details
The same incumbent work-context data show a physically active environment. 71% reported standing in the continual-or-almost-continual category, and 88% reported repetitive motions in that category. 74% reported wearing common protective or safety equipment every day. Telephone conversations occurred every day for 71% of responses. These measures describe response categories from O*NET, not percentages of every employed cosmetologist in the country.
Some responses point to less visible job conditions. 26% reported exposure to hazardous conditions every day, and 17% reported exposure to disease or infections every day. A typical work week longer than 40 hours was reported by 19%. O*NET also classified 20% of responses as moderately automated. The data do not specify which tasks or workplaces account for each response.
Autonomy is another notable feature. 94% reported determining tasks, priorities, and goals in the “a lot of freedom” category, while 89% reported freedom to make decisions in that category. The impact of decisions on coworkers or company results was very important for 37% of responses. Together, these measures suggest that many workers make frequent practical decisions while serving clients, but they should not be interpreted as a guarantee of independent scheduling or business ownership.
Work activities and occupational requirements
O*NET assigns importance scores to broad work activities on its current occupational-requirements profile. Performing for or working directly with the public has an importance score of 82, the highest score among the supplied activities. Establishing and maintaining interpersonal relationships and selling or influencing others each score 75. Assisting and caring for others scores 73, as does updating and using relevant knowledge. O*NET occupational details
Creative and operational skills also appear in the profile. Thinking creatively has an importance score of 71. Monitoring processes, materials, or surroundings scores 56, scheduling work and activities scores 55, and handling and moving objects scores 54. Providing consultation and advice to others scores 52.
| O*NET work activity | Importance score |
|---|---|
| Performing for or working directly with the public | 82 |
| Establishing and maintaining interpersonal relationships | 75 |
| Selling or influencing others | 75 |
| Assisting and caring for others | 73 |
| Updating and using relevant knowledge | 73 |
| Thinking creatively | 71 |
Taken together, the activity scores describe cosmetology as client-facing work that relies on relationships, service, recommendation, creativity, and continuing knowledge. The supplied O*NET scores are importance ratings, not percentages, wages, licensing requirements, or a ranking of individual techniques. Training and career decisions also depend on the specific state, employer, specialty, and work arrangement, none of which is quantified by these national occupation-level measures.