Worked example
Priya rents a nail room for £600 a month, all costs included, and does about 100 appointments a month. A full set of gel extensions takes 75 minutes including prep, uses about £3.50 of product, and Priya wants £18 an hour plus a 15% margin.
| Time: 1.25 hours × £18 | £22.50 |
| Products | £3.50 |
| Running costs: £600 ÷ 100 services | £6.00 |
| Cost to deliver | £32.00 |
|---|---|
| Margin: 15% of £32.00 | £4.80 |
| Exact price | £36.80 |
| Suggested price (rounded up) | £37.00 |
| Earned per hour in the chair | £29.60 |
Anything under £9.50 would not even cover the products and rent share. Priya's old price of £30 covered costs but paid well under £18 an hour once rent was counted.
How it works, in plain English
A good price covers three things before it makes a penny of profit: your time, the products that walk out of the door on each client, and a fair slice of the fixed costs you pay whether the diary is full or not.
Your time
Count the whole appointment: greeting, consultation, prep, the treatment, payment and cleaning down. Fifteen unpaid minutes on every client adds up to days a month.
Running costs per service
Divide monthly costs — rent, insurance, booking software, card fees, training, marketing — by how many services you realistically do. Fewer, longer services mean each one carries more of the overheads, so a quiet month is when underpricing hurts most.
Margin and tax
Self-employed beauty professionals pay income tax and National Insurance on profit with nothing taken at source, so the margin is your buffer for tax, holidays and no-shows. Once you know your yearly profit, our self-employed tax calculator shows what to set aside. If you sell aftercare products, those sales count as income too.
Rounding
The suggested price rounds up to the next whole pound, which is easier on a price list and gives a little extra margin.
Frequently asked questions
How do I price my beauty treatments?
Add your time at the hourly rate you want, the products used, and your monthly running costs divided by your number of appointments. Then add a margin of around 10–20%. That gives a price grounded in your own costs rather than guesswork.
Should I just match local salon prices?
Use local prices as a sense check, not a starting point. Their rent, staff and client numbers are different to yours. If your calculated price is far above the local average, look at how long services take or how you could cut costs.
Do I need to charge VAT?
Only if your VAT-taxable turnover goes over the VAT registration threshold in a rolling 12 months. Most solo hair and beauty businesses are below it. If you are near it, check the current threshold on GOV.UK because registering adds 20% to many prices.
Can I claim chair rental and products as expenses?
Yes. Chair or room rent, products, tools, insurance, training, booking software and card fees are normal business expenses and reduce the profit you pay tax on. Your own haircuts or treatments generally are not.
How often should I review my prices?
At least once a year, and whenever rent, product costs or your hours change. Re-run this calculator with your new figures — even a £2 rise on popular services can make a big difference over a year.
Estimates only, not tax advice. These figures are a guide based on the information you enter and the 2026/27 rules. Your own position can differ — check GOV.UK or an accountant before relying on them.
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