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Should a hair salon show prices online?
Should your salon list prices on its website? Why it usually helps, how to write honest "from" prices, and what to do with colour and consultations.
Almost every salon owner asks this at some point. Prices change, every head of hair is different, and nobody wants a client arriving with a screenshot of a price that no longer applies. Yet the first thing most new clients want to know is roughly what a visit will cost. In most cases the answer is yes, show prices online, but show them in a way that is honest about what changes the price.
Why showing prices usually helps
A new client looking at salons near them is comparing a handful of options on a phone, often late at night when you are closed. If one salon shows a clear service list with prices and another says "call for a quote", the first one is easier to choose. Many people will not call to ask a price, because it feels like a commitment.
Prices on your site also do quieter work for you:
- They filter enquiries. Clients who book already know the range, so fewer appointments start with an awkward conversation at the chair.
- They cut repetitive messages. "How much for a cut and colour?" is one of the most common DMs a salon gets. A clear page answers it before it is asked.
- They give Google something to read. A service list written as real text on the page can be read by search engines and by screen readers. A photo of your price board cannot.
The main reason owners hold back is fear of being held to a number. That is a fair worry, and it is solved by how you write the list, not by hiding it.
The honest way to write "from" prices
A "from" price is normal in hair, because a cut on short fine hair is a different job from a cut on long thick hair. The key is that the "from" figure must be one a real client can actually pay, and that the page explains what moves the price up.
Australia's consumer regulator, the ACCC, says on its price displays page that businesses must not display prices that are wrong or likely to create a false impression, and that advertising a price that is not the total price the customer will pay can be misleading. It also warns against "drip pricing", where extra fees are added along the way instead of being disclosed at the start. This is general information, not legal advice; consult your adviser if you are unsure how the rules apply to your price list.
In practice, that points to a few simple habits:
- Make the "from" price real. It should be the price for the simplest version of the service you actually offer, not a teaser you rarely charge.
- Say what changes it. Hair length, thickness, the time a colour takes, or the stylist's level are the usual factors. Name them next to the service.
- Include GST in the price you show. Show the price the client will pay, not a figure with tax added at the counter.
- Disclose extra charges up front. If there is a fee for extra product, a toner, or a late cancellation, list it on the same page.
- Keep one price list. If your website, your booking app and your Google Business Profile show different numbers for the same service, update them together.
A price list layout that works
Group services the way clients think about them, keep each line short, and put the conditions right beside the price. Here is a structure many salons use, shown without figures so you can drop in your own:
| Service | Price shown | What changes the price |
|---|---|---|
| Cut and blow-dry | From price | Hair length and thickness |
| Blow-dry or styling only | Single price | Usually fixed |
| Root colour | From price | Amount of regrowth, product used |
| Full colour or balayage | From price, consultation suggested | Length, starting colour, time in the chair |
| Treatments and add-ons | Single price each | Usually fixed |
| Kids and concession cuts | Single price | Age limit stated |
If your salon has stylists at different levels, add a short line such as "Prices shown are for a senior stylist; ask about our junior stylists" or show a column per level. Either works, as long as it is clear which price applies to whom.
Write the list as text on the page, not as a picture of your price board. Text is quick to load on a phone, easy to update when prices change, and readable by everyone. The same principle runs through our guide to what a barber shop website should include.
What to do with colour, extensions and corrections
Some services really cannot be priced without seeing the hair first: big colour changes, colour corrections, extensions and bridal work. For these, a price range or a "from" price plus a clear invitation to book a consultation is better than either a fixed number or nothing at all.
A good consultation line tells the client three things:
- What the consultation involves, for example a look at the hair and a talk about the result they want.
- Whether it is free or charged, and if charged, whether the fee comes off the service.
- How to book it, ideally with the same Book button as everything else.
If your salon asks for a skin or strand test before some colour services, say so on the price page and in the booking confirmation, so nobody arrives expecting to go straight into colour.
Keep prices in step everywhere
Clients see your prices in more places than your website. Your booking software usually shows a service menu, and Google Business Profile lets you add services with a price and a description, as Google explains in its help page on managing services. Google also asks you not to put prices in custom service names, so use the price field instead.
When you change prices, change them in all three places on the same day. A short checklist on the back of the salon door is enough. If you are deciding where to focus first, read Google Business Profile or a website, and make sure the photos on your service page show your real work, as covered in website photos when you have none.
Where the price page sits on your site
There are a few cases where holding back is reasonable, such as fully bespoke work quoted job by job, or a price review in progress. For everyday services like cuts and blow-dries, though, a site with no prices simply sends clients elsewhere.
On a salon website the price list is usually its own page, linked from the main menu and the homepage, with a Book button at the top and bottom. For the rest of the structure, see our page on hair, beauty and barber websites and the guide to what pages a small business website needs.
What it costs with Realtiq
When we build a salon website, we set up the service and price list as real text, grouped the way your clients think, with the conditions next to each price and a Book button that links to the booking system you already use. Prices are the same as on our websites page:
Prices in Australian dollars. Every proposal is confirmed in writing before we start.
Common questions
Will showing prices make clients haggle?
Usually the opposite. A clear list with the conditions written next to each price gives you something to point to, and clients who book have already accepted the range.
Should I show GST-inclusive prices?
Show the price the client will actually pay. The ACCC says businesses should communicate the total price payable before purchase, and that advertising a price that is not the total price can be misleading. Consult your adviser if you are unsure.
What if a client books at the "from" price and their hair needs more?
Tell them before you start, and explain why. That conversation is much easier when the website already says which factors change the price.
Do I have to show the same prices on Google and my booking app?
Keeping them the same avoids confusion and complaints. Update your website, booking software and Google Business Profile together whenever prices change.
Talk it through, 15 minutes
Book a 15 minute call to talk through a website for your salon or barbershop.