Beauty and personal care · Metro area · Pennsylvania
Barbershops in the Reading, PA metro area
The barbershops in the Reading, PA metro area, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other metro areas.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 63 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #93 of 387 scored metro areas
#4 of 16 scored metro areas based in Pennsylvania
- Listings
- 89
- 13 chain locations (15%)
- Official establishments
- 5
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $162.9M
- On personal care products and services · $998 a household
- Spending per listing
- $1.8M
- 3% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 5.5
- 4% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 440,072
- +2.7% since 2020
See the barbershops around any address in the Reading metro area
The site report maps the barbershops on map listings near the address, by name and distance, and sizes the households and spending around it. Or open the report at the center of the Reading metro area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardSurvey estimates 2020–2024 · population estimates 2025 · official business counts 2023 · map listings September 2026 · Data credits · How we measure
What this means
As of September 2026, map listings count 89 barbershops in the Reading metro area. Chain locations make up 15% of them, against 12% across the U.S. That comes to 5.5 for every 10,000 households, 4% above the U.S. rate of 5.3.
At $998 per household (in line with the U.S. average), households in the Reading metro area spend about $162.9M a year on personal care products and services. That works out to $1.8M per shop, 3% below the U.S. figure of $1.9M. That spending covers all personal care products and services, which barbershops share with other businesses in the trade.
Official counts show 5 businesses with payroll classed as barber shops in the Reading metro area in 2023. That is one for every 32,647 households, against one for every 16,589 across the U.S. Official counts also show 217 one-person businesses without payroll.
Population estimates put the population change in the Reading metro area from 2020 to 2025 at +2.7%, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%). The Groundwork market score for barbershops in the Reading metro area is 63 (upper middle), #93 of 387 scored metro areas and #4 of 16 scored metro areas based in Pennsylvania. That puts it in the top quarter of metro areas.
How the Reading metro area compares
The same measures for Pennsylvania and the whole U.S. Spending per listing divides a year of household spending on all personal care products and services by the barbershops counted, so it measures the demand for each competitor, not any business’s revenue. Households per establishment does the same with the official count.
| Measure | Reading metro area | Pennsylvania | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 5.5 | 4.8 | 5.3 |
| Spending per listing | $1.8M | $2.1M | $1.9M |
| Households per official establishment | 32,647 | 17,524 | 16,589 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +19.9% | +28.5% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +2.7% | +0.5% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on personal care products and services | $998 | $1,004 | $1,005 |
| Median household income | $79,777 | $77,971 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 63 | 40 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 5
- Employees, 2023
- 13
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $479K
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 217Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 8913 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 86The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 0
- Amount
- $0
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as barber shops in the Reading metro area, through June 2026, placed by the borrower’s ZIP code. Official establishments are businesses with payroll; the official counts leave out places with fewer than 3.
Population and households in the Reading metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 440,072+2.7% since 2020
- Households
- 163,236
- Median age
- 40.9
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 71%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.9
- Land area
- 856 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 506
- Median household income
- $79,777+25.2% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $103,265
- Median home value
- $257,300
- Jobs located here
- 179,513
- Daytime population
- 404,462Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Reading metro area?
These figures cover the whole metro area. A site report draws rings around one address and counts what’s inside them: households, spending, jobs, and the barbershops on map listings by name and distance.
Or open the report at the center of the Reading metro area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardBarbershops across Pennsylvania
Every Pennsylvania market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in Pennsylvania for barbershops, numbered among those based in Pennsylvania, with the Reading metro area marked.
Top metro areas in Pennsylvania
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Gettysburg, PA | 77 | 14 | 3.4 | $3M | +3.6% | #11 of 387 |
| 2Chambersburg, PA | 74 | 19 | 3.0 | $3.3M | +3.0% | #28 of 387 |
| 3Harrisburg-Carlisle, PA | 67 | 120 | 4.9 | $2.1M | +4.2% | #72 of 387 |
| 4Reading, PA | 63 | 89 | 5.5 | $1.8M | +2.7% | #93 of 387 |
| 5York-Hanover, PA | 62 | 84 | 4.6 | $2.2M | +3.6% | #98 of 387 |
| 6State College, PA | 58 | 15 | 2.5 | $3.9M | −0.4% | #123 of 387 |
| 7Lebanon, PA | 55 | 27 | 4.8 | $2.1M | +2.2% | #152 of 387 |
| 8Pittsburgh, PA | 54 | 445 | 4.2 | $2.4M | −1.3% | #161 of 387 |
| 9Lancaster, PA | 53 | 115 | 5.4 | $1.9M | +1.9% | #167 of 387 |
| 10Erie, PA | 51 | 44 | 4.0 | $2.3M | −1.8% | #184 of 387 |
Other business types in the Reading metro area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
Groceries and convenience
Auto
Beauty and personal care
- Salons, barbers and spas54
- Hair salons47
- Barbershops63
- Nail salons51
- Spas and skin care77
Fitness and classes
Health care
Child care
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many barbershops are in the Reading, PA metro area?
The Reading metro area has 89 barbershops on map listings as of September 2026. 13 of them (15%) are chain locations. The listings count barbershops. Official counts show 5 businesses with payroll classed as barber shops in 2023. Another 217 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
How much do households in the Reading, PA metro area spend on personal care products and services?
About $162.9M a year, or $998 per household. That is in line with the U.S. average (an index of 99, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 89 barbershops on map listings, it comes to $1.8M per shop. The spending figure covers all personal care products and services, not only barbershops. It is estimated from the incomes of the 163,236 households in the Reading metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Reading, PA metro area compare with the U.S. for barbershops?
The Reading metro area has 5.5 barbershops per 10,000 households, 4% above the U.S. rate of 5.3. Spending per shop is $1.8M, 3% below the U.S. figure of $1.9M. At the national ratio of barbershops to household spending, the Reading metro area would have about 86, against 89 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 32,647 households, against one for every 16,589 across the U.S.
How fast is the Reading, PA metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Reading metro area at 440,072 people in 2025, up 2.7% since 2020, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 163,236 households. Median household income in the Reading metro area is $79,777, in line with the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 25.2%, before inflation.
What is the Groundwork market score?
The Groundwork market score runs from 0 to 100 and compares a market with others of its kind for one business type: states with states, metro areas with metro areas, small-town markets and counties with their own. It weighs household spending per competitor (35%), households per business with payroll (25%), population growth (20%) and spending power (20%), each ranked against those peers. A higher score means that, taken together, the market has more household spending and more households for each business already there, faster population growth and more spending per household than similar markets. It describes a market, not any one site or deal. The Reading metro area scores 63 for barbershops (upper middle), #93 of 387 scored metro areas.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Reading metro area. It maps the barbershops on map listings near the site and sizes the households and spending within the distance you choose. New accounts get 10 actions over 3 days, no card.
How the score works · Top markets for barbershops · All 56 business types in the Reading metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Reading metro area?
A site report maps the competitors on map listings near an address and sizes the households and spending around it.
The button opens the report at the center of the Reading metro area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.
Figures are estimates for research only. Not investment or real estate advice.