Beauty and personal care · Metro area · West Virginia
Barbershops in the Charleston, WV metro area
How the Charleston, WV metro area compares with other metro areas and the U.S. for barbershops: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 27 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #345 of 387 scored metro areas
#5 of 7 scored metro areas based in West Virginia
- Listings
- 57
- 7 chain locations (12%)
- Official establishments
- 3
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $69.9M
- On personal care products and services · $800 a household
- Spending per listing
- $1.2M
- 35% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 6.5
- 23% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 200,170
- −4.7% since 2020
See the barbershops around any address in the Charleston 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 Charleston 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
The Groundwork market score for barbershops in the Charleston metro area is 27 (lower middle), #345 of 387 scored metro areas and #5 of 7 scored metro areas based in West Virginia. That puts it in the bottom quarter of metro areas.
As of September 2026, map listings count 57 barbershops in the Charleston metro area. Of those, 7 are chain locations, or 12%, against 12% across the U.S. That is 6.5 per 10,000 households, 23% above the U.S. rate of 5.3.
At $800 per household (20% below the U.S. average), households in the Charleston metro area spend about $69.9M a year on personal care products and services. That works out to $1.2M per shop, 35% 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.
In 2023, official counts showed 3 businesses with payroll in the Charleston metro area classed as barber shops. That is one for every 29,119 households, against one for every 16,589 across the U.S. Population estimates put the population change in the Charleston metro area from 2020 to 2025 at −4.7%, against +3.1% for the U.S.
How the Charleston metro area compares
The same measures for West Virginia 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 | Charleston metro area | West Virginia | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 6.5 | 4.3 | 5.3 |
| Spending per listing | $1.2M | $1.9M | $1.9M |
| Households per official establishment | 29,119 | 42,862 | 16,589 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | n/a | +28.5% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −4.7% | −1.4% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on personal care products and services | $800 | $802 | $1,005 |
| Median household income | $60,117 | $59,608 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 27 | 36 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 3
- Employees, 2023
- 17
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $444K
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 60Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 577 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 37The 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 Charleston 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 Charleston metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 200,170−4.7% since 2020
- Households
- 87,358
- Median age
- 43.9
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 72%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.6
- Land area
- 1,746 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 118
- Median household income
- $60,117
- Average household income
- $81,990
- Median home value
- $141,100
- Jobs located here
- 110,278
- Daytime population
- 231,110Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Charleston 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 Charleston 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 West Virginia
Every West Virginia market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in West Virginia for barbershops, numbered among those based in West Virginia (a market based in another state is listed without a number), with the Charleston metro area marked.
Top metro areas in West Virginia
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hagerstown-Martinsburg, MD-WV | 65 | 53 | 4.5 | $2M | +7.1% | #81 of 387 |
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV | 59 | 1,187 | 5.0 | $2.4M | +3.3% | #120 of 387 |
| 1Morgantown, WV | 50 | 21 | 3.7 | $2.3M | +1.3% | #191 of 387 |
| Winchester, VA-WV | 49 | 35 | 6.3 | $1.5M | +6.5% | #203 of 387 |
| 2Huntington-Ashland, WV-KY-OH | 38 | 71 | 4.7 | $1.7M | −2.6% | #297 of 387 |
| 3Weirton-Steubenville, WV-OH | 36 | 17 | 3.4 | $2.4M | −3.6% | #304 of 387 |
| 4Wheeling, WV-OH | 33 | 22 | 3.8 | $2.2M | −3.6% | #315 of 387 |
| 5Charleston, WV | 27 | 57 | 6.5 | $1.2M | −4.7% | #345 of 387 |
| 6Parkersburg-Vienna, WV | 22 | 17 | 4.5 | $1.8M | −2.3% | #360 of 387 |
| 7Beckley, WV | 7 | 26 | 5.8 | $1.3M | −4.3% | #386 of 387 |
Other business types in the Charleston 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 spas36
- Hair salons42
- Barbershops27
- Nail salons33
- Spas and skin care34
Fitness and classes
Health care
Child care
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many barbershops are in the Charleston, WV metro area?
The Charleston metro area has 57 barbershops on map listings as of September 2026. 7 of them (12%) are chain locations. The listings count barbershops. Official counts show 3 businesses with payroll classed as barber shops in 2023. Another 60 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
How much do households in the Charleston, WV metro area spend on personal care products and services?
About $69.9M a year, or $800 per household. That is 20% below the U.S. average (an index of 80, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 57 barbershops on map listings, it comes to $1.2M per shop. The spending figure covers all personal care products and services, not only barbershops. It is estimated from the incomes of the 87,358 households in the Charleston metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Charleston, WV metro area compare with the U.S. for barbershops?
The Charleston metro area has 6.5 barbershops per 10,000 households, 23% above the U.S. rate of 5.3. Spending per shop is $1.2M, 35% below the U.S. figure of $1.9M. At the national ratio of barbershops to household spending, the Charleston metro area would have about 37, against 57 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 29,119 households, against one for every 16,589 across the U.S.
How fast is the Charleston, WV metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Charleston metro area at 200,170 people in 2025, down 4.7% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 87,358 households. Median household income in the Charleston metro area is $60,117, 26% below the U.S. median of $80,734.
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 Charleston metro area scores 27 for barbershops (lower middle), #345 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 Charleston 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 Charleston metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Charleston 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 Charleston 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.