Beauty and personal care · Small-town market · California
Hair salons in the Sonora, CA area
The hair salons in the Sonora, CA area, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other small-town markets.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 64 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #109 of 538 scored small-town markets
#4 of 9 scored small-town markets based in California
- Listings
- 47
- 6 chain locations (13%)
- Official establishments
- 6
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $22.7M
- On personal care products and services · $1,002 a household
- Spending per listing
- $484K
- 12% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 20.7
- 12% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 53,160
- −4.0% since 2020
See the hair salons around any address in the Sonora area
The site report maps the hair salons 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 Sonora 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 47 hair salons in the Sonora area. Of those, 6 are chain locations, or 13%, against 14% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 20.7, 12% below the U.S. rate of 23.4.
At $1,002 per household (in line with the U.S. average), households in the Sonora area spend about $22.7M a year on personal care products and services. Spread across 47 hair salons, that is $484K per salon, 12% above the U.S. figure of $430K. That spending covers all personal care products and services, which hair salons share with other businesses in the trade.
Official counts show 6 businesses with payroll classed as beauty salons in the Sonora area in 2023. That is one for every 3,782 households, against one for every 1,535 across the U.S. Official counts also show 165 one-person businesses without payroll.
Population estimates show the Sonora area declined 4.0% from 2020 to 2025, against +3.1% for the U.S. For hair salons, the Sonora area has a Groundwork market score of 64 (upper middle): #109 of 538 scored small-town markets and #4 of 9 scored small-town markets based in California. That puts it in the top quarter of small-town markets.
How the Sonora area compares
The same measures for California and the whole U.S. Spending per listing divides a year of household spending on all personal care products and services by the hair salons 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 | Sonora area | California | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 20.7 | 24.0 | 23.4 |
| Spending per listing | $484K | $479K | $430K |
| Households per official establishment | 3,782 | 1,551 | 1,535 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +8.3% | +6.0% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −4.0% | −0.4% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on personal care products and services | $1,002 | $1,149 | $1,005 |
| Median household income | $77,404 | $99,122 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 64 | 54 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 6
- Employees, 2023
- 22
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $430K
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 165Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 476 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 53The 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 beauty salons in the Sonora 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 Sonora area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 53,160−4.0% since 2020
- Households
- 22,690
- Median age
- 48.6
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 74%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.0
- Land area
- 2,221 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 25
- Median household income
- $77,404+28.8% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $104,064
- Median home value
- $433,200
- Jobs located here
- 16,129
- Daytime population
- 40,598Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Sonora area?
These figures cover the whole small-town market. A site report draws rings around one address and counts what’s inside them: households, spending, jobs, and the hair salons on map listings by name and distance.
Or open the report at the center of the Sonora area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardHair salons across California
Every California market ranked →The highest-scoring small-town markets in California for hair salons, numbered among those based in California (a market based in another state is listed without a number), with the Sonora area marked.
Top small-town markets in California
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Bishop, CA | 69 | 12 | 14.9 | $653K | −4.4% | #59 of 538 |
| 2Red Bluff, CA | 65 | 38 | 15.3 | $592K | −1.7% | #91 of 538 |
| 3Truckee-Grass Valley, CA | 65 | 110 | 25.7 | $425K | −0.4% | #97 of 538 |
| 4Sonora, CA | 64 | 47 | 20.7 | $484K | −4.0% | #109 of 538 |
| Gardnerville Ranchos, NV-CA | 61 | 57 | 26.2 | $417K | +0.9% | #146 of 538 |
| 5Ukiah, CA | 58 | 77 | 22.1 | $426K | −3.5% | #179 of 538 |
| 6Susanville, CA | 54 | 16 | 17.3 | $522K | −13.1% | #222 of 538 |
| 7Eureka-Arcata, CA | 54 | 117 | 21.3 | $424K | −3.4% | #230 of 538 |
| 8Clearlake, CA | 49 | 58 | 21.5 | $420K | −0.6% | #285 of 538 |
| 9Crescent City, CA | 42 | 21 | 22.1 | $417K | −4.4% | #354 of 538 |
Other business types in the Sonora 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 spas61
- Hair salons64
- Barbershops59
- Nail salons66
- Spas and skin care40
Fitness and classes
Health care
Child care
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many hair salons are in the Sonora, CA area?
The Sonora area has 47 hair salons on map listings as of September 2026. 6 of them (13%) are chain locations. The listings count hair and beauty salons. Official counts show 6 businesses with payroll classed as beauty salons in 2023. Another 165 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
How much do households in the Sonora, CA area spend on personal care products and services?
About $22.7M a year, or $1,002 per household. That is in line with the U.S. average (an index of 100, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 47 hair salons on map listings, it comes to $484K per salon. The spending figure covers all personal care products and services, not only hair salons. It is estimated from the incomes of the 22,690 households in the Sonora area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Sonora, CA area compare with the U.S. for hair salons?
The Sonora area has 20.7 hair salons per 10,000 households, 12% below the U.S. rate of 23.4. Spending per salon is $484K, 12% above the U.S. figure of $430K. At the national ratio of hair salons to household spending, the Sonora area would have about 53, against 47 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 3,782 households, against one for every 1,535 across the U.S.
How fast is the Sonora, CA area growing?
Population estimates put the Sonora area at 53,160 people in 2025, down 4.0% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 22,690 households. The median household income in the Sonora area is $77,404 a year, 4% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 28.8% from the 2015–2019 survey, 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. A small-town market is a town of 10,000 to 50,000 people and the county or counties tied to it by commuting. 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 Sonora area scores 64 for hair salons (upper middle), #109 of 538 scored small-town markets.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Sonora area. It maps the hair salons 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 hair salons · All 56 business types in the Sonora area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Sonora 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 Sonora 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.