Beauty and personal care · County · Illinois
Hair salons in Mercer County, IL
How Mercer County, IL compares with other counties and the U.S. for hair salons: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 66 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #408 of 2,339 scored counties
#7 of 87 scored counties in Illinois
- Listings
- 9
- 3 chain locations (33%)
- Official establishments
- n/a
- Fewer than 3, or not published
- Household spending a year
- $6.4M
- On personal care products and services · $982 a household
- Spending per listing
- $717K
- 67% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 13.7
- 41% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 15,229
- −2.6% since 2020
See the hair salons around any address in Mercer County
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 Mercer County. 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 9 hair salons in Mercer County. 3 of them (33%) are chain locations, against 14% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 13.7, 41% below the U.S. rate of 23.4.
At $982 per household (2% below the U.S. average), households in Mercer County spend about $6.4M a year on personal care products and services. That works out to $717K per salon, 67% 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.
There is no official count of businesses with payroll classed as beauty salons in Mercer County: counts under 3 aren’t published. Official counts also show 41 one-person businesses without payroll.
Population estimates put the population change in Mercer County from 2020 to 2025 at −2.6%, against +3.1% for the U.S. The Groundwork market score for hair salons in Mercer County is 66 (upper middle), #408 of 2,339 scored counties and #7 of 87 scored counties in Illinois. That puts it in the top quarter of counties.
How Mercer County compares
The same measures for Illinois 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 | Mercer County | Illinois | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 13.7 | 23.3 | 23.4 |
| Spending per listing | $717K | $455K | $430K |
| Households per official establishment | n/a | 1,505 | 1,535 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | 0.0% | +6.0% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −2.6% | −0.6% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on personal care products and services | $982 | $1,063 | $1,005 |
| Median household income | $74,182 | $83,390 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 66 | 40 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- n/a
- Employees, 2023
- n/a
- Annual payroll, 2023
- n/a
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 41Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 93 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 15The 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 Mercer County, 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 Mercer County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 15,229−2.6% since 2020
- Households
- 6,565
- Median age
- 43.9
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 84%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.2
- Land area
- 561 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 28
- Median household income
- $74,182+24.1% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $92,846
- Median home value
- $146,700
- Jobs located here
- 3,052
- Daytime population
- 11,354Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Mercer County?
These figures cover the whole county. 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 Mercer County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardHair salons across Illinois
Every Illinois market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in Illinois for hair salons, numbered among those based in Illinois, with Mercer County marked.
Top counties in Illinois
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Boone County, IL | 77 | 24 | 12.3 | $855K | +0.4% | #112 of 2,339 |
| 2Washington County, IL | 70 | 7 | 12.1 | $804K | −1.2% | #274 of 2,339 |
| 3Piatt County, IL | 69 | 14 | 20.2 | $536K | +0.6% | #331 of 2,339 |
| 4Clinton County, IL | 68 | 33 | 22.6 | $461K | +0.6% | #377 of 2,339 |
| 5Ogle County, IL | 67 | 40 | 19.2 | $524K | −0.7% | #396 of 2,339 |
| 6Menard County, IL | 66 | 7 | 13.4 | $740K | −3.3% | #407 of 2,339 |
| 7Mercer County, IL | 66 | 9 | 13.7 | $717K | −2.6% | #408 of 2,339 |
| 8Jersey County, IL | 66 | 13 | 16.3 | $618K | −1.5% | #413 of 2,339 |
| 9Marshall County, IL | 65 | 6 | 11.8 | $792K | −2.0% | #435 of 2,339 |
| 10McHenry County, IL | 65 | 201 | 17.1 | $690K | +2.5% | #438 of 2,339 |
Other business types in Mercer County
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
Fitness and classes
Health care
Child care
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many hair salons are in Mercer County, IL?
Mercer County has 9 hair salons on map listings as of September 2026. 3 of them (33%) are chain locations. The listings count hair and beauty salons. No official count is published for beauty salons in Mercer County: counts under 3 are left out. Official counts list 41 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in Mercer County, IL spend on personal care products and services?
About $6.4M a year, or $982 per household. That is 2% below the U.S. average (an index of 98, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 9 hair salons on map listings, it comes to $717K per salon. The spending figure covers all personal care products and services, not only hair salons. It is estimated from the incomes of the 6,565 households in Mercer County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Mercer County, IL compare with the U.S. for hair salons?
Mercer County has 13.7 hair salons per 10,000 households, 41% below the U.S. rate of 23.4. Spending per salon is $717K, 67% above the U.S. figure of $430K. At the national ratio of hair salons to household spending, Mercer County would have about 15, against 9 on map listings.
How fast is Mercer County, IL growing?
Population estimates put Mercer County at 15,229 people in 2025, down 2.6% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 6,565 households. The median household income in Mercer County is $74,182 a year, 8% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 24.1% 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. 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. Mercer County scores 66 for hair salons (upper middle), #408 of 2,339 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Mercer County. 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 Mercer County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Mercer County?
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 Mercer County. 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.