Beauty and personal care · Small-town market · Illinois
Hair salons in the Sterling, IL area
The hair salons in the Sterling, IL area, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other small-town markets.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 63 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #120 of 538 scored small-town markets
#6 of 20 scored small-town markets based in Illinois
- Listings
- 44
- 11 chain locations (25%)
- Official establishments
- 5
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $21.2M
- On personal care products and services · $918 a household
- Spending per listing
- $482K
- 12% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 19.0
- 19% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 54,121
- −2.6% since 2020
See the hair salons around any address in the Sterling 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 Sterling 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
Household spending on personal care products and services in the Sterling area comes to about $21.2M a year: $918 per household, 9% below the U.S. average. That is about $482K of household spending for each salon on map listings, 12% above the U.S. figure of $430K. The spending figure covers all personal care products and services, not only hair salons.
The Sterling area has 44 hair salons on map listings as of September 2026. Of those, 11 are chain locations, or 25%, against 14% across the U.S. That comes to 19.0 for every 10,000 households, 19% below the U.S. rate of 23.4.
In 2023, official counts showed 5 businesses with payroll in the Sterling area classed as beauty salons. That is one for every 4,624 households, against one for every 1,535 across the U.S. Official counts also show 142 one-person businesses without payroll.
Population estimates put the population change in the Sterling area from 2020 to 2025 at −2.6%, against +3.1% for the U.S. For hair salons, the Sterling area has a Groundwork market score of 63 (upper middle): #120 of 538 scored small-town markets and #6 of 20 scored small-town markets based in Illinois. That puts it in the top quarter of small-town markets.
How the Sterling area 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 | Sterling area | Illinois | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 19.0 | 23.3 | 23.4 |
| Spending per listing | $482K | $455K | $430K |
| Households per official establishment | 4,624 | 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 | $918 | $1,063 | $1,005 |
| Median household income | $67,500 | $83,390 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 63 | 40 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 5
- Employees, 2023
- 14
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $305K
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 142Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 4411 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 49The 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 Sterling 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 Sterling area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 54,121−2.6% since 2020
- Households
- 23,120
- Median age
- 43.5
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 77%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.8
- Land area
- 684 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 80
- Median household income
- $67,500+24.5% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $86,592
- Median home value
- $127,100
- Jobs located here
- 20,819
- Daytime population
- 50,543Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Sterling 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 Sterling 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 Illinois
Every Illinois market ranked →The highest-scoring small-town markets in Illinois for hair salons, numbered among those based in Illinois, with the Sterling area marked.
Top small-town markets in Illinois
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Rochelle, IL | 72 | 40 | 19.2 | $524K | −0.7% | #45 of 538 |
| 2Dixon, IL | 66 | 26 | 19.5 | $491K | −3.4% | #82 of 538 |
| 3Canton, IL | 64 | 18 | 13.0 | $679K | −2.0% | #103 of 538 |
| 4Mount Vernon, IL | 64 | 26 | 17.5 | $508K | −2.3% | #106 of 538 |
| 5Jacksonville, IL | 63 | 24 | 15.9 | $580K | −3.1% | #116 of 538 |
| 6Sterling, IL | 63 | 44 | 19.0 | $482K | −2.6% | #120 of 538 |
| 7Marion-Herrin, IL | 61 | 60 | 20.7 | $447K | +0.2% | #144 of 538 |
| 8Taylorville, IL | 60 | 27 | 19.9 | $452K | −1.5% | #154 of 538 |
| 9Carbondale, IL | 57 | 36 | 15.7 | $523K | −1.5% | #183 of 538 |
| 10Quincy, IL-MO | 57 | 57 | 18.3 | $497K | −2.0% | #184 of 538 |
Other business types in the Sterling 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 spas64
- Hair salons63
- Barbershops44
- Nail salons53
- Spas and skin care69
Fitness and classes
Health care
Child care
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many hair salons are in the Sterling, IL area?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 44 hair salons in the Sterling area. 11 of them (25%) are chain locations. The listings count hair and beauty salons. Official counts show 5 businesses with payroll classed as beauty salons in 2023. Another 142 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
How much do households in the Sterling, IL area spend on personal care products and services?
About $21.2M a year, or $918 per household. That is 9% below the U.S. average (an index of 91, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 44 hair salons on map listings, it comes to $482K per salon. That spending covers all personal care products and services, which hair salons share with other businesses in the trade. It is estimated from the incomes of the 23,120 households in the Sterling area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Sterling, IL area compare with the U.S. for hair salons?
The Sterling area has 19.0 hair salons per 10,000 households, 19% below the U.S. rate of 23.4. Spending per salon is $482K, 12% above the U.S. figure of $430K. At the U.S. ratio of hair salons to household spending, the Sterling area would have about 49, against 44 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 4,624 households, against one for every 1,535 across the U.S.
How fast is the Sterling, IL area growing?
Population estimates put the Sterling area at 54,121 people in 2025, down 2.6% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 23,120 households. Median household income in the Sterling area is $67,500, 16% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 24.5%, 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 Sterling area scores 63 for hair salons (upper middle), #120 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 Sterling 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 Sterling area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Sterling 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 Sterling 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.