Beauty and personal care · Small-town market · Iowa
Hair salons in the Spencer, IA area
How the Spencer, IA area compares with other small-town markets and the U.S. for hair salons: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 45 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #326 of 538 scored small-town markets
#8 of 15 scored small-town markets based in Iowa
- Listings
- 17
- 11 chain locations (65%)
- Official establishments
- n/a
- Fewer than 3, or not published
- Household spending a year
- $6.7M
- On personal care products and services · $921 a household
- Spending per listing
- $395K
- 8% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 23.3
- In line with the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 16,202
- −0.8% since 2020
See the hair salons around any address in the Spencer 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 Spencer 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 17 hair salons in the Spencer area. Of those, 11 are chain locations, or 65%, against 14% across the U.S. That is 23.3 per 10,000 households, in line with the U.S. rate of 23.4.
Households in the Spencer area spend about $6.7M a year on personal care products and services, or $921 per household, 8% below the U.S. average. That works out to $395K per salon, 8% below 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 the Spencer area: counts under 3 aren’t published. Official counts list 36 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 1 SBA-backed loan worth $65K has gone to businesses classed as beauty salons in the Spencer area.
Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Spencer area declined 0.8%, against +3.1% for the U.S. The Spencer area scores 45 (lower middle) on the Groundwork market score for hair salons, ranking #326 of 538 scored small-town markets and #8 of 15 scored small-town markets based in Iowa.
How the Spencer area compares
The same measures for Iowa 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 | Spencer area | Iowa | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 23.3 | 23.5 | 23.4 |
| Spending per listing | $395K | $422K | $430K |
| Households per official establishment | n/a | 1,653 | 1,535 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | −2.1% | +6.0% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −0.8% | +1.5% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on personal care products and services | $921 | $990 | $1,005 |
| Median household income | $65,428 | $75,059 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 45 | 39 |
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
- 36Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 1711 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 16The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 1
- Amount
- $65K
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as beauty salons in the Spencer 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 Spencer area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 16,202−0.8% since 2020
- Households
- 7,282
- Median age
- 43.1
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 73%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.9
- Land area
- 567 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 29
- Median household income
- $65,428+29.5% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $83,614
- Median home value
- $178,600
- Jobs located here
- 8,325
- Daytime population
- 16,701Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Spencer 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 Spencer 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 Iowa
Every Iowa market ranked →The highest-scoring small-town markets in Iowa for hair salons, numbered among those based in Iowa, with the Spencer area marked.
Top small-town markets in Iowa
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Pella, IA | 70 | 23 | 17.3 | $581K | +2.3% | #53 of 538 |
| 2Marshalltown, IA | 70 | 28 | 18.1 | $520K | −0.5% | #56 of 538 |
| 3Le Mars, IA | 65 | 24 | 23.3 | $437K | 0.0% | #96 of 538 |
| 4Clinton, IA | 60 | 40 | 20.5 | $458K | −0.9% | #153 of 538 |
| 5Spirit Lake, IA | 58 | 21 | 23.7 | $429K | +1.7% | #178 of 538 |
| 6Muscatine, IA | 54 | 38 | 21.9 | $428K | −3.0% | #229 of 538 |
| 7Fort Dodge, IA | 48 | 33 | 21.5 | $423K | −0.4% | #294 of 538 |
| 8Spencer, IA | 45 | 17 | 23.3 | $395K | −0.8% | #326 of 538 |
| 9Ottumwa, IA | 39 | 33 | 23.6 | $379K | −0.3% | #391 of 538 |
| 10Carroll, IA | 31 | 24 | 27.3 | $354K | −2.0% | #469 of 538 |
Other business types in the Spencer 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 spas49
- Hair salons45
- Barbershops
- Nail salons
- Spas and skin care31
Fitness and classes
Health care
Child care
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many hair salons are in the Spencer, IA area?
The Spencer area has 17 hair salons on map listings as of September 2026. 11 of them (65%) are chain locations. The listings count hair and beauty salons. No official count is published for beauty salons in the Spencer area: counts under 3 are left out. Official counts also show 36 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the Spencer, IA area spend on personal care products and services?
About $6.7M a year, or $921 per household. That is 8% below the U.S. average (an index of 92, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 17 hair salons on map listings, it comes to $395K per salon. The spending figure covers all personal care products and services, not only hair salons. It is estimated from the incomes of the 7,282 households in the Spencer area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Spencer, IA area compare with the U.S. for hair salons?
The Spencer area has 23.3 hair salons per 10,000 households, in line with the U.S. rate of 23.4. Spending per salon is $395K, 8% below the U.S. figure of $430K. At the national ratio of hair salons to household spending, the Spencer area would have about 16, against 17 on map listings.
How fast is the Spencer, IA area growing?
Population estimates put the Spencer area at 16,202 people in 2025, down 0.8% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 7,282 households. The median household income in the Spencer area is $65,428 a year, 19% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 29.5% 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 Spencer area scores 45 for hair salons (lower middle), #326 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 Spencer 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 Spencer area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Spencer 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 Spencer 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.