Beauty and personal care · County · Maine
Hair salons in Penobscot County, ME
How Penobscot County, ME 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 54 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #985 of 2,339 scored counties
#10 of 16 scored counties in Maine
- Listings
- 153
- 27 chain locations (18%)
- Official establishments
- 25
- −10.7% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $59.9M
- On personal care products and services · $918 a household
- Spending per listing
- $391K
- 9% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 23.5
- In line with the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 157,967
- +3.8% since 2020
See the hair salons around any address in Penobscot 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 Penobscot 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 153 hair salons in Penobscot County. 27 of them (18%) are chain locations, against 14% across the U.S. That comes to 23.5 for every 10,000 households, in line with the U.S. rate of 23.4.
Household spending on personal care products and services in Penobscot County comes to about $59.9M a year: $918 per household, 9% below the U.S. average. That is about $391K of household spending for each salon on map listings, 9% 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.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as beauty salons in Penobscot County was 25 in 2023, down 10.7% from 2019. That is one for every 2,609 households, against one for every 1,535 across the U.S. Official counts also show 364 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 1 SBA-backed loan worth $760K has gone to businesses classed as beauty salons in Penobscot County.
Population estimates show Penobscot County grew 3.8% from 2020 to 2025, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). For hair salons, Penobscot County has a Groundwork market score of 54 (upper middle): #985 of 2,339 scored counties and #10 of 16 scored counties in Maine.
How Penobscot County compares
The same measures for Maine 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 | Penobscot County | Maine | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 23.5 | 22.0 | 23.4 |
| Spending per listing | $391K | $443K | $430K |
| Households per official establishment | 2,609 | 2,038 | 1,535 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | −10.7% | −3.9% | +6.0% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +3.8% | +3.7% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on personal care products and services | $918 | $973 | $1,005 |
| Median household income | $66,356 | $74,733 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 54 | 55 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 28 → 25−10.7% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 104
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $3.3M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 364Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 15327 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 139The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 1
- Amount
- $760K
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as beauty salons in Penobscot 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 Penobscot County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 157,967+3.8% since 2020
- Households
- 65,221
- Median age
- 43.4
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 71%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.8
- Land area
- 3,397 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 46
- Median household income
- $66,356+30.6% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $88,290
- Median home value
- $214,100
- Jobs located here
- 73,466
- Daytime population
- 158,403Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Penobscot 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 Penobscot 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 Maine
Every Maine market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in Maine for hair salons, numbered among those based in Maine, with Penobscot County marked.
Top counties in Maine
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1York County, ME | 72 | 190 | 20.8 | $501K | +4.8% | #247 of 2,339 |
| 2Waldo County, ME | 65 | 29 | 16.6 | $558K | +2.6% | #448 of 2,339 |
| 3Somerset County, ME | 65 | 39 | 16.8 | $499K | +2.3% | #457 of 2,339 |
| 4Sagadahoc County, ME | 64 | 35 | 21.3 | $478K | +3.4% | #503 of 2,339 |
| 5Oxford County, ME | 63 | 46 | 19.1 | $459K | +4.2% | #553 of 2,339 |
| 6Kennebec County, ME | 63 | 118 | 21.7 | $425K | +3.5% | #561 of 2,339 |
| 7Piscataquis County, ME | 60 | 14 | 16.7 | $513K | +3.5% | #679 of 2,339 |
| 8Androscoggin County, ME | 58 | 90 | 19.2 | $474K | +4.8% | #781 of 2,339 |
| 9Aroostook County, ME | 55 | 53 | 17.7 | $475K | −0.7% | #914 of 2,339 |
| 10Penobscot County, ME | 54 | 153 | 23.5 | $391K | +3.8% | #985 of 2,339 |
Other business types in Penobscot 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
- Salons, barbers and spas51
- Hair salons54
- Barbershops64
- Nail salons73
- Spas and skin care55
Fitness and classes
Health care
Child care
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many hair salons are in Penobscot County, ME?
Penobscot County has 153 hair salons on map listings as of September 2026. 27 of them (18%) are chain locations. The listings count hair and beauty salons. Official counts show 25 businesses with payroll classed as beauty salons in 2023, down 10.7% from 2019. Another 364 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
How much do households in Penobscot County, ME spend on personal care products and services?
About $59.9M 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 153 hair salons on map listings, it comes to $391K per salon. The spending figure covers all personal care products and services, not only hair salons. It is estimated from the incomes of the 65,221 households in Penobscot County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Penobscot County, ME compare with the U.S. for hair salons?
Penobscot County has 23.5 hair salons per 10,000 households, in line with the U.S. rate of 23.4. Spending per salon is $391K, 9% below the U.S. figure of $430K. At the national ratio of hair salons to household spending, Penobscot County would have about 139, against 153 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 2,609 households, against one for every 1,535 across the U.S. The official count fell 10.7% from 2019 to 2023, against +6.0% for the U.S.
How fast is Penobscot County, ME growing?
Population estimates put Penobscot County at 157,967 people in 2025, up 3.8% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 65,221 households. The median household income in Penobscot County is $66,356 a year, 18% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 30.6% 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. Penobscot County scores 54 for hair salons (upper middle), #985 of 2,339 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Penobscot 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 Penobscot County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Penobscot 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 Penobscot 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.