Beauty and personal care · County · North Carolina
Hair salons in Swain County, NC
How Swain County, NC 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 28 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #2,071 of 2,339 scored counties
#83 of 94 scored counties in North Carolina
- Listings
- 12
- 0 chain locations (0%)
- Official establishments
- n/a
- Fewer than 3, or not published
- Household spending a year
- $4.7M
- On personal care products and services · $787 a household
- Spending per listing
- $394K
- 8% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 20.0
- 15% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 14,024
- −0.6% since 2020
See the hair salons around any address in Swain 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 Swain 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
The Groundwork market score for hair salons in Swain County is 28 (lower middle), #2,071 of 2,339 scored counties and #83 of 94 scored counties in North Carolina. That puts it in the bottom quarter of counties.
As of September 2026, map listings count 12 hair salons in Swain County. None of them are chain locations, against 14% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 20.0, 15% below the U.S. rate of 23.4.
Household spending on personal care products and services in Swain County comes to about $4.7M a year: $787 per household, 22% below the U.S. average. That is about $394K of household spending for each salon on map listings, 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 Swain County: counts under 3 aren’t published. Between 2020 and 2025, the population of Swain County declined 0.6%, against +3.1% for the U.S.
How Swain County compares
The same measures for North Carolina 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 | Swain County | North Carolina | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 20.0 | 26.1 | 23.4 |
| Spending per listing | $394K | $344K | $430K |
| Households per official establishment | n/a | 1,924 | 1,535 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +14.7% | +6.0% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −0.6% | +7.2% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on personal care products and services | $787 | $897 | $1,005 |
| Median household income | $52,349 | $72,388 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 28 | 41 |
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
- 26Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 120 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 11The 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 Swain 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 Swain County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 14,024−0.6% since 2020
- Households
- 6,013
- Median age
- 41.4
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 73%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.9
- Land area
- 528 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 27
- Median household income
- $52,349+33.2% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $74,062
- Median home value
- $207,000
- Jobs located here
- 6,242
- Daytime population
- 14,755Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Swain 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 Swain 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 North Carolina
Every North Carolina market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in North Carolina for hair salons, numbered among those based in North Carolina, with Swain County marked.
Top counties in North Carolina
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Currituck County, NC | 89 | 13 | 11.0 | $922K | +16.7% | #14 of 2,339 |
| 2Chatham County, NC | 89 | 44 | 13.3 | $786K | +11.0% | #16 of 2,339 |
| 3Franklin County, NC | 82 | 27 | 9.5 | $920K | +18.8% | #58 of 2,339 |
| 4Hoke County, NC | 77 | 19 | 9.9 | $842K | +9.0% | #113 of 2,339 |
| 5Union County, NC | 76 | 166 | 19.7 | $544K | +11.7% | #146 of 2,339 |
| 6Harnett County, NC | 75 | 77 | 15.4 | $554K | +12.3% | #160 of 2,339 |
| 7Granville County, NC | 74 | 29 | 12.9 | $676K | +2.1% | #174 of 2,339 |
| 8Madison County, NC | 73 | 8 | 9.6 | $833K | +5.9% | #196 of 2,339 |
| 9Orange County, NC | 72 | 97 | 16.9 | $607K | +6.1% | #240 of 2,339 |
| 10Davidson County, NC | 72 | 113 | 16.2 | $511K | +6.6% | #246 of 2,339 |
| 83Swain County, NC | 28 | 12 | 20.0 | $394K | −0.6% | #2,071 of 2,339 |
Other business types in Swain 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 spas35
- Hair salons28
- Barbershops
- Nail salons
- Spas and skin care29
Fitness and classes
Health care
Child care
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many hair salons are in Swain County, NC?
Swain County has 12 hair salons on map listings as of September 2026. None of them are chain locations. The listings count hair and beauty salons. No official count is published for beauty salons in Swain County: counts under 3 are left out. Official counts also show 26 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in Swain County, NC spend on personal care products and services?
About $4.7M a year, or $787 per household. That is 22% below the U.S. average (an index of 78, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 12 hair salons on map listings, it comes to $394K per salon. The spending figure covers all personal care products and services, not only hair salons. It is estimated from the incomes of the 6,013 households in Swain County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Swain County, NC compare with the U.S. for hair salons?
Swain County has 20.0 hair salons per 10,000 households, 15% below the U.S. rate of 23.4. Spending per salon is $394K, 8% below the U.S. figure of $430K. At the national ratio of hair salons to household spending, Swain County would have about 11, against 12 on map listings.
How fast is Swain County, NC growing?
Population estimates put Swain County at 14,024 people in 2025, down 0.6% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 6,013 households. The median household income in Swain County is $52,349 a year, 35% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 33.2% 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. Swain County scores 28 for hair salons (lower middle), #2,071 of 2,339 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Swain 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 Swain County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Swain 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 Swain 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.