Beauty and personal care · Metro area · Pennsylvania
Hair salons in the Reading, PA metro area
The hair salons in the Reading, PA metro area, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other metro areas.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 47 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #213 of 387 scored metro areas
#9 of 16 scored metro areas based in Pennsylvania
- Listings
- 355
- 51 chain locations (14%)
- Official establishments
- 159
- +1.3% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $162.9M
- On personal care products and services · $998 a household
- Spending per listing
- $459K
- 7% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 21.7
- 7% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 440,072
- +2.7% since 2020
See the hair salons around any address in the Reading metro 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 Reading metro 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
At $998 per household (in line with the U.S. average), households in the Reading metro area spend about $162.9M a year on personal care products and services. Spread across 355 hair salons, that is $459K per salon, 7% above the U.S. figure of $430K. The spending figure covers all personal care products and services, not only hair salons.
There are 355 hair salons on map listings in the Reading metro area as of September 2026. Chain locations make up 14% of them, against 14% across the U.S. That is 21.7 per 10,000 households, 7% below the U.S. rate of 23.4.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as beauty salons in the Reading metro area was 159 in 2023, up 1.3% from 2019. That is one for every 1,027 households, against one for every 1,535 across the U.S. Official counts also show 567 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 5 SBA-backed loans worth $1.9M have gone to businesses classed as beauty salons in the Reading metro area.
Population estimates put the population change in the Reading metro area from 2020 to 2025 at +2.7%, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%). The Reading metro area scores 47 (lower middle) on the Groundwork market score for hair salons, ranking #213 of 387 scored metro areas and #9 of 16 scored metro areas based in Pennsylvania.
How the Reading metro area compares
The same measures for Pennsylvania 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 | Reading metro area | Pennsylvania | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 21.7 | 21.7 | 23.4 |
| Spending per listing | $459K | $462K | $430K |
| Households per official establishment | 1,027 | 1,088 | 1,535 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +1.3% | +0.8% | +6.0% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +2.7% | +0.5% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on personal care products and services | $998 | $1,004 | $1,005 |
| Median household income | $79,777 | $77,971 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 47 | 37 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 159+1.3% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 849
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $23.9M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 567Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 35551 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 379The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 5
- Amount
- $1.9M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as beauty salons in the Reading metro 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 Reading metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 440,072+2.7% since 2020
- Households
- 163,236
- Median age
- 40.9
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 71%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.9
- Land area
- 856 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 506
- Median household income
- $79,777+25.2% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $103,265
- Median home value
- $257,300
- Jobs located here
- 179,513
- Daytime population
- 404,462Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Reading metro area?
These figures cover the whole metro area. 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 Reading metro 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 Pennsylvania
Every Pennsylvania market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in Pennsylvania for hair salons, numbered among those based in Pennsylvania, with the Reading metro area marked.
Top metro areas in Pennsylvania
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Gettysburg, PA | 72 | 70 | 17.1 | $592K | +3.6% | #20 of 387 |
| 2York-Hanover, PA | 63 | 358 | 19.7 | $518K | +3.6% | #72 of 387 |
| 3Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD | 57 | 5,157 | 20.9 | $518K | +1.4% | #121 of 387 |
| 4Lancaster, PA | 56 | 453 | 21.3 | $491K | +1.9% | #129 of 387 |
| 5State College, PA | 53 | 100 | 16.9 | $578K | −0.4% | #146 of 387 |
| 6Lebanon, PA | 51 | 110 | 19.4 | $506K | +2.2% | #164 of 387 |
| 7Chambersburg, PA | 49 | 132 | 20.8 | $470K | +3.0% | #187 of 387 |
| 8Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, PA-NJ | 48 | 776 | 22.8 | $454K | +3.0% | #199 of 387 |
| 9Reading, PA | 47 | 355 | 21.7 | $459K | +2.7% | #213 of 387 |
| 10Harrisburg-Carlisle, PA | 47 | 582 | 23.7 | $428K | +4.2% | #216 of 387 |
Other business types in the Reading metro 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 spas54
- Hair salons47
- Barbershops63
- Nail salons51
- Spas and skin care77
Fitness and classes
Health care
Child care
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many hair salons are in the Reading, PA metro area?
As of September 2026, map listings count 355 hair salons in the Reading metro area. 51 of them (14%) are chain locations. The listings count hair and beauty salons. Official counts show 159 businesses with payroll classed as beauty salons in 2023, up 1.3% from 2019. Another 567 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
How much do households in the Reading, PA metro area spend on personal care products and services?
About $162.9M a year, or $998 per household. That is in line with the U.S. average (an index of 99, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 355 hair salons on map listings, it comes to $459K 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 163,236 households in the Reading metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Reading, PA metro area compare with the U.S. for hair salons?
The Reading metro area has 21.7 hair salons per 10,000 households, 7% below the U.S. rate of 23.4. Spending per salon is $459K, 7% above the U.S. figure of $430K. At the U.S. ratio of hair salons to household spending, the Reading metro area would have about 379, against 355 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,027 households, against one for every 1,535 across the U.S. The official count rose 1.3% from 2019 to 2023, against +6.0% for the U.S.
How fast is the Reading, PA metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Reading metro area at 440,072 people in 2025, up 2.7% since 2020, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 163,236 households. Median household income in the Reading metro area is $79,777, in line with the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 25.2%, 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. The Reading metro area scores 47 for hair salons (lower middle), #213 of 387 scored metro areas.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Reading metro 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 Reading metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Reading metro 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 Reading metro 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.