Beauty and personal care · Metro area · South Carolina
Hair salons in the Charleston-North Charleston, SC metro area
How the Charleston-North Charleston, SC metro area compares with other metro areas and the U.S. for hair salons: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 41 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #290 of 387 scored metro areas
#3 of 8 scored metro areas based in South Carolina
- Listings
- 944
- 138 chain locations (15%)
- Official establishments
- 256
- +26.1% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $324.7M
- On personal care products and services · $967 a household
- Spending per listing
- $344K
- 20% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 28.1
- 20% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 889,263
- +10.7% since 2020
See the hair salons around any address in the Charleston-North Charleston 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 Charleston-North Charleston 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
As of September 2026, map listings count 944 hair salons in the Charleston-North Charleston metro area. 138 of them (15%) are chain locations, against 14% across the U.S. That is 28.1 per 10,000 households, 20% above the U.S. rate of 23.4.
Households in the Charleston-North Charleston metro area spend about $324.7M a year on personal care products and services, or $967 per household, 4% below the U.S. average. Spread across 944 hair salons, that is $344K per salon, 20% 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.
Official counts show 256 businesses with payroll classed as beauty salons in the Charleston-North Charleston metro area in 2023, up 26.1% from 2019. That is one for every 1,312 households, against one for every 1,535 across the U.S. Official counts also show 2,126 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 7 SBA-backed loans worth $1.2M have gone to businesses classed as beauty salons in the Charleston-North Charleston metro area.
Population estimates put the population change in the Charleston-North Charleston metro area from 2020 to 2025 at +10.7%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). The Charleston-North Charleston metro area scores 41 (lower middle) on the Groundwork market score for hair salons, ranking #290 of 387 scored metro areas and #3 of 8 scored metro areas based in South Carolina.
How the Charleston-North Charleston metro area compares
The same measures for South 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 | Charleston-North Charleston metro area | South Carolina | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 28.1 | 25.6 | 23.4 |
| Spending per listing | $344K | $341K | $430K |
| Households per official establishment | 1,312 | 2,013 | 1,535 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +26.1% | +21.5% | +6.0% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +10.7% | +8.5% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on personal care products and services | $967 | $871 | $1,005 |
| Median household income | $85,254 | $69,324 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 41 | 42 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 256+26.1% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 1,128
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $42.7M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 2,126Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 944138 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 755The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 7
- Amount
- $1.2M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as beauty salons in the Charleston-North Charleston 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 Charleston-North Charleston metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 889,263+10.7% since 2020
- Households
- 335,865
- Median age
- 39.3
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 69%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.8
- Land area
- 2,590 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 322
- Median household income
- $85,254+33.9% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $118,282
- Median home value
- $377,500
- Jobs located here
- 390,960
- Daytime population
- 849,978Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Charleston-North Charleston 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 Charleston-North Charleston 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 South Carolina
Every South Carolina market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in South Carolina for hair salons, numbered among those based in South Carolina (a market based in another state is listed without a number), with the Charleston-North Charleston metro area marked.
Top metro areas in South Carolina
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Spartanburg, SC | 48 | 358 | 25.0 | $331K | +14.3% | #210 of 387 |
| 2Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Port Royal, SC | 47 | 227 | 23.8 | $408K | +12.0% | #217 of 387 |
| 3Charleston-North Charleston, SC | 41 | 944 | 28.1 | $344K | +10.7% | #290 of 387 |
| 4Greenville-Anderson-Greer, SC | 40 | 1,032 | 26.9 | $327K | +9.0% | #301 of 387 |
| Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC | 39 | 3,280 | 30.5 | $318K | +10.1% | #307 of 387 |
| Augusta-Richmond County, GA-SC | 37 | 639 | 27.6 | $315K | +4.7% | #322 of 387 |
| 5Columbia, SC | 37 | 984 | 29.0 | $298K | +6.0% | #323 of 387 |
| 6Myrtle Beach-Conway-North Myrtle Beach, SC | 36 | 400 | 25.2 | $333K | +20.9% | #333 of 387 |
| 7Florence, SC | 28 | 246 | 31.4 | $250K | +0.9% | #370 of 387 |
| 8Sumter, SC | 25 | 95 | 23.1 | $339K | −0.3% | #377 of 387 |
Other business types in the Charleston-North Charleston 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 spas40
- Hair salons41
- Barbershops48
- Nail salons46
- Spas and skin care39
Fitness and classes
Health care
Child care
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many hair salons are in the Charleston-North Charleston, SC metro area?
The Charleston-North Charleston metro area has 944 hair salons on map listings as of September 2026. 138 of them (15%) are chain locations. The listings count hair and beauty salons. Official counts show 256 businesses with payroll classed as beauty salons in 2023, up 26.1% from 2019. Another 2,126 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
How much do households in the Charleston-North Charleston, SC metro area spend on personal care products and services?
About $324.7M a year, or $967 per household. That is 4% below the U.S. average (an index of 96, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 944 hair salons on map listings, it comes to $344K per salon. The spending figure covers all personal care products and services, not only hair salons. It is estimated from the incomes of the 335,865 households in the Charleston-North Charleston metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Charleston-North Charleston, SC metro area compare with the U.S. for hair salons?
The Charleston-North Charleston metro area has 28.1 hair salons per 10,000 households, 20% above the U.S. rate of 23.4. Spending per salon is $344K, 20% below the U.S. figure of $430K. At the national ratio of hair salons to household spending, the Charleston-North Charleston metro area would have about 755, against 944 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,312 households, against one for every 1,535 across the U.S. The official count rose 26.1% from 2019 to 2023, against +6.0% for the U.S.
How fast is the Charleston-North Charleston, SC metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Charleston-North Charleston metro area at 889,263 people in 2025, up 10.7% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 335,865 households. The median household income in the Charleston-North Charleston metro area is $85,254 a year, 6% above the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 33.9% 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. The Charleston-North Charleston metro area scores 41 for hair salons (lower middle), #290 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 Charleston-North Charleston 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 Charleston-North Charleston metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Charleston-North Charleston 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 Charleston-North Charleston 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.