Beauty and personal care · Small-town market · South Dakota
Hair salons in the Watertown, SD area
Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for hair salons in the Watertown, SD area, set against other small-town markets and the U.S.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 37 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #420 of 538 scored small-town markets
#9 of 9 scored small-town markets based in South Dakota
- Listings
- 39
- 7 chain locations (18%)
- Official establishments
- 10
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $11.7M
- On personal care products and services · $936 a household
- Spending per listing
- $301K
- 30% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 31.1
- 33% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 29,562
- +4.3% since 2020
See the hair salons around any address in the Watertown 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 Watertown 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
The Watertown area scores 37 (lower middle) on the Groundwork market score for hair salons, ranking #420 of 538 scored small-town markets and #9 of 9 scored small-town markets based in South Dakota. That puts it in the bottom quarter of small-town markets.
As of September 2026, map listings count 39 hair salons in the Watertown area. 7 of them (18%) are chain locations, against 14% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 31.1, 33% above the U.S. rate of 23.4.
At $936 per household (7% below the U.S. average), households in the Watertown area spend about $11.7M a year on personal care products and services. That works out to $301K per salon, 30% 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 the Watertown area was 10 in 2023. That is one for every 1,253 households, against one for every 1,535 across the U.S. Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Watertown area grew 4.3%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%).
How the Watertown area compares
The same measures for South Dakota 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 | Watertown area | South Dakota | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 31.1 | 20.0 | 23.4 |
| Spending per listing | $301K | $492K | $430K |
| Households per official establishment | 1,253 | 2,285 | 1,535 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | −5.9% | +6.0% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +4.3% | +5.3% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on personal care products and services | $936 | $983 | $1,005 |
| Median household income | $72,727 | $75,081 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 37 | 71 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 10
- Employees, 2023
- 46
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $1.7M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 78Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 397 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 27The 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 the Watertown 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 Watertown area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 29,562+4.3% since 2020
- Households
- 12,526
- Median age
- 39.5
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 70%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.1
- Land area
- 688 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 42
- Median household income
- $72,727
- Average household income
- $90,805
- Median home value
- $237,700
- Jobs located here
- 16,302
- Daytime population
- 29,337Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Watertown 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 Watertown 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 Dakota
Every South Dakota market ranked →The highest-scoring small-town markets in South Dakota for hair salons, numbered among those based in South Dakota, with the Watertown area marked.
Top small-town markets in South Dakota
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Huron, SD | 83 | 8 | 10.6 | $865K | +2.4% | #6 of 538 |
| 2Brookings, SD | 71 | 22 | 15.9 | $601K | +9.6% | #47 of 538 |
| 3Yankton, SD | 68 | 20 | 20.6 | $465K | +1.5% | #73 of 538 |
| 4Pierre, SD | 65 | 13 | 15.2 | $662K | −0.5% | #88 of 538 |
| 5Spearfish, SD | 60 | 28 | 23.2 | $408K | +14.0% | #155 of 538 |
| 6Aberdeen, SD | 57 | 43 | 24.0 | $400K | −1.5% | #193 of 538 |
| 7Mitchell, SD | 50 | 27 | 24.6 | $379K | +0.6% | #280 of 538 |
| 8Vermillion, SD | 47 | 12 | 21.6 | $409K | +0.2% | #310 of 538 |
| 9Watertown, SD | 37 | 39 | 31.1 | $301K | +4.3% | #420 of 538 |
Other business types in the Watertown 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 spas37
- Hair salons37
- Barbershops
- Nail salons
- Spas and skin care43
Fitness and classes
Health care
Child care
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many hair salons are in the Watertown, SD area?
The Watertown area has 39 hair salons on map listings as of September 2026. 7 of them (18%) are chain locations. The listings count hair and beauty salons. Official counts show 10 businesses with payroll classed as beauty salons in 2023. Official counts also show 78 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the Watertown, SD area spend on personal care products and services?
About $11.7M a year, or $936 per household. That is 7% below the U.S. average (an index of 93, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 39 hair salons on map listings, it comes to $301K per salon. The spending figure covers all personal care products and services, not only hair salons. It is estimated from the incomes of the 12,526 households in the Watertown area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Watertown, SD area compare with the U.S. for hair salons?
The Watertown area has 31.1 hair salons per 10,000 households, 33% above the U.S. rate of 23.4. Spending per salon is $301K, 30% below the U.S. figure of $430K. At the national ratio of hair salons to household spending, the Watertown area would have about 27, against 39 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,253 households, against one for every 1,535 across the U.S.
How fast is the Watertown, SD area growing?
Population estimates put the Watertown area at 29,562 people in 2025, up 4.3% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 12,526 households. The median household income in the Watertown area is $72,727 a year, 10% below the U.S. median of $80,734.
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 Watertown area scores 37 for hair salons (lower middle), #420 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 Watertown 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 Watertown area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Watertown 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 Watertown 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.