Groundwork

Beauty and personal care · Small-town market · Iowa

Nail salons in the Spirit Lake, IA area

The nail salons in the Spirit Lake, IA area, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other small-town markets.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 46 out of 100: Lower middle

Ranked #228 of 387 scored small-town markets
#6 of 9 scored small-town markets based in Iowa

Listings
8
2 chain locations (25%)
Official establishments
n/a
Fewer than 3, or not published
Household spending a year
$9M
On personal care products and services · $1,020 a household
Spending per listing
$1.1M
33% below the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
9.0
50% above the U.S.
Population, 2025
18,077
+1.7% since 2020

See the nail salons around any address in the Spirit Lake area

The site report maps the nail 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 Spirit Lake area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Survey estimates 2020–2024 · population estimates 2025 · official business counts 2023 · map listings September 2026 · Data credits · How we measure

What this means

Map listings as of September 2026 show 8 nail salons in the Spirit Lake area. 2 of them (25%) are chain locations, against 27% across the U.S. That comes to 9.0 for every 10,000 households, 50% above the U.S. rate of 6.0.

Households in the Spirit Lake area spend about $9M a year on personal care products and services, or $1,020 per household, in line with the U.S. average. That is about $1.1M of household spending for each salon on map listings, 33% below the U.S. figure of $1.7M. That spending covers all personal care products and services, which nail salons share with other businesses in the trade.

There is no official count of businesses with payroll classed as nail salons in the Spirit Lake area: counts under 3 aren’t published. Official counts list 7 one-person businesses without payroll.

Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Spirit Lake area grew 1.7%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). The Groundwork market score for nail salons in the Spirit Lake area is 46 (lower middle), #228 of 387 scored small-town markets and #6 of 9 scored small-town markets based in Iowa.

How the Spirit Lake area compares

The same measures for Iowa and the whole U.S. Spending per listing divides a year of household spending on all personal care products and services by the nail 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.

Nail salons in Spirit Lake, IA area compared with Iowa and the U.S.
MeasureSpirit Lake areaIowaU.S.
Listings per 10k households9.04.16.0
Spending per listing$1.1M$2.4M$1.7M
Households per official establishmentn/a8,5443,754
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023n/a+42.6%+23.2%
Population growth, 2020–2025+1.7%+1.5%+3.1%
Spending per household on personal care products and services$1,020$990$1,005
Median household income$75,432$75,059$80,734
Groundwork market score4666

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
7Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
82 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
5The 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 nail salons in the Spirit Lake 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 Spirit Lake area

Population, 2025 estimate
18,077+1.7% since 2020
Households
8,845
Median age
48.9
Homes lived in by their owners
77%
Vehicles per household
2.0
Land area
381 sq. mi.
People per square mile
47
Median household income
$75,432+25.8% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$102,164
Median home value
$270,700
Jobs located here
10,412
Daytime population
20,071Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in the Spirit Lake 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 nail salons on map listings by name and distance.

Or open the report at the center of the Spirit Lake area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Nail salons across Iowa

Every Iowa market ranked →

The highest-scoring small-town markets in Iowa for nail salons, numbered among those based in Iowa, with the Spirit Lake area marked.

Top small-town markets in Iowa

Small-town markets in Iowa ranked for nail salons by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Clinton, IA6663.1$3.1M−0.9%#87 of 387
2Marshalltown, IA6653.2$2.9M−0.5%#88 of 387
3Muscatine, IA6352.9$3.3M−3.0%#104 of 387
4Mason City, IA59104.4$2.1M−1.5%#135 of 387
5Fort Dodge, IA5763.9$2.3M−0.4%#147 of 387
6Spirit Lake, IA4689.0$1.1M+1.7%#228 of 387
7Ottumwa, IA4575.0$1.8M−0.3%#231 of 387
8Carroll, IA4555.7$1.7M−2.0%#233 of 387
9Burlington, IA-IL39105.0$1.8M−2.5%#270 of 387

Other business types in the Spirit Lake area

Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.

Questions

How many nail salons are in the Spirit Lake, IA area?

There are 8 nail salons on map listings in the Spirit Lake area as of September 2026. 2 of them (25%) are chain locations. The listings count nail salons. No official count is published for nail salons in the Spirit Lake area: counts under 3 are left out. Official counts also show 7 one-person businesses without payroll.

How much do households in the Spirit Lake, IA area spend on personal care products and services?

About $9M a year, or $1,020 per household. That is in line with the U.S. average (an index of 101, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 8 nail salons on map listings, it comes to $1.1M per salon. The spending figure covers all personal care products and services, not only nail salons. It is estimated from the incomes of the 8,845 households in the Spirit Lake area and national spending patterns by income.

How does the Spirit Lake, IA area compare with the U.S. for nail salons?

The Spirit Lake area has 9.0 nail salons per 10,000 households, 50% above the U.S. rate of 6.0. Spending per salon is $1.1M, 33% below the U.S. figure of $1.7M. At the national ratio of nail salons to household spending, the Spirit Lake area would have about 5, against 8 on map listings.

How fast is the Spirit Lake, IA area growing?

Population estimates put the Spirit Lake area at 18,077 people in 2025, up 1.7% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 8,845 households. The median household income in the Spirit Lake area is $75,432 a year, 7% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 25.8% 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. 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 Spirit Lake area scores 46 for nail salons (lower middle), #228 of 387 scored small-town markets.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Spirit Lake area. It maps the nail 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 nail salons · All 56 business types in the Spirit Lake area

Screening a site or an acquisition in the Spirit Lake 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 Spirit Lake 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.