Beauty and personal care · Metro area · North Carolina
Nail salons in the Durham-Chapel Hill, NC metro area
The nail salons in the Durham-Chapel Hill, NC metro area, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other metro areas.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 68 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #52 of 387 scored metro areas
#1 of 15 scored metro areas based in North Carolina
- Listings
- 126
- 43 chain locations (34%)
- Official establishments
- 29
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $244.2M
- On personal care products and services · $984 a household
- Spending per listing
- $1.9M
- 16% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 5.1
- 15% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 625,485
- +7.5% since 2020
See the nail salons around any address in the Durham-Chapel Hill metro 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 Durham-Chapel Hill 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
Household spending on personal care products and services in the Durham-Chapel Hill metro area comes to about $244.2M a year: $984 per household, 2% below the U.S. average. That works out to $1.9M per salon, 16% above the U.S. figure of $1.7M. The spending figure covers all personal care products and services, not only nail salons.
There are 126 nail salons on map listings in the Durham-Chapel Hill metro area as of September 2026. 43 of them (34%) are chain locations, against 27% across the U.S. That comes to 5.1 for every 10,000 households, 15% below the U.S. rate of 6.0.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as nail salons in the Durham-Chapel Hill metro area was 29 in 2023. That is one for every 8,561 households, against one for every 3,754 across the U.S. Official counts also show 424 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 1 SBA-backed loan worth $50K has gone to businesses classed as nail salons in the Durham-Chapel Hill metro area.
Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Durham-Chapel Hill metro area grew 7.5%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). The Groundwork market score for nail salons in the Durham-Chapel Hill metro area is 68 (upper middle), #52 of 387 scored metro areas and #1 of 15 scored metro areas based in North Carolina. That puts it in the top quarter of metro areas.
How the Durham-Chapel Hill metro area 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 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.
| Measure | Durham-Chapel Hill metro area | North Carolina | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 5.1 | 6.4 | 6.0 |
| Spending per listing | $1.9M | $1.4M | $1.7M |
| Households per official establishment | 8,561 | 7,513 | 3,754 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +55.7% | +23.2% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +7.5% | +7.2% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on personal care products and services | $984 | $897 | $1,005 |
| Median household income | $83,500 | $72,388 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 68 | 45 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 29
- Employees, 2023
- 92
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $2.5M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 424Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 12643 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 146The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 1
- Amount
- $50K
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as nail salons in the Durham-Chapel Hill 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 Durham-Chapel Hill metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 625,485+7.5% since 2020
- Households
- 248,256
- Median age
- 39.9
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 62%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.8
- Land area
- 1,759 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 342
- Median household income
- $83,500
- Average household income
- $120,978
- Median home value
- $396,100
- Jobs located here
- 363,261
- Daytime population
- 696,157Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Durham-Chapel Hill 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 nail salons on map listings by name and distance.
Or open the report at the center of the Durham-Chapel Hill metro area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardNail salons across North Carolina
Every North Carolina market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in North Carolina for nail salons, numbered among those based in North Carolina, with the Durham-Chapel Hill metro area marked.
Top metro areas in North Carolina
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Durham-Chapel Hill, NC | 68 | 126 | 5.1 | $1.9M | +7.5% | #52 of 387 |
| 2Raleigh-Cary, NC | 61 | 406 | 7.1 | $1.5M | +12.6% | #94 of 387 |
| 3Winston-Salem, NC | 53 | 163 | 5.8 | $1.5M | +5.3% | #167 of 387 |
| 4Wilmington, NC | 52 | 140 | 7.0 | $1.3M | +15.9% | #178 of 387 |
| 5Asheville, NC | 51 | 86 | 5.3 | $1.7M | +3.6% | #187 of 387 |
| 6Pinehurst-Southern Pines, NC | 48 | 31 | 7.0 | $1.3M | +10.3% | #213 of 387 |
| 7Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC | 48 | 779 | 7.2 | $1.3M | +10.1% | #214 of 387 |
| 8Rocky Mount, NC | 45 | 33 | 5.6 | $1.4M | +2.8% | #240 of 387 |
| 9Burlington, NC | 44 | 56 | 8.0 | $1M | +8.5% | #253 of 387 |
| 10Greensboro-High Point, NC | 41 | 235 | 7.4 | $1.1M | +4.1% | #284 of 387 |
Other business types in the Durham-Chapel Hill 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 spas72
- Hair salons69
- Barbershops73
- Nail salons68
- Spas and skin care74
Fitness and classes
Health care
Child care
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many nail salons are in the Durham-Chapel Hill, NC metro area?
As of September 2026, map listings count 126 nail salons in the Durham-Chapel Hill metro area. 43 of them (34%) are chain locations. The listings count nail salons. Official counts show 29 businesses with payroll classed as nail salons in 2023. Another 424 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
How much do households in the Durham-Chapel Hill, NC metro area spend on personal care products and services?
About $244.2M a year, or $984 per household. That is 2% below the U.S. average (an index of 98, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 126 nail salons on map listings, it comes to $1.9M per salon. That spending covers all personal care products and services, which nail salons share with other businesses in the trade. It is estimated from the incomes of the 248,256 households in the Durham-Chapel Hill metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Durham-Chapel Hill, NC metro area compare with the U.S. for nail salons?
The Durham-Chapel Hill metro area has 5.1 nail salons per 10,000 households, 15% below the U.S. rate of 6.0. Spending per salon is $1.9M, 16% above the U.S. figure of $1.7M. At the U.S. ratio of nail salons to household spending, the Durham-Chapel Hill metro area would have about 146, against 126 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 8,561 households, against one for every 3,754 across the U.S.
How fast is the Durham-Chapel Hill, NC metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Durham-Chapel Hill metro area at 625,485 people in 2025, up 7.5% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 248,256 households. Median household income in the Durham-Chapel Hill metro area is $83,500, 3% above 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. 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 Durham-Chapel Hill metro area scores 68 for nail salons (upper middle), #52 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 Durham-Chapel Hill metro 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 Durham-Chapel Hill metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Durham-Chapel Hill 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 Durham-Chapel Hill 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.