Groundwork

Beauty and personal care · Metro area · Virginia

Nail salons in the Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC metro area

The nail salons in the Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC metro area, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other metro areas.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 28 out of 100: Lower middle

Ranked #363 of 387 scored metro areas
#9 of 9 scored metro areas based in Virginia

Listings
495
160 chain locations (32%)
Official establishments
250
+18.2% since 2019
Household spending a year
$670M
On personal care products and services · $947 a household
Spending per listing
$1.4M
19% below the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
7.0
17% above the U.S.
Population, 2025
1,797,213
+0.9% since 2020

See the nail salons around any address in the Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk 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 Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk metro 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

The Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk metro area scores 28 (lower middle) on the Groundwork market score for nail salons, ranking #363 of 387 scored metro areas and #9 of 9 scored metro areas based in Virginia. That puts it in the bottom quarter of metro areas.

Households in the Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk metro area spend about $670M a year on personal care products and services, or $947 per household, 6% below the U.S. average. Spread across 495 nail salons, that is $1.4M per salon, 19% below the U.S. figure of $1.7M. The spending figure covers all personal care products and services, not only nail salons.

The Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk metro area has 495 nail salons on map listings as of September 2026. Of those, 160 are chain locations, or 32%, against 27% across the U.S. That is 7.0 per 10,000 households, 17% above the U.S. rate of 6.0.

In 2023, official counts showed 250 businesses with payroll in the Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk metro area classed as nail salons, up 18.2% from 2019. That is one for every 2,830 households, against one for every 3,754 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 4 SBA-backed loans worth $880K have gone to businesses classed as nail salons in the Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk metro area. Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk metro area grew 0.9%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%).

How the Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk metro area compares

The same measures for Virginia 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 Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC metro area compared with Virginia and the U.S.
MeasureVirginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk metro areaVirginiaU.S.
Listings per 10k households7.06.06.0
Spending per listing$1.4M$1.7M$1.7M
Households per official establishment2,8303,6193,754
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023+18.2%+28.3%+23.2%
Population growth, 2020–2025+0.9%+2.8%+3.1%
Spending per household on personal care products and services$947$1,023$1,005
Median household income$82,330$93,170$80,734
Groundwork market score2844

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
250+18.2% over the period
Employees, 2023
868
Annual payroll, 2023
$24.4M
One-person businesses, 2023
1,982Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
495160 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
401The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
4
Amount
$880K

SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as nail salons in the Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk 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 Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk metro area

Population, 2025 estimate
1,797,213+0.9% since 2020
Households
707,408
Median age
39.1
Homes lived in by their owners
63%
Vehicles per household
1.8
Land area
3,202 sq. mi.
People per square mile
558
Median household income
$82,330
Average household income
$108,120
Median home value
$340,900
Jobs located here
729,464
Daytime population
1,773,219Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in the Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk 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.

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Nail salons across Virginia

Every Virginia market ranked →

The highest-scoring metro areas in Virginia for nail salons, numbered among those based in Virginia (a market based in another state is listed without a number), with the Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk metro area marked.

Top metro areas in Virginia

Metro areas in Virginia ranked for nail salons by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Charlottesville, VA62414.5$2.3M+3.1%#84 of 387
Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV561,4526.1$1.9M+3.3%#138 of 387
2Staunton-Stuarts Draft, VA55265.0$1.7M+3.2%#147 of 387
3Blacksburg-Christiansburg-Radford, VA54273.8$2.2M−0.1%#155 of 387
Kingsport-Bristol, TN-VA51574.4$1.8M+2.3%#184 of 387
4Richmond, VA463456.5$1.5M+5.5%#231 of 387
5Lynchburg, VA44656.3$1.3M+2.9%#251 of 387
6Winchester, VA-WV43376.7$1.4M+6.5%#259 of 387
7Harrisonburg, VA41244.8$1.8M+3.5%#275 of 387
8Roanoke, VA31796.0$1.4M+0.4%#351 of 387
9Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC284957.0$1.4M+0.9%#363 of 387

Other business types in the Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk metro area

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

Questions

How many nail salons are in the Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC metro area?

Map listings as of September 2026 show 495 nail salons in the Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk metro area. 160 of them (32%) are chain locations. The listings count nail salons. Official counts show 250 businesses with payroll classed as nail salons in 2023, up 18.2% from 2019. Official counts also show 1,982 one-person businesses without payroll.

How much do households in the Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC metro area spend on personal care products and services?

About $670M a year, or $947 per household. That is 6% below the U.S. average (an index of 94, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 495 nail salons on map listings, it comes to $1.4M 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 707,408 households in the Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk metro area and national spending patterns by income.

How does the Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC metro area compare with the U.S. for nail salons?

The Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk metro area has 7.0 nail salons per 10,000 households, 17% above the U.S. rate of 6.0. Spending per salon is $1.4M, 19% below the U.S. figure of $1.7M. At the U.S. ratio of nail salons to household spending, the Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk metro area would have about 401, against 495 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 2,830 households, against one for every 3,754 across the U.S. The official count rose 18.2% from 2019 to 2023, against +23.2% for the U.S.

How fast is the Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC metro area growing?

Population estimates put the Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk metro area at 1,797,213 people in 2025, up 0.9% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 707,408 households. Median household income in the Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk metro area is $82,330, 2% 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 Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk metro area scores 28 for nail salons (lower middle), #363 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 Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk 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 Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk metro area

Screening a site or an acquisition in the Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk 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 Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk 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.