Haircut Prices Price History
1960–2025 · BLS
The average price of a men's haircut in the United States from 1960 to 2025. Haircuts are a textbook example of what economists call a non-tradeable personal service — you cannot outsource your haircut to China or automate it with software, which means prices are driven almost entirely by local labor costs and rent. That makes haircut inflation a surprisingly clean window into how service-sector costs have risen over time. The price has gone from $1.50 to $28.00, roughly an 18-fold increase that tracks closely with wage growth in low-to-mid-skill service occupations.
Price in 1960
$1.50
Price in 2025
$28.00
Total Change
+1766.7%
Years Tracked
65
Haircut Prices Over Time
Compare to inflation: The chart above shows nominal (not inflation-adjusted) prices. Use the toggle to switch to inflation-adjusted values when available, or try the inflation calculator to convert any amount between years.
Key Insights
- A men's haircut has climbed from $1.50 in 1960 to $28.00 in 2025, an roughly 18-fold increase that actually tracks general inflation surprisingly well — making haircuts one of the more inflation-honest prices in the economy.
- The post-pandemic period saw the fastest haircut inflation in decades, with prices jumping from $21 in 2020 to $28 in 2025, as barber shops faced higher rents, labor shortages, and increased costs for supplies and sanitation.
- Haircut prices are a classic illustration of Baumol's cost disease — the productivity of cutting hair has barely changed since 1960 (it still takes one person about 20 minutes), but barbers' wages have had to keep up with the broader economy.
- The national average masks enormous regional variation — a basic cut might run $15 in a small Midwest town but $45-60 in Manhattan or San Francisco, reflecting the huge differences in rent and cost of living across the country.
Year-by-Year Data
| Year | Price (USD) | YoY Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | $1.50 | — |
| 1965 | $1.75 | +16.7% |
| 1970 | $2.25 | +28.6% |
| 1975 | $3.25 | +44.4% |
| 1976 | $3.50 | +7.7% |
| 1977 | $3.75 | +7.1% |
| 1978 | $4.00 | +6.7% |
| 1979 | $4.25 | +6.3% |
| 1980 | $4.75 | +11.8% |
| 1981 | $5.25 | +10.5% |
| 1982 | $5.50 | +4.8% |
| 1983 | $5.75 | +4.5% |
| 1984 | $6.00 | +4.3% |
| 1985 | $6.25 | +4.2% |
| 1986 | $6.50 | +4.0% |
| 1987 | $6.75 | +3.8% |
| 1988 | $7.00 | +3.7% |
| 1989 | $7.50 | +7.1% |
| 1990 | $8.00 | +6.7% |
| 1991 | $8.25 | +3.1% |
| 1992 | $8.50 | +3.0% |
| 1993 | $8.75 | +2.9% |
| 1994 | $9.00 | +2.9% |
| 1995 | $9.25 | +2.8% |
| 1996 | $9.50 | +2.7% |
| 1997 | $10.00 | +5.3% |
| 1998 | $10.25 | +2.5% |
| 1999 | $10.50 | +2.4% |
| 2000 | $11.00 | +4.8% |
| 2001 | $11.50 | +4.5% |
| 2002 | $12.00 | +4.3% |
| 2003 | $12.50 | +4.2% |
| 2004 | $13.00 | +4.0% |
| 2005 | $13.50 | +3.8% |
| 2006 | $14.00 | +3.7% |
| 2007 | $14.50 | +3.6% |
| 2008 | $15.00 | +3.4% |
| 2009 | $15.00 | +0.0% |
| 2010 | $15.00 | +0.0% |
| 2011 | $15.50 | +3.3% |
| 2012 | $16.00 | +3.2% |
| 2013 | $16.50 | +3.1% |
| 2014 | $17.00 | +3.0% |
| 2015 | $17.50 | +2.9% |
| 2016 | $18.00 | +2.9% |
| 2017 | $18.50 | +2.8% |
| 2018 | $19.00 | +2.7% |
| 2019 | $20.00 | +5.3% |
| 2020 | $21.00 | +5.0% |
| 2021 | $22.00 | +4.8% |
| 2022 | $24.00 | +9.1% |
| 2023 | $25.50 | +6.3% |
| 2024 | $27.00 | +5.9% |
| 2025 | $28.00 | +3.7% |
Sources & Methodology
Average price for a standard men's haircut at barber shops and hair salons, as tracked by the Bureau of Labor Statistics Consumer Price Index program. Prices are collected from a representative sample of establishments in urban areas across the United States. The figure reflects a basic cut without additional services like coloring, styling, or specialty treatments. Data is in nominal dollars and represents the national average; actual prices vary significantly by region, with major coastal cities typically running 50-100% above the national average.
Primary source: BLS
For a full explanation of how we collect and adjust data, see our methodology page.