Salons, spas & beauty studios competitor analysis
Criteria, weights, features, KPIs and sources for analysing competitors of hair salons, unisex salons, spas, nail studios, bridal makeup artists, barbershops.
Beauty services are bought on trust and convenience. Customers pick from the salons that look good on Instagram, have recent 5-star reviews and have a slot at the time they want. Price matters, but mostly as a signal of the tier a salon plays in.
Use this template to compare stylist skill, hygiene, pricing tier, booking convenience and social proof, and to spot services your competitors under-deliver on.
What decides who wins
Score every competitor from 0 to 10 on these criteria. The weights are a starting point; adjust them to what your customers say matters.
| Criterion | Weight | What to look at |
|---|---|---|
| Stylist skill & results | 22% | Before/after quality, specialists, certifications |
| Hygiene & ambience | 14% | Cleanliness, product brands used, comfort |
| Pricing tier & value | 14% | Menu prices for core services versus quality |
| Reviews & reputation | 18% | Rating, review count, response to complaints |
| Booking convenience | 12% | Online booking, waiting time, hours |
| Instagram & social proof | 12% | Portfolio quality, reels, influencer tie-ups |
| Service range | 8% | Hair, skin, nails, bridal, men's grooming |
Features and offers to compare
Mark each competitor yes, partly or no. Critical items missing from your offer are the first gaps to close.
- Online appointment booking (Critical)
- Bridal / event packages (Important)
- Membership / prepaid packages (Important)
- Premium product brands (Important)
- Skin & advanced treatments (Important)
- Men's grooming (Nice to have)
- Home service (Nice to have)
- Kids' services (Nice to have)
- Walk-ins accepted (Nice to have)
- Loyalty rewards (Nice to have)
Where to find your competitors
- Google Maps 'salon near me' from 3-4 points in your catchment
- Booking apps and marketplaces used in your city (for example Urban Company, Fresha, Booksy, Treatwell)
- Instagram location tags and local hashtags
- Wedding planners and bridal directories for the bridal segment
Well-known players in related categories
Larger brands your customers may compare you with. Listed for research only; inclusion does not imply they compete with you.
- Beauty, skincare & cosmetics: L'Oréal, Maybelline, MAC Cosmetics, Sephora, The Ordinary, Fenty Beauty, Lakmé, SUGAR Cosmetics
KPIs to benchmark
- Price of 5 benchmark services (haircut, colour, facial, manicure, bridal)
- Google rating and monthly new reviews
- Instagram followers, posting frequency, reel views
- Earliest available weekend slot
- Number of stylists and specialists
Five Forces snapshot
Typical pressure in this market. Your local situation may differ; rate it in the Five Forces tool.
| Force | Typical level |
|---|---|
| Competitive rivalry | High |
| Threat of new entrants | High |
| Threat of substitutes | Medium |
| Bargaining power of buyers | Medium |
| Bargaining power of suppliers | Low |
Estimating market share
For this industry, review counts are usually the most practical public proxy for share. Use the same source for every business and read the result as a share of the businesses you track. See how to estimate market share and HHI.
Mistakes to avoid
- Benchmarking only haircut prices when colour and treatments drive margin
- Ignoring home-service platforms that take price-sensitive customers
- Not tracking stylist departures, which move loyal clients between salons