However, the luxury of a hair cut by a professional hairdresser, especially with a wash and blow dry, does come at quite a cost. 

I’ve regularly spent up to £45 per haircut over the years at various hairdressers just for a simple cut and blow dry.  It’s quite extortionate!

I remember even being charged more once because I had long hair.  A £5 surcharge if your hair was longer than a certain length!  Penalised for having long hair!!

Tips to save money at a hairdressers

As much as it is quite luxurious to while away one hour or so having my hair done at the hairdressers, it’s an expense I am no longer willing to pay.  There are other things I’d rather spend my money on nowadays or that I need to spend my money on, so it’s budget hairdresser trips for me.

If you are wondering how to save money at a hair salon then read on.

Have a dry cut

Most of the time spent at a haircut is actually washing and blow drying your hair.  Your actually paying for your hair to be washed!  I now slash the cost of my hair cut by opting for a dry cut.  It’s half the price!

At my newest hair salon it costs £30 for a cut and blow dry, but I now pay £15 for a "dry" cut...

I actually turn up with wet hair as I think it makes for a better haircut when wet, so technically I’m not really having a dry cut.  My hairdresser is happy for me to turn up with wet hair and I just skip the blow dry.  It’s quite a saving and if you have your haircut regularly as part of your hair care regime then it adds up.

If you miss how your hair looks after a professional blow dry then invest in some hair thickening root spray from Nanogen to give that freshly blown dry look.

Go longer between cuts

If you religiously go for a haircut every six weeks then try increasing this to every eight weeks or even ten.  If your hair still looks great then don’t waste money getting a cut you don’t need. 

The longer you can wait between haircuts the more you’ll save each year.

Buy your own products

It’s no secret that hair salons inflate the price of beauty products and often the staff receive commission on every sale, so it’s no wonder they are making them sound so perfect for you!

Resist temptation as you can buy much cheaper products elsewhere, especially if you know how to save money on beauty products.

Sign up for trainee nights

Many salons have staff in training and they’ll have special free haircut nights if you volunteer to be a model for a trainee.  It’s all supervised by a qualified hairdresser and they’ll tidy up your haircut if needed at the end.

Many places offer this for free or at a heavily discounted rate.  It’s also worth discovering any beauty colleges that offer the same.  They’ll normally be advertising for ‘hair models’.

Use a mobile hairdresser

It’s usually much more affordable to use an at-home hairdresser.  They will usually come to your house which will also save on any travel costs to the salon and back!

I’ve used a mobile hairdresser in the past and the price was around a third of the local salons at the time!

Ask for recommendations from friends and family or search in local Facebook groups to find a mobile hairdresser near you.

Final word

There are lots of ways to make a haircut much cheaper if you are prepared to quit the blow dry, be a modal and resist the urge to splash out on any recommended products.

 

Related blog post: How to thicken hair naturally