How Much You Should Tip Your Barber

If You Are Getting A Discount

Many of us see barbers who are our friends and someone that we know personally. When this occurs, you are likely getting a discount from what their standard rate is. If you believe you are getting a discount, or if you value their friendship, you should be tipping at the higher end of the scale.

If Your Barber Adjusted Their Schedule

If your barber came in when they do not normally work, or gave you a last-minute appointment, this means that they value you as a client. You should return the favor in this scenario by tipping at the higher end of the scale.

If You Came In With Dirty Hair

If you came in with dirty hair, your barber is going to have to wash it first in order to get the proper cut. Most don’t charge extra for this service, but it does take extra time, product, and effort on their part. If they washed your hair for you, be sure to tip them on the higher end of the scale. And next time, make sure to wash and dry your hair before you show up.

If It’s Been Awhile Since You Visited Your Barber

When a haircut grows out, it is going to be more difficult to get it back to the way it looked before. Our hair grows at uneven rates, so getting the same style when you waited too long between appointments is going to take more effort. If you went to your barber looking like a mop, make sure you are tipping them extra.

If You Changed Or Cancelled Your Appointment

If you had to change or cancel your last appointment due to your busy schedule, you should make sure to tip your barber extra. That was time on their books they might have not been able to fill because they were holding the appointment for you. Make sure that your barber knows how much you appreciate their flexibility by tipping them more for their service than you normally would.

If You Live In An Expensive Area Like A City

Working a service industry job while living in an expensive city can be difficult, but these service workers supply us with immeasurable value. If you live in one of the more expensive places in the country, be sure to reflect that in the amount you tip your barber.

These services tend to be more expensive in the cities already, for this very reason. However, you should still add about 5% more than if you got a good cut in the suburbs. The extra cash will help your barber keep their doors open so that you can be sure that you are getting a great haircut for years to come.

When You Have Thick Hair

In some barbershops, thick or long hair is already an extra charge as it takes much longer to style. If your barber doesn’t charge extra for this service, but you know that your hair takes him or her much longer than a regular customer, go ahead and tip them a little bit more for their time.

When Your Barber Is A Pleasure To Be Around

If your barber really made you feel good and left you in a more positive mood than you walked in with, you should tip them a little more. A barber has a busy day, and a lot of emotional energy is put into making sure that you are happy. For this reason, it is a good idea to go ahead and shoot them some extra money. You’ll be way more likely to get this same caliber of experience on your next visit.

When They Are Taking Extra Precautions To Keep You Safe

Now that COVID-19 is here, it can be very dangerous for barbers to stay opened and to keep you looking good. Furthermore, they are spending a lot of extra money for masks, gloves, sanitizer, and more. They are also working at a lower capacity in order to space out clients and keep the shop more empty.

If your barbershop is making the time and effort to keep you, their employees, and their other patrons safe, make sure to tip a little extra. This shows them that you appreciate their safety measures and can go a long way to helping them pay for the extra supplies they need at this time.

The Owner

If the owner took part in your service, you should go ahead and tip them. If they completed the whole service, then tip the normal amount. If they were only there for a portion of it, it is okay to do about 10-15%, just make sure that the tip is at least $5.

An Assistant

If you came in with dirty hair or needed another service that an apprentice or assistant completed, it is standard to tip them a flat rate of $5. You can tip them more if they did a great job or it is near the holidays.

These assistants are generally paid very little while they are working on building their expertise, so it is important to make sure you are contributing to their career growth and education. Who knows, maybe they will be your barber one day!

Tickets To Events

If you have a ticket to a game or a show that you can’t use, and you know that your barber likes that team, musician, or comedian, feel free to gift this as an extra tip. Barbers love gifts like this. However, it is best to be careful and to only give them something you know that they like. Talking to your barber during your appointments will definitely help in this regard.

Services From Your Business

If you are in a service industry yourself, it is fine to tip with a free service in addition to the base tipping amount. For instance, if you are a mechanic, a free oil change is completely appropriate. If you own a shop, you can give them a gift card to your store if you think they would like it. These types of gifts have value.

Handmade Items

Handmade items should be proportionate to the service that they are giving you. If you really like your barber and your wife wants to give him or her cookies in appreciation for how amazing you look, don’t tip less because of them. The cookies are great, but they don’t hold as much value as a service or event ticket.

If you make them something like a custom display case to hold product after hearing that they couldn’t find the right one for their shop’s aesthetic, you can stick with the standard base tipping, as this is a larger item that took time and money to make.

Wash Your Hair

You should always wash your hair before you go to your barbershop. If you go in to get your beard shaped and trimmed, you should wash that, too.

Having product in your hair makes it difficult to get an accurate cut. Furthermore, having sweat and grease in your hair is gross and unsanitary for the people that are working on you. Even if a wash is included in the service that you get, you should make sure that you are going in with clean hair.

The only exception to this rule is if you are someone who gets bleach put on their hair. Bleach can burn a clean scalp, so many barbers and stylists actually suggest going in with semi-dirty hair. They will wash your hair when they finish processing the bleach, which is the first step they will take if you are lightening and styling your hair.

Stay Off Your Phone

Obviously, you aren’t going to be able to hold your phone up to your ear if you are at the barbershop, which means that whoever you are talking to is going to be on speakerphone. Your barber is at work all day long and probably wants to listen to their music or talk to you, not be a third-wheel on your work phone call.

Emergencies happen, and everyone understands this, but you shouldn’t be calling your friends and family just to have a chat because you are bored. This is rude and disrespectful. Instead, engage in conversation with your barber. You may learn some interesting stories, or be able to vent about your day.

Additionally, if you are putting your head down and looking at your phone, you aren’t going to be in the proper position to get your hair styled. Make sure to look straight ahead and keep your eyes off your phone as much as possible.

Whatever you do, make sure that you don’t purposefully bring in a tablet or a laptop so that you have something to do while you sit in the chair. This shows that you have no interest in talking to your barber and you are going to make their life more difficult before they even start working on you.

Know What Haircut You Want

A great barber is going to have a busy schedule, and he isn’t going to have time to wait on you while you flip through your phone or the stylebook trying to decide what haircut it is that you want.

Make sure that you have made a decision ahead of time. If you aren’t sure how to describe the cut, bring pictures to show him. If you have his cell phone number, you can also text these pictures to him the day beforehand so he has time to consider it and ask you any follow-up questions.

Not only will this help your barber save time, but it will also help ensure that you get the exact style that you were looking for. This is what we like to call a win-win.

Schedule All The Services You Need

If you get your beard shaped by the same barber who cuts your hair, make sure that you are communicating every time that you need both of them done. This is particularly important if you are using an online scheduling service or if a receptionist takes your call to schedule your service.

While your barber may know that you always want both services, an automated service or a receptionist may not, and there’s a chance they won’t put enough time on the calendar for both. While your barber will most likely do both for you, it is going to screw up his schedule for the day. Out of respect for him, make sure that you are booking what you need ahead of time.

Respect His Expertise

It is very rude if you tell your barber how to cut your hair. You wouldn’t tell a pilot how to land a plane, would you? Your barber has spent a lot of money and time going through rigorous training in order to become a master at his craft.

When you are sitting in his chair, you need to remember that he is the expert, and that you are not. You probably would be very irritated if someone without any experience told you how to do your job, so make sure that you have the same respect for him.

Be Patient And Still

A good haircut is going to take a lot of time, particularly if it is a more complicated style. If you have asked for something that takes more time, then be patient. Every person’s head is different, and even the most experienced and talented barber is going to take as much time as they need in order to give you the best end product.

Furthermore, you need to stay very still. If you are getting antsy, it is okay to ask your barber to stop for a moment so you can stretch and shake off some of the tension. Otherwise, you need to make sure you are not moving your head. Your barber could make a mistake that could ruin your haircut at best, or seriously harm himself or you at worst.

Keep Conversation Pleasant

You don’t want to make your barber uncomfortable, so make sure that you are keeping your conversation pleasant. If he brings up a topic that you feel comfortable talking about, then go right on ahead. However, you are in his place of work, and it isn’t the time to be talking about politics, religion, or other issues, especially if you think both of you will have differing opinions.

Look at it this way, you wouldn’t like it if one of your clients started trashing your ideologies to you, without you being able to speak your mind out of fear of losing a client. Don’t put your barber in the same position as a captive audience.

Bring A Mask

While most barbershops are going to have extra masks for you in order to help keep you safe and to keep themselves safe from you, it is better to bring your own. The disposable paper masks do not work as well as a tight-fitting mask. It also saves them a little money when they do not need to supply you with a mask.

While this might be a no-brainer, it is important that you are making sure you are bringing the right mask for your appointment, as well. Many people like masks that secure around the back of the head as they do not cause as much pain to the ears and are easier to keep in place. However, you might totally forget ahead of time that your mask won’t work in this scenario.

Make sure for your appointment that you are bringing a tight-fitting mask that fits behind the ears in order to show respect for the person putting themselves at risk to make you look good. While you may know that you have been socially isolating, they don’t know that.