Depending on what kind of stylist you want to be will change what you do on a day-to-day basis. Since you probably already have some sense of style, it shouldn't be too hard to figure out what type of stylist you want to be.

From hair stylists to fashion stylists, the world is your limit. You could provide fashion advice, help coordinate outfits, help out with photo shoots or own a hair salon. And there's always the option of becoming a stylist for a celebrity. Say hello to Hollywood.

What Does a Stylist Do

There are certain skills that many stylists have in order to accomplish their responsibilities. By taking a look through resumes, we were able to narrow down the most common skills for a person in this position. We discovered that a lot of resumes listed creativity, customer-service skills and listening skills.

Learn more about what a Stylist does

How To Become a Stylist

If you're interested in becoming a stylist, one of the first things to consider is how much education you need. We've determined that 40.2% of stylists have a bachelor's degree. In terms of higher education levels, we found that 4.4% of stylists have master's degrees. Even though some stylists have a college degree, it's possible to become one with only a high school degree or GED.

Learn More About How To Become a Stylist

Stylist Job Description

Stylists are creative professionals whose main role is to ensure that models or photoshoot set look great and appropriate for the theme. They may also be asked to provide recommendations on color palettes, give fashion advice, ensure that fashion styles are in line with the branding of the company, and be updated with the latest trends.

Learn more about Stylist Job Description

Stylist Career Paths

Average Salary for a Stylist

Stylists in America make an average salary of $37,985 per year or $18 per hour. The top 10 percent makes over $53,000 per year, while the bottom 10 percent under $27,000 per year.
Average Stylist Salary
$37,985 Yearly
$18.26 hourly

What Am I Worth?

salary-calculator

Roles and Types of Stylist

The role of a stylist includes a wide range of responsibilities. These responsibilities can vary based on an individual's specific job, company, or industry.Here are some general stylist responsibilities:

  • Show a thorough understanding of levi strauss & company's history
  • Set and achieve personal and company sales goals while supporting the goals of the team greet customers in a timely, professional
  • Establish a partnership with boutique management to support company initiatives

There are several types of stylist, including:

Hair Stylist

Role:

The most common hair color in the world is black. Do you know who would know that? Hairstylists. With the majority of people coloring their hair nowadays, hair stylists are in more demand than ever.

It takes roughly three years to grow your hair out to your shoulders. And seven years to reach your waist. At that rate, we're guessing you've visited a hair stylist a few times during that period. A lot of hairstylists work in small businesses or even own their own shop. Some find work as teachers at a beauty school.

As you shampoo, cut and dye hair, you may be wondering about the hours. Generally, if you work at a small business, you probably will get to make your own hours. You'll get to work whenever it's convenient for you. It doesn't get any better than that.

  • Average Salary: $38,221
  • Degree: High School Diploma

Cosmetologist

Role:

The pervasiveness of automation in repetitive tasks across industries, like manufacturing and retail, are consequently shifting the perception of skill value that contributes to society. Although this has caused some level of economic uncertainty, human activity on the other hand, has been freed to explore a more creative dimension. One job that is gaining popularity in the creative field is the role of a cosmetologist.

Daily, a cosmetologist is involved in providing beauty care services, focusing on hair, skin, and nails. This includes tasks such as shampooing, styling, cutting, bleaching, coloring, and providing wigs or hairpieces. Besides that, they provide services such as skin care treatments, facial hair trimming, eyebrow shaping, nail polishing, and demonstrating makeup applications.

Employers require cosmetologists to have either formal training in at least one field of beauty services and demonstrate at least one to two years of work experience. This role earns, on average, $18 per hour and suits individuals who have a knack for styling.

  • Average Salary: $37,122
  • Degree: Associate Degree

Makeup Artist

Role:

If you have ever looked at a magazine and noticed how beautiful the model's makeup is or how well it complements the styling, you have makeup artists to thank for that! People often marvel at the beauty of advertisements and commercial models without thinking of the team of people behind the look. Makeup artists have mastered the art of illusions and color play.

They also know how to work with makeup tools and makeup products. They can transform a blank canvas - in their case, often a model's face - into a spectacular work of art. They know how to blend products to achieve their desired look. If you want to be a makeup artist, you should start playing around with makeup. Find the best products and brands to use. Study how to achieve different looks. Network. It would be a fun, creative outlet that pays well. Usually, makeup artists are considered gig workers. As such, they must get a strong client base and build a good reputation with studios, models, and even brands.
  • Average Salary: $41,026
  • Degree: Bachelor's Degree

States With The Most Stylist Jobs

Mouse over a state to see the number of active stylist jobs in each state. The darker areas on the map show where stylists earn the highest salaries across all 50 states.

Average Salary: Job Openings:

Number Of Stylist Jobs By State

Stylist Education

Stylist Majors

Stylist Degrees

Bachelors

40.2 %

Associate

21.6 %

High School Diploma

18.5 %

Top Skills For a Stylist

The skills section on your resume can be almost as important as the experience section, so you want it to be an accurate portrayal of what you can do. Luckily, we've found all of the skills you'll need so even if you don't have these skills yet, you know what you need to work on. Out of all the resumes we looked through, 13.6% of stylists listed good time management on their resume, but soft skills such as creativity and customer-service skills are important as well.

  • Good Time Management, 13.6%
  • POS, 11.5%
  • Data Entry, 8.1%
  • Excellent Training, 7.8%
  • Safety Standards, 7.8%
  • Other Skills, 51.2%

Choose From 10+ Customizable Stylist Resume templates

Zippia allows you to choose from different easy-to-use Stylist templates, and provides you with expert advice. Using the templates, you can rest assured that the structure and format of your Stylist resume is top notch. Choose a template with the colors, fonts & text sizes that are appropriate for your industry.

Stylist Resume
Stylist Resume
Stylist Resume
Stylist Resume
Stylist Resume
Stylist Resume
Stylist Resume
Stylist Resume
Stylist Resume
Stylist Resume
Stylist Resume
Stylist Resume
Stylist Resume
Stylist Resume
Stylist Resume
Stylist Resume

Stylist Demographics

Stylist Gender Distribution

Female
Female
86%
Male
Male
14%

After extensive research and analysis, Zippia's data science team found that:

  • Among stylists, 86.4% of them are women, while 13.6% are men.

  • The most common race/ethnicity among stylists is White, which makes up 59.2% of all stylists.

  • The most common foreign language among stylists is Spanish at 56.4%.

Online Courses For Stylist That You May Like

Advertising Disclosure  

1. Customer Service Fundamentals

coursera

There are a growing number of exciting, well-paying jobs in today’s tech industry that do not require a traditional college degree, an one of the hottest areas with high demand is in IT customer service and support. Customer Service is a perfect entry point to start your career in IT, with a multitude of job openings ranging from onsite or remote help desk work to customer care or client support. We can help you get there with the Customer Service Fundamentals course. We will help you to build...

See More on Coursera

2. Customer Service

udemy
4.6
(6,953)

How to Approach New Customers and Maintain Existing Ones...

See More on Udemy

3. Start Improving Customer Service

udemy
4.4
(2,030)

Creating a Customer Service advantage in Your department or business through communication and Customer Management...

See More on Udemy
Show More Stylist Courses
Job type you want
Full Time
Part Time
Internship
Temporary

Best States For a Stylist

Some places are better than others when it comes to starting a career as a stylist. The best states for people in this position are Washington, Montana, North Dakota, and West Virginia. Stylists make the most in Washington with an average salary of $52,126. Whereas in Montana and North Dakota, they would average $47,785 and $47,575, respectively. While stylists would only make an average of $46,340 in West Virginia, you would still make more there than in the rest of the country. We determined these as the best states based on job availability and pay. By finding the median salary, cost of living, and using the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Location Quotient, we narrowed down our list of states to these four.

1. West Virginia

Total Stylist Jobs: 100
Highest 10% Earn:
$63,000
Location Quotient:
1.17

2. Washington

Total Stylist Jobs: 433
Highest 10% Earn:
$64,000
Location Quotient:
1.06

3. Colorado

Total Stylist Jobs: 345
Highest 10% Earn:
$61,000
Location Quotient:
1.04
Full List Of Best States For Stylists

How Do Stylist Rate Their Jobs?

Working as a Stylist? Share your experience anonymously.
Overall Rating*
Career Growth
Work/Life balance
Pay/Salary
Do you work as a Stylist?
Rate how you like work as Stylist. It's anonymous and will only take a minute.

Top Stylist Employers

Most Common Employers For Stylist

RankCompanyAverage SalaryHourly RateJob Openings
1Stitch Fix$37,840$18.1978
2Hair$37,121$17.85176
3SPORTCLIPS$36,864$17.72228
4Michael Kors$36,717$17.65134
5Styles For Less$35,664$17.1584
6Lane Bryant$34,688$16.68133
7bebe$33,678$16.19523
8maurices$33,143$15.9381
9Regis$33,100$15.911,024
10Levi Strauss & Co.$32,344$15.55284

Stylist Videos

Becoming a Stylist FAQs

How Long Does It Take To Become A Stylist?

It takes 3 years of professional experience to become a stylist. That is the time it takes to learn specific stylist skills, but does not account for time spent in formal education.

Search For Stylist Jobs