# Should men and women both pay the same price for a haircut? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [January 21, 2013, 9:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-men-and-women-both-pay-the-same-price-for-a-haircut/647941 "2013-01-21T21:06:34Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Sevencl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d9b06d/32.png) [@Sevencl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sevencl)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2013, 12:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-men-and-women-both-pay-the-same-price-for-a-haircut/647941/41 "2013-01-23T00:06:51Z")
Pre-transition, when I used to go up to a year between haircuts, the local mens’ barber would charge me more to get a basic short cut because it was so long. And that was basically chopping it off and running a shavey buzzing thing over the remainder. I don’t know how usual it actually is in practice, but there’s nothing stopping a barber from telling a long-haired male up front that they’ll be charged the amount for a female cut and allowing them to accept or leave. ---
**Author:** ![Shagnasty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9dc877/32.png) [@Shagnasty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shagnasty)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2013, 12:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-men-and-women-both-pay-the-same-price-for-a-haircut/647941/42 "2013-01-23T00:24:51Z")
I have asked a few of my usual hair stylists about which sex is generally harder and more time-consuming to do a basic cut for and they always reply instantly that it is a women’s cut. These were all younger females themselves BTW and the places I go charge the same prices for both. I don’t know exactly why that is but clipper cutting and blending is very fast and that is what most men want plus most men just sit there and take it like a dog does to a groomer rather than chit-chatting and offering endless feedback. From a business perspective, I can see why it would be fair to charge differently based on the overall statistics because it works the other way in many more costly ways like lady’s nights and insurance rates. I don’t think it would get women an appreciable discount overall if you force the same prices for both. More likely, men would just have to pay more. From a marketing perspective, this an easy thing to address even if it works out disproportionately in favor of one sex over the other. You could just have a standard base rate for everyone but offer a discount if the haircut meets certain criteria such as the length, complexity of the cut, and the amount of end styling required. Other businesses do that to flip the price model around so that everyone is equal until they show they are a less demanding customer. The result works out the same way but it makes the discrimination hounds feel better and the few exceptions get to pay different prices than the norm. ---
**Author:** ![Sevencl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d9b06d/32.png) [@Sevencl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sevencl)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2013, 12:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-men-and-women-both-pay-the-same-price-for-a-haircut/647941/43 "2013-01-23T00:51:18Z")
> [@Shagnasty](#): > > I don’t think it would get women an appreciable discount overall if you force the same prices for both. More likely, men would just have to pay more. From a marketing perspective, this an easy thing to address even if it works out disproportionately in favor of one sex over the other. You could just have a standard base rate for everyone but offer a discount if the haircut meets certain criteria such as the length, complexity of the cut, and the amount of end styling required. Other businesses do that to flip the price model around so that everyone is equal until they show they are a less demanding customer. The result works out the same way but it makes the discrimination hounds feel better and the few exceptions get to pay different prices than the norm. I wonder if a pay-per-X minutes model would work, if salons are forced to charge the genders equally. ---
**Author:** ![woodstockbirdybird](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/woodstockbirdybird/32/7905_2.png) [@woodstockbirdybird](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/woodstockbirdybird)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2013, 12:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-men-and-women-both-pay-the-same-price-for-a-haircut/647941/44 "2013-01-23T00:57:43Z")
> [@Anaamika](#): > > Honestly, if she didn’t need to wash it first, I would resent paying more. But mine always needs to be washed so I just deal. This I don’t understand. Why not just wash it yourself before you go in? Then you could save money. ---
**Author:** ![Sevencl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d9b06d/32.png) [@Sevencl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sevencl)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2013, 1:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-men-and-women-both-pay-the-same-price-for-a-haircut/647941/45 "2013-01-23T01:10:48Z")
> [@woodstockbirdybird](#): > > This I don’t understand. Why not just wash it yourself before you go in? Then you could save money. Nope, they just insist on washing it again themselves. ---
**Author:** ![california\_jobcase](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9d8465/32.png) [@california\_jobcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/california_jobcase)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2013, 1:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-men-and-women-both-pay-the-same-price-for-a-haircut/647941/46 "2013-01-23T01:28:19Z")
My standard haircut now is a 1/4" buzzcut that takes a barber all of 15 minutes including shaving the back of my neck. Thirty-two years ago, I had long hair and wanted a shampoo followed by a layered razor cut followed by a blow-dry. That took longer and cost more- $15 then compared to $8-$12 now, after three decades of inflation. Haircuts should be priced according to the amount of service rendered, not by sex. ---
**Author:** ![foolsguinea](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foolsguinea/32/14751_2.png) [@foolsguinea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/foolsguinea)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2013, 1:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-men-and-women-both-pay-the-same-price-for-a-haircut/647941/47 "2013-01-23T01:47:20Z")
It’s Denmark. They probably all have fine straight hair. Get someone in there with hard hair and see how long that policy stands. (seriously, what **california jobcase** said.) ---
**Author:** ![Shagnasty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9dc877/32.png) [@Shagnasty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shagnasty)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2013, 2:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-men-and-women-both-pay-the-same-price-for-a-haircut/647941/48 "2013-01-23T02:10:43Z")
> [@Sevencl](#): > > I wonder if a pay-per-X minutes model would work, if salons are forced to charge the genders equally. I don’t think so from a business perspective. Most of the (admittedly cheapish) salons I go to have the stylists doing double duty sometimes. They may have to walk off in the middle of a cut to answer the phone or need to to talk to a coworker about sweeping up or something. Some of the stylists are slow and some are very fast in general but they also alter their speed based on if there are a line of people waiting or not. Breaking it down like a cab ride seems like it would just piss everyone off all around. I don’t think you want to reward people for giving extra-slow haircuts when it isn’t needed. ---
**Author:** ![Kaio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/c68b51/32.png) [@Kaio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kaio)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2013, 2:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-men-and-women-both-pay-the-same-price-for-a-haircut/647941/49 "2013-01-23T02:37:11Z")
> [@TriPolar](#): > > I guess I’m not saying exactly that. I think there are categories of womens cuts and mens cuts, that may overlap, but the way a woman and man are given a haircut can be different based on the type of business. A salon catering to women may include washing with all cuts while a barber shop catering to men does not. So charge a shampoo as a separate service. (A lot of salons do this already… often a “shampoo, blow dry, & style” service.) > [@](#): > > Men’s cuts may include more work shaving the neck and face. So charge a beard shave as a separate service… and I have a hard time believing that barber shops don’t already do that. > [@](#): > > It’s not just different according to the cut itself, but other factors. The establishment has to have a simple system of determining price and hoping on average it will be profitable. There IS a simple system: how about based on the complexity of the cut and how much time, on average, such a cut would take to finish? > [@](#): > > Cases of men’s and women’s cuts being actually identical may be rare and not worth devising a special price for. In those cases it would be reasonable and good sense for a barber to charge the same price ignoring the way it is categorized. Why not just categorize it by complexity rather than gender to begin with? Tier 1: buzz cut, blunt cut. The 5-minute cut. Tier 2: layering, shaping Tier 3: razorcuts, sculpting, etc. This works regardless of sex, and as a bonus, regardless of hair length, too. > [@woodstockbirdybird](#): > > This I don’t understand. Why not just wash it yourself before you go in? Then you could save money. I’d wager that her hair needs to be damp when cut because of its texture. If she shampoos herself, it’s likely to be dry by the time she gets to the salon. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2013, 2:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-men-and-women-both-pay-the-same-price-for-a-haircut/647941/50 "2013-01-23T02:49:37Z")
Do woman pay more than men for a happy ending? ---
**Author:** ![stui\_magpie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stui_magpie/32/11010_2.png) [@stui\_magpie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stui_magpie)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2013, 4:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-men-and-women-both-pay-the-same-price-for-a-haircut/647941/51 "2013-01-23T04:07:15Z")
The option is available sometimes. This hairdressing chain charges the same price for a basic hair cut whether you’re male or female. > **[Just Cuts, Style cuts for everybody](https://www.justcuts.com.au/about/)** > > Just Cuts, Style cuts for everybody If you don’t like how much your hairdresser charges, go to a cheaper one. ---
**Author:** ![SciFiSam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/47e85d/32.png) [@SciFiSam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SciFiSam)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2013, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-men-and-women-both-pay-the-same-price-for-a-haircut/647941/52 "2013-01-24T20:26:08Z")
> [@stui\_magpie](#): > > The option is available sometimes. > > This hairdressing chain charges the same price for a basic hair cut whether you’re male or female. > > [Just Cuts Australia - Our Story](http://www.justcuts.com.au/about/) > > If you don’t like how much your hairdresser charges, go to a cheaper one. Just go to a different hairdresser isn’t an excuse for pricing policies that discriminate against one gender. It’s the same as if black people were charged more because of their race rather than hairstyle, so a black man would pay more than a white man for a buzzcut. Would you defend that? Also, I doubt that hairdresser is much use for people in Denmark. ---
**Author:** ![Hazle\_Weatherfield](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Hazle\_Weatherfield](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hazle_Weatherfield)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2013, 3:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-men-and-women-both-pay-the-same-price-for-a-haircut/647941/53 "2013-01-25T03:57:37Z")
> [@Shagnasty](#): > > I think that is the point. You could have two haircut price charts with pictures of the different ones allowed under each price tier. It doesn’t matter if you are male or female. If you want a clipper cut on the sides and back with the top scissor cut short and blended, it is one price. Long hair, feathering, layers, and bangs get a different price. Problem solved. Exactly. What the eff does it possibly matter what your gender is? Charge for the service, not the sex. 😃 Will a woman’s visit usually cost more? Probably. But to base the cost purely on gender is nonsense. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-men-and-women-both-pay-the-same-price-for-a-haircut/647941.md?page=2)