Also called: Hairdressers and Cosmetologists
Hairdressers, Hairstylists, and Cosmetologists build service orientation, judgment and decision making and social perceptiveness skills that carry over to other work. Below are 25 careers ranked by how closely their skills match, with pay from BLS May 2025. The closest match is Retail Salespersons (72%).
Updated October 2026 · Data: O*NET 31.0 and BLS OEWS May 2025 · How we match careers
Sorted by skill match.
| # | Career | Skill match | Median pay | Pay change | Extra education |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Retail Salespersons | 72% | $35,410 | −1% | None |
| 2 | Opticians, Dispensing | 72% | $47,260 | +32% | None |
| 3 | Exercise Trainers and Group Fitness Instructors | 71% | $47,160 | +32% | None |
| 4 | Animal Trainers | 71% | $39,990 | +12% | None |
| 5 | Floral Designers | 71% | $37,360 | +4% | None |
| 6 | Merchandise Displayers and Window Trimmers | 71% | $39,390 | +10% | None |
| 7 | Bartenders | 69% | $34,340 | −4% | None |
| 8 | Maids and Housekeeping Cleaners | 68% | $35,510 | −1% | None |
| 9 | Photographers | 68% | $44,660 | +25% | None |
| 10 | Morticians, Undertakers, and Funeral Arrangers | 67% | $55,010 | +54% | None |
Compared with Hairdressers, Hairstylists, and Cosmetologists, median $35,790. Skill match is our estimate (0–99) from O*NET 31.0 skills, knowledge, work activities and interests, adjusted for preparation and big pay drops. Pay: BLS OEWS May 2025, national median.
How important each skill is in work as hairdressers, hairstylists, and cosmetologists (O*NET importance, scale 1–5).
The gaps that show up most often across your top 10 matches.
Free and low-cost training: use the CareerOneStop training finder below.
A concrete first step, the skills to add, and the hard parts of each job, from O*NET 31.0 education, training and work context data.
72% skill match · $35,410 · −1% pay
Persuasion · Negotiation · Operation and Control
72% skill match · $47,260 · +32% pay
Operation and Control · Quality Control Analysis · Repairing
71% skill match · $47,160 · +32% pay
Instructing · Troubleshooting · Quality Control Analysis
If you want to stay close to what you do now, these roles are the nearest.
The closest matches are Retail Salespersons (72% skill match, median $35,410), Opticians, Dispensing (72% skill match, median $47,260) and Exercise Trainers and Group Fitness Instructors (71% skill match, median $47,160), based on O*NET 31.0 data and BLS May 2025 pay.
Among the 25 matches, 15 pay more than hairdressers, hairstylists, and cosmetologists at the median. The biggest increases: Athletes and Sports Competitors (+86%, $66,710), Embalmers (+64%, $58,780) and Massage Therapists (+63%, $58,450).
25 of the 25 matches usually need no more education than you have now, based on O*NET Job Zones.
We compare the importance of skills, knowledge, work activities and interests in O*NET 31.0 for your job and every other career, then adjust for extra preparation and big pay drops. The full method is on our Methodology page.