Chicago, Illinois
Running a Chicago salon? Know how many appointments pay for today.
Free. No sign-up.
Labor is set to the $17.05 Chicago minimum wage for employers with 4 or more employees: two people for 8 hours is $272.80. The $60 average appointment is only an example. Change any number.
Rent, insurance, subscriptions, loan payments
What you pay staff on a normal day
What one customer spends, on average
Food and drink cost as a % of the check
30 = open every day. 26 = closed one day a week. 22 = closed two.
Customers to break even today
18 customers
That is $1,080 in sales.
Your costs today$734
$462 fixed + $273 labor
Each customer contributes
$42.00
What is left after cost of goods
We divide your monthly fixed costs by the 26 days you open. Then we add one day of labor cost. Each customer covers only what is left after cost of goods. That is why the number is higher than your costs divided by the average sale.
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The free fix
The free fix, from KANJIN (kanjin.app), a digital stamp card and back office for small shops: Free break-even tracker.
Know each day if the salon covered its costs
Type the figures from the calculator above into the free back office once. Each day's sales then show whether the salon made its target. Print the page and tape it by the back door, so every shift knows the number.
Free plan, no time limit. No card needed.
Short answer
How many appointments does my Chicago salon need each day to cover its costs?
Add up one day of rent and wages, divide it by what each appointment leaves after color, product and supplies, and round up. At the $17.05 Chicago minimum wage, two people on an 8-hour shift cost $272.80 before the first client sits down.
Count appointments, not hours open
Your rent, the chairs, the dryers and the people on the schedule cost the same on an empty Tuesday and a full Saturday.
So the daily target is a number of appointments. How many do you need before the day stops losing money?
Type your own rent, wages and average appointment into the calculator above. The answer is your daily target.
Which minimum wage your salon pays
The Chicago minimum wage applies to employers with 4 or more employees. Since July 1, 2026, it is $17.05 an hour.
A salon with fewer than 4 employees follows the Illinois minimum wage: $15.00 an hour for workers 18 and older.
In Chicago, tipped workers at employers with 4 or more employees have a minimum wage of $12.96. If wage plus tips is under the full minimum wage, you pay the difference.
Paid leave is part of the wage bill
Chicago's Paid Leave and Paid Sick and Safe Leave ordinance covers employees who work at least 80 hours within any 120-day period.
They earn 1 hour of paid leave and 1 hour of paid sick leave for every 35 hours worked. Each kind goes up to 40 hours in a 12-month period.
Those paid hours cost money on days nobody does a client. Put a little extra into your daily wages so the target stays honest.
Check the number every day
A target you worked out once and then forgot does not help on a quiet weekday.
The free break-even tracker keeps your target with your shop. Each day's sales show whether you made it. Print it and tape it by the back door for every shift.
How to work out your salon's daily break-even in Chicago
- Add up one day of fixed costs.
Take your monthly rent, insurance and bills, and divide by the days you open.
- Pick the right wage.
4 or more employees: at least $17.05 an hour in Chicago. Fewer than 4: at least the Illinois $15.00.
- Find what one appointment leaves.
Your average appointment before tax and tips, minus the color, product and supplies it uses.
- Divide and round up.
The day's costs divided by what one appointment leaves. That is how many appointments cover the day.
The local numbers, with sources
- Chicago minimum wage
- $17.05 an hour since July 1, 2026, for employers with 4 or more employees; tipped workers $12.96, and the employer makes up any gap
- Source: City of Chicago, Business Affairs and Consumer Protection, Minimum Wage, checked 2026-11-08.
- Chicago paid leave
- 1 hour of paid leave and 1 hour of paid sick leave for every 35 hours worked, up to 40 hours of each in a 12-month period, for employees who work at least 80 hours within any 120-day period
- Source: City of Chicago, Business Affairs and Consumer Protection, Paid Leave and Paid Sick and Safe Leave, checked 2026-11-08.
- Illinois minimum wage
- $15.00 an hour for workers 18 and older
- Source: Illinois Department of Labor, Minimum Wage Law, checked 2026-11-08.
Common questions
What is the minimum wage for a Chicago salon now?
$17.05 an hour since July 1, 2026, if you have 4 or more employees. With fewer than 4, the Illinois minimum wage of $15.00 an hour for workers 18 and older applies.
Do Chicago salon staff get paid leave?
Yes, if they work at least 80 hours within any 120-day period. They earn 1 hour of paid leave and 1 hour of paid sick leave for every 35 hours worked, up to 40 hours of each in a 12-month period.
How do I work out how many appointments I need?
Divide one day of fixed costs and wages by what one average appointment leaves after color, product and supplies. Round up. That is how many appointments you need each day.
Does the break-even tracker cost anything?
No. It is part of the free KANJIN back office, with no time limit. Type your costs once, and your target is there each time you sign in, on any device.
Do it for your own shop, free
Set your daily target once. Each day’s sales show whether you made it.
Type each day’s sales and supplier costs, and see how the week went in one chart.