Why You’re Still Undercharging — And Exactly How to Fix It
Knowing how to raise nail prices is one of the most important — and most avoided — things a nail tech will ever do. I know because I learned the hard way.
I used to fall asleep at the wheel. Not figuratively. Literally. I was working corporate at Walgreens — rotating shifts, chronically short staffed, a difficult manager, and overtime pay that got swallowed whole by taxes. Morning shift one week, nights the next. I’d drive home in rush hour traffic after a night shift, foot on the brake at a red light. Out cold.
That’s when I decided: if I’m going to run myself into the ground, it’s going to be for me.
My best friend’s mom owned a salon at Northland Mall in Southfield, Michigan. She hired me. I showed up every single day, handed out cards, talked to clients, built appointments from nothing. Eventually I was fully booked — and I wasn’t even as skilled as I am today. That was the best feeling I’d ever had in a career.
Twenty-one years later, an MBA in strategic business management, training under three international nail masters, and two Nailympia competition placements — I can tell you this with complete confidence:
The reason most nail techs are still undercharging has nothing to do with the economy, their city, or their clients. It starts in their own mind.
The Real Reason You’re Undercharging: Why Most Nail Techs Are Afraid to Raise Nail Prices
I still work on this with myself today — and I want you to know that, because it means you’re not broken. You’re just operating from a place of lack. And that lack mindset is exactly what’s keeping you from knowing how to raise nail prices with confidence.
Lack thinking sounds like:
- “My clients can’t afford more.”
- “If I raise my prices, I’ll lose everyone.”
- “I’m not good enough to charge that much yet.”
- “I don’t want to make things hard for my clients — they’re basically family.”
That last one is the trap most nail techs don’t see coming.
You hold hands with your clients for hours. They tell you about their marriages, their kids, their hard weeks. Over time the professional line gets blurry. You start thinking of them as friends — and we don’t want to make things hard for our friends, especially financially.
Confusing a client with a friend is one of the fastest ways to close your business.
Think about Target. Think about Walmart. They don’t call you before they raise prices. You just show up one day and things cost more. They price their products strategically — high enough that when they run a sale, they’re still profitable. That’s not heartless. That’s business.
You are a business. And the point of being in business — beyond getting your creativity out — is generating an income. It makes no sense to do something you love so much and still struggle, because you’ve convinced yourself that charging your worth would hurt the people in your chair.
Here’s what actually hurts them: your business closing because you couldn’t stay profitable.
Two books that completely changed how I think about money:
📖 Business Boutique by Christy Wright 📖 Money Isn’t the Problem, You Are by Gary DouglasIf You’re the Cheapest in Your City and Still Not Getting Clients — Price Isn’t the Problem
This is the part nobody wants to hear. But I’d rather tell you the truth than let you keep undercharging and still stay stuck.
If you’re already the least expensive nail tech in your market, posting consistently, and still not getting clients — the issue is not your prices. Here are the five real reasons clients aren’t booking:
- Your work is not up to par. The market is honest. If clients aren’t coming, the work might not be at the level you think it is yet. Invest in education.
- Your work is boring. Even technically clean nails won’t book out if there’s no wow factor. Clients want to see something that makes them stop scrolling.
- You’re marketing to everyone with no specific call to action. Who are you talking to? How do they book? If that’s not crystal clear, you’re losing people before they even get to your page.
- You’re not telling clients why they should choose YOU. What makes you different? What’s your story? What do you offer that no one else in your city does?
- Unprofessionalism is costing you. Constantly late, a messy space, slow responses — clients have options. You have to show them you’re the best one.
I go deep on all five of these in my YouTube money and pricing series. If you want to raise nail prices and actually keep those clients, watch it and do the work. And when you’re ready to level up your toolkit, check out how to buy nail supplies the smart way.
▶️ Watch the YouTube Money & Pricing Series →How To Get Nail Clients — Full Playlist
What Leveling Up Your Skills Does to Your Nail Prices
When I started investing in advanced education — training under Motico, Akicco, and Ricco internationally, competing at Nailympia — I didn’t just get better at nails. I attracted a completely different client.
Think about the difference between walking into a Louis Vuitton store versus a Michael Kors store.
When you walk into Louis Vuitton, you expect a certain level of service. You know if something goes wrong with your bag, they’ll handle it — and they’ll charge you for it, because that level of care has a price. At Michael Kors, you know there’s a clearance rack. Different expectation. Different price point. Both great brands — but they are not playing the same game.
When you win competitions and train under masters, clients start expecting competition-level work. And competition-level work comes with higher nail prices — because the attention to detail is there every single time.
Every time I’ve told my clients I’m raising my prices, do they care? Yes — because it affects their budget. But they also understand that excellence has a cost. And the clients who respect your work will adjust their budget. The ones who don’t? They were always one cheaper option away from leaving anyway.
We have to think of our clients like a commodity as much as we love them. There will always be someone else willing to pay what you’re worth. Keeping prices artificially low doesn’t make clients loyal — it just attracts clients who will leave the moment someone cheaper shows up.
Ask yourself about every new skill you learn: how does this add to my bottom line? If you’re learning something with market demand and visual impact — like airbrush — that skill should immediately show up when you raise nail prices on your service menu.
How to Raise Nail Prices: A Step-by-Step Plan That Actually Works
You haven’t raised your prices in two years. You know you need to. Here’s exactly how — starting with numbers, not fear.
Know Your Numbers First
Before you touch your price list, add up what it actually costs you to be in business: salon suite or booth rent, products and supplies, booking software, insurance, marketing tools — plus your personal living expenses. That total is your baseline. Everything above it is profit. If your current pricing doesn’t clear that number comfortably, you already have your answer.
Calculate Your Real Hourly Rate
How many clients do you see per week? How long does the average service take? Divide what you make in a week by the hours you work. That’s your current hourly rate. Now ask: what hourly rate do you need to be profitable AND have a life? The gap between those two numbers is your raise.
Do the Math on a Small Increase
A $5 raise feels small. But run the numbers on 10 clients a week and it adds up fast.
The $5 Raise — By the Numbers
I guarantee your supply costs have already gone up more than $5 since you last raised your prices.
Communicate It Professionally
Send a simple message to your clients. You don’t need to over-explain. You don’t need to apologize. The gas company doesn’t.
“Due to the increasing costs of daily living and supplies, I will be adjusting my service pricing effective [DATE]. While I understand this is a change, this adjustment allows me to continue providing you with the quality and experience you deserve. I appreciate your continued support.”
Target doesn’t send a note before they raise prices. The gas company doesn’t call. They just adjust — because the economy moves and businesses have to move with it. Your nail prices have to keep pace with the economy, or your business cannot stay open.
If the increase feels big, go incremental — $5 this year, $5 next year. Small consistent raises are easier for clients to absorb and keep you from falling so far behind that you have to make a dramatic jump all at once.
The Bottom Line
You got into nails because you love it. The artistry, the creativity, the relationships. But loving your work doesn’t mean you work for less than you’re worth. The two are not in conflict.
You deserve to be profitable. You deserve to charge for your training, your time, your talent, and the experience you create. You deserve to still be doing nails five, ten, twenty years from now — not burned out and broke because you were too afraid to raise nail prices.
Price your services to keep yourself in business. Because the nail techs who can’t stay profitable can’t serve anyone.
If you’re ready to add a skill to your menu that immediately justifies a price increase and cuts your service time — airbrush is it. It’s what changed my business, and it can change yours.
Ready to Raise Your Prices and Mean It?
Airbrush Elevated teaches you how to add the premium skill that attracts premium clients — and gives you every reason to charge more, starting now.
Learn About Airbrush Elevated →