Grooming Calculators
DIY haircut savings.
Enter what the barber charges, the tip, how many weeks you go between cuts and what a set of clippers costs. See what you spend a year, how many cuts it takes for clippers to pay for themselves and what you save over 1, 5 and 10 years. Runs in your browser; nothing is sent or stored.
Barber vs clippers
Savings
Fill the form and press Calculate.
Worked example
A $30 cut with a 20% tip is $36 a visit. Every 4 weeks that is 365.25 / 28 = 13.04 visits and $469.61 a year. Clippers at $60 plus $10 a year of upkeep: year 1 costs $70, so you save $399.61. Breakeven = 60 / (36 - 10 / 13.04) = 1.7 visits, about 7 weeks.
How it works
barber cost per visit = price x (1 + tip / 100) + travel. Visits per year = 365.25 / (7 x weeks between cuts). Barber per year = cost per visit x visits per year.
DIY year 1 = clippers + upkeep; later years = upkeep only. Breakeven visits = clippers / (cost per visit - upkeep per visit). If upkeep per visit is as large as the barber visit, the clippers never pay back and the tool says so.
Money only. It does not price your time, your first few uneven cuts or the quality of the result. Prices are held flat for the 5 and 10 year figures.
Sources and basis (checked 2026-10-05): arithmetic on the numbers you enter. No prices are assumed.
FAQ
How much does a haircut cost per year?
Price plus tip plus travel, times the number of cuts a year. At $36 a visit every 4 weeks that is about $470.
How many haircuts until clippers pay for themselves?
Clipper price divided by the barber visit cost minus yearly upkeep spread across visits. $60 clippers against a $36 visit pays back in under 2 visits.
Does it count my time?
No. If cutting your own hair takes you 30 minutes, value that yourself; the tool compares cash only.
What counts as upkeep?
Blade oil, a replacement blade, guard attachments, batteries or cord. Enter a yearly total, or 0.
What if I only go to the barber for a fade now and then?
Set weeks between cuts to your real gap and use your own savings figure. You can also model a hybrid by entering a longer gap.