How much cash should a salon keep?

A salon gets paid at the chair, by card, the same day. It never waits on customers. Cash pressure comes from commission payroll, retail product bought ahead, and rent. If stylists rent booths instead, the salon collects rent and carries less payroll but less revenue.

Payroll per run, all-in $ How often you run payroll Fixed bills per month (rent, loans, insurance, software) $ Days your customers take to pay, on average days Cash in the bank today $

Minimum to keep

Two payroll runs plus one month of fixed bills

Comfortable level

Covers costs while you wait for customers to pay, plus one month

Weeks your cash covers

If no customer paid you

The starting numbers are an example. Replace them with yours.

How cash moves in a salon

Card payments arrive in a day or two, so collections are rarely the problem.
Commission payroll rises with services, which protects margin but not cash timing.
Retail product sits on the shelf until it sells. That is cash on a shelf.
Gift cards bring cash in for services you still owe.

Why the usual rule falls short

Two salons each take $40,000 a month. One pays stylists commission. The other rents booths for a flat weekly fee. The first carries payroll that moves with every service. The second gets steady rent but keeps none of the service revenue.

How the calculator works

Result	Formula
Minimum to keep	2 × payroll per run + 1 month of fixed bills
Comfortable level	Monthly costs × (days to collect ÷ 30 + 1)
Weeks your cash covers	Cash ÷ weekly costs

Get this done for you every Monday

One Page CFO reads your QuickBooks, builds your 13-week cash forecast and your one-page report, and a CFO checks both. $500 a month.

Check if I fit →

Also for salon owners, see the salon monthly financial report.