How to choose the right salon stool

What is a salon stool?

A salon stool goes by many names in the industry. A hairdressing chair, a hairdressing chair with wheels, a salon stool, treatment stools, and many more. The salon stool is what you, the hairdresser, sit on when cutting the customer’s hair.

Flat top or saddle?

It’s 100% individual. I always recommend trying a lot of different ones and buying the one that suits you best. It’s a bit like showing your mom how fast you could run in your new shoes before you bought them. There can be an ergonomic advantage to choosing a salon stool with a saddle. Read below.

With or without backrest?

Denmark is the only country in the world that uses salon stools with backrests. Most people only use it to grab and move the stool between treatments.

Ergonomics

Proper ergonomics is super important and is what helps you keep being a hairdresser. The rule of thumb is that you should sit comfortably all day. By choosing a salon stool with a saddle, you get an ergonomic tilt in your lower back. Note that this doesn’t necessarily apply to all models. Try many and find your favorite.

With or without wheels?

Advantages of salon stools with wheels: Salon stools with wheels offer easy mobility, quick adjustment of your working position for optimal ergonomics, and the possibility to create different or even new work areas during busy times, in salons with more than one customer station. Shop salon stools here

Disadvantages of hairdressing chairs with wheels: Wheels are moving parts and need maintenance. You can help yourself by choosing anti-static wheels with a good, firm hair-repellent cover.

Advantages of salon stools without wheels: Salon stools without wheels – often called a treatment stool – offer a different set of benefits. Here, the treatment stool is the right choice for you if you have longer treatments and want a stable base where you only focus on the customer and don’t want unnecessary movement. Some salons choose treatment stools for the wash area, so you sit steadily while, for example, giving the customer a soothing scalp massage. Shop treatment stools here

Disadvantages of hairdressing chairs without wheels: The only downside is that they don’t roll. If you need mobility, a treatment stool is not right for you. Instead, choose a salon stool. Most treatment stools today come with an ergonomic tilt in the seat. See for example the Flex treatment stool from Vismara

Hair-repellent covers

Do you have many customers in the salon? Hair everywhere? Buy a salon stool with a hair-repellent cover. It’s a small cover that sits on all the wheels of your salon stool. It usually can’t be retrofitted, so buy a salon stool that comes with it. For example, this one.

Final words

It’s called a salon stool – not a hairdressing chair :)
Write to me if you want help finding the best salon stool for you.