Business energy for hairdressers Sort your salon's next energy contract between clients.

About 13,600 kWh a year for a salon of 49 m², the median size in DESNZ's Building Energy Efficiency Survey, but that's an estimate: DESNZ doesn't publish a median yearly use for salons. The survey found hairdressers and beauty salons used a median of about 278 kWh of electricity per square metre a year in 2014-15, second only to large food shops among the retail premises it covered and about two and a half times the median for small shops. Your bill shows what yours actually uses.

There's no official figure for salons, but at an estimated 13,600 kWh a year, a 49 m² salon would pay about £5,220 a year before VAT, or £440 a month, at the provisional Q2 2026 average paid by businesses using up to 20,000 kWh a year (38.36p per kWh, including every charge except VAT). Electric water heating, air conditioning and a bigger floor area tend to push it up. If your hot water runs on gas, that's a separate bill on top.

Heating water. University of Southampton research with 20 salon owners found it's the most energy-intensive activity in a salon, far more than hair drying, and DESNZ's building survey also puts hot water first once gas and other fuels are counted. On the electricity bill alone, lighting comes first at about a third, then hot water at about a fifth. The same survey found salons used more electricity per square metre on cooling than any other kind of shop, because heat from lights and salon equipment meant many were air conditioned.

It depends on each bill. HMRC treats electricity averaging no more than 33 kWh a day (1,000 kWh a month) as domestic use, so there's no Climate Change Levy, no certificate needed and a lower VAT rate instead of 20%: 0% in Great Britain from 1 October 2026 to 31 March 2027, then 5% again, and 5% in Northern Ireland. Salons use a lot of electricity for their size, so check each bill rather than assuming: 20% is correct on a bill over the limit, but if a bill averages 33 kWh a day or less and still shows 20%, ask your supplier to correct it. Gas has its own limit, 145 kWh a day, and stays at 5% within it.

Whoever is responsible for paying the salon's energy bill, and your lease should say whether that's you or your landlord. If it's you, Ofgem's 2022 advice for business tenants, written with Citizens Advice and Energy UK, says you can still switch even if the lease ties you to a preferred supplier, but check for clauses saying you must tell your landlord if you plan to switch, or switch back to a particular supplier when the tenancy ends. Your landlord could be responsible instead if they pay the supplier and recharge you, or include energy in your rent. HMRC's VAT guidelines for salons with self-employed stylists list heat, light and water among the services the salon provides.

Yes. DESNZ's building survey sampled men's hairdressers in the same group as hair and beauty salons, so the estimates and the electricity split on this page cover barbershops too. DESNZ doesn't publish separate figures for barbers, so your own bill is the only exact figure for your shop.

It depends on your agreement. HMRC's guidance gives the example of a barbershop owner who rents chairs to self-employed barbers, taking an agreed percentage of every appointment as rent and adding VAT for the chair, and HMRC's guidelines say chair agreements should be clear on services such as heat, light and water. So check what your agreement says your rent covers. The energy contract itself belongs to whoever is responsible for paying the premises' energy bill, so check whose name the account is in.

Tell the current supplier as soon as you can, with a meter reading if you can take one: Ofgem says both the business moving in and the one moving out should. The supplier can ask for evidence such as your lease and reviews it within 10 working days. You're responsible for any energy you use before your own contract starts, and moving in without arranging one puts you on a deemed contract, at rates Ofgem says are usually higher than negotiated ones.

No. Ofgem says there's no cooling-off period on a business energy contract, so check the terms and fees before you sign, and if a contract is offered over the phone, ask for it in writing before you agree. Checking your bill takes seconds; signing shouldn't be rushed. On Meet George you compare electricity contracts and sign online in your own time, with our 1p/kWh fee shown separately on every quote.

A flat 1p per kWh, and you only pay it if you switch through Meet George. For a salon using an estimated 13,600 kWh a year, that's £136 a year. The same 1p per kWh applies to gas. Electricity switches happen online; gas isn't on the platform yet, so for now our team arranges gas contracts with you directly. You pay the fee through your energy supplier, and it's itemised on every quote, never buried.