District of Columbia
Licensed cosmetology programs in District of Columbia 2026
Not ranked. District of Columbia Higher Education Licensure Commission (HELC), Office of the State Superintendent of Education publishes a roster of licensed schools without outcomes or license history, so nothing here supports ordering one above another.
There is no such thing as an accredited cosmetology program, in District of Columbia or anywhere else, because the field has no programmatic accreditor. NACCAS, the body most beauty schools advertise, accredits the institution rather than the course, so an accredited school and an unaccredited one can run the same program. What that accreditation buys a student is federal financial aid eligibility. The license from District of Columbia Higher Education Licensure Commission (HELC), Office of the State Superintendent of Education is what decides whether your hours count toward the exam.
| School | City | Board record | Approved to teach |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bennett Career Institute | Washington | Institution License · to 2027-02 | barbering, cosmetology, esthetics, instructor, nail-technology, natural-hair |
| Certification School Worldwide | Washington | Institution License · to 2027-03 | barbering, natural-hair |
| Dudley Beauty College | Washington | Institution License · to 2027-08 | cosmetology, instructor, nail-technology |
| Pruontos Hair Design Institute dba The Salon Professional Academy | Washington | Institution License · to 2028-01 | cosmetology, esthetics, instructor, nail-technology |
How do you become a cosmetologist in District of Columbia in 2026?
To become a cosmetologist in District of Columbia you need 1,250 clock hours at a school licensed by District of Columbia Higher Education Licensure Commission (HELC), Office of the State Superintendent of Education, then a passing score on the state exam. At the pace most clock-hour schools run, that is roughly 9.6 months full time. 10 states set a lower requirement and the rest set a higher one, in a national range topping out at 2,000 hours.
None of those hours count unless District of Columbia Higher Education Licensure Commission (HELC), Office of the State Superintendent of Education licensed the school at the time you sat them.
How much do cosmetologists make in District of Columbia in 2026?
Cosmetologists in District of Columbia earn a median of $54,570 , with the bottom tenth on $36,400 and the top tenth on $130,950 . The related licenses pay differently again, which matters because you pick the license before you start the hours.
- Cosmetologists $54,570 $54,570
- Salon managers $56,670 $56,670
- Estheticians $77,480 $77,480
- Makeup artists $95,730 $95,730
What is different about cosmetology licensing in District of Columbia?
At 1,250 hours DC sits near the bottom of the national range, and it is one of the few jurisdictions that writes the entire curriculum into regulation as a line-item hour table - 200 hours chemical straightening, 100 permanent wave, 75 electrology, 20 hours of D.C. law, and so on, summing exactly to 1,250. DC also offers a distinct lower-tier 'hairstylist' license at 1,000 hours that most states have no equivalent for, plus generous cross-credit rules: a licensed barber moving to cosmetology gets up to 1,000 hours of credit and needs only 250 additional hours. And the board that licenses the practitioners has no authority over the schools at all - it simply requires them to hold an Education Licensure Commission license. Read District of Columbia Higher Education Licensure Commission (HELC), Office of the State Superintendent of Education's own rules .
Is it better to be a cosmetologist, esthetician or nail tech in District of Columbia?
In District of Columbia, makeup artists are the best paid of the beauty licenses at a $95,730 median. That is above the $54,570 cosmetologist median, so the longer general license is not automatically the better-paid route here.
Each is a separate license with its own program and its own hour count, which is why the highest median is not automatically the best return on the time.
| Occupation | Median pay | Employed in state |
|---|---|---|
| Makeup artists | $95,730 | 60 |
| Estheticians | $77,480 | 200 |
| Salon managers | $56,670 | 260 |
Can you use a cosmetology license from another state in District of Columbia?
Using a cosmetology license from another state in District of Columbia means satisfying District of Columbia Higher Education Licensure Commission (HELC), Office of the State Superintendent of Education, which decides case by case, and the number it weighs is hours. Against the other South states, District of Columbia is it asks 197 fewer hours than the regional average of 1,447, and it pays about 73 percent above the regional average.
That matters if you might move, because a license does not travel automatically: the receiving state decides what your hours are worth, and a shorter program can be the harder one to carry across a line.
| State | Hours required | Median pay |
|---|---|---|
| District of Columbia (this state) | 1,250 | $54,570 |
| North Carolina | 1,500 | $38,410 |
| Maryland | 1,500 | $36,420 |
| Georgia | 1,500 | $34,560 |
| West Virginia | 2,000 | $34,480 |
| Delaware | $34,350 | |
| South Carolina | 1,500 | $33,700 |
| Tennessee | 1,500 | $31,310 |
| Texas | 1,000 | $30,680 |
| Kentucky | 1,500 | $29,840 |
| Oklahoma | 1,500 | $29,650 |
| Florida | 1,200 | $29,530 |
| Alabama | 1,500 | $29,150 |
| Arkansas | 1,500 | $28,830 |
| Mississippi | 1,500 | $27,560 |
| Louisiana | 1,500 | $26,030 |
| Virginia | 1,000 |
What does this District of Columbia cosmetology school list not tell you?
This District of Columbia cosmetology school list does not tell you everything you need. Any ordering of these schools would be arbitrary, so they are listed rather than ranked. Being on this list means the board licenses the school, which is the thing that makes your clock hours count, and it is the most useful fact available here.
Check a school against the NACCAS accredited school search if federal financial aid matters to you, and against District of Columbia Higher Education Licensure Commission (HELC), Office of the State Superintendent of Education for the license itself.
Common questions about cosmetology programs in District of Columbia
How many hours of training do you need for a cosmetology license in District of Columbia?
Should you choose a NACCAS-accredited school in District of Columbia?
Why are District of Columbia cosmetology schools not ranked here?
How many cosmetology programs in District of Columbia hold a current license?
What do cosmetologists earn in District of Columbia?
Where does this District of Columbia cosmetology program data come from?
This District of Columbia cosmetology program data comes from District of Columbia Higher Education Licensure Commission (HELC), Office of the State Superintendent of Education, read on 2026-08-31, from the board's own license records rather than from any school directory. At 1,250 hours DC sits near the bottom of the national range, and it is one of the few jurisdictions that writes the entire curriculum into regulation as a line-item hour table - 200 hours chemical straightening, 100 permanent wave, 75 electrology, 20 hours of D.C. law, and so on, summing exactly to 1,250. DC also offers a distinct lower-tier 'hairstylist' license at 1,000 hours that most states have no equivalent for, plus generous cross-credit rules: a licensed barber moving to cosmetology gets up to 1,000 hours of credit and needs only 250 additional hours. And the board that licenses the practitioners has no authority over the schools at all - it simply requires them to hold an Education Licensure Commission license.
District of Columbia Higher Education Licensure Commission (HELC), Office of the State Superintendent of EducationRead 2026-08-31.
- BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025 , metro and state pay, employment and concentration behind every wage figure on this page
- US Department of Education, College Scorecard, field of study CIP 12.04 , full program cost, median federal debt and the monthly cost of that debt, per institution