Maine
Best cosmetology programs in Maine 2026
Portland skyline. Photo by Quintin Soloviev, licensed under CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
Ranked on the share of students who finish what they started, within half again the program's normal length, as reported per institution to the US Department of Education. In a clock-hour trade this is the outcome that matters most: the license needs the full hour count, so a student who leaves early has paid for hours that will never qualify them.
Ranking on accreditation is impossible in this field, because no cosmetology program is accredited by anyone. NACCAS accredits the school and not the course, so an accredited school can run exactly the same program as an unaccredited one. A student's hours stand or fall on the school's Maine Office of Professional and Occupational Regulation, Barbering and Cosmetology Licensing Program (Department of Professional and Financial Regulation) license instead, and that is the distinction this page is built on.
3
schools reporting federally
3
qualify to be ranked
0
excluded, under 40 enrolled students
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#1
Spa Tech Institute-Westbrook
Westbrook, ME
85%
Share of students who finish
- 194 graduates a year
- $12,950 program cost
What the record shows
Based in Westbrook, Spa Tech Institute-Westbrook is one of the cosmetology programs the federal government tracks. 85 percent of the 263 students it enrolls finish. The published cost is $12,950 for the full program. Spa Tech campuses share a debt figure in the federal file, $6,333 in federal loans at the median over 324 borrowers, so read it as the chain's number rather than this floor's. On the standard ten-year plan that is about $67 a month. With only 3 schools on this page there is no median worth quoting; 85 percent finishing and a $12,950 price are the two figures to carry to the other 2. 194 students completed a credential here in the reporting year. Ask the state board directly whether the license is in good standing, because a lapse while you are enrolled costs you the hours rather than the school.
Where it leads
Around Portland-South Portland, the median cosmetologist earns $46,460, the bottom tenth $33,240 and the top tenth $74,540.
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#2
Capilo School of Hair Design
Augusta, ME
79%
Share of students who finish
- 79% finish
- 167 graduates a year
- $16,900 program cost
What the record shows
Capilo School of Hair Design teaches cosmetology in Augusta, with its results published federally. Of the 156 students in its fall count, 79 percent complete the course they started. The published cost is $16,900 for the full program. Borrowing here runs to a median of $8,444 in federal loans, measured over 132 graduates. On the standard ten-year plan that is about $90 a month. With only 3 schools on this page there is no median worth quoting; 79 percent finishing and a $16,900 price are the two figures to carry to the other 2. It awarded 167 credentials over the year against a fall headcount of 156, which is what a clock-hour course that turns over more than one cohort a year looks like. Check its license with the state board before enrolling, because that record and not the federal listing is what makes your clock hours count.
Where it leads
In Maine, the median cosmetologist earns $44,000, the bottom tenth $30,640 and the top tenth $63,640. Early pay across the state runs well under the median, so budget for a slow first year rather than the headline figure. Maine employs the trade at close to the national rate, around 970 people.
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#3
Empire Beauty School-Maine
Bangor, ME
67%
Share of students who finish
- 67% finish
- 77 graduates a year
- $17,625 program cost
What the record shows
Empire Beauty School-Maine runs its cosmetology program in Bangor and reports to the US Department of Education. Of the 117 students in its fall count, 67 percent complete the course they started. Tuition is reported at $17,625 for the full program. Empire Beauty campuses share a debt figure in the federal file, $13,000 in federal loans at the median over 746 borrowers, so read it as the chain's number rather than this floor's. On the standard ten-year plan that is about $138 a month. With only 3 schools on this page there is no median worth quoting; 67 percent finishing and a $17,625 price are the two figures to carry to the other 2. The school conferred 77 credentials in the year reported. Check its license with the state board before enrolling, because that record and not the federal listing is what makes your clock hours count.
Where it leads
undefined The metro median runs about 16 percent below the Maine figure. The ninetieth percentile at $59,930 is 1.6 times the median, so the upside is real but bounded, and the floor sits 18 percent under the median, so the first year is lean but not the cliff it is in some states. Bangor employs the trade at only about 0.5 times the national rate, so graduates enter a thinner local market than average.
- Spa Tech Institute-Westbrook 85% 85%
- Capilo School of Hair Design 79% 79%
- Empire Beauty School-Maine 67% 67%
Where can you find the licensed cosmetology programs in Maine?
The licensed cosmetology programs in Maine are searched one at a time rather than published as a list, so this page links Maine Office of Professional and Occupational Regulation, Barbering and Cosmetology Licensing Program (Department of Professional and Financial Regulation)'s own records instead of reprinting a commercial directory. The schools above are drawn from the 3 Maine cosmetology programs that take federal financial aid and therefore report their results to the Department of Education. That is a large share of the field and not all of it, so a school missing here is one that takes no federal aid rather than one that is unlicensed. Look up the school you are considering in the board's records and confirm the license is current before you pay anything.
How do you become a cosmetologist in Maine in 2026?
To become a cosmetologist in Maine you need 1,500 clock hours at a school licensed by Maine Office of Professional and Occupational Regulation, Barbering and Cosmetology Licensing Program (Department of Professional and Financial Regulation), then a passing score on the state exam. At the pace most clock-hour schools run, that is roughly 11.5 months full time. 13 states set a lower requirement and the rest set a higher one, in a national range topping out at 2,000 hours.
Those hours only count if the school held a license from Maine Office of Professional and Occupational Regulation, Barbering and Cosmetology Licensing Program (Department of Professional and Financial Regulation) while you were enrolled, so check the license before the brochure when comparing cosmetology programs.
How much do cosmetologists make in Maine in 2026?
Cosmetologists in Maine earn a median of $44,000 , with the bottom tenth on $30,640 and the top tenth on $63,640 . The related licenses pay differently again, which matters because you pick the license before you start the hours.
- Cosmetologists $44,000 $44,000
- Salon managers $52,780 $52,780
- Estheticians $55,850 $55,850
- Nail technicians $48,540 $48,540
- Barbers $35,300 $35,300
What is different about cosmetology licensing in Maine?
Maine has no cosmetology board. The Board of Barbering and Cosmetology was eliminated and the program is administered by the OPOR Director, so rules that elsewhere read 'the Board shall' read 'the Director shall' throughout. It is also one of the few states where the apprenticeship route is punitive rather than a shortcut: school is 1,500 hours but the trainee path is 2,500 hours over at least 18 months, and out-of-state applicants trained on a 1,000-hour curriculum must make up the gap with 1,500 hours of documented licensed work experience evidenced by W-2s. Maine additionally licenses a 'limited barber' at 1,600 hours and a separate 'hair designer'. Read Maine Office of Professional and Occupational Regulation, Barbering and Cosmetology Licensing Program (Department of Professional and Financial Regulation)'s own rules .
Where do cosmetologists make the most money in Maine?
Cosmetologists make the most money in Maine around Portland-South Portland, where the median is $46,460, and the least around Bangor at $37,050. A 25 percent spread across one state means where you work matters more to your pay than which of these metros you trained in.
The statewide median sits at $44,000, so the metros above it are carrying the average up.
- Portland-South Portland $46,460 $46,460
- Lewiston-Auburn $38,200 $38,200
- Bangor $37,050 $37,050
Is it better to be a cosmetologist, esthetician or nail tech in Maine?
In Maine, estheticians are the best paid of the beauty licenses at a $55,850 median. That is above the $44,000 cosmetologist median, so the longer general license is not automatically the better-paid route here.
A narrower license limits what you can charge for, and that ceiling matters more over a career than the opening figure does.
| Occupation | Median pay | Employed in state |
|---|---|---|
| Estheticians | $55,850 | 260 |
| Salon managers | $52,780 | 410 |
| Nail technicians | $48,540 | 200 |
| Barbers | $35,300 | 50 |
Can you use a cosmetology license from another state in Maine?
Using a cosmetology license from another state in Maine means satisfying Maine Office of Professional and Occupational Regulation, Barbering and Cosmetology Licensing Program (Department of Professional and Financial Regulation), which decides case by case, and the number it weighs is hours. Against the other Northeast states, Maine is it asks 356 more hours than the regional average of 1,144, and it pays about 15 percent above the regional average.
It is worth knowing before you train if there is any chance you will move, since transferring a license is an application to the receiving board rather than a formality.
| State | Hours required | Median pay |
|---|---|---|
| Maine (this state) | 1,500 | $44,000 |
| Vermont | 1,000 | $48,650 |
| Connecticut | 1,500 | $44,620 |
| Massachusetts | 1,000 | $37,290 |
| Pennsylvania | 1,250 | $36,790 |
| New Jersey | 1,200 | $36,150 |
| New York | 1,000 | $35,760 |
| New Hampshire | 1,200 | $34,650 |
| Rhode Island | 1,000 | $31,200 |
What does this Maine cosmetology program ranking not tell you?
This Maine cosmetology program ranking does not tell you everything you need. This is a completion rate, not a teaching inspection, and a school can lift it by enrolling only students likely to finish just as easily as by teaching well. It is reported for the institution rather than for the cosmetology course alone, which is exact at the beauty schools that teach nothing else and broader at a community college, where cosmetology is one program among many; each card says which kind it is describing. Schools enrolling fewer than 40 students are left out, because a completion rate over a handful of people moves too far on one person's decision to be worth ordering on. It covers only schools that take federal financial aid, a large share of the field but not all of it, so a school missing here takes no federal aid rather than performing badly. Finishing also says nothing about whether a school's hours will count toward your license, which is what the board record on this page is for.
Check a school against the NACCAS accredited school search if federal financial aid matters to you, and against Maine Office of Professional and Occupational Regulation, Barbering and Cosmetology Licensing Program (Department of Professional and Financial Regulation) for the license itself.
Common questions about cosmetology programs in Maine
What makes the best cosmetology programs in Maine rank highly here?
How many cosmetology schools are there in Maine?
Should you choose a NACCAS-accredited school in Maine?
How much does cosmetology school cost in Maine?
Are the best cosmetology programs in Maine accredited?
Where does this Maine cosmetology program data come from?
This Maine cosmetology program data comes from Maine Office of Professional and Occupational Regulation, Barbering and Cosmetology Licensing Program (Department of Professional and Financial Regulation), read on 2026-08-31, from the board's own license records rather than from any school directory. The cost and debt figures come from the US Department of Education's College Scorecard , which publishes them per institution for cosmetology programs at every school taking federal financial aid. Maine has no cosmetology board. The Board of Barbering and Cosmetology was eliminated and the program is administered by the OPOR Director, so rules that elsewhere read 'the Board shall' read 'the Director shall' throughout. It is also one of the few states where the apprenticeship route is punitive rather than a shortcut: school is 1,500 hours but the trainee path is 2,500 hours over at least 18 months, and out-of-state applicants trained on a 1,000-hour curriculum must make up the gap with 1,500 hours of documented licensed work experience evidenced by W-2s. Maine additionally licenses a 'limited barber' at 1,600 hours and a separate 'hair designer'.
Maine Office of Professional and Occupational Regulation, Barbering and Cosmetology Licensing Program (Department of Professional and Financial Regulation)Read 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