Oklahoma City, OK
Cosmetology Schools in Oklahoma City, OK, Ranked (2026)
Oklahoma City skyline. Photo by Spatms, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
Published
Edited by Zoe MacDougall, BS in Psychology
The cosmetology schools in Oklahoma City are better documented than in most cities, because Oklahoma puts its licensed-school roster out as a downloadable file rather than hiding it behind a search box. Fifteen licensed schools sit inside the city. Eleven schools in and around Oklahoma City report federal completion data, and eight of those had cohorts large enough to rank.
So ten of the fifteen licensed schools in Oklahoma City are outside the ranked list. Most are small private schools that fall outside federal reporting, which tells you nothing about the teaching. What the roster does tell you is which programs each school is cleared to run, whether that is cosmetology, barbering, esthetics, nail technology, or several at once.
Figures in this section: Oklahoma State Board of Cosmetology and Barbering; BLS OEWS, May 2025; College Scorecard, June 2026.
The 8 Cosmetology Schools in and Near Oklahoma City, Ranked on Completion
11 cosmetology programs report to the US Department of Education from inside Oklahoma City or within 30 miles of downtown. 8 of them had at least 40 students and a published completion figure, and they are ordered on the share of students who finish within half again the program's normal length. The other 3 had too few students to rank, so the list stops at 8.
Where a school's board record was matched, the card carries it. A school that appears here without one is not unlicensed; it means the board's file and the federal file did not agree on its name, and the Oklahoma page links the board's own lookup.
| # | School | Miles | Finish |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | The Academy of Hair Design LLC | 10 | 100% |
| 2 | Moore Norman Technology Center | 14 | 91% |
| 3 | JB's Hair Design and Barber College | 4 | 74% |
| 4 | Canadian Valley Technology Center | 21 | 71% |
| 5 | Mid-Del Technology Center | 6 | 70% |
| 6 | Central Oklahoma College | 11 | 53% |
| 7 | Francis Tuttle Technology Center | 12 | 52% |
| 8 | Metro Technology Centers | 4 | 35% |
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#1
The Academy of Hair Design LLC
Oklahoma City, OK · Licensed school
100%
Share of students who finish
- Cosmetology
- $18,100 program cost
What the record shows
The Academy of Hair Design LLC trains in Oklahoma City, licensed by the Oklahoma State Board of Cosmetology and Barbering. The board licenses it to train toward cosmetology. Oklahoma City has 15 licensed schools, so there is a real choice locally. The school graduates 100 percent, on a fall headcount of 56. Tuition is reported at $18,100 for the full program. Graduates who borrowed took on $16,500 in federal loans at the median, 46 of them. On the standard ten-year plan that is about $175 a month. That is most of the $18,100 price arriving as debt, so the published cost and what a student actually finances are close to the same number here. 26 points more of its students finish than the 74 percent private-school median, priced exactly at the $18,100 private-school median, so you pay the going rate for better than average odds of getting through. The page median is set by public technology centers, so that comparison is against the other private schools here. It awarded 37 beauty credentials in the reporting year. Ask the Oklahoma State Board of Cosmetology and Barbering 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
For cosmetologists around Oklahoma City, the range runs $18,980 to $61,970 between the tenth and ninetieth percentiles, with a median of $29,700. A gap that size tracks clientele rather than seniority. This is a comparatively thin market: Oklahoma City runs at roughly 0.6 times the national concentration, about 810 people in the occupation.
Sources: US Department of Education, College Scorecard; Oklahoma State Board of Cosmetology and Barbering, read 2026-08-31.
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#2
Moore Norman Technology Center
Norman, OK · Public School
91%
Share of students who finish
- Cosmetology
- Esthetics
- $2,850 program cost
What the record shows
Moore Norman Technology Center operates in Norman under license from the Oklahoma State Board of Cosmetology and Barbering. Its license covers cosmetology and esthetics. Across all 419 students at the center, 91 percent finish, which covers cosmetology along with everything else it teaches. That completion rate is 20 points above the 71 percent median, but it is every program on campus, so treat it as a fact about the center and not about the cosmetology floor. The published tuition is $2,850. That price is 50 percent under the $5,694 median, which is what public pricing looks like and the reason it is a fraction of the academies here. Its 33 completions a year make cosmetology a small program inside a center of 419. The license from the Oklahoma State Board of Cosmetology and Barbering is the thing to verify before you pay, since that is what decides whether these hours count toward your exam.
Where it leads
For cosmetologists around Oklahoma City, the range runs $18,980 to $61,970 between the tenth and ninetieth percentiles, with a median of $29,700. That is a wide spread, and it is mostly the difference between building a client book and not. Around Oklahoma City, the gap between esthetics and cosmetology is real: a $41,220 median against one 28 percent lower. This is a comparatively thin market: Oklahoma City runs at roughly 0.6 times the national concentration, about 810 people in the occupation.
Sources: US Department of Education, College Scorecard; Oklahoma State Board of Cosmetology and Barbering, read 2026-08-31.
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#3
JB's Hair Design and Barber College
Oklahoma City, OK · Private School
74%
Share of students who finish
- Barbering
- $22,500 program cost
What the record shows
JB's Hair Design and Barber College operates in Oklahoma City under license from the Oklahoma State Board of Cosmetology and Barbering. The license here is a barber license, which means men's cutting, shaving and beard work. It takes a similar hour count to cosmetology and is a narrower ticket, and for someone who already knows they want that end of the trade, the narrowness is the point. Oklahoma City has 15 licensed schools, so there is a real choice locally. 74 percent of students see the course through, out of 59 enrolled. The published cost is $22,500 for the full program. Completion is the one figure that compares across trades, and 74 percent, at the 74 percent private-school median, is about what this page does. $22,500 is 24 percent over the $18,100 private-school median for a similar hour count, which needs a reason. It awarded 79 credentials over the year against a fall headcount of 59, which is what a clock-hour course that turns over more than one cohort a year looks like. Confirm the school's current license with the Oklahoma State Board of Cosmetology and Barbering first: that entry is what qualifies your hours, whatever the federal figures say.
Where it leads
Half of barbers in Oklahoma earn under $34,860, with the tenth percentile at $29,340 and the ninetieth at $35,820. It is a small occupational market across the state, so openings are fewer and word of mouth carries more weight than a resume. Local concentration in Oklahoma sits near the national average.
Sources: US Department of Education, College Scorecard; Oklahoma State Board of Cosmetology and Barbering, read 2026-08-31.
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#4
Canadian Valley Technology Center
El Reno, OK · Public School
71%
Share of students who finish
- Cosmetology
- $4,714 program cost
What the record shows
Canadian Valley Technology Center operates in El Reno under license from the Oklahoma State Board of Cosmetology and Barbering. The board licenses it to train toward cosmetology. It is the only licensed school the board lists in El Reno. 71 percent of students across the center finish, out of 614 enrolled, and cosmetology is one of the programs inside that figure. Read that 71 percent as the center's rate, not the cosmetology floor's, so it neither ranks this program up nor down. The published tuition is $4,714. That price is 17 percent under the $5,694 median, which is what public pricing looks like. Its 41 completions a year make cosmetology a small program inside a center of 614. The license from the Oklahoma State Board of Cosmetology and Barbering is the thing to verify before you pay, since that is what decides whether these hours count toward your exam.
Where it leads
Pay for cosmetologists around Oklahoma City runs from $18,980 at the tenth percentile to $61,970 at the ninetieth, with a median of $29,700. A gap that size tracks clientele rather than seniority. Oklahoma City employs the trade at only about 0.6 times the national rate, so graduates enter a thinner local market than average.
Sources: US Department of Education, College Scorecard; Oklahoma State Board of Cosmetology and Barbering, read 2026-08-31.
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#5
Mid-Del Technology Center
Midwest City, OK · Public School
70%
Share of students who finish
- Cosmetology
- Nail technology
- $5,025 program cost
What the record shows
Mid-Del Technology Center trains in Midwest City, licensed by the Oklahoma State Board of Cosmetology and Barbering. Its license covers cosmetology and nail technology. Across all 84 students at the center, 70 percent finish, which covers cosmetology along with everything else it teaches. That 70 percent is ordinary for this page, and it belongs to the whole campus; ask the cosmetology department for the program's own figure. Tuition is reported at $5,025. That price is 12 percent under the $5,694 median, which is what public pricing looks like. It awarded 12 beauty credentials in the reporting year. Confirm the school's current license with the Oklahoma State Board of Cosmetology and Barbering first: that entry is what qualifies your hours, whatever the federal figures say.
Where it leads
Pay for cosmetologists around Oklahoma City runs from $18,980 at the tenth percentile to $61,970 at the ninetieth, with a median of $29,700. Most of that range is a following, which is why two graduates of the same program can end up far apart. Oklahoma City employs the trade at only about 0.6 times the national rate, so graduates enter a thinner local market than average.
Sources: US Department of Education, College Scorecard; Oklahoma State Board of Cosmetology and Barbering, read 2026-08-31.
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#6
Central Oklahoma College
Oklahoma City, OK · Private School
53%
Share of students who finish
- Barbering
- Cosmetology
- Esthetics
- $11,330 program cost
What the record shows
Based in Oklahoma City, Central Oklahoma College is on the Oklahoma State Board of Cosmetology and Barbering register. Its license covers barbering, cosmetology and esthetics. Oklahoma City has 15 licensed schools, so there is a real choice locally. 53 percent of the 477 students it enrolls finish. The published cost is $11,330 for the full program. Cheap, but 21 points fewer of its students finish than the 74 percent private-school median, and in a clock-hour trade an unfinished course is the expensive outcome: you have paid for hours that never become a license. It awarded 272 beauty credentials in the reporting year. That is roughly 12 percent of everything awarded by federally reporting beauty programs in the state, so it is one of the larger training operations here. Confirm the school's current license with the Oklahoma State Board of Cosmetology and Barbering first: that entry is what qualifies your hours, whatever the federal figures say.
Where it leads
Around Oklahoma City, the median cosmetologist earns $29,700, the bottom tenth $18,980 and the top tenth $61,970. That is a wide spread, and it is mostly the difference between building a client book and not. In Oklahoma, esthetics pays a $37,340 median, about 26 percent above cosmetology. Local demand is below the national norm, 0.6 times the usual concentration around Oklahoma City, which is worth knowing before committing the hours.
Sources: US Department of Education, College Scorecard; Oklahoma State Board of Cosmetology and Barbering, read 2026-08-31.
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#7
Francis Tuttle Technology Center
Oklahoma City, OK · Public School
52%
Share of students who finish
- Cosmetology
- Esthetics
- Nail technology
- $3,300 program cost
What the record shows
Francis Tuttle Technology Center trains in Oklahoma City, licensed by the Oklahoma State Board of Cosmetology and Barbering. Its license covers cosmetology, esthetics and nail technology. Oklahoma City has 15 licensed schools, so there is a real choice locally. Across all 886 students at the center, 52 percent finish, which covers cosmetology along with everything else it teaches. That 52 percent is low for this page, but it is the center's rate and the cosmetology program is a small part of it; the cosmetology department's own completions are the check. The published tuition is $3,300. That price is 42 percent under the $5,694 median, which is what public pricing looks like and the reason it is a fraction of the academies here. 174 students completed a credential here in the reporting year. Check its license with the Oklahoma State Board of Cosmetology and Barbering before enrolling, because that record and not this card is what makes your clock hours count.
Where it leads
For cosmetologists around Oklahoma City, the range runs $18,980 to $61,970 between the tenth and ninetieth percentiles, with a median of $29,700. Most of that range is a following, which is why two graduates of the same program can end up far apart. Esthetics and cosmetology do not pay alike in Oklahoma: esthetics carries a $37,340 median, roughly 26 percent above cosmetology. Local demand is below the national norm, 0.6 times the usual concentration around Oklahoma City, which is worth knowing before committing the hours.
Sources: US Department of Education, College Scorecard; Oklahoma State Board of Cosmetology and Barbering, read 2026-08-31.
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#8
Metro Technology Centers
Oklahoma City, OK · Public School
35%
Share of students who finish
- Cosmetology
- Nail technology
- $6,362 program cost
What the record shows
Based in Oklahoma City, Metro Technology Centers is on the Oklahoma State Board of Cosmetology and Barbering register. Its license covers cosmetology and nail technology. With 15 licensed schools in Oklahoma City, this one is competing for students rather than the only option. Across all 632 students at the center, 35 percent finish, which covers cosmetology along with everything else it teaches. That 35 percent is low for this page, but it is the center's rate and the cosmetology program is a small part of it; the cosmetology department's own completions are the check. Tuition is reported at $6,362. That price is 12 percent over the $5,694 median, which for a public program is unusual and worth asking about. Its 51 completions a year make cosmetology a small program inside a center of 632. Verify the school's standing with the Oklahoma State Board of Cosmetology and Barbering before any deposit changes hands, since that record and not this one governs your hours.
Where it leads
Pay for cosmetologists around Oklahoma City runs from $18,980 at the tenth percentile to $61,970 at the ninetieth, with a median of $29,700. A gap that size tracks clientele rather than seniority. This is a comparatively thin market: Oklahoma City runs at roughly 0.6 times the national concentration, about 810 people in the occupation.
Sources: US Department of Education, College Scorecard; Oklahoma State Board of Cosmetology and Barbering, read 2026-08-31.
Other Licensed Cosmetology Schools in Oklahoma City
Oklahoma State Board of Cosmetology and Barbering lists 15 currently licensed schools in Oklahoma City. These 10 appear above, either because the school takes no federal aid and so reports no completion figure, or because its cohort was too small to rank. Being on this list means the board licenses the school, which is the thing that makes your hours count.
| School | License |
|---|---|
| Academy of Cosmetology & Barbering - Okc | Private School |
| Anthony David Platinum Hair Academy | Private School |
| Duncan Brothers School of Hair | Private School |
| Francis Tuttle Technology Center | Public School |
| Hair Arts Institute | Private School |
| Metro Tech Douglass High School | Licensed school |
| Rise Program Okc | Private School |
| The Hair Cafe Cosmetology and Barbering | Private School |
| The Slay Academy | Private School |
| Wade Gordon Hairdressing Academy | Licensed school |
The Three Ways Oklahoma City Students Reach 1,500 Hours
The Oklahoma State Board of Cosmetology and Barbering covers both trades from one agency, and it sets 1,500 clock hours for a cosmetologist license. A private Oklahoma City school teaches all 1,500 as cosmetology. That is the standard route, it is what most schools on this page run, and it is the one the exam assumes you took.
The public route counts differently. A public school program can fill 500 of the 1,500 hours with cosmetology-related high school coursework and the other 1,000 with cosmetology itself. If you are still in high school in Oklahoma City, that changes what this actually costs you in time, and it is part of why the technology centers dominate the cheap end of the list.
The third route skips school entirely. Three thousand hours of apprentice training in a licensed cosmetology or barbering establishment counts as the equivalent of the 1,500 school hours and qualifies you to sit the exam. It is twice the hours, and it is paid work rather than tuition. Most states offer nothing like it.
Figures in this section: Oklahoma State Board of Cosmetology and Barbering; College Scorecard, June 2026.
What the Oklahoma City Ranking Shows About Price and Completion
Five of the eight ranked schools are public technology centers, and all five cost less than every private school on the list. Moore Norman Technology Center in Norman is second at 91% completion with program tuition of $2,850, 14 miles out. Nothing else on this page combines those two numbers, and the most affordable schools ranking has more like it.
The Academy of Hair Design LLC ranks first on a 100% completion figure. Read that with the enrollment beside it: 56 students and 37 awards. A perfect completion rate on a cohort that size deserves a look, not a leap, and the same school carries program tuition of $18,100 and $16,500 in median debt at graduation.
At the other end, Metro Technology Centers in Oklahoma City completed 35% of its students on 632 enrolled, at $6,362. Francis Tuttle Technology Center is at 52% on 886 enrolled, at $3,300. A weak completion figure on a large program is a fair question to put to an admissions office, and our methodology explains how much weight it carries here.
Figures in this section: BLS OEWS, May 2025; College Scorecard, June 2026.
What Cosmetologists and Barbers Earn in the Oklahoma City Metro
Pay is the hard part of this page. The Oklahoma City metro counts 810 hairdressers, hairstylists and cosmetologists at a median annual wage of $29,700 in the BLS May 2025 release, almost identical to the $29,650 Oklahoma median. The 10th percentile is $18,980 and the 90th is $61,970, so the top of this trade locally is more than three times the bottom.
Skin pays better. Skincare specialists in the metro report a median of $41,220 on 330 employed, about $11,520 above the hairdresser median, at a location quotient of 1.05. Across Oklahoma the skincare median is $37,340, so the metro holds the higher end of it. Cosmetologist salary data sets these next to the national figures.
Barbering deserves its own look. Oklahoma reports 170 barbers statewide at a median of $34,860, above the state hairdresser median of $29,650, and two ranked Oklahoma City schools carry a barbering approval: JB's Hair Design and Barber College and Central Oklahoma College. The barber career guide covers what the license lets you do.
A caveat on all of it. Self-employed stylists, including anyone renting a chair, fall outside the BLS survey entirely. What you are reading is what Oklahoma City salons pay staff. If you rent a station, your own numbers will not look like these on either side.
Figures in this section: Oklahoma State Board of Cosmetology and Barbering; BLS OEWS, May 2025; College Scorecard, June 2026.
What Cosmetology Careers Pay in Oklahoma City
Median annual pay in the Oklahoma City, OK metro area, from the May 2025 BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics release. A cosmetologist here earns a median of $29,700 against $29,650 across Oklahoma, with 810 employed in the metro. Booth renters and salon owners are self-employed and outside the survey, so these figures describe stylists on a payroll.
- Estheticians $41,220 $41,220
- Cosmetologists $29,700 $29,700
| Occupation | Metro median | Oklahoma median |
|---|---|---|
| Estheticians | $41,220 | $37,340 |
| Cosmetologists | $29,700 | $29,650 |
Each occupation has its own salary page with the range and every state, and a career page on the work and the license it needs.
Cosmetology Schools in Nearby Cities
Common Questions About Cosmetology School in Oklahoma City
Answers draw on Oklahoma State Board of Cosmetology and Barbering, the College Scorecard and the May 2025 BLS wage release.
How many hours of cosmetology school do you need in Oklahoma City?
Can you become a cosmetologist in Oklahoma City without going to school?
What is the cheapest cosmetology school in Oklahoma City?
How many licensed cosmetology schools are there in Oklahoma City?
How much do hairdressers make in Oklahoma City?
Which Oklahoma City schools are approved to teach barbering?
Sources
- Oklahoma State Board of Cosmetology and Barbering, school license records, read 2026-08-31. Hour requirement for a cosmetologist license: 1,500 clock hours, cited to the rule.
- US Department of Education, College Scorecard, June 2026 release. Completion, enrollment, cost and location for every cosmetology program (CIP 12.04) within 30 miles of downtown Oklahoma City. Each card links its institution's Scorecard page.
- US Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025. Metro-area wages and employment for the Oklahoma City, OK area.