Which Oregon cosmetology program has the lowest debt?

Phagans Central Oregon Beauty College reports the lowest median federal debt, $7,902, with first-year pay of $15,816.

How much do cosmetology graduates earn in Oregon?

The median across 10 Oregon cosmetology certificate programs is $18,828 in the first year after graduating and $28,116 five years after. Hairdressers, hairstylists, and cosmetologists in Oregon earn a median of $57,580 across all experience levels.

How many cosmetology certificate programs are in Oregon?

10 Oregon programs report first-year pay for their graduates, and 9 of them also report federal debt.

Cosmetology (Certificate) Programs in Oregon, Ranked by Graduate Pay and Debt

10 programs report first-year pay
9 also report federal debt
Certificate in Cosmetology and Related Personal Grooming Services

College Scorecard June 2026 release · BLS wages May 2025

The short answer

The median Oregon cosmetology certificate program pays its graduates $18,828 in their first year, $1,581 more than the national median. Summit Salon Academy-Portland reports the highest first-year pay ($27,110), and Phagans Central Oregon Beauty College the lowest median debt ($7,902).

Median first-year pay$18,828National $17,247

Median pay after 5 years$28,116National $22,164

Median federal debt$10,556National $9,833

Debt-to-earnings59%National 55%

All 10 programs, ranked

Each figure is the median for the program's graduates. Programs that don't report a figure are listed last when you sort by it.

#	School	Year 1 pay	Year 5 pay	Debt	Debt to pay
1	Summit Salon Academy-PortlandTigard · private for-profit	$27,110	Not reported	$16,500	61%
2	Aveda Institute-PortlandPortland · private for-profit	$21,907	$28,625	$10,556	48%
3	Phagans School of BeautySalem · private for-profit	$20,537	$28,116	$11,969	58%
4	Phagans Beauty CollegeCorvallis · private for-profit	$19,966	$30,024	$11,924	60%
5	College of Hair Design CareersSalem · private for-profit	$19,284	Not reported	Not reported	Not reported
6	Northwest College-ClackamasHappy Valley · private for-profit	$18,371	$24,826	$10,743	58%
7	Phagans Grants Pass College of BeautyGrants Pass · private for-profit	$17,216	Not reported	$10,438	61%
8	Phagans School of Hair DesignHappy Valley · private for-profit	$16,034	$25,011	$9,500	59%
9	Beau Monde Academy of Barbering and CosmetologyPortland · private for-profit	$15,905	$31,169	$9,500	60%
10	Phagans Central Oregon Beauty CollegeBend · private for-profit	$15,816	$20,701	$7,902	50%

College of Hair Design Careers reports pay but not debt, so it is ranked only by pay.

Debt and first-year pay at every Oregon cosmetology program

Programs in the upper left give graduates higher pay for less debt. Dashed lines mark the Oregon medians.

Hover over or tap a dot to see the school. Only the 9 programs that report both earnings and debt are shown.

Quick picks

Highest first-year pay

Summit Salon Academy-Portland$27,110
Aveda Institute-Portland$21,907
Phagans School of Beauty$20,537
Phagans Beauty College$19,966
College of Hair Design Careers$19,284

Lowest median debt

Phagans Central Oregon Beauty College$7,902
Phagans School of Hair Design$9,500
Beau Monde Academy of Barbering and Cosmetology$9,500
Phagans Grants Pass College of Beauty$10,438
Aveda Institute-Portland$10,556

Lowest debt for the pay

"Debt for the pay" is median debt divided by first-year pay. Only programs that report both figures are included.

What hairdressers, hairstylists, and cosmetologists earn in Oregon

Pay for hairdressers, hairstylists, and cosmetologists in Oregon, across all experience levels, from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Hairdressers, Hairstylists, and Cosmetologists

$57,580

Median pay in Oregon. 1,860 people work in this job in Oregon. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 8% from 2025 to 2035, with about 73,400 openings a year. Typical education to start: postsecondary nondegree award.

Bottom 10%: $34,880Top 10%: $76,810

Common questions

Summit Salon Academy-Portland in Tigard reports the highest median first-year pay, $27,110. Its median federal debt is $16,500.

Cosmetology (Certificate) programs in the US, ranked961 programs by pay and debt

About this data

Earnings and debt only include students who received federal financial aid, and earnings only count graduates who were working and not enrolled in more school.
Debt only includes federal loans. Private loans and credit cards are not counted.
Some schools with several campuses report one combined figure for all of them. We count each of those schools once, and leave them out of Oregon rankings when their main campus is in another state.
Medians are across the cosmetology certificate programs that report each figure, so the counts differ by figure. Scorecard figures describe graduating classes from several years ago. BLS wages are from May 2025.

Sources

U.S. Department of Education, College Scorecard, field of study and institution files, June 2026 release
Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025
Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment Projections 2025 to 2035
NCES, CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 crosswalk, and IPEDS institution directory, 2024