For hair salons, barbers, nail and beauty studios and spas. Your books done the day you upload your statements, checked against your bank, for $79 a month.
Free to join. The first 1,000 in get their catch-up free.
Sales tax
Maryland's sales tax is 6%, with no local sales tax on top. If what you sell is taxable, you collect it and file returns with the state.
State income tax
Maryland taxes income at 2% to 6.5% in 2026, including the profit from your business.
Local tax
Every Maryland county (and Baltimore City) adds its own income tax, 2.25% to 3.3%.
Federal tax
Working for yourself, you pay 15.3% self-employment tax on most of your profit, plus federal income tax, usually in four estimated payments: April 15, June 15, September 15 and January 15.
Contractors
Paid a contractor $2,000 or more in 2026? Send them a 1099-NEC by January 31.
What every business in Baltimore (about 570,000 people) keeps track of in 2026. Rates change, so check with your accountant before you file.
Salons in Baltimore, by the numbers
Baltimore city, home to Baltimore, has 134 hair, nail and skin care businesses with employees (Census Bureau, 2023).
That's 16% more than in 2018 (116).
Another 2,898 are run by one person with no employees, mostly self-employed owners.
Across Maryland there are 2,199 with employees, so about 6% are in Baltimore city.
Every one of them has books to keep: sales to match to the bank, costs to sort and tax to work out.
Why salons need different books
Card and cash sales every day, tips to pass on, products you sell next to services, stylists who rent a chair or are on staff, and a point of sale that knows more than the bank does. A salon's books live in the gap between the POS and the deposits.
What a bookkeeper for salons in Baltimore keeps track of
Daily sales from your point of sale, services and products apart
Tips owed to staff
Booth or chair rent from stylists
Retail products bought and sold
Card fees taken from payouts
Taxes for salons in Maryland
Products you sell in Maryland are taxed at 6% plus local tax. Most states don't tax haircuts and similar services; check Maryland's rules.
Most states don't tax haircuts and other personal services, but products you sell are taxable where there's a sales tax.
Tips are your staff's income, not your sales, and go through payroll.
Booth renters are usually self-employed; their rent is income to you.
What SumSwift does for salon and spa owners, for $79 a month
Point of sale reports from Square, Clover, Lightspeed and others split into cash, card, tips and gift cards
Tips kept apart as owed to staff
Products kept item by item, with what each one makes
Payroll worked out each payday, with the deposit file for your bank and the remittance to send
Every statement checked against the balances your bank printed, to the cent, with personal spending kept off your profit
Receipts snapped with your phone or forwarded by email are read and matched to the charge
Up to 3 accounts included. Prices in USD. Your accountant still files your tax return, with clean books and free access.
Questions.
How much does a bookkeeper for salons cost in Baltimore?
Published price guides put most small businesses at $300 to $1,500 a month for a bookkeeper, more when the books are busy, as they often are for salons. SumSwift does the monthly work for $79 a month, the day you upload your statements.
Should I charge booth rent or hire stylists?
That's a business and tax decision for you and your accountant. SumSwift keeps the books either way: rent as income, or payroll for staff.
How are tips handled?
They're kept out of your sales and tracked as owed to staff until they're paid out.
Does SumSwift know Maryland's tax rules?
Products you sell in Maryland are taxed at 6% plus local tax. Most states don't tax haircuts and similar services; check Maryland's rules. Most states don't tax haircuts and other personal services, but products you sell are taxable where there's a sales tax.
Behind on my books. Can you catch me up?
Yes. A catch-up of up to 12 months is $599, once, checked against your bank to the cent.