Best Hair Salons in Newark, NJ

Where Newark is strongest: barbering and natural hair

Of the 66 salons listed, 21 offer men's cuts and fades, and 20 handle beard trims — barber work is the best-covered category in the city. Natural hair is nearly as strong: 18 salons offer braids, 18 handle locs, and 18 offer protective styles.

Women's cuts, styling, and blowouts each show up at 17 salons, so general styling coverage is solid too. Color is the thin spot: only 4 listings handle hair color, highlights, or balayage, and 7 offer weaves or extensions. If you need dimensional color work, expect a short list — and be ready to book ahead once you find a fit.

Booking and ratings: what the numbers say

Every salon in this directory has a customer rating — 100% of the 66 — and the citywide average is 4.62 stars. That's a useful baseline: when a listing sits well above or below it, take notice.

Online booking is less universal. About 48% of Newark's listed salons take bookings online; for the rest, you're calling or walking in. That's not a knock — plenty of good barbershops still run on the phone — but if you want to lock in a slot without a call, filter for a booking link first.

How to use this directory

Start with the service, not the salon. Each listing is tagged with the services it offers — those tags confirm the work happens there, not that it's the shop's specialty, so treat them as a starting list rather than a verdict.

From there, do three things before you book: read a handful of recent reviews (volume matters as much as the score), check the Instagram link where one is listed to see current work, and call with a specific ask — "knotless braids, mid-back length" gets you a more useful answer about timing and fit than "do you do braids." We don't publish prices, so ask when you book; quotes for braids, locs, and weaves in particular depend on length, density, and whether hair is included.