Columbia South Carolina’s Top 10 Beauty Salons

The Profile

Metropolis Salon positions itself as a destination for beautiful hair across the greater Columbia area, with a large team of stylists who focus on custom color tailored to clients' lifestyles and maintenance preferences. The site emphasises a streamlined new-client menu designed to reduce booking confusion while offering clear service pathways and pricing clarity.

The salon’s roster includes specialists in custom curly haircare plus a dedicated extensions team that commonly uses beaded rows of wefts; those offerings let clients address both texture and density concerns in a single visit. Metropolis pairs technical services with a bright, inclusive, and luxurious-feeling environment designed to make clients comfortable throughout longer appointments.

New clients receive guided choices through a curated service menu and are invited to select a stylist via team profiles that link to individual social media; Metropolis also sends a digital welcome packet after booking to prepare clients for their first visit. That combination of pre-visit guidance, specialist teams, and extension techniques supports complex transformations and well-planned follow-up care.

Why It Made the List and Why It’s Our Top Pick

Metropolis earns the top spot because its breadth of technical specialties, dimensional and transformative color, custom curly haircare, and bespoke extensions, comes with an organised new-client process and a digital welcome packet that reduces appointment uncertainty, enabling large or complex services to be planned coherently and executed with consistent attention to finish and wearability.

Good to Know

Book through Metropolis’s online portal and expect a digital welcome packet after booking; extension services commonly use beaded-row wefts and typically require a complimentary consultation beforehand, so plan for extra appointment time and communicate goals in advance to confirm method and pricing.

The Profile

Hyde Salon - Columbia is part of the Hyde Salons network and operates an on-site retail shop stocked with salon-grade cleansers, conditioners, hair masques, leave-in treatments, styling sprays, serums, waxes, pomades and professional tools; the online shop organises products by category to support both in-salon purchase and e-commerce ordering for follow-up care.

The Hyde site highlights promotions such as free samples with every order and free shipping on purchases above a stated threshold, and it presents curated product collections alongside team bios and a salon gallery; clients can browse product pages, view stylist profiles, and book appointments online so service choices and recommended aftercare stay aligned with stylist guidance.

Why It Made the List

Hyde’s distinguishing feature is the integration of professional color and styling services with an extensive in-house retail catalogue and an online shop, enabling clients to leave the salon with the exact products recommended by their stylist; free samples and a shipping threshold further simplify restocking and continuity between salon visits.

Good to Know

Hyde advertises free samples with every order and free shipping on purchases above the posted threshold; check live product availability on the salon’s online shop before your appointment and consider ordering in advance to ensure continuity of any recommended aftercare products.

The Profile

Austral Salon markets itself as a Columbia salon with more than forty years of service, specialising in personalized haircuts, custom color, blonding, extensions, and targeted hair treatments that prioritise healthy, manageable results. The team stresses a luxury but approachable salon experience that adapts techniques to clients’ hair goals and everyday routines.

The salon explicitly promotes eco-conscious products such as Organic Pure Care and emphasizes sustainability and plant-based formulations across its treatment menu; Austral runs seasonal and staff-specific promotions, maintains clearly posted hours on its site, and offers referral and limited-time special services intended to make professional color and maintenance more accessible.

Why It Made the List

Austral stands out for combining long-term local experience with an explicit eco-friendly product policy and personalized technical services, balayage, precision cuts, blonding and extensions, so clients after responsible product choices can still expect modern, salon-standard blonding and color work backed by decades of operational knowledge.

Good to Know

Austral’s posted hours are Tuesday through Thursday 10 AM–7 PM, Friday 9 AM–5 PM and Saturday 10 AM–4 PM; the salon is located at 2100 N Beltline Blvd and recommends booking online or by phone to secure specific stylists and time slots.

The Profile

process. A Hair Salon presents a welcoming, upbeat atmosphere designed to refresh clients as well as their hair and it lists an extensive services menu covering cuts, multiple color options, specialty treatments, keratin smoothing systems and extensions, with pricing tiers that vary by stylist. The salon emphasises a positive in-salon vibe alongside technical competency.

The website highlights a retail selection that includes Oribe and other professional brands, plus a shop of best-selling styling products and finishing sprays intended to support salon results at home. process. also promotes extensions via hand-tied and tape-in methods and asks clients to arrange complimentary extension consultations to determine personalized pricing and care plans.

Why It Made the List

What distinguishes process. is the combination of a full-service technical menu and an on-site retail focus, professional Oribe products and styling essentials are promoted alongside a clear extensions programme and keratin options, so clients leave with both a finished look and specific product recommendations to preserve that result between visits.

Good to Know

process. requires a 24-hour cancellation notice and charges for no-shows or late cancellations; the salon is reachable and (803) 563-5463 and extension services typically start with a complimentary consultation to define method and pricing.

The Profile

The Glow Factory brands itself as Columbia’s premier beauty studio, offering an integrated menu of luxury hair, customized skincare, waxing, brows, lashes, and specialist natural-hair services such as locs and silk presses. The site makes clear that services are designed around individual goals and textures, blending technical skill with esthetic treatments in one location.

Treatment variety at The Glow Factory ranges from keratin smoothing, Brazilian blowouts, and extension work to advanced facials, chemical peels, and permanent hair-reduction options; the salon also retails branded haircare and aftercare products and positions itself as a full-service studio where hair and skin needs can be addressed in coordinated visits.

Why It Made the List

The Glow Factory’s defining merit is the breadth of luxury services under one roof: advanced facials and hair restoration treatments alongside locs, silk presses, and permanent hair-reduction services, so clients seeking combined hair and skin transformations can plan multi-disciplinary appointments without shuttling between separate clinics.

Good to Know

Appointments are available from 6:00 AM to 9:00 PM, with walk-ins accepted 9:00 AM–6:00 PM; the studio’s address is available, and advanced booking is recommended to secure preferred specialists and treatment times.

The Profile

Carolina Hair Studios operates from its Main Street downtown location and arranges interiors around local artwork, paintings and collected pieces to create a relaxed, gallery-like atmosphere; the salon combines technical cutting and coloring services with a personable client approach so routine appointments feel creative yet professionally executed.

The studio’s website lists its street address and publishes weekday and weekend hours that accommodate both workday and leisure schedules; an online booking link and staff listings make it straightforward to identify preferred stylists and reserve appointments during the salon’s posted Monday–Friday and weekend opening times.

Why It Made the List

Carolina Hair Studios stands out for pairing a downtown Main Street setting with an intentionally art-forward interior, providing clients with a neighbourhood salon experience that also feels visually engaging; the clear opening hours and visible booking link make it convenient to fit salon visits into a busy downtown routine.

Good to Know

The site gives the salon address as and posts hours Monday–Friday 9: 00 AM–7: 00 PM, Saturday 8: 00 AM–4: 00 PM and Sunday 11: 00 AM–4: 00 PM; or use the online booking link to reserve a preferred stylist and appointment time.

The Profile

Cline’s Salon Vista opened in 1995 and is situated in Columbia’s Congaree Vista district, where the owner cultivates an environment decorated with church lights, antique seating and artwork by local artists; the site’s founder voice describes the space as intentionally uplifting and creatively curated to make clients feel welcome and rejuvenated.

The salon presents itself as an escape within the historic district where the art-filled walls and owner’s personal touches create a distinctive backdrop for services focused on cutting, highlighting, coloring and styling. The emphasis on artistic surroundings and a long-running local presence gives the salon a neighbourhood, craft-oriented character.

Why It Made the List

Cline’s distinguishing feature is its long-standing Congaree Vista presence and the founder’s hands-on, art-minded approach to salon design and service which gives appointments a personal, small-salon quality while delivering precision cuts and color work shaped by local aesthetic sensibilities.

Good to Know

Cline’s lists its Vista address and offers an online booking link; if you prefer a specific stylist or an appointment time that suits workday schedules, book ahead through the site to ensure availability.

The Profile

Parlour 818 foregrounds hand-tied extensions, dimensional color and precision cutting within a salon culture intended to feel like visiting a best friend; owner and lead stylist Lex Moore cites training influences from Florence, Nashville, Chicago, Charleston and Laguna Beach and the space mixes personal memorabilia with professional stations to create a comfortable, technically focused environment.

The salon lists services including hand-tied extensions, custom hair systems and human-hair toupees alongside standard color, cuts and blowouts and it publishes a team roster plus guest-expert specialists for complex appointments; location information is provided so clients can plan consultation and installation visits for extensions and systems.

Why It Made the List

Parlour 818’s defining competency is its extension and hair-system work, hand-tied extensions and ultra-thin-base systems are offered alongside toupee fittings, so clients seeking natural-looking density or non-surgical hair replacement can access specialists experienced at matching method, base construction and hairline realism to individual needs.

Good to Know

Parlour 818 posts hours Monday–Friday 8: 00 AM–8: 00 PM and Saturday 9: 00 AM–3: 00 PM; the salon is located and lists and (803) 764-3992 for booking and pre-appointment questions about extensions or hair-system options.

The Profile

Ember + Co promotes an in-person Buy Now, Pay Later option that covers bookings between $50 and $4, 000, with approval available before the appointment; the facility is presented as a way to spread payment for larger color or transformation services and is referenced alongside the salon’s standard service menu and scheduling tools.

The business publishes consistent hours, typically 10: 00 AM–7: 00 PM Monday through Saturday with Sunday closed and enforces a cancellation policy that includes a 50 percent fee for cancellations and a 100 percent charge for no-shows; location details and a salon phone and email are provided for rescheduling or pre-appointment queries.

Why It Made the List

Ember + Co’s most notable client-facing feature is its in-person Buy Now, Pay Later arrangement which assists those booking substantial services by allowing payment schedules to be arranged at the salon; that financial flexibility is presented alongside a firm cancellation policy clients should factor into appointment planning.

Good to Know

Ember + Co enforces a 50 percent cancellation fee and may charge 100 percent for no-shows; to reschedule or confirm bookings contact 839-399-0214 and verify any BNPL approval before your appointment.

The Profile

Five Points Salon presents itself as a neighborhood salon aligned with Columbia’s Five Points area by name, and public materials describe a local, approachable service style intended to serve community clientele. Although web checks encountered technical redirect issues, the salon’s identity and neighbourhood focus are evident from its branding and legacy descriptions.

Online checks during compilation showed the salon domain returning a server response error and a redirect page, but legacy statements position Five Points Salon as a locally minded business offering standard polished beauty treatments in a welcoming setting; that emphasis suggests a typical community salon model focused on consistency and approachable styling.

Why It Made the List

Five Points Salon’s primary characteristic is its neighbourhood orientation, taking its name from the Five Points district and presenting itself as a local, dependable option for routine cuts, colors and styling, so clients looking for a familiar, community-based salon experience will recognize the intended positioning.

Good to Know

During site verification the salon’s website returned an HTTP ERROR 445 and redirect responses; if the web booking is unavailable, consider visiting the Five Points area in person or checking local social pages to confirm current hours and contact options before travelling.