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Best Value Cosmetology Basic Certificate Schools in Tennessee

2023 Best Value Cosmetology Basic Certificate Schools in Tennessee

Highlighting Quality Schools With More Affordable Pricing

18 Colleges
$0 Avg Tuition & Fees*

Finding the Best Cosmetology Basic Certificate School for You

Out of the majors we analyze each year, cosmetology was ranked 2nd in Tennessee. In fact, 2,270 were awarded in the state in 2021-2022.

Today's trade school students have lots of options to pick from when considering higher education opportunities. Along with traditional schools that require in-person attendence, you can attend one of many reputable online schools. Some programs even offer a hybrid experience.

The Best Value Cosmetology Basic Certificate Schools in Tennessee ranking is one of many tools that Trade College Search has developed to help you make your educational decision. This report analyzed 18 schools in Tennessee to see which ones offered the best value basic certificate programs for cosmetology students. The goal was to highlight schools with more affordable prices than others offering similar quality experiences.

When determining this ranking, we place a high emphasis on the school's quality as well as its sticker price. Even though a college may be affordable, it may not offer value. Specifically, our score for quality is discounted by the published tuition and fees charged by the given college. This gives the cost per unit of quality for each college. The more quality your dollar buys, the better the value.

Our calculations use out-of-state tuition and fees in our nationwide and regional rankings. For statewide rankings, we use average in-state tuition and fees.

2023 Best Value Cosmetology Basic Certificate Schools in Tennessee

Check out the cosmetology basic certificate programs at these schools if you want to get the best value for your educational dollar.

Top 15% Best Cosmetology Basic Certificate Schools

Our analysis found Paul Mitchell the School Murfreesboro to be the best value school for cosmetology students who want to pursue a basic certificate in Tennessee. Located in the city of Murfreesboro, Paul Mitchell the School Murfreesboro is a private for-profit college with a small student population.

Full Cosmetology at Paul Mitchell the School Murfreesboro Report

#1

Austin's Beauty College Inc

Clarksville, TN

Our 2023 rankings named Austin’s Beauty College Inc the best value school in Tennessee for cosmetology students working on their basic certificate. Austin's Beauty College Inc is a fairly small private for-profit school located in the city of Clarksville.

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Our 2023 rankings named Tennessee College of Applied Technology - Paris the best value school in Tennessee for cosmetology students working on their basic certificate. TCAT - Paris is a small public school located in the town of Paris.

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Our 2023 rankings named Paul Mitchell the School Memphis the best value school in Tennessee for cosmetology students working on their basic certificate. Paul Mitchell the School Memphis is a fairly small private for-profit school located in the city of Memphis.

Read full report on Cosmetology at Paul Mitchell the School Memphis

Our analysis found Jenny Lea Academy of Cosmetology to be the best value school for cosmetology students who want to pursue a basic certificate in Tennessee. Located in the city of Johnson City, Jenny Lea is a private for-profit college with a fairly small student population.

Full Cosmetology at Jenny Lea Academy of Cosmetology Report

#1

The Hair Academy LLC

Fayetteville, TN

Our 2023 rankings named The Hair Academy LLC the best value school in Tennessee for cosmetology students working on their basic certificate. Located in the town of Fayetteville, The Hair Academy LLC is a private for-profit college with a small student population.

Read full report on Cosmetology at The Hair Academy LLC

#1

Queen City College

Clarksville, TN

Our 2023 rankings named Queen City College the best value school in Tennessee for cosmetology students working on their basic certificate. Located in the city of Clarksville, Queen City College is a private for-profit school with a fairly small student population.

Read full report on Cosmetology at Queen City College

#1

Love Beauty School Inc

Manchester, TN

Our analysis found Love Beauty School Inc to be the best value school for cosmetology students who want to pursue a basic certificate in Tennessee. Love Beauty School Inc is a small private for-profit school located in the town of Manchester.

Full Cosmetology at Love Beauty School Inc Report

#1

Career Beauty College

Lawrenceburg, TN

Our analysis found Career Beauty College to be the best value school for cosmetology students who want to pursue a basic certificate in Tennessee. Career Beauty College is a small private for-profit school located in the distant town of Lawrenceburg.

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#1

Franklin Academy

Cleveland, TN

Our 2023 rankings named Franklin Academy the best value school in Tennessee for cosmetology students working on their basic certificate. Franklin Academy is a small private not-for-profit school located in the small city of Cleveland.

Full Cosmetology at Franklin Academy Report

Our analysis found Empire Beauty School-E Memphis to be the best value school for cosmetology students who want to pursue a basic certificate in Tennessee. Located in the large city of Memphis, Empire Beauty School-E Memphis is a private for-profit school with a fairly small student population.

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Our 2023 rankings named the best value school in Tennessee for cosmetology students working on their basic certificate. Located in the of <nil>, <nil> is a school with a student population.

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Our analysis found Elite College of Cosmetology to be the best value school for cosmetology students who want to pursue a basic certificate in Tennessee. Elite College of Cosmetology is a fairly small private for-profit school located in the distant town of Lexington.

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#1

Gould's Academy

Memphis, TN

Our 2023 rankings named Gould’s Academy the best value school in Tennessee for cosmetology students working on their basic certificate. Gould's Academy is a fairly small private for-profit school located in the large city of Memphis.

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Our analysis found Empire Beauty School-Nashville to be the best value school for cosmetology students who want to pursue a basic certificate in Tennessee. Empire Beauty School-Nashville is a fairly small private for-profit school located in the large suburb of Brentwood.

Full Cosmetology at Empire Beauty School-Nashville Report

Our analysis found Tennessee College of Applied Technology - Nashville to be the best value school for cosmetology students who want to pursue a basic certificate in Tennessee. Located in the large city of Nashville, TCAT - Nashville is a public school with a small student population.

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Our 2023 rankings named Genesis Career College-Cookeville the best value school in Tennessee for cosmetology students working on their basic certificate. Genesis Career College-Cookeville is a small private for-profit school located in the remote town of Cookeville.

Read full report on Cosmetology at Genesis Career College-Cookeville

Honorable Mentions

These are some additional schools worth mentioning that are also great but just didn't quite make the cut to earn our top Best Value Cosmetology Basic Certificate Schools in Tennessee award.

Rank College Location

Best Value Cosmetology Colleges in the Southeast Region

Explore all the Best Value Cosmetology Schools in the Southeast Area or other specific states within that region.

State Degrees Awarded
South Carolina 1,516
Georgia 4,283
Arkansas 1,191
North Carolina 2,549
Florida 10,801
Virginia 1,085
Louisiana 3,726
West Virginia 377
Alabama 821
Kentucky 1,003
Mississippi 872

One of 4 majors within the trade school area of study, cosmetology has other similar majors worth exploring.

Cosmetology Focus Areas

Major Annual Graduates
General Cosmetology/Cosmetologist 50,210
Aesthetician/Esthetician & Skin Care Specialist 40,040
Nail Technician/Specialist & Manicurist 13,960
Barbering/Barber 9,893
Facial Treatment Specialist/Facialist 2,907
Other Cosmetology and Related Personal Grooming Arts 2,184
Master Aesthetician/Esthetician 1,729
Hair Styling/Stylist & Hair Design 1,238
Cosmetology, Barber/Styling, & Nail Instructor 1,230
Make-Up Artist/Specialist 440
Electrolysis/Electrology & Electrolysis Technician 354
Salon/Beauty Salon Management/Manager 336
Permanent Cosmetics/Makeup & Tattooing 90

Related Major Annual Graduates
Culinary Arts 22,075
Funeral & Mortuary Science 2,186
Casino Operations and Services 385
Other Personal & Culinary Services 95

Notes and References

*These averages are for the top 18 schools only.

  • The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), a branch of the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) serves as the core of the rest of our data about colleges.
  • Some other college data, including much of the graduate earnings data, comes from the U.S. Department of Education’s (College Scorecard).
  • Credit for the banner image above goes to Tiffany Bumgardner.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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