Esthetician Commission After COGS: How Much Do You Actually Take Home?

Before your commission is even calculated, the spa takes out the cost of goods sold. So when someone says “it’s 50%,” the real question is: 50% of what? On a $100 facial, 50% of the full price is $50. 50% after a $15 product charge is $42.50. At 80 facials a month, that gap is $600.

If you’ve ever stared at a pay statement and thought “I just have no idea what to ask for,” this one’s for you. The numbers below are round illustrations so you can swap in your own.

“Commission after COGS” in one sentence

COGS is the cost of goods sold: the products and disposables used on a service (masks, cotton, wax, gloves, strips, serums). Some spas subtract a set amount or a percentage from the service price first, then pay your commission on what’s left.

Notice the last row: the “lower” 45% offer pays more than 50% after COGS. Ask it plainly: “Is commission calculated before or after product and disposable costs, and how is that cost figured?”

Your take-home isn’t your commission

What lands in your bank account depends on whether you’re an employee or a contractor.

W-2 employee: income tax, Social Security and Medicare come out of each paycheck, and the spa pays the other half of Social Security and Medicare. You generally don’t buy the supplies yourself.

1099 contractor: the full amount lands in your account, but you owe self-employment tax of 15.3% on 92.35% of your net profit (about 14.1% of profit) plus income tax, and you send quarterly estimated payments. You pay for supplies, insurance, license and continuing ed, and you deduct those on Schedule C. On $40,000 of profit with no other income, 2026 federal tax comes to roughly $7,900.

So “my take-home will be less as a 1099” is true in some cases and misleading in others. Put the same pay through both with the 1099 vs W-2 calculator.

Compare two offers with one real month

1. Services you’d realistically do, from your actual booking history.
2. Average price per service.
3. Commission rate, and whether COGS comes out first.
4. Tips, and how they’re paid out.
5. What you’d pay for yourself: supplies, laundry, insurance, license.
6. Taxes: already withheld (W-2), or set aside yourself (1099).

A lower rate with no COGS deduction and the spa covering supplies can easily beat a higher rate “after disposables.”

Questions to ask before you say yes

• Is commission calculated on the service price, or after product costs?
• Is the product cost a flat amount per service, or actual usage?
• Do retail sales earn commission?
• Are tips paid out in full, and when?
• Am I an employee or a contractor? Don’t assume; the label changes your taxes.
• Who covers supplies, laundry and my license?

If you’re called a contractor but the spa sets your schedule, prices and methods, you may be misclassified. Our post on W-2 vs 1099 misclassification lists the signs.

Thinking about renting a room instead?

Room or suite rent flips the math: you keep the whole service price, but you pay rent, supplies, insurance and all the taxes. Run the same month with your rent on the expense side using the booth renter take-home calculator, and read our checklist for leaving commission for a suite.

This is why Toozi exists

Most beauty pros learn their real take-home number after a few paychecks, or at tax time. Toozi shows it sooner: text what you earned and what you spent, and it tracks your income, estimates your taxes and shows what’s actually yours. Here’s how it works for estheticians.

The Toozi team

Toozi isn’t your CPA and this isn’t formal tax advice. It’s the plain-English version. Employee vs contractor status and your tax depend on your situation, so check current IRS guidance or talk to a pro.