Ulta Beauty Salon Highlights Prices

Every published amount we could verify

These 7 lines come from published sources and are grouped by what they actually are. Folding fees into a service list is how misleading "average" figures get made, so they are kept apart here.

A single location's menu proves nothing about the chain. Confirm at the location you book.

National price context for these services

These are U.S. market ranges compiled from published industry pricing data, not figures published by any single brand. Use them to place a quote against the national picture.

National planning ranges. A quote outside these bands is not automatically wrong - check what is included before judging it.

What partial highlights costs in your metro tier

Rent and wages flow straight into the menu. Applying published metro cost bands to the $135 national median for partial highlights gives the following planning ranges.

Bands scale the $135 national median by published metro cost multipliers. Planning ranges, not quotes.

Why your quote differs from the menu

Every one of these is negotiable in the sense that you can decline it — but only if you know it is coming ahead of time.

• Cut versus cut-and-style+$12–$35

  A finished blow-dry is a separate line on most chain menus.

• Shampoo service+$5–$15

  Regularly optional and charged on top of the cut.

• Stylist seniority+$8–$25

  Designer or senior tiers sit above the base rate.

• Location cost band+10–40%

  Identical franchise menus differ between metros.

• Add-on conditioning+$10–$30

  Offered at the bowl and easy to accept without hearing the price.

Related cost breakdowns: Full Highlights Cost, Partial Highlights Cost and Peekaboo Highlights Cost.

The realistic total, worked through

Every line below is standard and expected. None of it is a scam — but almost none of it appears on the menu board either.

Worked at a $67 base with one add-on. Swap in your own quote and the proportions hold.

Takeaway: budget $104 when the board says $67. The difference is $37.

Prefer not to do the arithmetic? You can work this out for your precise service.

Twelve months of partial highlights, priced out

Most budgets break at the cadence, not the price. Partial highlights maintained every 10 weeks works out to around $810 annually once gratuity is included.

Assumes 5 visits per year. Adjust the visit count and every figure here moves with it.

The cheapest lever is almost always stretching the cadence, not finding a lower-priced provider. Moving from 5 visits per year to 4 saves about $202 annually — typically more than switching salons would.

How much to tip on this service

Two rules do most of the work: tip on the service before tax, and tip the person who performed it.

• Tip the same on a redo as on the original if the redo was not the provider's fault - and speak to management rather than the provider if it was.
• Do not tip on membership dues, booth rent, deposits, annual fees, gift-card loads or cancellation charges — no service was performed.
• A tip is for the work performed, not for the price you were charged. Do not penalise a provider for a menu they did not set.
• Cash is the most direct route and is still preferred in most independent studios.

What people get wrong here

Ordered by how frequently they happen rather than dollar impact. The fix in every case is a question when you book.

1. 1Not checking the location menucosts $8–$25

   Franchise prices vary between neighbouring stores.

2. 2Assuming the advertised price includes shampoo and stylecosts $12–$35

   Most value menus price the cut alone.

3. 3Ignoring the brand appcosts $5–$15

   Chain apps run standing offers the walk-in counter does not mention.

4. 4Accepting the conditioning upsell blindcosts $10–$30

   Offered at the bowl, priced afterwards.

If you want the policy detail behind these: Highlights Aftercare and Prepare For Highlights.

Exactly what to ask when you book

Ask these at booking rather than on arrival. Once you are gowned and in the chair, declining an add-on becomes socially much harder — which is exactly why that is when they are raised.

1. "Can you email or text me the quote before my appointment?"
2. "Is there a first-visit offer or a package rate I should know about?"
3. "What is the exact price for partial highlights at my hair length and density?"
4. "Are taxes added at checkout, and do you have a card-payment surcharge?"
5. "Is a shampoo, blow-dry or finish included in that price, or billed on a separate line?"
6. "If I join the membership today, is there an enrolment or annual fee on top?"
7. "If this runs longer than booked, does the price change?"

Finally: get the quote on paper. A text or email costs the salon nothing and removes any argument at checkout.

Your other options, and when each wins

Before deciding, it is worth seeing where this lands against the nearest alternatives on both price and what you get for it.

Regularly asked - with the maths

Sources and how we checked them

Every published figure above traces to one of these. Where a source describes a single location or a time-limited offer, that scope stays attached to the number rather than being generalised.

1. Official services directoryService categories · updated 2026
2. Official hair color servicesService definitions and durations · updated 2026
3. Official curly hair servicesService definitions and durations · updated 2026
4. Official haircut and styling service pageHaircut/styling inclusions and service durations · updated 2026
5. Official hair treatment service pageTreatment types and typical add-on duration · updated 2026
6. Official haircut and styling servicesHaircut inclusions and service durations · updated 2026

Prices move. Quoted a different figure, tell us and we will re-verify.