CAREER GUIDE
How to become a dog groomer in 2026
No US state licenses the employed dog groomer — and the places that license the shop, or the groomer working as a contractor, are named below from their own rules. The routes in: bather first, a grooming school and what it really costs, the chains' paid training programs, an apprenticeship; the voluntary certifications with their fees; the clippers, table and dryer from the suppliers' own prices; what groomers earn — and how to go from someone else's table to your own.
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No licensefor the employed groomer in any US state — New York has filed the same bill every session since 2009; Colorado licenses the facility and the independent-contractor groomer, Iowa the kennel that grooms, both named below
$35,360median pay for employed animal caretakers in 2025 (O*NET, from BLS data) — the occupation groomers are filed under; 10 percent earn $50,060 or more
$400a year for Colorado's grooming-facility license, salon or van — $350 for an independent-contractor groomer renting a table
4 weeksof paid academy at PetSmart after bathing 125 dogs, 20 weeks at Petco — the chains train bathers into groomers on the payroll
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A real Zarla template for a neighborhood salon — a chow being dried beside the headline, 'one dog at a time' and 'prices posted up front' under the buttons, the services and the gallery underneath. Describe yours — the town, the services, the hours — and you'll have a site like this, with a booking button and a gallery, in about a minute.
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Is becoming a dog groomer worth it in 2026 — and what does the work pay?
Becoming a dog groomer is a trade with no license for the employed groomer in any US state, a year at someone else's tub before anyone pays you to scissor a poodle, and — once the table is yours — a local business whose customers come back every six weeks for the life of the dog. Three honest numbers first. Employed animal caretakers — the occupation the government files groomers under, alongside kennel and shelter staff — had a median of $35,360 a year in 2025, $17.00 an hour: 10 percent earned $27,250 or less, 10 percent $50,060 or more (O*NET, from BLS 2025 wage data). The headcount is large and growing fast: "Employment (2025) 365,300 employees", "Projected growth (2025-2035) Much faster than average (7% or higher)", "Projected job openings (2025-2035) 62,800" (O*NET, employment and outlook). And the survey behind the wages leaves out the self-employed (Washington ESD) — which is the groomer with their own salon or van, so the median measures the bather and the kennel attendant, not the owner who sets the price list.
State by state, and what the chains pay to train you. The employed median is $32,730 in Texas, $38,700 in California, $34,150 in Florida and $37,840 in New York (O*NET, Texas; California; Florida; New York). The occupation is "Job Zone 1-2: Very Little to Some Preparation Needed" — "Usually requires a high school diploma or GED, though some occupations may not", with training that "Ranges from a few days to one year of on-the-job training" (O*NET, job zone). The two national chains put a number on that year: at PetSmart "You'll bathe over 125 dogs before moving on to our paid Grooming Academy", a "4-week, 160-hour-long program", and "After you've groomed 200 dogs and passed a technical assessment by a PetSmart District Academy Trainer, you'll earn the respected title of a PetSmart Pet Stylist", paid "a guaranteed hourly wage and up to 55% commission" (PetSmart careers, salons); at Petco "Every Petco Certified Pet Stylist begins with a paid, 20-week certification program" (Petco careers, grooming).
Where the money is. A salon owner's income is the price list times the dogs per day minus the rent, the products and the insurance — and in Texas and New York minus the sales tax, because both states tax grooming (below). The groomers quoted below describe the business as repeat customers on a six-week cycle, mobile vans that charge the most per dog, and specialties — cats, doodles, hand-stripping — that let one table charge more than the chain down the road. The step after this guide is how to start a dog grooming business, and the plan page is the dog grooming business plan.
The catch. The work is on your feet with sharp tools and frightened animals — in O*NET's survey 58 percent of animal caretakers are "Exposed to Minor Burns, Cuts, Bites, or Stings" every day, 78 percent to "Sounds, Noise Levels that are Distracting or Uncomfortable" every day, and 56 percent "Spend Time Standing" continually (O*NET, work context); the pay as an employee is the lowest of the five trades in this series; and because no US state licenses the employed groomer, the thing that protects the dog is you — plus the cruelty statute that reaches every groomer, licensed or not. That's what the rest of this guide sets up: who licenses what, from the agencies; the routes in and what each costs; the clippers, table and dryer from a supplier's own prices; and how to be the groomer the Sunday-night search books.
How to become a dog groomer, in plain English: who licenses what, and the rules you follow anyway
No US state licenses the employed dog groomer. The cleanest proof is the bill that never passes: New York has filed the same measure every session since 2009, and the current one, Assembly bill A1108, which "Provides for the licensing of pet grooming facilities; establishes standards of care and required record keeping", sits "In Committee Assembly" after being "referred to economic development" on January 7, 2026 (New York State Senate, A1108, 2025–26 session). Texas's only mention of the trade in its licensing-and-tax rules is as a taxable service; Florida's largest county never licensed groomers — when the state preempted local occupational licenses on July 1, 2025, Miami-Dade's list of what stopped was locksmiths, pain clinics, injury-protection providers and water remeterers, with no groomer on it (Miami-Dade County, July 2025); Ohio's animal-business licensing covers "High volume breeder license and license renewal applications" through its Department of Agriculture, with no groomer in the chapter (Ohio Admin. Code 901:1-6-08); Illinois and California have no groomer statute to cite. What exists instead is a short list of places that license the shop or set a bar for the person:
- Colorado — the state that licenses the grooming facility and the contractor groomer. The Department of Agriculture's Pet Animal Care and Facilities Act: "Any person or firm who is operating a pet animal facility/business that engages in selling, transferring, adopting, breeding, boarding, training, grooming, sheltering, rescuing or transporting pet animals may need to be licensed under PACFA"; a "Groomer facility" is "Any permanent or mobile establishment where a person pays a fee to have their pet animal's skin, coat, hair, or feathers cleaned, styled, or maintained"; the "Primary, Secondary, Mobile, and Self Wash Grooming Facility Fee: $400" and the "Independent Contractor Groomer Fee: $350" — so the van and the groomer renting a table are licensed too (Colorado Department of Agriculture, PACFA licensing; PACFA FAQ). The rules are "8 CCR 1202-15 RULES AND REGULATIONS PERTAINING TO THE ADMINISTRATION AND ENFORCEMENT OF THE PET ANIMAL CARE AND FACILITIES ACT", current version effective July 15, 2025 (Colorado Secretary of State, rule index). The $350 card is the one groomer's license in the country, and it is for a contractor renting a table, not an employee.
- Iowa — the kennel that grooms is licensed. Iowa's animal-welfare chapter defines a "Commercial kennel" as "a kennel which performs grooming, boarding, or training services for dogs or cats in return for a consideration" and says "A commercial kennel shall only operate pursuant to a state license issued or renewed by the department" (Iowa Code chapter 162, §§162.2 and 162.6) — a grooming salon in Iowa is a licensed commercial kennel; the groomer is not licensed as a person. The fee sits in the department's rules, not the chapter, and is not printed here.
- Los Angeles County, California — the one place with a rule for the groomer. County Code section 10.40.020 makes a grooming facility keep "a manager or other responsible person on the premises … who is qualified as a groomer" and says "Groomers who are employed by the licensee are not permitted to work without supervision on any animal unless the groomer has: a. Obtained certification for his or her level of responsibility from a nationally recognized pet grooming organization approved by the Director; or b. Graduated from an animal grooming school or vocational grooming training and has at least one year of grooming experience; or c. Completed an animal grooming apprenticeship program for at least one year" — the same section bans grooming nooses and prong collars as tethers, bans enclosed heated cage dryers without vents and makes staff check a dog in a cage dryer "at least every fifteen (15) minutes" (LA County Animal Care and Control, Title 10 §10.40.020). The county's inspectors enforce it: Animal Care and Control "inspects animal facilities to ensure the welfare of the animals belonging to or being cared for by the facility owner. Examples of these facilities are pet shops, grooming businesses, boarding kennels … Each facility receives a letter grade based on the findings of the inspection" (LA County DACC, facility licensing). The City of West Hollywood, inside the county, wrote the same three-way rule into its own code and requires "a license to conduct an animal grooming business" (West Hollywood Municipal Code, chapter 5.18). Everywhere else — Texas, Florida, New York, Illinois, Ohio and the rest — a groomer needs ordinary business registration, a sales-tax account where the state taxes the work, and nothing groomer-specific.
The rules you follow without a license. Rabies is the owner's duty and the veterinarian's job, never the groomer's: in Texas "the owner of a dog or cat shall have the animal vaccinated against rabies by the time the animal is four months of age and at regular intervals thereafter as prescribed by department rule", and "A veterinarian who vaccinates a dog or cat against rabies shall issue to the animal's owner a vaccination certificate" (Tex. Health & Safety Code §826.021); in California "Every owner of a dog, after the dog attains the age of three months or older, shall … procure its vaccination by a licensed veterinarian" (Cal. Health & Safety Code §121690) — which is why a salon asks for the certificate at intake and cannot give the shot. The cruelty statute is the law that reaches every groomer, licensed or not: in Texas "A person commits an offense if the person intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly … tortures an animal or in a cruel manner kills or causes serious bodily injury to an animal" or "fails unreasonably to provide necessary food, water, care, or shelter for an animal in the person's custody", and "'Torture' includes any act that causes unjustifiable pain or suffering" (Tex. Penal Code §42.092). A dog left on a drying table too long, or nicked and not treated, is a criminal matter in every state before it is a licensing one.
How you learn it. Three doors, and the first two pay you. The chains hire bathers with no experience and train them on the payroll: at PetSmart "You'll bathe over 125 dogs before moving on to our paid Grooming Academy" — "an exclusive and knowledge filled 4-week, 160-hour-long program!", then "After you've groomed 200 dogs and passed a technical assessment by a PetSmart District Academy Trainer, you'll earn the respected title of a PetSmart Pet Stylist!" (PetSmart careers, salons); at Petco "Every Petco Certified Pet Stylist begins with a paid, 20-week certification program", starting as a "Junior Groomer" with "12-weeks of paid training" (Petco careers, grooming). An apprenticeship under an independent groomer is the second door, and the one the groomers quoted below mostly took. The third is school: Merryfield Academy in Fort Lauderdale prints its "Professional Pet Grooming" tuition at "$11,400.00", "Equipment and Books $1,500.00", "Total Cost $12,900.00" (Merryfield Academy, tuition) for a "600 Clock Hours" program — "PG 100: Intro to Pet Grooming Basics (125 hours)", "PG 105A: Grooming (425 hours)", "PG 106A: Externship (50 hours)" — that "can be completed in as less than 8 months as a full-time student" (Merryfield Academy, program); the other schools we tried would not open their price pages to a scripted reader, so no other tuition is printed. The certifications are voluntary everywhere and recognized by kennels, vets and Los Angeles County's code: the AKC's "Safety in the Salon for Groomers" course is "$149.99" for "10" modules (AKC Canine College); the AKC's Professional Grooming Credential "is valid for five years and measures foundational knowledge, safety, and technical skills of groomers", with "twenty-five hours (25 CEUs) to maintain the credential" (AKC, Professional Grooming Credential); the International Professional Groomers' Certified Professional Groomer package is "$425.00" and includes "2 Resource manuals, Masters tips, Cute Heads and Bathing videos, written tests, and testing information", judged on "the bath and dry, and pet trim, demonstrating safety and a nice finish" (IPG, Track 1); the National Dog Groomers Association's master certification "involves both practical skills exams and written exams, ensuring comprehensive evaluation across key breed groups: Non-Sporting, Sporting, Long-Legged Terriers, and Short-Legged Terriers", with the practical breeds named — "Poodle (size-specific time limits) and Bichon Frise", a Cocker or Springer Spaniel, a Schnauzer or wire terrier, a "Scottish Terrier, West Highland White Terrier, Sealyham Terrier, Cairn Terrier (hand-stripped only)" — and its fees on the application (NDGAA, master groomer program).
You are self-employed from the first invoice. In the US a one-table groomer is a sole proprietor by default: "Use Schedule C (Form 1040) to report income or (loss) from a business you operated or a profession you practiced as a sole proprietor" (IRS, Schedule C instructions); "The self-employment tax rate is 15.3%" once net earnings reach $400 (IRS), and sole proprietors "generally have to make estimated tax payments if they expect to owe tax of $1,000 or more" (IRS). If you want an LLC: Texas $300 (Tex. Bus. Orgs. Code §4.154); Florida $100 plus $25 for the registered agent and $50 a year (Fla. Stat. §605.0213); New York $200 (N.Y. LLC Law §1101) plus a notice "published once in each week for six successive weeks, in two newspapers of the county" (§206); California $70 (Cal. Gov. Code §12190) and "Every LLC that is doing business or organized in California must pay an annual tax of $800" (Franchise Tax Board). Workers' compensation: "In Texas, private employers can choose to carry workers' compensation insurance coverage, but it is not required in most cases" (Texas Department of Insurance), while "All California employers must provide workers' compensation benefits to their employees under California Labor Code Section 3700" (California DIR).
Sales tax on the work — four states' rules, and two tax it. Texas taxes grooming: "Services such as shoe shining or repair, appliance repair, furniture refurbishing or upholstering, jewelry repair or cleaning and dog grooming are taxable" (Texas Comptroller, Publication 96-259). New York does too: "grooming and clipping (except when provided as a necessary part of the practice of veterinary medicine)" is taxable, grooming "provided to a guide, hearing, or service dog" is not, and "A dog is taken to the veterinary hospital each month for routine bathing, grooming, and nail clipping. The receipts from these services are subject to sales tax" (New York TB-ST-930). Florida taxes only a short list of services — detective and protection services, nonresidential cleaning and pest control — and grooming is not on it (Fla. Stat. §212.05). California taxes the products, not the service: "Persons engaged in the business of rendering service are consumers, not retailers, of the tangible personal property which they use incidentally in rendering the service", and if they "regularly sell tangible personal property to consumers, they are retailers with respect to such sales and they must obtain permits" (CDTFA Regulation 1501). Confirm the details with your accountant.
The money to start. Our arithmetic from the pages that print each price. A lean start — a house-call or mobile groomer's own kit — an Andis AGC2 two-speed clipper at $149.99 with a spare #10 blade at $27.99 (Andis, read October 26, 2026), Chris Christensen Contour shears from $240 and a Top Cat slicker from $33.50 (Chris Christensen), a Groomers Helper table clamp at $139.95 and a gallon of shampoo at $42.97 (Groomer's Choice), a small bone-shaped table with an arm at $152 (Flying Pig) and a stand dryer at its $287 sale price (Flying Pig) — comes to $1,073.40. The fuller start, a one-chair salon in Colorado — the same clipper, blade, shears, brush, clamp and shampoo, an electric lift table with arm at $995 on sale against a $1,395 list, the two-motor Super One dryer at $529 and a wall-mount dryer for the tub at $207 (Flying Pig), an Andis ProClip 5-in-1 cordless at $159.99 for the second clipper, Colorado's $400 facility license and a year of general liability at Insureon's $598 median — is $3,523.39. The stainless tub is the biggest line left out: no supplier's page that opened printed a price, and neither did any van builder. The insurance is a median, not your quote: "Pet and dog groomers pay an average of $50 per month, or $598 annually, for general liability insurance", "$80 per month, or $962 per year, for a business owner's policy", and the policy that matters is the one general liability leaves out — "due to the care, custody, and control exclusion, pet grooming businesses aren't covered for pet injuries. To cover this gap, you would need animal bailee coverage, which can be added to your general liability policy as an endorsement" (Insureon, groomers, updated July 10, 2025); a mobile groomer's general liability median is "$65 per month, or $780 annually" (Insureon, mobile groomers, updated July 11, 2025). The plan page for the business side is the dog grooming business plan, the step after this guide is how to start a dog grooming business, the name goes on the door from pet grooming business names, and the site from the dog groomer website builder or the dog groomer website design page.
In the UK: no license for grooming either. England's animal-activities licensing covers dog day care, dog breeding, home and kennel boarding, selling animals as pets, keeping or training animals for exhibition, cat boarding and hiring out horses (GOV.UK, animal activities licensing guidance) — the 2018 regulations' schedule lists "Selling animals as pets", "Providing or arranging for the provision of boarding for cats or dogs", "Hiring out horses", "Breeding dogs" and "Keeping or training animals for exhibition", and grooming is not among them (The Animal Welfare (Licensing of Activities Involving Animals) (England) Regulations 2018, Schedule 1). The government's career profile puts pay at "£15,000 Starter" to "£23,000 Experienced", with routes through "a college course", "an apprenticeship" — the "Dog Grooming Level 2 Intermediate Apprenticeship" — or "working towards this role": "You could start as an assistant in a kennels or grooming business and learn on the job from a qualified and experienced dog groomer" (National Careers Service, GOV.UK). In Australia there is no license either, but New South Wales binds the shop to a code: "You must comply with this code if you intend to operate a pet grooming or bathing establishment" — the Animal Welfare Code of Practice No. 8 under the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act 1979 (ABLIS, NSW code of practice No. 8) — and the trade's qualification is the "Certificate III in Animal Care Services (Pet Grooming)", national code ACM30122, "17 units of competency, including 7 core and 10 speciality units" (TAFE NSW). Check your own state's agriculture department, your county's animal-control office and your city's business license desk before you take the first dog.
What working dog groomers actually say
None of this is our opinion about the trade. It comes from people who do it — a Houston couple who started mobile and opened a salon, a Houston groomer who applied to PetSmart on a whim, an El Campo groomer who went from bather to eight dogs a day, a Houston bather-turned-manager who left corporate grooming, a Dallas grooming-school owner with thirty years in, a Plano mobile owner with three vans, a second-generation Dallas groomer, three Los Angeles groomers, an Atlanta groomer who groomed a hundred dogs per breed group as an apprentice, three Denver mobile groomers including a master groomer and a cat groomer, a Colorado salon that passed its state inspection, and two Phoenix owners — talking to the Voyage magazines and ShoutoutLA between 2017 and 2026, each described as the page describes them. Read each as theirs at the time. Five things come up again and again.
You start at the tub, and the chain will pay you to learn. Emily Cortez, Pawlished Groomery, El Campo, Texas: “I was hired as a bather through PetSmart by a fantastic team and fell in love with all things pet grooming very quickly. I signed on to attend the "PetSmart Grooming Academy" and worked my way up from bather to groomer's apprentice and finally, professional groomer.” (VoyageHouston, September 20, 2022). Brenna Cooper, B's Kreative Kutz, Houston: “I didn't grow up planning to become a dog groomer. I actually applied at PetSmart on a whim—just to try something new and see where it led. What started as an apprenticeship quickly turned into a calling.” (VoyageHouston, February 4, 2026). Jocelyn Leyva, Grooming by Jocelyn, Houston: “I soon realized I wanted a more hands-on job so I became a dog bather. This job felt natural to me and I felt very comfortable working so closely with dogs of all shapes and sizes. From there I moved up to dog grooming in the same store and absolutely fell in love with it.” (VoyageHouston, November 29, 2022). Asia Quentin, Asia's In-Home Grooming, Houston, on why she skipped school: “I didn't see the point in amassing loads of student loan debt when I could be paid to learn how to groom and eventually make good money running my own grooming business” (VoyageHouston, August 3, 2021). Tracey Grier, TreChien Dog Spa, Atlanta: “After graduating, I had to complete the apprentice part that required me to groom 100 dogs of each breeding group and could then begin my solo career as a Professional Pet Stylist!!” (VoyageATL, April 8, 2021).
“Because dog grooming is not a regulated industry there is low barrier to entry which makes for uncertified, unknowledgeable people in our field. There's loads more that goes into grooming than people are aware of — it takes years to learn proper handling, different methods for different coat types, getting to a point where you have your own style, etc.” — Malia Kainoa, Fawn & Sable Mobile Grooming, Denver, a National Certified Master Groomer, in VoyageDenver, June 21, 2022
School is six weeks to eight months, and the apprenticeship after it is the trade. Ana Flores, Chucho Mobile Dog Grooming, Los Angeles: “I borrowed a loan from my sister and signed up for the six week grooming academy. I did the program full time during the day and worked the graveyard shift at my job in an Amazon warehouse. After graduating, I was hired at a salon in Orange County.” (VoyageLA, September 14, 2026). Tali David, Tali Tails, Los Angeles: “It wasn't easy at first, but I stuck with it and learned about different dog breeds, coat types, and proper bathing techniques. After a year, I enrolled in dog grooming school, where I began learning how to groom and style dogs.” (VoyageLA, March 16, 2026). Katie Oceguera, Pretty Paws, Dallas: “I graduated from Texas All Breed Grooming School in 2008 and spent a year learning the ropes alongside my father before taking over the family business. Let me tell you, he was a tough teacher!” (VoyageDallas, October 2, 2025). The school's owner, Sasha Riess: “Grooming salons were increasingly focused on speed and cosmetic results, while dogs arriving on grooming tables were presenting more stress, more health complications, and more behavioral sensitivity than ever before.” (VoyageDallas, March 18, 2026). Michelle McCartney, Aussie & Friends Mobile, Fort Collins, who changed careers at 43: “Cal discovered two grooming schools nearby with only three in the state, encouraging me to reach out to them. … To my disappointment, they were booked for over a year.” (VoyageDenver, May 6, 2025).
It is physical, it is not playing with dogs, and the dog's welfare is on you. Jessica Huang, a mobile groomer in Los Angeles: “I often hear "You're so lucky you get to play with dogs all day!" and that is far from the truth. Most of my day I am dealing with dogs who try to avoid getting their nails trimmed, anal glands, getting their ears cleaned, or cutting their face hairs.” (ShoutoutLA, read October 2026). Tilly Bush, The Fur District, Phoenix: “Working with animals is always an adventure. Some are trained, some not so much. You deal with bites, scratches, drool, other bodily fluids from dogs, difficult clients… all the things. But in the end, helping dogs feel better is really rewarding.” (VoyagePhoenix, November 2, 2022). Jessica Hewett, Soggy Paws, Lomita, California: “Our group works cohesively as a unit with the understanding that this job can be mentally, physically, and emotionally taxing. If someone is having a tough time trying to detail trim an area that they just can't get right another stylist will team up with them and help them out.” (VoyageLA, April 20, 2026). Farzad Jalali, Dashing Dog Grooming, Houston: “Our focus is quality, not quantity. We book only a certain number of clients daily to ensure they get the best grooming experience.” (VoyageHouston, July 25, 2023). Debra Ray, Smoochie Poochie, Mesa, Arizona: “We don't book a bunch of dogs all at the same time so we don't keep them all day. Normal turnaround time is 2 2 1/2 hours. We will keep them all day at no extra charge if that's what the customer needs.” (VoyagePhoenix, November 2, 2017). Amanda Miller, Wags & Whiskers, Yuma County, Colorado, a state that inspects: “Being able to pass state inspections and PACFA was at times stressful. It was all still new to me.” (VoyageDenver, June 23, 2020).
The pay as an employee is the catch, and the price list is the fix. Quentin: “While mobile grooming provided a much more calm, safer environment, through all of these experiences, I witnessed and experienced that groomers are often extremely overworked, underpaid, exploited, and underappreciated.” And: “So, as a whole, prices in the industry are actually much lower than they should be.” (VoyageHouston, August 3, 2021). Bush: “I also wanted desperately to spend more time with my kids, I was tired of feeling chained to the grooming table, making 50% commission, and working for someone else.” (VoyagePhoenix, November 2, 2022). Sarah Cranmer, Fresh Mobile Dog Spa, Plano: “I truly believe the one thing that saved me was the fact that I did my research and was charging appropriately as soon as I opened the business. I was able to pay myself but always had enough leftover so that when things broke, money wasn't an issue.” And on the start: “I started quite humbly with a small personal loan and bought a twenty-year-old used dog grooming van. I worked by myself and was eventually able to purchase a new grooming van by 2020, and I hired my first employee in October 2021.” (VoyageDallas, August 10, 2023). Cortez on the ramp: “In the beginning, it was 1 or 2 dogs a day. Once the word began to get out, it quickly turned to eight dogs a day. I worked seven days a week for about 4-6 months, only taking off a half day here and there.” (VoyageHouston, September 20, 2022).
Owning the table is a different trade, and the specialty is the edge. Brandon Pedro, PCoCo Dog Grooming, Dallas: “From opening with limited resources to learning everything the hard way, there were moments where I had to be the groomer, the marketer, the janitor, the manager, and the problem-solver all at once.” (VoyageDallas, February 5, 2026). Hewett: “I then hired my first employee and had some hard-learned lessons and trials. I had no education on how to properly run a business when it came to wages, revenue, profit, etc.” (VoyageLA, April 20, 2026). The magazine's own words on Chris Lacquement, Texas Best Mobile Pet Grooming, Dallas–Fort Worth: “He grew that business from a single unit into a fleet of seven mobile grooming vans generating over $1 million per year before selling the company in 2023.” (VoyageDallas, December 4, 2025). Alisha McCloskey, Little Lion Cat Grooming, Denver: “At Little Lion Cat Grooming, I offer full grooming services for cats only. Every groom includes a nail trim, bath, blow-dry, and comb-out with optional add-ons such as lion cuts, sanitary trims, de-shedding treatments, etc.” (VoyageDenver, March 4, 2026). Annie Kelly, Annie Groom Your Dog, Denver: “Some days I'm grooming in my van and think to myself "Wow how did I get here, this is so weird…I'm giving this little guy a haircut and telling him about my day." Dog groomers are weird people and I love it, I found my people. It's the best decision I've ever made.” (VoyageDenver, December 17, 2024).
The through-line: the groomers who lasted started at the tub, learned under a hand that taught, priced the work properly from the first day, booked fewer dogs than the chain did, and found the specialty — cats, anxious dogs, a van at the curb — that let one table charge more.
THE STARTER KIT
What you need to become a working dog groomer
A year at the tub before the table
Bathing, drying, brushing out and nail trims under a working groomer — the chains hire bathers with no experience, and every groomer quoted below started there or wishes they had.
Your state's and county's answer on licensing
No license for the employed groomer in any US state; a facility license in Colorado and Iowa, a contractor-groomer card in Colorado, a groomer rule in Los Angeles County, a shop permit in a few cities — named below from the agencies, with a business registration everywhere.
A school, a program or a mentor
A grooming school at its posted tuition, a chain's paid training program, or an apprenticeship under a groomer you trust — the routes compared below with what each costs and how long it takes.
The table kit, from the suppliers' prices
Clippers and blades, a shear set, a hydraulic or electric table with an arm, a high-velocity dryer, a tub or a ramp — each priced from a grooming supplier's own product page.
The credential clients recognize
The national associations' certification ladders are voluntary everywhere and the proof a boarding kennel or a vet's office looks for; the exam fees are below from the associations.
A way to be found first
A website with your prices, your photos and a booking button, and a Google Business Profile with your hours — the two things the chain's salon page can't show about you.
THE PAPERWORK
Licenses, permits, certifications and insurance on the way to your own grooming business
| Typical cost | Time to get | Legally required? | |
|---|---|---|---|
| A groomer's license | $350 a year (Colorado, independent-contractor groomer only) | Weeks | Only Colorado, and only for a groomer renting a table as a contractor; no US state licenses the employed groomer — New York's bill has sat in committee since 2009 |
| Grooming facility license | $400 a year (Colorado, salon, van or self-wash); $350 for an independent-contractor groomer | Weeks — an inspection first | Colorado, and Iowa for a kennel that grooms; LA County inspects and letter-grades grooming facilities; West Hollywood licenses the business |
| A qualification before working unsupervised | A certification, or school plus a year, or an apprenticeship | Months to a year | Los Angeles County and West Hollywood, by their codes; nowhere else by law — the chains and most salons require it in practice |
| Voluntary certification | $425 (IPG Certified Professional Groomer package); $149.99 (AKC Safety in the Salon course); NDGAA and AKC credential fees on application | A written and practical exam per breed group | No — recognized by kennels, vets and LA County's rule |
| Grooming school | $11,400 tuition + $1,500 equipment and books (Merryfield, 600 clock hours); $0 at the chains, which pay you to train | Six weeks to eight months | No |
| Sole proprietorship (Schedule C) | $0 | None | The default once net earnings pass $400 (self-employment tax 15.3%) |
| LLC (optional) | $300 (TX); $125 (FL); $200 + newspaper notices (NY); $70 + $800/yr (CA) | Days to weeks | No |
| Sales-tax permit | Free to register | Before the first groom in Texas and New York | Yes in TX and NY (grooming is taxable); products only in CA; not grooming in FL |
| General liability insurance | $50/mo median salon, $65/mo mobile (Insureon) | Days | A contract condition for a lease or a mobile route; not a license condition anywhere |
| Animal bailee coverage | An endorsement on the liability policy — no median printed | Days | No — but general liability excludes injury to the dog in your care without it |
| Workers' compensation | $88/mo median salon, $97/mo mobile (Insureon) | Days | Required from the first employee in CA; optional for private employers in TX |
| Rabies certificates at intake | None — the owner's vet issues them | — | The owner's legal duty in TX and CA; your shop policy decides whether you check |
THE STEPS
How to become a dog groomer (step by step)
Eight steps from the first bath to a certified groomer with a salon, a van or a table of your own.
01
Check your state, county and city
No US state licenses the employed dog groomer. Colorado and Iowa license the grooming business — Colorado the contractor groomer too — Los Angeles County has a rule for the groomer, a few cities permit the shop, and everywhere else asks only for ordinary business registration. The list is below, from the agencies.
Named below02
Start as a bather
The chains and most salons hire bathers with no experience and teach the prep work — bathing, drying, brushing out, nails, ears. A year at the tub is where the handling and the speed come from.
The real first step03
Pick a route to the table
A grooming school at its posted tuition, a chain's paid in-house program, or an apprenticeship under a groomer you trust — compared below with what each costs and how long it takes.
04
Learn the breeds and the clips
Coat types, the standard breed trims and the pet trims owners actually ask for, de-matting, hand-stripping if you want the terrier clients — the part no six-week course finishes.
05
Get the credential clients recognize
The national associations' voluntary certification — written and practical exams by breed group — is what a boarding kennel or a vet's office looks for when they refer.
06
Kit the table from real prices
Clippers and blades, a shear set, a table with an arm, a high-velocity dryer and a tub start a salon; a van build or a trailer adds the mobile side, which charges the most per dog.
07
Set the business up and insure it
Register the business, take the facility license or shop permit where your state or city issues one, carry general liability with animal-bailee cover, and write the policies — matting, aggression, vaccines — before the first client.
08
Be the groomer the search finds first
A website with your prices by size and coat, your before-and-after photos and a booking button, and a Google Business Profile with your hours — so the Sunday-night search books you.
THE COSTS
How much does it cost to become a dog groomer?
Itemized from the pages that print a price: the clippers from Andis, the shears from Chris Christensen, the table and dryers from Flying Pig, the clamp and shampoo from Groomer's Choice, the Colorado fee from the state and the insurance from Insureon's groomer medians. The tub, the van and the website come on top.
$1,073.40a lean start for a house-call or mobile groomer — a two-speed clipper and spare blade, shears, a slicker, a small table with arm, a clamp, a stand dryer and a gallon of shampoo (our arithmetic)
$3,523.39the fuller start as a one-chair salon in Colorado — an electric lift table, a two-motor dryer and a wall-mount dryer, a second cordless clipper, the $400 facility license and a year of liability cover
$0for the chains' training — PetSmart's paid four-week academy after 125 dogs bathed, Petco's paid 20-week program — against $12,900 all-in at one Florida grooming school
$425IPG's Certified Professional Groomer package; $149.99 for the AKC's Safety in the Salon course
WHAT WE'VE LEARNED
What actually makes an owner book a groomer
Thousands of local business websites in, the pattern for a trade trusted with a family member who can't speak is clear: the owner wants to see your work, know your prices, and know how you handle a nervous dog. For a groomer, three things on a page decide who gets the booking.
Your work, in photos
Before-and-after pairs by breed and cut, the intake and the finish, with the dog's name. The thing a customer scrolls before reading a word — and the thing a chain's page can't show about you.
Prices by size and coat
A full groom, a bath and brush, a nail trim — each with a 'from' price by size and coat, and the de-matting fee stated plainly. The first thing a caller asks, and the thing that stops the no-shows.
How you handle the dog
One dog at a time, cage-free drying, no sedation, a vet on call — whatever your handling promise is, on the page. The nervous owner is choosing you for the dog's sake, not the haircut's.
THE UPSIDE
What a dog groomer can earn
Pay for employed animal caretakers from O*NET's 2025 figures — the occupation groomers are filed under, with kennel and shelter staff, and the self-employed are not in the survey. Medians, not a promise: your prices, your dogs per day and whether the table is yours decide it.
$35,360a year: the 2025 median for employed animal caretakers — $17.00 an hour; 10 percent under $27,250, 10 percent over $50,060 (O*NET)
$38,700the California median; New York $37,840, Florida $34,150, Texas $32,730
55%the top commission PetSmart posts for its pet stylists, on a guaranteed hourly wage — the structure a chain groomer is paid on before going out alone
365,300employed animal caretakers in 2025, with 62,800 openings a year projected to 2035 — owner-operators are not counted
SEE IT WORK
Dog grooming website designs you can start from
Real Zarla templates for the shapes the trade takes — the mobile groomer whose salon is a van, the spa that sells a morning rather than a slot, the cats-only groomer, the doodle specialist. Open one, swap in your services and your prices, and publish.
GET FOUND
Get found by the owner whose doodle is matted to the skin
A new dog owner searches "dog groomer near me" on a Sunday night, and the booking goes to the groomer whose prices, photos and hours are on the first screen. Zarla builds the website with your services, your hours and a booking button. Add your prices by size and coat and your before-and-after photos in chat, and once you connect your Google Business Profile, your name, your photos and your hours stay in step on both.
“Dog groomer near me”
Searched by a new puppy owner, by the family whose doodle is matted, and by the cat owner nobody else will take. Your services, your prices, your photos and a booking button answer all three.
Google Business Profile
A salon has an address and a mobile groomer has a service area; both qualify. Your hours, your photos and your booking link inside Google Maps — free, and an afternoon to set up.
The before-and-after photos
The proof an owner wants before trusting you with the dog: the matted intake and the finished groom, side by side, with the breed and the cut named. The gallery is the sales page.
Google Search
Sscruffytofluffygrooming.com
Scruffy to Fluffy Grooming — Trusted dog-groomer in Your AreaPortland's one-dog-at-a-time groomer — full grooms, baths, de-shedding and nail trims for every size and coat. Prices posted up front. Book online or call.← Your Zarla siteCcitydoggroomerservices.com
City dog-groomer ServicesGoogle Maps
1
Scruffy to Fluffy Grooming
← You2
Metro dog-groomer Co.
3
Quick dog-groomer Services
AI assistants (ChatGPT / Perplexity)
For a dog groomer in Portland who takes anxious large dogs, posts prices, and has an opening this week in your area: Scruffy to Fluffy Grooming — a local groomer's site that lists a full groom, bath and brush and nail trims with prices by size, shows before-and-after photos, and takes a booking request from the page.
YOUR LAUNCH PLAN
Your become-a-dog-groomer checklist
The whole guide as things to check off. Work through them in order and you'll be trained, certified, licensed where your state or city asks for it, insured, kitted and findable before your first client.
- Check your state, county and city below — a facility license, a groomer rule, a shop permit, or ordinary registration.
- Start as a bather — a year at the tub under a working groomer.
- Pick a route to the table — a school, a chain's paid program, or an apprenticeship.
- Learn the breeds and the clips — the standard trims and the pet trims owners ask for.
- Earn the credential — the associations' voluntary certification.
- Kit the table from the suppliers' prices — clippers, shears, table, dryer, tub.
- Register, permit and insure the business — general liability with animal-bailee cover, and the policies in writing.
- Get found — a website with your prices, your photos and a booking button, and a Google Business Profile.
REAL CUSTOMERS
Small business owners who got online with Zarla
Verified reviews from real Zarla customers.
“Optimized for local service-based businesses. Easiest website build I've experienced. The AI-based build is the way to go instead of clunky theme-based websites. Get the site built and get out of the weeds with Zarla!”
“Quickly built my website from scratch. No hiccups. Would highly recommend Zarla for someone with no experience who wants to start a polished business website.”
“Very reliable, professional, and fast results. I was able to get my business online in no time, and the ease of access made it so simple.”
“I had no idea how to set up a website for my business. Thanks to Zarla, they've helped me a lot.”
Be the groomer the "dog groomer near me" search finds first
Add your town and your business name, and Zarla builds the website from that one line — your services, your prices by size and coat, your hours, a booking button and a photo gallery, with SEO in place. Add your before-and-after photos in chat. Free to build; you pay when you publish.
Already have a website? Bring it across →Zarla keeps your old page addresses where it can and redirects the ones that change, helping you keep the Google standing you've built.
Frequently asked questions
How much does it cost to become a dog groomer?
In the US, about $1,073.40 for a lean start as a house-call or mobile groomer, our arithmetic from the pages that print each price: a $149.99 Andis AGC2 clipper and a $27.99 spare blade, Chris Christensen shears from $240 and a slicker from $33.50, a $152 small table with arm, a $139.95 table clamp, a $287 stand dryer and $42.97 of shampoo. The fuller start as a one-chair salon in Colorado — a $995 electric lift table, a $529 two-motor dryer and a $207 wall-mount dryer, a $159.99 cordless second clipper, the $400 facility license and $598 for a year of general liability — is $3,523.39, before the tub, which no supplier's page priced for us. Training can be free: the chains pay bathers through their academies. A school is the big line — $11,400 tuition plus $1,500 for equipment and books at Merryfield Academy — and a certification is $425 at IPG or $149.99 for the AKC's salon-safety course.
Do you need a license to groom dogs?
In the US, no US state licenses the employed dog groomer — New York has filed the same groomer-licensing bill every session since 2009 and the current one sits in committee. What exists is a short list of places that license or inspect the business: Colorado licenses the grooming facility, the van and even the independent-contractor groomer under its Pet Animal Care and Facilities Act ($400 and $350 a year) — the contractor card is the only groomer's license in the country; Iowa licenses any commercial kennel that grooms for pay; Los Angeles County inspects and letter-grades grooming facilities and its code will not let an employed groomer work unsupervised without a certification, a school diploma plus a year, or a one-year apprenticeship; the City of West Hollywood licenses the business and carries the same rule. Everywhere else you need ordinary business registration, a sales-tax permit where the state taxes grooming (Texas and New York do), and the insurance a landlord asks for. Check your state's agriculture department and your city before you take the first dog.
How long does it take to become a dog groomer?
The government's own job zone for the occupation says training ranges from a few days to one year on the job, and the chains put numbers on it: at PetSmart you bathe over 125 dogs before a paid four-week, 160-hour academy, then groom 200 dogs and pass an assessment to be called a pet stylist; Petco's certification program is 20 paid weeks. A school is six weeks — one Los Angeles groomer did a six-week academy in Corona while working nights — to eight months for Merryfield's 600 clock hours. The groomers quoted above say the year after that, under a hand that teaches, is where the breeds, the clips and the handling come from; one master groomer says it takes years.
Is it hard to become a pet groomer?
Getting in is not hard — no US state licenses the employed groomer, the chains hire bathers with no experience and pay them through the academy, and O*NET files the occupation under very little to some preparation needed. The job is hard. In the survey of animal caretakers, 58 percent are exposed to bites, cuts and stings every day, 78 percent to uncomfortable noise every day and 56 percent stand continually; the groomers quoted above call it mentally, physically and emotionally taxing and say most of the day is spent with dogs that do not want their nails trimmed. The skill takes years, and the pay as an employee is the lowest of the five trades in this series until the table is yours.
Do you need a license to groom dogs in Ohio?
No. Ohio's Department of Agriculture licenses high-volume dog breeders, dog retailers and brokers under its animal-business rules — the chapter's license applications are for breeders — and a groomer is not on the list; no US state licenses the employed groomer. An Ohio groomer registers a business like any other, follows the cruelty statute like everyone who handles an animal, and carries the insurance a landlord or a mobile route asks for.
How much money do you earn as a dog groomer?
Employed animal caretakers — the occupation groomers are filed under, with kennel and shelter staff — had a median of $35,360 in 2025, $17.00 an hour, with 10 percent earning $27,250 or less and 10 percent $50,060 or more, from BLS data on O*NET; the state medians are $32,730 in Texas, $38,700 in California, $34,150 in Florida and $37,840 in New York. Chain groomers are paid a guaranteed hourly wage plus commission — up to 55 percent at PetSmart — and one Phoenix owner left corporate grooming on 50 percent commission. The owners are outside the survey: a Dallas mobile operator built seven vans to over a million dollars a year before selling, and a Plano owner credits charging properly from the first day.
How much does it cost to get certified as a dog groomer?
The International Professional Groomers' Certified Professional Groomer package is $425, with the manuals, videos and written tests included; the AKC's Safety in the Salon course is $149.99 for ten modules; the AKC's Professional Grooming Credential and the National Dog Groomers Association's master certification put their fees on the application. None is required by any US state — they are what a kennel, a vet or Los Angeles County's supervision rule recognizes. Add school if you go that way: $12,900 all-in at Merryfield Academy — or nothing at the chains, whose academies are paid.
Is becoming a dog groomer worth it?
The demand is real — 365,300 employed animal caretakers in 2025, projected growth of 7 percent or higher to 2035 and 62,800 openings a year on O*NET — and the entry costs little. The honest trade-off is in the groomers' own words: one says groomers are often overworked, underpaid and under-appreciated and that prices across the trade are lower than they should be; one calls building her own kennel-free salon the most challenging and rewarding thing she has done; one in a van says it is the best decision she ever made. The groomers who say yes are the ones who own the table and set the price list.
How many dogs can a groomer groom in a day?
The groomers quoted above answer it themselves: one Texas groomer went from one or two dogs a day to eight once the word got out; one Mesa salon books a normal turnaround of two to two and a half hours and will not take a crowd at once; two Houston and Phoenix salons cap their daily bookings on purpose for the dogs' sake; and one Southern California owner's two shops went from 40 dogs a month to more than 600. Six to eight full grooms is a long day for one groomer with a bather; a mobile groomer does fewer and charges more per dog.
How do I become a dog groomer with no experience?
Apply as a bather. The chains hire with no experience and train on the payroll — at PetSmart you bathe over 125 dogs, then go through a paid four-week academy and groom 200 dogs under a trainer; at Petco the certification program is 20 paid weeks — and most of the groomers quoted above started exactly there, or as a bather and assistant under an independent groomer who taught them. School is the other door, six weeks to eight months. No US state asks for anything else; the thing to bring is the willingness to be bitten, wet and on your feet for a year while you learn.
Can I become a dog groomer from home?
In most of the US, yes, subject to your city's zoning and home-business rules: no US state licenses the employed groomer, and two of the groomers quoted above started on a home patio and in a home salon. Colorado is the exception — a home grooming business is a licensed facility at $400 a year and gets inspected — and in Los Angeles County a grooming facility is inspected and letter-graded, with West Hollywood licensing the business as well. Check your city's home-occupation rules, your lease or HOA, and in Texas and New York register for sales tax, because grooming is taxable there.
What tools does a dog groomer need to start?
The table kit, priced from the makers' and suppliers' own pages read in October 2026: an Andis AGC2 two-speed clipper ($149.99) with spare #10 blades ($27.99), a cordless second clipper such as the Andis ProClip 5-in-1 ($159.99), shears from $240 and a slicker from $33.50 at Chris Christensen, a table with an arm — $152 for a small folding one, $995 on sale for an electric lift table — a Groomers Helper clamp ($139.95), a high-velocity dryer ($287 for a stand dryer on sale, $529 for the two-motor Super One, $207 for a wall mount by the tub) and shampoo by the gallon ($42.97). The stainless tub is the one big line no supplier's page would price for us, and the van is a used-market purchase.
Do I need an LLC to be a dog groomer?
No US state requires it, and outside Colorado's contractor-groomer card there is no groomer license to attach it to. A one-table groomer is a sole proprietor by default: Schedule C, the 15.3 percent self-employment tax once net earnings pass $400, quarterly estimates once you expect to owe $1,000. If you form an LLC: $300 in Texas, $100 plus a $25 registered-agent fee and $50 a year in Florida, $200 in New York plus a notice published for six weeks in two newspapers, and $70 in California plus an $800 annual tax every year. The insurance matters more than the entity — general liability at Insureon's $598 median excludes injury to the dog in your care unless you add animal bailee coverage. Confirm the details with your accountant.