5 Best Beauty Schools in Chicago (2026)

Empire Beauty School runs a Stone Park campus offering hands-on cosmetology training plus an educator training program for students who want to eventually teach. Students take part in fashion shows, competitions, and community events like Empire's National Day of Beauty, which raises awareness about domestic abuse. The school also serves the public through student salon services, giving trainees real client experience while they study.

Tricoci University of Beauty Culture operates a 7,000 square foot Rogers Park campus with NACCAS-accredited cosmetology and esthetics programs, prepping students for Illinois state licensure. The campus trains students in a working salon and student clinic environment meant to mirror the real Chicago beauty industry, and it's positioned near Loyola University and CTA transit lines. It's the largest school on this page by review volume, with over 1,100 reviews logged.

G Skin & Beauty Institute is a downtown Chicago beauty school focused on skin care, running a student clinic for facials and waxing services out of its State Street location. Reviewers consistently describe thorough consultations before treatments, with students explaining product choices and technique as they work. The narrower esthetics focus, compared to a full-service cosmetology program, means depth on skin care specifically rather than breadth across hair, nails, and skin.

Trenz Beauty Academy runs cosmetology, esthetics, nail technology, and instructor training programs out of a Calumet City campus serving the broader Chicago area. Its student clinic offers hair services including twists, cuts, and color to the public while students train, with reviewers frequently naming specific student stylists for their work. The school's limited weekly hours (mostly Wednesday through Saturday) suggest a structured, part-time-friendly class schedule.

Paul Mitchell The School Chicago trains students across hair, esthetics, and barbering out of a South Loop campus, running a public-facing student salon for haircuts, coloring, and other services. Its program breadth spans multiple beauty disciplines under one roof, and the school has run a corrective process after past service issues, including reaching out to affected clients directly. Weekday and Saturday hours support a fairly standard training schedule.