HOW TO HIRE · BEAUTY & GROOMING

How to hire a manicurist and pedicurist in the UK
The checks, the questions and the paperwork.

No register applies to manicures and pedicures outside London. Here is what to check, what to ask about hygiene, and what to do if it goes wrong.

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THE 60-SECOND VERSION

Hiring a manicurist and pedicurist in five steps

  1. Check the foot bathCleaned between every client, or a disposable liner.
  2. Mention diabetes or poor circulationSay so at booking; some foot work should be left to a podiatrist.
  3. Do not shave firstSkip shaving your legs the day before a pedicure.
  4. Polish or gel?Gel costs more and needs a soak-off later.
  5. In London, look for the licenceThe borough's Special Treatments Licence on the wall.

BEFORE YOU BOOK

Check before you book

No register applies

Away from Greater London no licence or register applies to manicurists and pedicurists in any UK nation, so with a manicurist and pedicurist the checks are training, insurance and hygiene.

Look at photos of their real clients' nails and ask where they trained.

Special Treatments Licence (Greater London)

gov.uk lists manicures among the special treatments a Greater London borough licenses, so ask a salon in a London borough offering a manicure and pedicure whether its licence covers it.

Ask to see the borough licence, or check with the council's licensing team. gov.uk →

Insurance that covers the manicure and pedicure

Insurance for manicurists and pedicurists is sold treatment by treatment, so a manicurist and pedicurist's policy that covers a salon may stop at your front door. Public liability insurance is the part that pays for an injury.

Ask the manicurist and pedicurist for the insurer's name and the schedule line that covers the manicure and pedicure.

Trader status under the Consumer Rights Act 2015

A manicurist and pedicurist who trades, not a friend doing a favour, owes you reasonable care and skill under the Consumer Rights Act 2015 — and a manicure and pedicure done badly gives you the right to a redo or money off.

Check the manicurist and pedicurist's profile for the trader badge, and keep every message about the booking. legislation.gov.uk →

VAT

A manicure, a pedicure or both together are standard-rated at 20%, spa extras included. A salon above £90,000 of taxable turnover must charge VAT on the package and show it apart; a manicurist and pedicurist working alone below that usually charges none.

Ask whether a VAT number goes on the receipt and whether the package price already includes the VAT. gov.uk →

“How do you clean the pedicure foot bath between clients?”

A good answer: Cleaned and disinfected every time, or a single-use liner — the manicurist and pedicurist can say how.

“Are your tools new or sterilised for me?”

A good answer: New files and buffers, and metal tools sterilised.

“I have diabetes — is a pedicure right for me?”

A good answer: An honest answer that leaves cutting into hard skin or corns to a podiatrist.

“Is gel removal included in the manicure and pedicure price?”

A good answer: Yes or no, with a figure.

“What is in the pedicure spa package?”

A good answer: Each extra — paraffin, scrub, longer massage — named and priced.

“Do you cut cuticles or push them back?”

A good answer: Pushing back and tidying; cutting live skin is a risk.

“What if the pedicure polish chips in days?”

A good answer: A free fix within an agreed window.

Getting the quote right

  • Manicure and pedicure as a package, polish or gel
  • Spa extras — paraffin, scrubs, longer massage — each priced
  • Gel removal, if extra
  • Who actually attends: the manicurist and pedicurist you booked, or two therapists working at once, and whether they are employed or subcontracted
  • The salon's VAT number, with VAT apart from the package and each spa extra

Walk away if

  • A foot bath not cleaned between clients
  • Blades used on hard skin or corns
  • Cutting into the skin around the nails
  • No licence on display in a London salon
LOW
£50
TYPICAL
£65
HIGH
£95

What a manicurist and pedicurist costs: £50–£95 per treatment

Manicurists and pedicurists price per treatment or as a package, with gel and spa extras priced on top. Manicure & Pedicure price guide →

Guide prices compiled by the Locufy team from published Irish and UK provider price lists and 2026/27 cost guides. Updated 2026.

KNOW WHAT TO LOOK FOR? NOW FIND ONE

Manicurists and pedicurists near you, with the badges that matter shown

ID checked, trader status and one score from every review — on the card, before you message anyone. Nearest first. No account needed to look.

Or post the job free and let them come to you.

  1. SoakHands and feet soaked in a cleaned bath.
  2. Shape and cuticlesNails cut and filed, cuticles pushed back.
  3. Exfoliate and massageRough skin buffed with a file, then a short massage.
  4. ColourPolish or gel on all twenty nails.
  5. FinishTop coat, oil and the manicurist and pedicurist's aftercare.

Mani-pedi
A manicure and pedicure in one booking.
Paraffin wax
Warm wax treatment for hands or feet.
Callus
Hard skin, usually on the heel or ball of the foot.
Podiatrist
A registered foot health professional; the title is protected on the HCPC Register.
Cuticle
The thin skin at the base of the nail.
Gel pedicure
Gel colour on toenails, cured under a lamp.

AFTER

When the job is done

Keep the receiptThe package and the price.
Check your feetRedness, swelling or a cut that does not heal: tell the salon and get advice.
Wear open shoes homeWet polish smudges in closed shoes.
Leave the reviewOnly a manicure and pedicure booked through Locufy can be reviewed there. If the manicure and pedicure is not right, use the make-it-right step first so the manicurist and pedicurist can put it right before the review goes up.

STEP 1Tell the manicurist and pedicurist, in writingKeep it factual: what was agreed, what you got, what you want now. The Consumer Rights Act 2015 gives you a redo first and money back second.
STEP 2Use the make-it-right step on LocufyGive the manicure and pedicure under four stars and we ask whether to send it to the manicurist and pedicurist first; we follow it through with them, and then you review.
STEP 3No regulator — Trading StandardsNo body licenses a manicurist and pedicurist, so a manicure and pedicure dispute you cannot settle goes to Trading Standards through the Citizens Advice consumer helpline (0808 223 1133) in England and Wales, Advice Direct Scotland (0808 800 9060) or Consumerline in Northern Ireland (0300 123 6262).
STEP 4Small claims, if it comes to moneyIf the manicurist and pedicurist will not refund or redo the manicure and pedicure, you can claim without a solicitor: up to £10,000 on the small claims track in England and Wales, up to £5,000 under simple procedure in Scotland, and up to £5,000 in the small claims court in Northern Ireland.

Hiring a manicurist and pedicurist: questions people ask

No register exists for manicurists and pedicurists. The one licence to ask about is a London borough's Special Treatments Licence, if the salon is in Greater London.

Write to the manicurist and pedicurist first. Your right under the Consumer Rights Act 2015 is a repeat of the work, or a price reduction where repeating it is not possible.

£50–£95 per treatment, typically around £65. Gel colour, spa extras and central London salons move it up. More detail sits in the manicure & pedicure price guide, and typing your town above brings up manicurist and pedicurists you can book.

For corns, ingrown toenails, verrucas or foot problems with diabetes. Podiatrist and chiropodist are protected titles on the HCPC Register; a manicurist and pedicurist does cosmetic work.

Tell the salon before you book. Leave anything that cuts into the skin to a podiatrist.

Get advice from a pharmacist or GP, then tell the salon in writing. A pedicure not done with reasonable care and skill can be put right or the price reduced.

MORE GUIDES

More hiring guides in beauty & grooming

How to hire: Nail TechnicianHow to hire: Gel NailsHow to hire: Acrylic NailsHow to hire: Nail ArtHow to hire: Mobile Nail TechnicianHow to hire: Mobile BeauticianHow to hire: WaxingHow to hire: Eyelash ExtensionsAll 701 hiring guides →

Manicurists and pedicurists near you

Manicurists and pedicurists in LondonManicurists and pedicurists in ManchesterManicurists and pedicurists in BirminghamManicurists and pedicurists in GlasgowManicurists and pedicurists in BelfastAll manicurists and pedicurists on Locufy →

Sources — checked October 2026

  1. gov.uk — tattoo, piercing and electrolysis licence (England and Wales), with London's Special Treatments Licence
  2. HCPC — the professions we regulate
  3. Consumer Rights Act 2015, section 49 — reasonable care and skill
  4. Consumer Rights Act 2015, section 54 — your rights when a service falls short
  5. gov.uk — VAT rates
  6. nidirect — small claims process (Northern Ireland)
  7. GOV.UK — Register for VAT: when to register