How To Become A Lead Esthetician: What It Is and Career Path

What is a lead esthetician and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

2 min read

There is more than meets the eye when it comes to being a lead esthetician. For example, did you know that they make an average of $18.12 an hour? That's $37,692 a year! Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 17% and produce 13,400 job opportunities across the U.S.

ScoreLead EstheticianUS Average

Salary

2.9

Avg. Salary $37,692

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability Level

4.5

Growth Rate 17%

Growth Rate 0.3%

Diversity

2.5

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.34%

Asian 8.65%

Black or African American 5.06%

Hispanic or Latino 16.29%

Unknown 6.40%

White 63.26%

Gender

female 93.04%

male 6.96%

Age - 33

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 33

Stress Level

4.5

Stress level is manageable

7.1 - high

Complexity Level

5.7

Complexity Level is intermediate

7 - challenging

Work Life Balance

10.0

Work Life balance is excellent

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a lead esthetician

Explore lead esthetician education requirements

Most common lead esthetician degrees

Bachelor's

35.1 %

Associate

22.4 %

Certificate

12.8 %

Start to develop specific lead esthetician skills

Skills	Percentages
Product Knowledge	14.20%
Spa Services	12.48%
Spa Management	12.06%
Product Inventory	10.80%
Repeat Business	10.36%

Complete relevant lead esthetician training and internships

Accountants spend an average of Less than 1 month on post-employment, on-the-job training. New lead estheticians learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a lead esthetician based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real lead esthetician resumes.

Research lead esthetician duties and responsibilities

Schedule effectively to manage payroll costs and ensure staff productivity are attained.
Manage the aesthetics department and perform consultations with patients regarding aesthetic and facial surgery procedures.
Perform advanced waxing techniques such as Brazilian bikini waxing and brow design.
Preform skincare treatments with the highest quality in cleanliness and attention to detail.

Get lead esthetician experience

Prepare your lead esthetician resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your lead esthetician resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a lead esthetician resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose From 10+ Customizable Lead Esthetician Resume templates

Build a professional Lead Esthetician resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your Lead Esthetician resume.

Apply for lead esthetician jobs

Now it's time to start searching for a lead esthetician job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:

Browse job boards for relevant postings
Consult your professional network
Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
Watch out for job scams

How do lead estheticians rate their job?

-/5

5 Stars

4 Stars

3 Stars

2 Stars

1 Star

Lead Esthetician reviews

A zippia user wrote a review on Mar 2021

Pros

Helping people with their self confidence by correcting their skin’s imperfections and overall health.

Cons

Poorly managed practices that don’t prioritize patient’s satisfaction through care.