Getting a haircut in France: what to say, what you'll hear and what really happens at the salon

Going to the hairdresser should be one of the nicer appointments in your calendar. A little time to yourself, someone else taking care of you and, with a bit of luck, a haircut you actually like when you walk out.

But there is usually a little uncertainty too.

Even in your own language, explaining exactly what you want is not always easy. How much should they cut? Keep the length but change the shape? More volume, less volume, layers but not too many? And once the scissors come out, there is always that small fear that you and your hairdresser may not have understood quite the same thing.

Of course, hair grows back. But when you have to live with the result for the next few weeks, or even months, suddenly the details matter a little more.

Add French to the equation and an appointment that should be enjoyable can quickly become more stressful than expected.

The good news is that you do not need to know every hairdressing term in French. What really helps is knowing how to explain the result you want, understand the questions your hairdresser may ask, clarify things when necessary and speak up if the cut starts heading somewhere you did not intend.

And unless you are planning to do everything yourself with clippers, or hand the scissors to your partner, a few well-chosen phrases can make the whole experience considerably easier.

Arriving at the salon

The first few minutes are usually the easy part. If you have already booked, which we strongly recommend in Paris, you mainly need to say who you are and what you are there for.

Checking in for your appointment

Once you are inside, there is not much to it. You can confirm your appointment, the time, and if necessary the service you booked.

What you may hear when you arrive

The salon may already have all your details, but the receptionist will often quickly confirm your name, your appointment or, if you have one, your preferred hairdresser.

You may hear:

If they are running a little late, or your hairdresser is behind schedule, you may also hear:

And if you arrive wearing a coat or carrying a jacket, the receptionist may offer to take it with:
« Je vous débarrasse ? »

If you do not have an appointment

Sometimes you may decide to try your luck and see whether the salon has a free slot. It is perfectly fine to ask, but in a busy Paris salon, same-day availability is never guaranteed.

If they do have some availability, you may hear:

• « Vous avez une préférence pour l'heure ? »
• « Je peux vous proposer 16 heures. »

Or, if they are fully booked:

• « Aujourd'hui, ça va être compliqué. »

Once you are checked in, the real conversation begins: explaining what you actually want done.

Explaining the haircut you actually want

This is where things get a little more interesting. Saying « une coupe, s'il vous plaît » is easy enough. Explaining what you actually want the haircut to look like, what you want to keep and, perhaps most importantly, what you definitely do not want takes a little more French.

You still do not need all the technical vocabulary. Very often, the clearest approach is simply to describe the result you want and give your hairdresser a few concrete limits to work with.

Say what you want, what you want to keep, and what you don't want

A simple way to make your request clear is to cover three things:

1. what you want to change;
2. what you want to keep;
3. what you want to avoid.

For example:

« Je voudrais juste rafraîchir la coupe un peu, garder la longueur et enlever les pointes abîmées. Mais surtout, pas trop court devant. »

That kind of sentence often works better than trying to find one perfect technical word.

Your hairdresser may then try to make the request more precise.

You may hear:

A useful answer can be very concrete:

« Pas plus de deux ou trois centimètres. »

Describe the shape and style

Once the length is clear, you can talk about the shape of the haircut.

Some terms are worth knowing because they come up frequently:

Explain how your hair behaves

Your hairdresser can obviously see whether your hair is fine, thick, straight or curly. What they cannot necessarily know is what happens once you leave the salon: how you normally style it, whether it frizzes in humid weather, whether it falls flat or whether you usually let it dry naturally.

That information can make a real difference to the haircut they recommend.

You may hear words such as:

And the hairdresser might say, for example:

« Vous avez les cheveux assez fins. »

« Avec vos cheveux bouclés, il vaut mieux garder un peu de longueur. »

What is especially useful for you to explain is how your hair behaves once you leave the salon.

Your hairdresser may also ask about your usual routine:

These questions matter because your haircut still has to work once you are back home and styling it yourself.

Explain the result you need

Sometimes it is much easier to describe the result you want than to know the name of the cut or technique that will get you there.

For example:

And if you are happy to give the hairdresser a little more freedom, you can even say with a smile:

« Je voudrais avoir une tête plus présentable ! »

It is a very natural, slightly self-deprecating way of saying: make me look better, without giving your hairdresser a detailed brief. Said with a smile, it can also break the ice.

Explain the context when it matters

Sometimes the easiest way to get the right recommendation is simply to explain why you need the haircut or hairstyle. If your hairdresser knows that you have a wedding, a work event or a long day ahead, they can adapt the finish, the level of hold and the overall style accordingly.

You may hear:

Let the hairdresser recommend the solution

Once you have explained what you like, what you want to avoid and what you need the haircut to do in everyday life, you can hand things over a little.

This is particularly useful if you are torn between two styles, or know the result you want without knowing how to achieve it.

You may hear:

Of course, one of the easiest ways to make all of this clearer is to show a reference photo.

Showing a photo helps. Explaining it helps more.

There is something slightly intimidating about the reference photos you find at the hairdresser.

I still associate salon waiting areas with magazines full of impossibly good-looking models with perfectly styled hair, sometimes polished, sometimes deliberately messy, always somehow convincing. You flick through them while you wait and start thinking that, with the right haircut, maybe your own hair could do all of that too.

These days, the inspiration is just as likely to come from Instagram, TikTok or Pinterest. You save a post, take a screenshot or arrive with two or three photos on your phone.

And that is completely normal. Reference photos are widely used, and L'Oréal Professionnel even recommends using them as a starting point to make sure you and your stylist are picturing the same thing.

But the photo is only half the job. What matters is the conversation around it: what you like, what you would change and what could realistically work with your own hair.

So show the photo, but tell your hairdresser what you want them to notice.

Point out what you like

Rather than just showing the photo, tell the hairdresser what you actually want them to notice.

You may hear:

Say what you do not want copied

A reference photo can also contain details you definitely do not want. It is worth saying so before the hairdresser starts.

Colour: when the vocabulary really matters

Hair colouring is a very common part of the salon experience in France. In 2021, around 30% of women in France had their hair professionally coloured, according to Statista's data on professional hair colouring among women in selected countries.

Colour is one of those moments when getting the details right matters a little more. A haircut can sometimes be adjusted as you go. A misunderstanding about tone, roots, highlights or how light you want to go can be much harder to undo.

Knowing a handful of common colour terms will make it much easier to explain the result you want and understand the questions your hairdresser asks.

Explain the colour result you want

Start with the overall change you have in mind. Do you want to go lighter or darker? Cover grey hair? Refresh your roots? Add highlights without changing your whole colour?

Your hairdresser or colourist will usually want to make that request more precise.

You may hear:

Understand the colour terms your hairdresser may use

If your hairdresser starts talking about mèches, balayage, patine or different tones, it helps to know roughly what they mean before you agree to anything.

Des mèches are sections of hair that are lightened or coloured to create visible highlights.

Un balayage usually gives a more blended, graduated effect, with the colour painted through selected sections of the hair rather than applied uniformly.

Une patine is used to adjust or refresh the tone of the colour, for example to soften unwanted warm or yellow tones.

A few other terms come up particularly often:

You may then hear things like:

And what about the maintenance?

You love the colour. Great. But what will it look like in six weeks? Before you commit, it is worth asking how it will fade, grow out and how often you will need to come back.

You may hear:

Speak up before it's too late

Once the scissors are moving, it can be tempting to stay quiet and trust that everything is going to plan.

But if something starts to feel wrong, say it while the cut is still in progress. It is much easier to check, slow things down or ask for a small adjustment now than wait until the very end. And you do not need to sound confrontational to do it.

If they're cutting too much

Worried they are going shorter than you expected? Check first rather than panic.

You may hear:

If you want something adjusted

Sometimes the overall haircut is going well, but one area needs a little more work. This is the moment to be specific about where and how much.

You may hear:

Keep it concrete. A little more here, slightly shorter at the back, less volume on this side gives your hairdresser something they can actually act on.

And if things still do not turn out exactly as planned, remember: hair grows back. A disappointing cut is annoying, but thankfully not permanent.

Make the most of the consultation

Hairdressers work with different hair types, textures and scalp concerns all day long, so your appointment can be a good opportunity to ask for practical advice about caring for your hair and scalp.

So if something has been bothering you lately, don't be shy about explaining what you've noticed and asking what they would recommend.

Describe what's going on with your hair

Your hairdresser can see a lot, but not everything, especially if the problem only happens between appointments or has started recently.

The hairdresser may then ask a few follow-up questions.

You may hear:

Ask for advice

Once you have explained the issue, you can ask the hairdresser what they think rather than trying to diagnose the problem yourself.

Understand the advice you may hear

Hairdressers often answer with fairly simple but very specific recommendations.

You may hear:

Talk about products and treatments

Once the conversation turns to hair care, a few product names are worth recognising.

You can also ask:

Ask whether a treatment is really worth it

Your hairdresser may suggest adding a treatment. Not sure what it does, whether your hair actually needs it or whether it costs extra? Definitely ask before you say yes.

You may hear:

And then there's the conversation…

Once you and your hairdresser have agreed on the cut or colour, the scissors get to work… and so does the conversation.

In France, getting a haircut, blow-dry or colour is often a chance to chat and socialise. With the other clients, and especially with the hairdresser, who can sometimes turn out to be a real conversation starter. Of course, it depends on the salon, the hairdresser and the client, but regular appointments can quickly create a sense of familiarity. And before long, the conversation may move well beyond hair: work, family, holidays, neighbourhood life or the little worries of everyday life.

Sometimes, hairdressers end up knowing an impressive amount about their clients' lives.

And that is not just a cliché. France Culture has looked closely at the relationship of trust that can develop between hairdresser and client, while Le Monde has described salons as places where people talk about their stories, worries and lives as much as their hair.

And if you're learning French, that is actually pretty useful, isn't it? You can make the most of the moment and practise.

Everything is working in your favour: you have a good reason to be there, the conversation is one-to-one, and you already share the same context. And unlike a 30-second exchange at a bakery or supermarket, you may have 30 minutes, an hour or even longer to stay in French. So really, it is an opportunity worth making the most of!

Stay in French when the conversation moves on

You do not need to arrive armed with a list of small-talk questions. Salon conversation usually gets going quite naturally.

Your hairdresser might ask:

These are ordinary questions, but any one of them can turn into a much longer conversation.

The trick is simple: once you have answered, ask something back.

No need to turn your haircut into a French lesson. Just try to stay in the conversation a little longer.
One useful habit: answer, then add one small question back.

Didn't catch something? Don't leave the conversation

You may understand the general topic but miss a word. Or your hairdresser may speed up once the conversation gets more relaxed. That does not mean you need to switch straight to English.

A few phrases are enough to keep going:

A salon can be a surprisingly good window into everyday French

Another reason these conversations are useful: they rarely sound like textbook French.
You will hear shortened sentences, thoughts abandoned halfway through, informal expressions, humour, reactions and all those little words that can make spoken French feel as though it is going twice as fast as the French you learned in class.

So use the salon to listen as well as speak.

And if you want to hear what that can sound like before your next appointment, French cinema gives us two particularly good examples.

A few salon practicalities

Cut done, colour finished, everyone happy? There are still a few practical things to sort out before you leave: the final price, payment, tipping and perhaps your next appointment.

None of them requires much French.

Check what is included

Salon pricing is not always obvious at first glance, especially when several services are bundled together.

You may hear:

Paying at the end

The payment exchange is usually very simple.

You may hear:

Do you need to tip your hairdresser?

Tipping your hairdresser in France is entirely optional. There is no expected percentage and no obligation to add anything to the bill.

If you are particularly happy with the service, leaving a few euros is a perfectly normal way to say thank you.

If you want to leave something in cash, you can simply say: « C'est pour vous. » or: « Gardez la monnaie. »

Book your next appointment

Found a hairdresser you like? It may be worth booking your next visit before you leave, especially if you want the same person again.

You may hear:

Beard French: at the barber

Most of the French you have already learned for a haircut works at the barber too. You just need a few extra words for the beard and moustache.

Again, keep it concrete: how short, how much length to keep and whether you want sharp contours or something more natural.

You may hear:

🎁 French hair salon cheat sheet

And to finish, we've brought together the words, expressions and phrases from this guide that are likely to be most useful before, during and after your appointment.

Need something quickly? Search by word or filter by situation to find the phrase you need.

Ready for your next appointment?

If there is just one thing to take away from this guide, it is this: your next hair appointment can be much more than something you simply need to “get through” in French.

Explain what you want. Ask a question if you are unsure. Ask for advice. And once the scissors get going, stay in French and see where the conversation takes you.

At Novexpat, we are convinced of one thing: everyday life in France is full of opportunities to practise and make progress in French, as long as you have the right tools to make the most of them. That is exactly the idea behind our FrenchUp programme: helping you make progress through the situations and conversations that genuinely matter in your everyday life in France.

We hope this guide helps you feel more relaxed about your next trip to the hairdresser, and makes the whole experience a little more enjoyable too.

And make yourself a promise: next time you sit down in the chair, try to stay in French just a little longer than you normally would. One more question. One more exchange. One more little bit of French. 😊