Finding a barber or stylist should not require explaining your gender, defending the haircut you want, or guessing whether a price menu applies to you. This guide covers Austin salons and barbershops where we could find real evidence of queer ownership, gender-affirming services, or pricing that isn’t based on gender. For binders, gaffs, and the rest of a wardrobe, see our guide to binders and gender-affirming clothing in Austin.
We rebuilt this guide in August 2026 and could confirm current, specific evidence for three salons. In October 2026 we checked every shop and stylist we name against Texas license records and added a fourth. Others we had listed before are further down, in a section for places we are still checking. If you know one of them well, tell us, and we will take another look.
How We Checked
We look for more than a Pride flag. Gender-neutral or length-based pricing, stated gender-affirming services, queer or trans ownership, and recent recommendations from queer and trans Austinites. Every shop below also has a current Texas license from the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation (TDLR), which licenses salons, barbershops, cosmetologists, and barbers.
We do not call businesses to interview them. Everything below comes from what a business publishes about itself, from community reporting, or from state license records, and each listing says which. Where a detail matters and we cannot confirm it, we ask you to ask rather than guess on your behalf. Our How We Choose page has the full method.
Policies and staff change. Every listing has the date we last checked it.
Scissor Sisters Hair Show
6535 N Lamar Blvd, Austin, TX 78752 · 512-660-5131 · scissorsistersatx.com · Book online
Owner submitted · Queer-owned · Gender-affirming care stated
Why it is listed: The owners contacted us directly with their details. Their site calls the shop “the Queerest Salon in Austin” and lists “Gender Affirming and Creative Cuts” as a service category, describing the salon’s work as including “gender affirming care, transformational hair.” That is the business stating it plainly rather than us inferring it.
Best for: Gender-affirming cuts, vivid color, blonding, and balayage. The salon shares its North Lamar address with Side Kitsch Vintage, a queer-owned vintage collective. Their sites describe the two as separate businesses in a connected space, so you can get a cut and browse mid-century furniture in one stop.
License: TDLR full-service salon license 803593, current through September 2027.
Before you book: There is no pricing on the site, so ask about cost and timing for vivid color. Ask which stylist suits your hair texture and the cut you have in mind.
Details checked October 2026.
Is this your salon? Update this listing
Tinted Love ATX
6406 N I-35 Frontage Rd, Suite 202, Austin, TX 78752 · tintedloveatx.com · Book online
The business states · Queer-owned · Length-based pricing
Why it is listed: Their site says it outright: “QUEER-OWNED HAIR SALON IN AUSTIN TX,” opened by “a pair of best friends who have worked together for 12 years,” and describes the shop as “a hair haven for the quirky and the queer.” Jualdo Vielma and Miranda Fox run it.
Best for: Anyone tired of being quoted a price based on their gender. Cuts are priced by length, not by category: buzzcut $25, short cut $50, long cut $70. That published price list is why this listing has the pricing tag, and it is the clearest signal a shop can give without saying a word.
License: TDLR salon license 868504 (a mini-salon license), current through August 2028. Miranda Fox has a current cosmetology operator license, 1552575. We couldn’t match Jualdo’s license by name.
Before you book: Color is priced separately from the length-based cuts, and the site lists color as starting prices, so ask what yours will run. The phone number on their site appears to have a typo, so use the booking link.
The site does not mention trans or gender-affirming services specifically. Queer ownership and non-gendered pricing are what is documented here, so that is all we are claiming.
Details checked October 2026.
Is this your salon? Update this listing
Cuts by Them
5350 Burnet Rd, Suite 307, Austin, TX 78756 · 512-710-0977 · cutsbythem.com
The business states · Queer and nonbinary stylist · Sensory-friendly
Why it is listed: Adrian Charette (they/them) runs a one-chair private suite and writes, “I am a queer / nonbinary / neurodivergent hairstylist & barber.” The site says the shop “proudly stands as a sanctuary for the LGBTQ and neurodivergent community” and promises “No judgments, no gender norms.”
Best for: Shags, mullets, and clipper cuts, which Adrian names as favorites, and anyone who wants a private room. The site says you can ask for gentler lighting and low fragrance.
License: Adrian has both a current Class A barber license (2028009) and a cosmetology operator license (1772075); the suite has its own TDLR salon license, 863013, current through December 2027.
Before you book: The site asks clients to wear a face mask, so bring one. Book through the site, and check the price for your cut there.
Details checked October 2026.
Is this your shop? Update this listing
Reunion Barbershop
9112 Anderson Mill Rd #A600, Austin, TX 78729 · 512-520-5269 · reunionbarbershop.com · Book online
Community recommended · Sensory appointments offered · Pricing not based on gender
Why it is listed: Queer and trans Austinites recommend it in local threads. The shop now says in writing that its “rates are based on the service being performed, not on gender,” and it runs monthly sensory appointments, which almost no other barbershop in town advertises. If fluorescent light, clipper noise, and small talk are the reason you put off haircuts, start here.
Best for: Precision cuts, fades, and short styles in far North Austin, and for anyone who needs a lower-stimulus appointment.
License: TDLR full-service shop license 851285, current through December 2027. Reunion lists its barbers by first name only, so we couldn’t check individual licenses.
Before you book: Sensory appointments run the last Monday of each month, 3 to 7 PM. You request one through a survey on the sensory appointments page, and the front desk gets back to you; the shop says they fill quickly. Each barber sets their own rate, so ask which barber handles your hair type and what they charge.
This one keeps its reconfirmation flag on purpose. The community recommendations are real, but Reunion’s own site still does not use LGBTQ+ or gender-affirming language anywhere we could find, so we are passing along what people told us rather than what the business states. If you have been, tell us how it went.
Details checked October 2026.
Is this your shop? Update this listing
Places We Are Still Checking
This one comes up in community recommendations. We could not confirm enough to list it fully, so it is here instead of above. That is not a knock on it.
- QueerFriendlyBarber (Ru Arana): IMAGE Studios South Shore, 1600 E Riverside Dr, Suite 102. Ru’s own IMAGE Studios page says their “passion is creating an environment for gender affirming hair,” with a focus on BIPOC and LGBTQ+ clients. We are still matching Ru’s license records before listing them fully.
What to Ask Any Salon Before You Book
These are the questions that separate a shop with a rainbow sticker from one that has thought about it. None of them are rude to ask.
- Is pricing based on length or service rather than on gender?
- Do your booking or intake forms have a field for chosen name and pronouns?
- Is there an all-gender restroom? Can I request a private or quieter appointment?
- Which stylists have experience with gender-affirming cuts, or with my hair type?
- What is the price range, and do you offer any sliding scale?
You can look up any Texas salon, barber, or stylist yourself with the TDLR license search, which also takes complaints.
What We Couldn’t Check
We didn’t book appointments, so nothing here is a first-hand review. We checked shop licenses for every business on this page and individual licenses where a stylist is named in full. Reunion lists barbers by first name only, and we couldn’t match one of Tinted Love’s owners by name. None of these shops publish whether they have an all-gender restroom or ask for pronouns at booking; that is what the questions above are for.
Know a Salon or Barber We Should Check?
Send us the business name, location, booking link, and why you’d send a friend there. We review community submissions, check what the business publishes about itself, and update listings when things change. A submission does not guarantee inclusion.
Corrections are welcome too. If something here is wrong or out of date, tell us through our contact page.
Last checked: October 2026. Business details from each shop’s own site, read October 12, 2026. Licenses from Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation license files dated October 12, 2026.
Coming early 2027
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Small, peer-led, free. A place where people remember what you said last week.