How NailWage works
What NailWage does — and who it's for
A bilingual toolkit that keeps owners and nail techs clear on the money. See how NailWage runs in three steps, then what each tool does and who it's for.
How NailWage runs — in 3 steps
Log or snap the week's work
Photograph a paper sheet, paste from Excel, upload a file, pick a POS template, or type it in.
NailWage works out the pay
It applies service split, tips, card fees, and charges — you review each tech before saving.
Finalize & send each tech a slip
Finalize the week, export, and send a slip each tech can view and mark as received.
Hằng's week: where the service money goes
From $2,050 of service in the week, here's the tech's share and the owner's — exactly how NailWage splits it when you close the week.
- Tech service split (60%)
- $1,230.00· 60%
- Owner's share (40%)
- $820.00· 40%
Plus $125 in tips — the tech keeps 100%. The ~$38 card fee is the owner's cost, not taken from the tech.
10 tools — and who they're for
Each tool does one clear job. Tap any to try it with sample data, free.
The weekly run
Weekly closeout
Turn a week of work into a clear tech-pay sheet.
Technician statement
Techs see services, tips, and what they're owed right on their phone.
Turns & Tips
Rotate techs fairly and split the shared tip jar to the cent.
Pay policy
Write down how you split service money, tips, and fees — then share a link.
POS Totals Check
Enter two POS totals to check they match the daily work.
Money & tax decisions
Nail Salon Deal Check
InteractiveBuying or opening a salon? Check rent, break-even, owner take-home, and missing docs.
Card-Fee Check
Start hereIs your card processor overcharging? Check it with two numbers.
What does a W2 tech really cost?
InteractiveHow much more tax does a W2 tech cost? A number to take to your CPA.
Switching to W2 paychecks
InteractiveMove a tech to a check: what the owner pays, what the tech keeps.
W-2 or 1099?
Interactive17 IRS-test questions — does a tech lean W-2 or 1099. It won't decide for you.
Why the numbers are right — see how each is calculated
Technician pay
What the nail technician earns
A technician is paid a percentage of the services they do, plus all of their tips. This sample uses a 60% tech split — a common nail-salon split — but the owner can set any rate per salon or per technician.
Service split (60%)
The technician earns their service split on the services they performed — cash service + card service. Tips are never part of this; tips stay separate.
100% of tips
The technician keeps all of their tips — both cash tips and card tips. NailWage does not split or take a cut of tips.
Card fee is the owner's cost
The card fee (about 3% of card sales + card tips) is paid by the owner by default. It is not deducted from the technician's pay — so it does not appear in the technician's column.
The formula
Technician pay = service split % × (cash service + card service) + 100% × (cash tips + card tips)
Worked example
Take Hằng's week: $850 cash + $1,200 card in service, plus $45 cash + $80 card in tips. • Service split: 60% × ($850 + $1,200) = $1,230 • Tips (100% to Hằng): $45 + $80 = $125 • Hằng earns: $1,230 + $125 = $1,355 The 3% card fee on the $1,280 of card charges ($38.40) is the owner's cost — it is not taken out of Hằng's pay.
What the owner keeps
The other 40% — and what comes out of it
The owner keeps the rest of the service money (40% in this sample). That is before expenses, not final profit: several real costs come out before the owner has anything left.
Owner's service share (40%)
Whatever service percentage the technician earns, the owner keeps the rest of the service money. In this sample that is 40% of service.
Owner-side costs
Out of that share the owner pays card fees, owner W2 tax (next section), supplies, rent, marketing, and POS fees. NailWage subtracts these to show what the owner keeps before income tax.
Then the owner's own tax
What's left is the owner's profit before their own income tax. How that profit is taxed depends on the business structure — that part belongs to the owner and their CPA.
Worked example
From Hằng's $2,050 in service, the owner keeps 40% = $820. Out of every technician's share the owner still pays card fees, owner W2 tax on Hằng's $1,355 (7.65% = $103.66), plus a portion of supplies, rent, marketing, and POS fees. Whatever is left is what the owner keeps before their own income tax.
How taxes work here
Who pays which tax
NailWage shows tax estimates on the owner's side only, to help the owner see what they really keep. It is not payroll filing or tax advice.
Owner W2 tax (7.65%)
On top of W2 pay, the owner pays FICA — Social Security 6.2% + Medicare 1.45% = 7.65% — on the technician's service pay + tips. This is the owner's half; the technician's own half is withheld from their pay and is the technician's money, not an owner cost.
Technician pay is before tax
The payout shown for each technician is before the technician's own taxes. The technician's actual take-home is lower after their own withholding. NailWage does not model the official net check.
Owner income tax is separate
The owner pays income tax on net business profit — after deducting wages, card fees, rent, supplies, and other expenses. The exact amount depends on the business structure and is handled by the owner's CPA, so NailWage stops at the pre-income-tax estimate.
W2 vs 1099
Employee or contractor — what changes
You can mark each technician (or the whole salon) as a W2 employee or a 1099 contractor. It only changes the tax view — the before-tax pay above is the same either way.
1099 contractor — paid before tax
You write the check for the full before-tax amount (service pay + tips), withhold nothing, and report it on a 1099-NEC. You pay no owner W2 tax on a contractor — they handle their own self-employment tax. (Nhi and Vy are 1099 in the sample.)
W2 employee — estimated take-home check
You withhold the employee's taxes, so NailWage shows an estimated take-home check = before-tax pay minus employee FICA (7.65%). For Hằng's $1,355 above: − $103.66 = an estimated check of $1,251.34. Your paycheck provider also withholds income tax and sets the exact figure — this is an estimate to sanity-check it.
Owner W2 tax is W2-only
The 7.65% owner W2 tax in the owner view applies only to W2 techs. Mark a tech 1099 and this owner tax drops to $0 — a real difference in what you keep.
An estimate, not tax or legal advice
These numbers are estimates to help owners review the week. Service splits, tip handling, and card-fee policy vary by salon, and tax treatment depends on your business structure and state. NailWage is not payroll, tax-filing, or legal software — confirm payroll and taxes with your CPA or paycheck provider.
Sources & further reading