Swiss hair salons and barbershops benefit from cashless payment solutions: TWINT is used by over 6 million people in Switzerland, and around 81% of brick-and-mortar shops already accept the payment app. For salons, this means: anyone who does not offer a card terminal or TWINT loses potential walk-in customers and makes the tipping issue unnecessarily difficult. The right payment solution depends on the turnover volume, the desired TWINT integration and whether appointment booking and payment should be linked.

This guide explains step by step which payment solutions are suitable for hair salons and barbershops in Switzerland, what they cost and how to set up tips, appointment booking and accounting properly.

1. Why Swiss customers want to pay cashless in the hair salon

Payment habits in Switzerland have changed significantly in recent years. According to the Swiss Payment Monitor by ZHAW, the debit card is the most frequently used means of payment in brick-and-mortar retail, followed by cash and TWINT. For hairdressers and barbershops, this change has three concrete effects.

First: customers simply expect to be able to pay cashless. A salon that only accepts cash no longer looks up to date – especially to younger customers who see debit card, TWINT or Apple Pay as standard. Second: TWINT has particularly high penetration in Switzerland. In 2025, 901 million transactions were processed via TWINT, 65% of them in face-to-face retail. Third: cashless payments solve an everyday problem in the salon – tips. If customers do not have cash with them, the tip is often omitted. A tipping function on the terminal or via the payment page makes it easy to leave a tip anyway.

In addition: salons that want to introduce prepayment or no-show fees for online booking necessarily need an electronic payment solution. Without card payment or TWINT, such models cannot be implemented.

2. Terminal, Tap to Pay or QR code: Which solution is right for the salon?

For hair salons and barbershops, four basic approaches are available: a physical card terminal, Tap to Pay on the smartphone (iPhone or Android), a pure TWINT QR code, or a PSP-based QR code that covers TWINT as well as credit cards and other payment methods. Each variant has advantages and disadvantages that depend on the turnover volume, the technical equipment and the desired payment methods.

Physical card terminal

A classic card terminal – for example from Worldline (formerly SIX Payment Services), SumUp or Payrexx – accepts debit cards, credit cards and contactless payments (Apple Pay, Google Pay). Worldline and Payrexx terminals also support TWINT and PostFinance Card. SumUp terminals do not accept TWINT. Payrexx offers POS terminals (Nexgo N5, N6 Mini, N86) with integrated SIM card from CHF 9 per month (introductory price) – the devices work independently of the smartphone and do not require Wi-Fi in the salon. For salons with regular card turnover from CHF 3’000 per month, a Worldline or Payrexx terminal is worthwhile because of the lower transaction fees compared with SumUp.

Tap to Pay on iPhone or Android

Since March 2025, Tap to Pay on iPhone has also been available in Switzerland. The smartphone becomes the card terminal – without additional hardware. Providers such as SumUp, Worldline, Stripe and myPOS support the iPhone version for debit and credit cards as well as Apple Pay and Google Pay. On Android, several providers offer SoftPOS solutions, including Payrexx Tap to Pay: the app turns any NFC-capable Android smartphone into a card terminal and accepts cards as well as TWINT, Apple Pay and Samsung Pay – an advantage over the iPhone version, which does not support TWINT. The transaction fees for Payrexx Tap to Pay are 1.65% + CHF 0.15 per transaction, with no monthly fixed costs for the first device. For sole traders and mobile hairdressers, Tap to Pay is a straightforward entry-level solution. Limitation: a stable internet connection (Wi-Fi or mobile data) is essential.

TWINT QR code (static or dynamic)

A static TWINT QR code at reception is the simplest option: the customer scans the code with the TWINT app and enters the amount themselves. Transaction fee: 1.3%. This solution is suitable as a supplement to the terminal or as a standalone option for very small businesses. The disadvantage: only customers with the TWINT app can pay – tourists or people without TWINT are excluded.

PSP-based QR code (e.g. Payrexx QR Pay)

A further development of the pure TWINT QR code is QR codes that are generated via a Payment Service Provider. The principle: the QR code can be scanned both with the TWINT app and with the normal smartphone camera. In the second case, a payment page opens on which the customer can choose between TWINT, credit card, PostFinance, Apple Pay and other payment methods. This is particularly practical for salons with an international clientele or walk-in customers without TWINT. The QR code can be configured with an open, fixed or minimum amount and placed at reception as a poster or sticker. The salon does not need its own Wi-Fi for this – the internet connection runs via the customer’s smartphone.

Comparison of payment solutions

Many salons combine two solutions: a card terminal or Tap to Pay for the main turnover and a QR code as an additional option. Anyone who wants to cover all payment methods via a single QR code should opt for a PSP-based QR code rather than the pure TWINT QR.

3. Tips at the card terminal: How the tipping function works in Switzerland

Tipping is common in Swiss hair salons, but not guaranteed. As more customers pay cashless, the question arises: how does tipping work at the card terminal?

Predefined tip amounts

The most common solution is predefined tipping options on the terminal display. Typical levels: 5%, 10%, 15% or a custom amount. For a haircut for CHF 65, the customer would see, for example, “CHF 3.25 / CHF 6.50 / CHF 9.75 / Other amount”. The advantage: the customer does not have to calculate it themselves, and the tip is booked directly with the payment.

Technical implementation

Whether the tipping function is available depends on the provider and the terminal model. Worldline offers the function on its newer Android terminals (e.g. Axium series), configurable via the merchant portal. With SumUp, the tipping function can be activated in the app. SoftPOS solutions such as Payrexx Tap to Pay as well as the Payrexx POS terminals also offer a configurable tipping function – the advantage: whether via smartphone app or physical terminal, the salon can offer tipping options without additional configuration steps. For online payment pages – for example when booking appointments – a PSP can display a tipping option directly on the payment page.

Tax treatment

Tips received via the card terminal are part of the payment flow from an accounting perspective and must be booked correctly. In Switzerland, tips are generally subject to AHV as wages if passed on to employees (Art. 7 lit. c AHVV). For VAT: tips that the customer gives voluntarily and in addition to the agreed price are not subject to value added tax under Art. 18 para. 2 lit. j VAT Act, provided they are clearly separated from the service price. In accounting, it is advisable to keep tips in a separate account (e.g. account 2279 “Passing-through tips” in the SME chart of accounts).

4. Appointment booking and prepayment: combining online booking with payment

Many hair salons now use an online booking tool – for example via their own website, Instagram or Google. Linking booking and payment solves two common problems: no-shows and the administrative effort for reminders.

No-show fees and prepayment

To reduce no-shows, more and more salons require a credit card to be held or a prepayment when booking. A no-show fee of CHF 30–50 is typical, and is only charged if the appointment is not kept. Alternatively, the full amount or a deposit (e.g. 50%) can be collected when booking. Implementation requires a Payment Service Provider (PSP) that enables credit card payments and ideally also TWINT via a payment page.

Integration with booking systems

Booking systems such as Treatwell, Shore or Salonkee can be connected to a PSP via APIs. The process: the customer books an appointment online, is redirected to the payment page, pays by TWINT or credit card, and only then receives the booking confirmation after successful payment. A PSP with Swiss payment methods ensures that TWINT, PostFinance and credit cards are available – not just Visa and Mastercard.

5. Costs and fees: what hairdressers in Switzerland really pay

The total costs consist of purchase or rental costs, transaction fees and any subscription fees. The following table shows a realistic comparison for a salon with CHF 5’000 card turnover per month.

Important: the actual fees depend on the payment mix. In a typical hair salon, the share of debit cards is higher than the share of credit cards, which reduces the average costs. At Worldline, the fees are also negotiable – anyone who can demonstrate annual card turnover of more than CHF 50’000 will usually receive better terms. With the “One” subscription for CHF 19 per month, SumUp offers reduced fees (0.79% instead of 1.5%), which is worthwhile from approx. CHF 4’400 in monthly card turnover. The Payrexx POS terminals offer one of the lowest rates on the market at 0.95% for debit cards and also cover TWINT and PostFinance under a single contract.

6. Accounting: booking card payments, TWINT and cash turnover correctly

A common mistake among hairdressers: booking the payout from SumUp or Worldline directly as revenue. That is wrong – revenue is the gross amount paid by the customer, not the amount paid out after deduction of the transaction fee.

Correct booking with a transit account

The clean solution: a transit account (e.g. account 1090 “Transit account card payments” in the SME chart of accounts). The booking process: when the sale is made, the gross amount is booked as income (e.g. account 3400 service income), with the counter-entry to transit account 1090. When the terminal provider pays out, the bank account (1020) is debited, transit account 1090 is credited, and the difference is booked as an expense to account 6850 (bank charges/card commissions).

VAT treatment

Value added tax is always calculated on the full gross amount – that is, on the price the customer pays, not on the net amount paid out. Most hairdressing businesses are liable for VAT, as the turnover threshold of CHF 100’000 per year (Art. 10 para. 2 VAT Act) is quickly reached in salon operations. Hairdressing services are subject to the standard rate of 8.1%.

Mixed payment methods

In practice, a salon has three to four payment channels: cash, card terminal, TWINT and possibly online prepayments. Each channel should be kept separately in the accounting. For cash, a cash book is still advisable (account 1000). Terminal turnover runs through transit account 1090. TWINT payouts can be booked to a separate transit account (e.g. 1091) if the payout cycles differ. Anyone who handles all payment channels via a single PSP simplifies the accounting, as only one payout per billing period appears on the bank account.