The barbershops and salons in Santa Teresa, Playa Carmen and Mal Pais that cut men's hair well, with hours, locations, what a cut costs in colones and dollars, and how to book on WhatsApp.
A men's haircut in Santa Teresa costs about ₡8,000 to ₡15,000 ($16 to $30) in 2026, and a cut with a beard trim runs ₡12,000 to ₡20,000. Salón de belleza y barbería Jenny is the best pure barber open right now, Tiffany's is the walk-in option at Playa Carmen, and Beauty Santa Salon is the one with the longest review record.
The short version
Santa Teresa has never had a big barbershop scene. The town is small, the population doubles and halves with the season, and most men here cut their hair in a chair that also does women's colour. That is fine. The three places I would send a friend to today are Jenny's, a proper barbería in the Santa Fe part of town with a five star record; Tiffany's, a barber and nail salon at Playa Carmen that takes walk-ins most afternoons; and Beauty Santa Salon on the Cóbano road, which has 104 Google reviews at a perfect score and cuts men as well as women. Almendra and Aurora are spas first, but both have a proper stylist's chair and both answer WhatsApp in English within a couple of hours.
Two shops that used to top this list are on pause. Julián Barbershop at Playa Carmen and Salón Yoli next to Hotel Luz de Luna are both marked temporarily closed at the time of writing. Both had five star records (97 and 33 reviews), so check the directory before you assume they are gone.
Salón de belleza y barbería Jenny
Jenny's is the shop most residents mean when they say "the barber". It is a small salón in Santa Fe, the neighbourhood on the hill behind the main road on the Cóbano side of town, and it does men's cuts, fades, beard work, and women's hair from the same two chairs. The Google record is a clean 5.0 from ten reviews, which is a small sample, and the reviews are in Spanish, which tells you who the regular clientele is.
Hours run 10am to 12pm and 1pm to 7pm on Monday and Friday, with earlier closes (5pm or 6pm) midweek and on Saturday, and the shop is closed Sunday. The lunch break is real; do not turn up at 12:30. Booking is by WhatsApp, and the shop does not publish prices, so expect the local rate of roughly ₡8,000 to ₡12,000 for a cut and ask before you sit down. Who it suits: anyone who wants a proper fade from someone who does them all day, and Spanish speakers who want the local price. The caveat: English is limited, so bring a photo of the cut you want.
Tiffany's Barber Shop and Nails Salon
Tiffany's is at Playa Carmen near the cruce, and it is the easiest place in town to get a cut without planning. The shop is half barber chair and half nail table, which means a couple can go in together and both leave done. Google reviews sit at 4.7 from 15, and the theme is quick, friendly, and cheap for the area.
Hours are 10am to 7pm Monday to Friday, 9am to 6pm on Saturday, closed Sunday. Walk-ins work on weekday afternoons; Saturday morning is busy with locals before the weekend. Prices are not published, so budget ₡8,000 to ₡15,000 for a cut and add ₡4,000 to ₡6,000 for a beard. Who it suits: surfers who want a tidy up on the way back from Playa Carmen, and anyone travelling with a partner who wants nails at the same time (see the nail salons guide). The caveat: it is a one chair operation, so if someone is mid fade you wait.
Beauty Santa Salon
Beauty Santa Salon sits on the Cóbano road heading out of Santa Teresa and has the longest and cleanest review record of any hair place in town: 5.0 from 104 Google reviews. It is a women's salon by name but the reviews include plenty of men's cuts and beard trims, and regulars praise the attention to detail over speed.
Hours are 10am to 6pm Monday to Friday and Sunday, closed Saturday, which is unusual and worth remembering. Book on WhatsApp a day ahead; walk-ins are hit and miss. Prices are quoted on request, so plan on ₡10,000 to ₡15,000 for a men's cut with a wash. Who it suits: men who want a scissor cut rather than a clipper fade, or a proper beard shape with a straight razor line. The caveat: it is a salon, so the music is softer and the wait can be longer than at a barbería.
Almendra Spa, Beauty and Salon
Almendra is upstairs next to Super Ronny 1 on the main road at Playa Carmen, and it is a full spa with a hair salon attached rather than a barbershop. The upside for men is that it is open seven days (10am to 6pm Monday to Saturday, 10am to 4pm Sunday), it answers WhatsApp at +506 8844 5646 in English and Spanish, and it can usually fit you in the same week when the smaller shops are booked. Google reviews sit at 4.8 from 148.
The honest review theme: the massage and the cuts get consistent praise, and a few English speaking reviewers say the owner can be short with clients who question the price. Ask the price in the WhatsApp message and there is no problem. Expect ₡12,000 to ₡18,000 for a men's cut and wash. Who it suits: anyone who wants a cut and a deep tissue massage in the same visit, and men with longer hair who want a stylist rather than a clipper. The caveat: it is spa priced.
Aurora Spa and Salon
Aurora is in Plaza Royal in central Santa Teresa, has run since 2019, and is open Monday to Saturday from 10am until 5pm or 6pm depending on the season (the site says 5pm, Google says 6pm), closed Sunday. Its own site sells a haircut, deep hydration treatment, and blow dry as a combination, which tells you the chair is a real one, and it runs a 15% discount when you book two or more services in high season. Google reviews sit at 4.7 from 82.
Prices are quoted through the booking form and the site promises a confirmation within two hours. For a plain men's cut expect the top of the local range, ₡12,000 to ₡18,000. Who it suits: men who have not had a cut since they left home and want a wash, cut, and a scalp treatment after weeks of sun and salt. The caveat: no walk-ins, Sunday is closed, and a notice on the salon's site in 2026 mentioned a temporary move to Mal Pais while the Plaza Royal space is rebuilt, so confirm the address when you book.
Other chairs worth knowing
Cóbano, twenty minutes inland, is where the locals go when they want a cheap fade. Colonial Barbería advertises trained barbers for cuts, beards, and brows, and a Cóbano barber will charge ₡5,000 to ₡8,000 for a cut, roughly half the Santa Teresa rate. Combine it with a supermarket run; the grocery guide explains why people drive there anyway.
A new barbería with four chairs and 10am to 8pm hours was announced in the local Facebook group this year; I have not been able to confirm its name or address, so ask at your hostel whether it has stuck.
How to choose
| Shop | Where | Best for | Walk-in | Hours | Price band |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jenny's | Santa Fe, behind the main road | Fades, beards, local price | Sometimes | Mon and Fri to 7pm, closed Sun and 12 to 1 | ₡8,000 to ₡12,000 |
| Tiffany's | Playa Carmen | Quick cut, partner does nails | Yes, weekday afternoons | Mon to Fri 10 to 7, Sat 9 to 6 | ₡8,000 to ₡15,000 |
| Beauty Santa Salon | Cóbano road | Scissor cuts, beard shaping | Rarely | 10 to 6, closed Saturday | ₡10,000 to ₡15,000 |
| Almendra | Above Super Ronny 1, Playa Carmen | Cut plus massage, seven days | Sometimes | 10 to 6, Sun to 4 | ₡12,000 to ₡18,000 |
| Aurora | Plaza Royal | Cut, wash and treatment | No | 10 to 6, closed Sun | ₡12,000 to ₡18,000 |
All price bands are estimates from what regulars report and from published rates at barberías elsewhere in Puntarenas province, where a cut is ₡6,000 and a cut with beard is ₡9,000. None of these shops publishes a list. Ask on WhatsApp and you will get a number in colones inside an hour.
Practical notes
Pay in colones. Every shop takes cash, the salons take cards and SINPE Móvil transfers, and the price is set in colones, so paying in dollars means paying the shop's rounded rate. At roughly ₡500 to the dollar in 2026, ₡10,000 is $20. See ATMs and money in Santa Teresa for where to draw colones without the worst fees.
WhatsApp is the booking tool for all five shops. Write in Spanish if you can ("Hola, quisiera una cita para corte de cabello y barba, ¿tienen espacio el jueves?"), attach a photo of the cut, and ask "¿cuánto cuesta?" so the price is in writing. Salons reply in English; the barberías reply in Spanish.
Beard work is standard at Jenny's and Tiffany's, and both do a straight razor line. Ask for "barba" for a trim and "perfilado" for the line. Ask in advance if you want a full razor shave, because not every chair keeps the blades for it.
Timing matters more than you think. Saturday mornings fill with local families, Sunday most chairs are shut, and the weeks before Christmas and Easter are booked solid. Right now, in late September, you can usually get a same day slot. Tipping 10% is appreciated and not expected; the tipping guide explains the norm.
If you want colour, balayage, or a keratin treatment rather than a clipper cut, read the hair salons guide, which covers the same salons from the other side of the chair. Browse every salon and barber in the /directory/services hub.
FAQ
How much is a men's haircut in Santa Teresa?
Plan on ₡8,000 to ₡15,000 ($16 to $30) at a barbería or salon in Santa Teresa and Playa Carmen in 2026, and ₡12,000 to ₡20,000 with a beard trim. The spa salons sit at the top of that range. Cóbano barbers charge about half. Nobody publishes a list, so ask on WhatsApp before you sit down.
Can I walk in for a haircut in Santa Teresa?
Tiffany's at Playa Carmen takes walk-ins on weekday afternoons, and Jenny's will fit you in if the chair is empty. Beauty Santa Salon, Almendra, and Aurora work by appointment, and high season fills them days ahead. A WhatsApp message the day before is the safe move everywhere.
Do the barbers in Santa Teresa speak English?
The salons (Almendra, Aurora, Beauty Santa) answer in English. Jenny's and Tiffany's work in Spanish, and a photo of the cut you want solves most of it. "Corte", "barba", "desvanecido" (fade), and "perfilado" (line up) cover a normal visit.
Is Julián Barbershop still open?
It is listed as temporarily closed at the time of writing, which is a loss, because it had 97 reviews at five stars and was the closest thing Santa Teresa had to a classic barbershop. Check the directory listing before you go, since temporary closures here often end when the owner returns from a season away.
Where can I get a beard trim or a straight razor line?
Jenny's and Tiffany's both do beard trims and razor lines as a matter of course, and Beauty Santa Salon does a tidy beard shape with a scissor cut. Ask for "barba" and "perfilado". Expect ₡4,000 to ₡6,000 on top of a cut.
Which day is the worst for getting a haircut in Santa Teresa?
Sunday. Jenny's, Tiffany's, and Aurora are closed, and Beauty Santa Salon is the only one of the five open, since its day off is Saturday. Almendra is open until 4pm. Saturday morning is the busiest stretch of the week at every chair.