What the ATO’s small business benchmarks say is normal for beauty services, from 2023-24 tax returns, and a checker for your own numbers. Nothing you type leaves your browser.
| Turnover | $65k to $200k | $200k to $400k | Over $400k |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total expenseskey benchmark | 48 to 69% | 69 to 83% | 77 to 88% |
| Labour | 23 to 35% | 25 to 37% | 27 to 39% |
| Rent | 13 to 21% | 12 to 19% | 9 to 16% |
| Motor vehicle | 3 to 5% | 2% | 1 to 2% |
Source: ATO small business benchmarks, 2023-24 financial year, updated 16 March 2026, reused under CC BY 2.5 AU.
Each figure is a cost as a share of annual turnover, without GST, for businesses in that turnover band. For beauty services the ATO’s key benchmark is total expenses to turnover: the one it says best predicts turnover for this industry. It also publishes labour, rent, motor vehicle.
For example, a business turning over $300,000 with $228,000 of total expenses is at 76.0%, inside the 69 to 83% range for the $200k to $400k band.
The ATO says a business outside its range may have room to improve, and that benchmarks are one of the tools it uses to identify businesses that may be avoiding their tax obligations.
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