Pedicurist
Key facts
Pedicurists offer cosmetic treatment and care for their clients' feet and toenails. They cut and shape toenails, give footbaths and exfoliation treatments and apply nail polish.
As a pedicurist, you'll provide cosmetic treatments and care specifically for feet and toenails. Your day might involve welcoming clients, assessing their foot health needs, performing treatments, and ensuring a relaxing and hygienic environment. You'll combine technical skills with a focus on customer service, creating a positive experience for each person you serve.
- • Cutting and shaping toenails according to client preferences and foot health guidelines.
- • Providing footbaths and exfoliation treatments to remove dead skin and improve circulation.
- • Applying nail polish, gel polish, or other decorative finishes.
Where this occupation is in demand
Reported labour shortages and surpluses, by year. Published for occupation groups, not for individual job titles.
Figures cover Personal service workers — 86 jobs including this one.
In shortage: Belgium, Czechia, Denmark, Hungary and 2 more.
Longest-running shortage: Italy, 4 years.
Select a place on the map to see its figures.
About this source›
Source: ELA/EURES labour shortages and surpluses. Readings are published at occupation-group level, and cover Europe. Editions differ in annex layout and country coverage, so a change between years does not always mean the labour market changed. Countries in grey were not reported, which is not the same as being in balance.
What these words mean
The four things this section reports
- Reported demand
- Whether employers report needing people in this job — a judgement published by a national or EU body, not a count.
- Where it is heading
- Which way employment in this job is expected to move over the coming years, from an official projection.
- Openings
- Roughly how many openings arise — from growth and from people leaving the job.
- Typical pay
- What people in this job typically earn where the source publishes it. Blank does not mean unpaid; it means nobody publishes it for that place.
A measure is left out when nobody publishes it for that place, rather than shown as zero.
Which way the market leans for you
- In your favour
- More openings than people looking — employers are competing for candidates.
- Balanced
- Openings and candidates are roughly matched.
- Competitive
- More people looking than openings — expect to compete.
- Mixed evidence
- Sources disagree, or the same occupation group is short in one part and oversupplied in another.
Every source resolves to one of these four, so there is a single vocabulary to learn. What differs is the evidence behind it, which is printed underneath each verdict — a measured ratio of openings to jobseekers, or an assessment published by a national body.
How this job compares with other jobs in the same country
- Strong
- Among the strongest in that country
- Good
- Stronger than most jobs in that country
- Mixed
- About typical for that country
- Weak
- Weaker than most jobs in that country
This is a rank within one country, not a score you can carry across borders — the registers behind two countries count different people, so the same number means different things in each. It is also why a job can be among the strongest in a country and still show as Competitive: it leads the field in a market that is crowded overall.
Where these come from
Every figure is published by a national statistics office, a public employment service or an EU body, and each card names its source and the period it covers. Some places are counted monthly, others assessed once or twice a year, so two places on the same map can be describing different moments — the date is always shown.
None of this predicts one person’s chances. It describes a market.
Reported demand · Typical pay · Where it is heading (United States, Ireland, Australia, Malta, United Kingdom)
| Reported demand | Typical pay | Where it is heading | |
|---|---|---|---|
| United States | Not reported | $35,760 2025-05 | +7% 2024–2034 · BLS 2024-2034 |
| Ireland | Not reported | — | +16.7% 2023–2035 · Cedefop 2026 * |
| Australia | Shortage reported Jobs and Skills Australia 2025 * | — | — |
| Malta | Shortage reported ELA/EURES 2024 * | — | +1% 2023–2035 · Cedefop 2026 * |
| United Kingdom | Not reported | £15,009 2025-provisional | — |
* Published for occupation groups, not for individual job titles.
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (OEWS)
Source: Office for National Statistics, Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, Open Government Licence v3.0
Do you guide students, clients or employees? Use this occupation data in your organisation.
Future Outlook for pedicurist
The outlook for pedicurist is exceptionally stable. While AI tools will assist with daily tasks, the core of this role relies on human judgment, resulting in a high resilience score of 78%.
How are these scores calculated?
The Resilience Score (0–100) estimates how structurally protected this occupation is from automation and AI disruption, based on task-level analysis. Higher scores mean more human-judgment-intensive tasks. AI Exposure shows the estimated percentage of task hours that current AI capabilities could affect. These are model-derived structural indicators, not predictions about individual job security.
How could pedicurist change as AI adoption grows?
Human judgement, trust, and context remain strong protectors for this role.
Illustrative scenario based on task automatability — not a forecast. Values are rounded the further ahead you look.
Human judgement, trust, and context remain strong protectors for this role.
Illustrative scenario based on task automatability — not a forecast. Values are rounded the further ahead you look.
Model-based estimate. Use it as a planning signal, not a guarantee.
Compare this to your profile
How AI may change this role
Deterministic, model-based interpretation of current role signals — not a guarantee of replacement.
What still depends on people
- work ergonomically
- decorate nails
- treat nails
Where AI may become a co-pilot
- sterilise working environment
- maintain equipment
- identify customer's needs
Tasks most exposed to automation
No single task here is highly automatable yet.
Vital Signs & AI Vectors
AI Exposure Vectors
0-100%Exposure to content generation, creative augmentation, and large language model tools
Exposure to AI-assisted analysis, pattern recognition, and predictive modelling tasks
Exposure to physical automation, robotics, and sensor-driven task displacement
Exposure to workflow automation, decision-support software, and process digitisation
Technical Details
NexFuture v3.0 estimates automation exposure natively from ESCO essential-skill groups, weighted by skill mass and calibrated against expert anchors. Scores are probabilistic estimates, not guarantees. See the NexFuture Methodology White Paper for full details.
Measures automation exposure. It does not measure pay, demand, or how many jobs exist near you.
What people in this role usually do
Arts, Entertainment, & Design
A typical day as a pedicurist
09 09:00 · Morning decorate nails
10 10:30 · Mid-morning identify customer's needs
12 12:00 · Midday shape nails
14 14:00 · Afternoon sterilise working environment
15 15:30 · Late afternoon treat nails
17 17:00 · Wrap-up apply nail polish
Task order is illustrative. Individual days vary.
What you need to do this work
The skills, knowledge and tools this role calls for — and the traits and rewards that come with it.
-
decorate nails
Use artificial nails, piercings, ornaments, or customised designs to decorate customers' nails.
-
treat nails
Wrap nails to repair them or make them stronger and more resilient. Soften, trim or push back nail cuticles and provide treatment to people who bite their nails.
-
shape nails
Shape nails by cutting and smoothening the ends of the nails, with the use of files, scissors or emery boards.
-
apply nail polish
Remove previously applied nail polish, using liquid remover or swabs, clean customers' nails and apply undercoat and clear or colored polish onto nails with brushes.
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work ergonomically
Apply ergonomy principles in the organisation of the workplace while manually handling equipment and materials.
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conform to cosmetics regulatory requirements
Ensure conformance to regulatory requirements applied in personal care products such as cosmetics, fragrances and toiletry.
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sterilise working environment
Make sure all working equipment, jewellery and skin is made sterile, before performing skin treatment or body modifications such as tattooing or piercing, to prevent infections or the transfer of diseases.
-
provide footwear advice to patients
Inform patients on the types of footwear available and suitable for their feet conditions or disorders to increase foot well being.
-
maintain equipment
Regularly inspect and perform all required activities to maintain the equipment in functional order prior or after its use.
-
identify customer's needs
Use appropriate questions and active listening in order to identify customer expectations, desires and requirements according to product and services.
-
maintain customer service
Keep the highest possible customer service and make sure that the customer service is at all times performed in a professional way. Help customers or participants feel at ease and support special requirements.
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advise customers on usage of cosmetics
Provide advice to customers on how to apply various cosmetic products such as lotions, powders, nail polish or creams.
cosmetics
The various types of substances used to enhance the appearance of the human body.
cosmetics industry
Suppliers, products and brands in the cosmetic industry.
foot problems
Conditions and disorders affecting the health and well being of feet such as fungal infections, ingrown nails, verrucas, smelly feet, flat feet and bunions.
- cosmetic pedicure
- cosmetic skin treatment
- skin types
Path to become a pedicurist
What it typically takes to qualify: education level, where it is a regulated profession, and where to study.
Primary education
622 programmes in 28 countries teach the core skills of this job. Plus 170 short courses that build single skills.
A few examples, taught in the language of this page:
Turun ammatti-instituutti · Finland
Laurea-ammattikorkeakoulu · Finland
These are 6 of 792.
Sources
- 1. Source: Opintopolku.fi (Finnish National Agency for Education)
- 2. Source: EHIS (Estonian Education Information System), Ministry of Education and Research of Estonia, open data. Data as at 26/09/2026.
- 3. Source: Study with New Zealand (studywithnewzealand.govt.nz), Education New Zealand. Copyright in the material is owned by Education New Zealand (All content (c) Education New Zealand). Listings are provided by the education providers, are for information and promotional purposes only, and are not endorsed by Education New Zealand; each provider is responsible for its own content.
- 4. Source: South African Qualifications Authority (SAQA), All Qualifications and Unit Standards (allqs.saqa.org.za).
- 5. Source: Malta Qualifications Registry, Malta Further and Higher Education Authority (qualifications.mfhea.gov.mt).
Growth Pathways & Similar Roles
Explore typical career progression paths, adjacent skills, and similar roles to plan your next transition.
Where does pedicurist fit?
Similarity scores based on skill overlap from ESCO data.
For organisations
The data on this page, working for your students, clients and staff.
Frequently asked questions
What skills are important for a pedicurist?
Is it common to be self-employed as a pedicurist?
What are some of the work styles associated with this role?
Is there a shortage of Pedicurist in Europe?
How much does Pedicurist pay in the United States?
Sources: ESCO O*NET ELA/EURES Cedefop BLS Data updated October 3, 2026 About our data