Every price we charge, on one page
What it costs, what that works out to per hour, and how people pay for it
Every price we charge is on this page. So is the arithmetic, an honest comparison against the rest of the market, and every funding route we know of, including the one that can put most of the cost back on an employer’s books.
Most schools in this category will not tell you what anything costs until they have your phone number. We think that is backwards. If the price is a problem, you should find that out in thirty seconds, not after a sales call.
The market comparison on this page was last checked on 12 August 2026. We recheck it quarterly.
The number that matters: cost per supervised contact hour
Foundations runs for ten weeks, two afternoons a week, three hours a session, all of it in a room at our Edmonton classroom with an instructor who can see your hands. Divide the tuition by the contact hours and you get the only unit that means anything in a motor skill.
Foundations tuition
$1,997CAD
- Early-bird $1,497 first 5 registrations, code FOUNDATIONS at checkout
- Pay in full, or split it into 4 interest-free instalments with Afterpay at the Square checkout
- $33 per supervised contact hour
An hour of video is not an hour of coaching. An hour in a lecture is not an hour with someone correcting your tension. What you are buying, when you buy braiding training, is supervised repetitions, so price the supervised repetitions.
Every price we charge
Start here
Celegant Foundations In-Person Braiding Intensive
Ten weeks, sixty supervised contact hours and seventeen modules of in-person braiding training in Edmonton, built for people starting from nothing.
- 10 weeks
- 60 contact hours
- In person, Edmonton
Specialty certification
Cornrows & Feed-Ins Specialist
Advanced parting and grid artistry, seamless feed-ins, and the stitch, lemonade and tribal styles clients ask for by name.
- 8 weeks
- 48 contact hours
- In person, Edmonton
$1,997
Early-bird $1,497, first 5 registrations, code CORNROWS at checkout
Specialty certification
Single Braids (Knotless/Regular) Specialist
Two complete, service-ready offerings taught to full depth: regular box braids at every size, and premium knotless with invisible transitions.
- 9 weeks
- 54 contact hours
- In person, Edmonton
$1,997
Early-bird $1,497, first 5 registrations, code KNOTLESS at checkout
Specialty certification
Wigs & Weave Installation Specialist
The highest-ticket service track: install-ready braid-downs, sew-ins, closures and frontals, wig construction and edge-safe glueless installs.
- 9 weeks
- 54 contact hours
- In person, Edmonton
$1,997
Early-bird $1,497, first 5 registrations, code WIGSANDWEAVES at checkout
Specialty certification
Locs Specialist
The deepest track we teach: loc creation, maintenance, repair, extensions and the long-term care a years-long client relationship needs.
- 10 weeks
- 60 contact hours
- In person, Edmonton
$1,997
Early-bird $1,497, first 5 registrations, code LOCS at checkout
Specialty certification
Crochet Specialist
The five professional install methods and a full style menu, curly, straight, faux locs and boho, built for speed without losing the finish.
- 9 weeks
- 54 contact hours
- In person, Edmonton
$1,997
Early-bird $1,497, first 5 registrations, code CROCHET at checkout
Specialty certification
Twists Specialist
Full-head protective twists and flat twists with seamless extensions, plus passion, Senegalese, kinky and spring twists.
- 8 weeks
- 48 contact hours
- In person, Edmonton
$1,997
Early-bird $1,497, first 5 registrations, code TWISTS at checkout
Business program
Certified Salon Business Professional: The Empire Blueprint
The business of running a salon, online and self-paced: setup, financials, staffing, client systems, marketing, growth and a capstone business plan.
- Online, self-paced, lifetime access
$2,997
Early-bird $2,497, first 5 registrations
- All prices are in Canadian dollars.
- Early-bird tuition applies to the first five registrations in a cohort. It is a real seat limit, tracked from a single counter. We do not run countdown timers.
- The Empire Blueprint price covers Part 1 and Part 2. Part 2 ships later and is free to everyone who has already bought.
All prices include GST. Every figure on this page is the amount you actually pay. There is no deposit, refundable or otherwise: you either pay in full or you use the instalment option below. Your kit is included in the tuition, and so is your certificate.
An honest comparison against the rest of the market
The figures below are publicly advertised prices we recorded on 3 August 2026 from providers across Canada and online. We have not named them, because the point is not to attack anyone. It is to show you the shape of the market and where we sit in it. Where a provider advertises a duration in days rather than hours, we have estimated contact hours from their published session times and said so.
What braiding training costs in Canada
| Detail | Celegant Foundations, Edmonton | Two-day intensive, Alberta | One-day workshop | Online braiding course | Multi-week certification, Ontario |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Typical advertised price | $1,997, early-bird $1,497 | $950 to $999 | $350 to $440 | $37 to $59 | $6,500 advertised, the same provider’s own registration form shows $7,500 |
| Supervised contact hours | 60 | about 14, estimated | about 6 to 8, estimated | None, recorded video only | about 144 to 192, from published hours |
| Roughly per supervised hour | about $33, early-bird about $25 | about $68 to $71 | about $55 to $70 | Not applicable | about $34 to $45 |
| Takes complete beginners? | Yes, it is designed for them | No, one Alberta provider requires a hairstylist licence number to enrol | Usually | Yes | Yes |
Celegant Foundations, Edmonton
- Typical advertised price
- $1,997, early-bird $1,497
- Supervised contact hours
- 60
- Roughly per supervised hour
- about $33, early-bird about $25
- Takes complete beginners?
- Yes, it is designed for them
Two-day intensive, Alberta
- Typical advertised price
- $950 to $999
- Supervised contact hours
- about 14, estimated
- Roughly per supervised hour
- about $68 to $71
- Takes complete beginners?
- No, one Alberta provider requires a hairstylist licence number to enrol
One-day workshop
- Typical advertised price
- $350 to $440
- Supervised contact hours
- about 6 to 8, estimated
- Roughly per supervised hour
- about $55 to $70
- Takes complete beginners?
- Usually
Online braiding course
- Typical advertised price
- $37 to $59
- Supervised contact hours
- None, recorded video only
- Roughly per supervised hour
- Not applicable
- Takes complete beginners?
- Yes
Multi-week certification, Ontario
- Typical advertised price
- $6,500 advertised, the same provider’s own registration form shows $7,500
- Supervised contact hours
- about 144 to 192, from published hours
- Roughly per supervised hour
- about $34 to $45
- Takes complete beginners?
- Yes
What the table actually shows
An online course is not a competitor to sixty supervised hours; it is a different product. It is excellent value if what you need is to be shown a technique, and worth nothing at all if what you need is someone to stop you gripping too tight.
The short in-person workshops are the honest comparison, and they are two to three times our hourly rate. A two-day intensive at $950 is around $68 a supervised hour, and the Alberta provider advertising that price will not enrol you at all without a hairstylist licence number.
The long certifications are competitive on hourly rate and three times the total outlay, which is a real barrier if you are funding it yourself.
A private-college hairstyling diploma is a different product again. The providers we reviewed do not publish a price, and the Edmonton programs reviewed do not teach Afro-textured braiding. The Alberta hairstylist apprenticeship is a government-regulated trade route, not a braiding course, and is not comparable on price at all.
The claim we will make, and its limits: as far as we can establish from publicly available information in August 2026, Celegant Foundations is the only in-person option in Alberta that accepts a complete beginner, gives them sixty supervised contact hours, and costs under two thousand dollars. If you find one we have missed, tell us and we will update this page.
All comparison figures were publicly advertised at the time of recording and may have changed. We review this table quarterly.
Paying over time
You do not have to pay the full tuition in one go.
- Pay in full. The early-bird rate applies while early-bird places are still open for your cohort.
- Instalments. 4 interest-free instalments with Afterpay at the Square checkout, at no extra cost to you. Afterpay is offered through Square at checkout. You choose it at the payment step inside the secure Square checkout, not on a separate page.
- No deposit. There is nothing to pay up front beyond your first instalment.
- Employer-funded. Some employers pay out of their own budget. See where things stand on funding.
Afterpay is a third-party agreement between you and Afterpay, not with Celegant Braiding Academy, so read their terms before you use it.
What we always do: show you the total price alongside any weekly figure. If a school shows you a low weekly number and never shows you the full price, ask them for the full price.
Any third-party payment plan is a credit agreement between you and that provider, not with Celegant Braiding Academy. Read their terms. We do not provide credit and we are not a lender.
If you want to talk through what is affordable, Talk to a braider. It is not a sales call.
Where things stand on funding
We would like to be able to point you at a grant. Right now we cannot, and we would rather say so than let you plan around money that may never apply to you.
The Alberta employer training grant that this page used to describe has been retired. The program that replaced it has different criteria, aimed at productivity skills, and it sets conditions on training providers which we have not yet established that we meet. Until we have, we will not name it as a route for you and we will not imply that Celegant programs qualify for it. That research is underway, and this page will be updated the moment there is something definite to say, in either direction.
What is still worth doing. Employers pay for staff training out of their own budgets all the time, with no grant involved. If you work in a salon, ask your owner or manager. We will give you a written program outline with the contact hours, schedule, curriculum and tuition set out in the format any internal approval needs, and we will talk them through it on the phone.
What we will not do is tell you that you are eligible for money we cannot confirm is available to you. We are not a funding administrator. We cannot approve, apply for or guarantee any grant, and nothing on this page is financial, legal or tax advice. Check current programs directly with the Government of Alberta.
Get the tuition and funding guide, which includes a one-page program outline you can forward to an employer.
Other places people look
These are the routes students in Alberta commonly investigate. We are listing them because they are worth checking, not because we can confirm any of them will fund this particular program. Eligibility rules for private, non-designated training vary and are set by each funder.
- Alberta Student Aid, the provincial student funding body. Eligibility usually depends on the program and provider being designated. studentaid.alberta.ca
- ALIS, Fund Your Training, the province’s own directory of funding options for Albertans, including scholarships, bursaries and training supports. Start here if you do not know what you qualify for. alis.alberta.ca
- Training for Work, provincial programs supporting unemployed and underemployed Albertans into training and work. Eligibility is assessed individually. alberta.ca
- Windmill Microlending, a national non-profit lender specialising in loans for skilled newcomers to Canada seeking training and credentials. Highly relevant if you trained or worked in this craft before arriving in Canada. windmillmicrolending.org
- Indigenous training funding. A number of Indigenous organisations and band offices administer training funding. Start with your band, Metis Nation of Alberta, or an Indigenous employment and training service provider.
- Employer support, with no grant involved. Some salons simply pay, or split the cost, in exchange for a commitment period. It is worth asking.
Our programs are not designated for Alberta Student Aid. Student loans and grants administered through Alberta Student Aid cannot be used for our tuition. We would rather say that plainly than let you spend an afternoon on an application that cannot succeed.
We have not been told by any of these funders that our programs are eligible, and we will not imply otherwise. Check with the funder directly before you plan around it. If you get a confirmed answer either way, please tell us. We will publish it here.
Salon owners: the business case, in plain numbers
Most Edmonton salons currently turn braiding bookings away. Not because the demand is not there, it is, but because nobody on the floor was taught it. The clients call someone else, and they usually stay with whoever answered.
The cost. One tuition per stylist, ten weeks, two afternoons a week. Your stylist is on the floor the other five days.
Offsets. We are not aware of a current Alberta grant that Celegant programs qualify for, and we will not imply one. See where things stand on funding. Most salons that do this pay for it themselves and treat it as a training cost.
The return. That is your arithmetic, not ours, and it depends on your prices, your chair time and your client base. We are not going to publish an income projection we cannot evidence. What we will do is sit down with your numbers and work it through with you.
Group and salon rates
If you are enrolling several people together, whether that is a salon sending staff or a group of friends starting at the same time, the price comes down.
- Groups of 2 to 5: $1,697 each, a saving of $300 a place.
- Groups of 6 to 10: $1,597 each, a saving of $400 a place.
Group rates run all year. The early-bird price of $1,497 is lower still, so while early-bird places are open that is the better deal for an individual. Group rates are what remains once a cohort early-bird has gone.
Everyone in the group needs to be enrolling in the same intake. Phone (587) 873-9331 or email info@celegantbraidingacademy.com and we will set it up. Group rates are arranged with us directly rather than through the online checkout, and they cannot be combined with the early-bird code.
Book a salon training consult, twenty minutes with your numbers, no obligation. Or get the tuition and funding guide.
What your tuition buys
- Sixty supervised contact hours, in person, at a fixed address, with an instructor in the room
- Seventeen modules and seventy-six lessons across sanitation, hair and scalp science, consultation, tools, preparation, hand skills, parting and six style families
- Hands-on correction, the one thing that cannot be delivered by video at any price
- A cohort, so you finish
- An assessed capstone and the Professional Certificate in Braiding Foundations
- A consultation form and aftercare sheet you draft yourself and keep
- A grounding in all six specialty directions, so you can choose one on evidence. None of the six has an entry requirement, so you are free to go straight to a specialty if you would rather.
Your kit, at no extra cost. Mannequin head with human hair, tripod stand, hair clips, rat tail comb and braiding hair, included at no extra cost. It is yours to keep. If you already own some of it, bring what you have and we will supply the rest.
Before you spend anything, understand what the certificate is
Celegant Braiding Academy issues a professional skills certificate. It is awarded by us, based on assessed practical work. It is not a provincial trade certificate, not a government licence, and not an apprenticeship credential.
In Alberta, Hairstylist is a compulsory-certification designated trade. Braiding is not named specifically in the government sources we reviewed, and we will not guess on your behalf. The authoritative answers live with the province:
- Restricted Activities List, Hairstylist, Alberta Apprenticeship and Industry Training: tradesecrets.alberta.ca
- Barber and Hairstylist certification in Alberta: alis.alberta.ca
- Apprenticeship and Industry Training Client Service Offices: call them and ask about your exact situation.
If your plan is to cut and chemically treat hair as a licensed hairstylist, the apprenticeship route is the one you want, and we will tell you that plainly. Our program is for braiding, twisting, locing, crochet and install work, and for the business skills that go with them.
Educational information only. This is not legal advice.
We put this on the pricing page deliberately. You should know exactly what you are buying before you decide what it is worth.
If your plans change
Our full refund, withdrawal and rescheduling policy is published in plain language, in full, before you pay anything.
Money questions, answered
Is the price on this page the full price?
Yes. The tuition shown for each program is the tuition. All prices include GST.
There is no deposit, no kit fee and no examination fee. Your kit and your certificate are included.
Is the early-bird rate real?
Yes. It applies to the first five registrations in a cohort, tracked from one counter. When those seats are taken, the standard tuition applies. There is no timer and no relaunch.
Can I pay in instalments?
Yes, and there is no deposit. You can pay the tuition in full, or split it into 4 interest-free instalments with Afterpay at the Square checkout, at no extra cost to you.
The instalment option is Afterpay, offered through our payment processor, Square. It costs you nothing extra. You choose it at the payment step inside the secure Square checkout, not on a separate page. Afterpay is an agreement between you and Afterpay rather than with Celegant Braiding Academy, so read their terms.
Do you offer scholarships or bursaries?
Not at present. There is no scholarship, bursary or subsidised seat, and we would rather say that plainly than leave the question off the page.
What we do have is no deposit and 4 interest-free instalments with Afterpay at the Square checkout, at no extra cost to you, which for most people is the thing that actually makes it possible. See Tuition and funding.
Will my employer really pay?
Some employers will, out of their own training budget. If you work in a salon it is worth asking, and we will give your owner a written program outline with the contact hours, schedule, curriculum and tuition set out properly.
We are not going to tell you a grant is waiting for you. The Alberta employer training grant that used to fit this has been retired, and the program that replaced it has different criteria and conditions on training providers that we have not yet established we meet. Until we have, we will not imply that Celegant programs qualify. See where things stand on funding.
Can I pay online?
Yes. Each program has its own secure checkout, handled by Square. You choose your program on the enrolment page and pay there.
Your card details go straight to Square. We never see them and we do not store them. If you would rather arrange it by phone, call (587) 873-9331 and we will set it up with you.
Is tuition tax-deductible?
No. We do not issue a T2202 or any other tuition tax receipt. That form can only be issued by an institution certified for the purpose, and we are not one. You will get a normal receipt for what you paid, which is what most people use when claiming training as a business expense.
Whether your tuition is deductible at all depends on your own circumstances, particularly whether you are already self-employed. That is a question for an accountant, not for us.
What if I cannot afford it right now?
Tell us. We would rather help you find a route or a later cohort than have you talk yourself out of it quietly. Our phone number is in the footer of every page.
We have also written a fuller comparison of what braiding courses cost across Canada, covering every training format and how to work out the cost per supervised contact hour of any course you are weighing.
Get the full tuition and funding guide
One document: the complete Foundations curriculum, the full cost breakdown, the instalment options, and a one-page program outline formatted for internal training-budget approval. Free, and no payment is taken on this website.