Journal
What does gel polish cost in Amsterdam?
· 5 min read · by Rosa
Gel polish in Amsterdam costs roughly €30 to €55. At Bella Rosa a gel polish manicure is €35, including filing, cuticle work and a choice of dozens of colours. It takes about 45 minutes and stays good for two to three weeks.
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Why prices vary so much
The biggest cause of the price difference between salons is not the polish itself. A bottle of gel costs roughly the same everywhere. The difference is how long the treatment takes and what happens along the way.
In a €35 treatment the cuticle gets attention, the nail surface is prepared, and the colour goes on in thin layers. That takes time, and time is what you are paying for. In a €20 treatment two thick coats go on and you are out in a quarter of an hour.
You do not see the difference on the day. You see it a week and a half later, when the cheap version lifts at the cuticle and the careful one is still holding.
How long does gel polish last?
Two to three weeks is realistic. Exactly how long depends on how fast your nails grow, what you do with your hands, and how you treat them. Nails grow roughly three millimetres a month, so after two weeks you will see the natural nail starting to show at the cuticle.
What helps: wearing gloves for cleaning and washing up, using cuticle oil or hand cream daily, and not using your nails as tools. A nail used as a screwdriver breaks — with or without gel.
Your nails do not need to "breathe" under gel. The visible nail is dead material; only the part at the cuticle is alive. What does need recovery is the cuticle itself, if it has been worked on too aggressively.
Why you should not pick it off yourself
This is the leading cause of damaged nails, and it has nothing to do with the gel. When you peel the polish off, you take the top layer of the nail with it. The nail gets thinner, flakes, and can feel sore.
So have it removed professionally, including when you want a break from gel. With us that costs €15 and takes about twenty minutes. If you want a break, you can switch to a regular manicure with polish, or to nail care with no polish at all.
Not sure whether your nails need a break? Ask during your appointment. We would rather tell you to skip a month than keep working on nails that are not ready for it.