A barber is a person whose occupation is mainly to cut, dress, groom, style and shave men's and boy's hair or beards. A barber's place of work is known as a "barbershop" or a "barber's". Historically barbershops were also places of social interaction and public discourse. In some instances, barbershops were also public fora. They were the locations of open debates, voicing public concerns, and engaging citizens in discussions about contemporary issues.

In previous times, barbers (known as barber surgeons) also performed surgery and dentistry. With the development of safety razors and the decreasing prevalence of beards in Anglophonic cultures, most barbers now specialize in cutting men's scalp hair as opposed to facial hair.