and why can't anyone give me an answer? I will try to lay out for your some of the reasons why an hair extension salon will be cagey about giving you a price quote for extensions without a consultation, and give you some rough guide lines about what you might expect.
For starters, the cost of extensions vary depending on the type of extension used. Not all extensions work for everyone. There are tape in, strand by strand bonded , such as Great Lengths and micro links. There are many other methods but I will concentrate on these since they are the most commonly used. Each method has a different initial outlay cost. Some you pay more upfront (bonded) , where as others you pay less up front, but the maintenance down the road evens out the cost (tape and micro link).
The final result is a very important factor. If you simply want to fill in a bob and have fine hair, that will be substantially less then a person with thick hair that wants length and blend in a bob line. Two very different scenarios, with different price cost.
How often do you want to come into salon to maintain the extensions? Great Lengths while more expensive at first, require far less follow up then tape or micro link.
You can see how there are so many variables coming into play that pinning a price tag can be very challenging without a proper consultation. Having said all of this, I will try to answer the question: How much do extensions cost? Expect to pay at the very least somewhere in the neighborhood of $500 for filling in some density with little length, to as much as $2000 and up for super thick hair that wants to be substantially longer. $1200 is a median price point.
Ultimately, coming in for a free consultation is the best way of finding out exactly what your price point will be.