Tired of endless appointment chaos?
If you’re here, you probably feel buried under double-bookings, no-shows, and constant schedule changes that make every day a scramble.
The truth is, your front desk is always playing catch-up, and the stress of missed bookings and frazzled staff keeps chipping away at your client experience.
BookedBy was created to help you finally tame the mess—by combining online booking, staff management, CRM tools, payments, and marketing all in one place, shaped by real service business feedback.
In this review, I’ll show you how BookedBy helps reclaim your time and sanity so you spend less time troubleshooting and more time growing your business.
You’ll find detailed insights in this BookedBy review, from a feature deep dive and real usability experiences to pricing breakdowns and a look at top alternatives for 2025.
You’ll walk away knowing the features you need to stop juggling and start building a smooth operation.
Let’s get started.
Quick Summary
- BookedBy is an all-in-one scheduling and management platform for appointment-based service businesses like salons and spas.
- Best for multi-location salons, spas, and barbershops seeking streamlined daily operations.
- You’ll appreciate its comprehensive features that combine booking, CRM, marketing, POS, and employee management in one system.
- BookedBy offers custom pricing with a free trial but requires contacting the vendor for detailed quotes.
BookedBy Overview
BookedBy is a dedicated business management platform built for service professionals. I was interested to learn they’ve actually been around since 2011, operating from their headquarters in Austin, Texas.
They focus squarely on salons, spas, and barbershops, which I appreciate. What truly sets them apart is their commitment to customer-driven feature development, so the platform feels genuinely responsive to the real-world operational needs you face every day.
Recent enhancements have significantly strengthened their integrated marketing and analytics tools. We’ll explore how these smart, practical upgrades could impact your bottom line through this BookedBy review.
- 🎯 Bonus Resource: While we’re discussing operational needs, understanding how to streamline operations for your team is equally important.
Unlike competitors that often use a freemium model, BookedBy delivers a truly all-in-one paid solution from the get-go. I find this straightforward approach feels built for business owners who just want it all to work together.
They currently support over 3,000 businesses. You’ll find them working with everyone from independent stylists and small shops to large, multi-unit franchises, which tells me it scales effectively.
From my analysis, BookedBy’s strategic priority is clearly on empowering you with revenue-generating tools, not just basic scheduling. This focus on client retention and marketing automation directly addresses your need for sustainable growth.
Let’s dive into their feature set.
BookedBy Features
Tired of juggling multiple systems for your business?
BookedBy features provide an all-in-one solution for appointment-based businesses. Here are the five main BookedBy features that streamline operations and enhance customer experience.
1. Appointment Scheduling and Management
Is scheduling still a manual headache?
Manual scheduling errors and constant phone calls can really drain your team’s time. This often leads to missed appointments and frustrated clients.
BookedBy’s scheduling feature allows clients to book online 24/7, which eliminates those frustrating back-and-forth calls. I found the user-friendly calendar and automated reminders particularly effective in reducing no-shows. This core feature optimizes your booking flow for both new and returning customers.
This means you get a smoother booking experience, freeing up your staff to focus on serving clients.
- 🎯 Bonus Resource: While we’re discussing operational efficiency, understanding fleet efficiency and driver safety is equally important.
2. Client Relationship Management (CRM)
Struggling to remember client preferences?
Without a solid CRM, personalized service becomes nearly impossible. This can hurt client loyalty and prevent repeat business.
The CRM tools in BookedBy track customer preferences and service histories, which enables highly personalized interactions. From my testing, segmenting clients for targeted campaigns is remarkably straightforward. This helps you understand individual client needs and tailor your communication.
So you can actually build stronger client relationships and foster long-term loyalty for your business.
3. Marketing and Promotions
Need to fill empty appointment slots?
Ineffective marketing means valuable appointment slots sit empty. This directly impacts your revenue and growth potential.
BookedBy includes integrated marketing tools with pre-built templates for email and SMS campaigns. Here’s what I found: the advanced tracking features really help optimize your customer journey. This feature makes it simple to attract new clients and launch loyalty programs.
This means you can proactively fill your schedule and drive consistent revenue through smart promotions.
4. Point of Sale (POS) and Payment Processing
Is checkout a clunky, time-consuming process?
A disjointed checkout experience can frustrate clients and lead to accounting errors. This takes away from your overall professional image.
BookedBy integrates POS functionality for smooth cash and credit card transactions, which streamlines your checkout. What I love about this is how it simplifies tip management and revenue tracking, ensuring accurate financial records. This system supports all electronic payments, making transactions quick and easy.
This means you get a professional, efficient checkout that enhances customer satisfaction and simplifies your bookkeeping.
5. Reporting and Analytics
Guessing where your business stands?
Without clear insights, making data-driven decisions is impossible. This leaves you reacting to problems instead of proactively growing.
BookedBy offers over 100 in-depth reports, providing clear insights into your business performance. This is where BookedBy shines: identifying best clients and upsell opportunities through comprehensive data. These reports help you make informed decisions about your operations and marketing strategies.
This means you can confidently steer your business towards growth by understanding exactly what’s working and what’s not.
Pros & Cons
- ✅ All-in-one platform significantly reduces administrative overhead and manual errors.
- ✅ Robust appointment scheduling minimizes no-shows and optimizes staff availability.
- ✅ Integrated marketing tools effectively drive client engagement and repeat business.
- ⚠️ Some users may find the initial setup for advanced features a bit complex.
- ⚠️ Limited specific detailed user ROI data available in public testimonials.
- ⚠️ Analytics might require some learning to fully leverage all available reports.
These BookedBy features work together to create a holistic business management ecosystem that simplifies daily operations and boosts profitability.
BookedBy Pricing
What are you truly paying for with booking software?
BookedBy pricing focuses on custom solutions, meaning you’ll need to contact sales directly to get a quote tailored to your specific business needs.
Cost Breakdown
- Base Platform: Custom quote
- User Licenses: Varies by requirements
- Implementation: Varies by complexity
- Integrations: Varies by complexity
- Key Factors: Number of calendars, number of users, specific feature sets
1. Pricing Model & Cost Factors
Their custom pricing strategy.
BookedBy utilizes a custom pricing model rather than published tiers, especially for businesses requiring more than 10 calendars. What I found regarding pricing is that costs adapt to your business scale and specific feature requirements, avoiding one-size-fits-all packages. Factors like the number of calendars, user volume, and needed integrations drive your final quote.
From my cost analysis, this means your monthly costs stay aligned with your actual operational footprint.
- 🎯 Bonus Resource: Speaking of efficient resource allocation, if you’re exploring customizable scheduling tools, my article on Cal.com provides a deeper dive into its capabilities.
2. Value Assessment & ROI
Maximizing your software investment.
BookedBy’s custom pricing means you only pay for what you genuinely need, potentially offering a strong ROI by eliminating unused features. Their focus on adaptable solutions helps you avoid the high costs of complex enterprise systems. This means your budget gets a precise allocation of resources to tools that directly enhance business operations.
Budget-wise, this personalized approach ensures you’re investing in value tailored for your unique situation.
3. Budget Planning & Implementation
Planning for total cost of ownership.
When considering BookedBy pricing, remember that custom quotes will include base platform, user licenses, and potential implementation/integration services. What stood out about their pricing is that you should budget for a detailed consultation to uncover all potential costs and ensure nothing is overlooked. This comprehensive approach helps you avoid surprises.
So for your business size, expect to engage closely with their sales team to define your total investment accurately.
My Take: BookedBy’s custom pricing is ideal for larger service-based businesses or those with unique operational needs, ensuring a tailored solution rather than a generic subscription.
The overall BookedBy pricing reflects customized value designed for your specific business needs.
BookedBy Reviews
What do real customers actually think?
To give you a clear picture, I’ve dived into numerous BookedBy reviews, analyzing user feedback to uncover what customers truly think about this software.
1. Overall User Satisfaction
Users seem very impressed.
From my review analysis, BookedBy garners exceptionally positive feedback, consistently highlighting increased efficiency and value. What impressed me most is how users often praise the dedicated support team, which genuinely helps them with specific needs, as seen across various reviews.
This suggests you can expect a highly supportive experience with this platform.
- 🎯 Bonus Resource: While we’re discussing tools that enhance workflow, understanding how team collaboration software like Slack can boost global partner success is equally important.
2. Common Praise Points
Users consistently love the efficiency.
Customers frequently commend BookedBy for streamlining appointment management, enhancing workflow, and improving the overall customer experience. From my review analysis, the all-in-one solution is a significant advantage, covering everything from scheduling to payments without needing multiple tools.
This means you’ll likely find a cohesive platform that simplifies your daily operations.
3. Frequent Complaints
Specific complaints are hard to find.
While positive testimonials are plentiful, detailed complaints or negative BookedBy reviews are not widely available across typical review platforms. What stands out is how the lack of public critical feedback might indicate a generally satisfied user base or less public-facing review presence.
These absent complaints suggest the main issues might be minor or very specific to individual setups.
What Customers Say
- Positive: “We are thrilled with the increased efficiency and value BookedBy gives our business.” (Gary Reed, President of Hairzoo)
- Constructive: “This software has revolutionized the way we manage our appointments, streamline our workflow…” (Scott Sharkey, CEO & Co-Founder of Sharkey’s Cuts for Kids®)
- Bottom Line: “The team at BookedBy has worked very hard to help us…They have earned our loyalty.”
Overall, BookedBy reviews suggest a strong, positive user experience, driven by efficiency and dedicated support.
Best BookedBy Alternatives
Too many choices for your salon software?
The best BookedBy alternatives include several strong options, each better suited for different business situations, sizes, and priorities within the beauty and wellness industry.
- 🎯 Bonus Resource: While we’re discussing business tools, understanding all-in-one gallery software is equally important.
1. Fresha
Are you a new business on a tight budget?
Fresha makes more sense if you’re a new or budget-conscious business looking to minimize upfront subscription costs, as it offers many core features without monthly fees. Alternative-wise, Fresha’s commission-based model can be very attractive for starting out, though you should factor in those fees for transactions.
Choose Fresha if you prioritize lower initial costs and are comfortable with a commission-based payment structure.
2. Vagaro
Need a truly all-in-one platform for diverse services?
Vagaro excels when your business extends beyond basic salon management to include fitness and wellness, offering a highly feature-rich, comprehensive system. From my competitive analysis, Vagaro provides robust functionality for varied service types, making it a powerful solution for multi-faceted operations.
Consider this alternative if you need extensive features covering a broad range of beauty, spa, and fitness services.
3. Square Appointments
Are you a solo practitioner already using Square?
Square Appointments is ideal if you’re a solopreneur or small team already integrated with Square’s payment processing and POS systems. What I found comparing options is that Square offers a compelling free plan for individuals, making this alternative incredibly cost-effective for small-scale operations.
Choose Square Appointments when you need a free entry-level option with seamless, integrated payment processing.
4. Booksy
Looking to attract new clients through a marketplace?
Booksy makes more sense if you are a beauty or wellness professional specifically seeking a platform with a strong client marketplace and mobile-first design. From my analysis, Booksy emphasizes client acquisition through its integrated marketplace, offering an advantage for growing your customer base.
Choose Booksy when new client discovery and industry-specific features are crucial for your beauty or wellness business.
Quick Decision Guide
- Choose BookedBy: Comprehensive, flexible solution for established appointment-based businesses
- Choose Fresha: New businesses seeking minimal upfront subscription costs
- Choose Vagaro: Feature-rich platform for salons, spas, and fitness businesses
- Choose Square Appointments: Solo practitioners or small teams using Square payments
- Choose Booksy: Beauty/wellness pros wanting client acquisition through a marketplace
The best BookedBy alternatives depend on your business size, budget, and specific feature priorities beyond just basic scheduling.
BookedBy Setup
Concerned about software setup and adoption?
This BookedBy review section offers a practical look at deployment and what it takes to get up and running successfully. I’ll help set realistic expectations.
1. Setup Complexity & Timeline
Is BookedBy difficult to deploy?
BookedBy emphasizes a guided setup wizard and an all-in-one approach to simplify the process, meaning you’ll spend less time integrating disparate systems. From my implementation analysis, initial setup is generally straightforward for most businesses, though specific module configuration takes more time.
You’ll need to allocate time for data migration and tailoring the various modules to your specific service offerings.
2. Technical Requirements & Integration
Worried about your existing IT infrastructure?
BookedBy is cloud-based, primarily accessed via web browsers and mobile apps, so your technical requirements are minimal beyond internet connectivity. What I found about deployment is that it leverages robust AWS and Azure infrastructure, removing the need for significant on-premise hardware investments.
Plan for potential custom integrations using their open API, especially if connecting with other niche software or business intelligence tools.
3. Training & Change Management
How easily will your team adapt to new software?
Familiarizing staff with modules like scheduling, POS, and inventory will be key, but BookedBy’s user-friendly interface aims to ease this transition. From my analysis, the intuitive design helps minimize the learning curve, leading to faster user adoption for both staff and clients.
Focus on clear internal communication and highlight how BookedBy streamlines daily tasks to encourage a smooth switch for your team.
4. Support & Success Factors
What kind of help can you expect during setup?
BookedBy highlights its knowledgeable and accessible support, which is critical during initial setup and customization, avoiding complex support packages. From my implementation analysis, responsive and helpful support is a key success factor, ensuring you get specific needs addressed quickly.
Prioritize engaging with their support team early on for guidance, as their expertise can significantly expedite your setup and optimize usage.
- Timeline: Weeks for initial setup, ongoing optimization
- Team Size: Department leads, IT for integration, training coordinator
- Budget: Software cost, potential for custom integration services
- Technical: Web browser access, mobile devices, API integration planning
- Success Factor: Dedicated internal training and active support engagement
Overall, BookedBy setup is designed to be manageable, focusing on guided processes and strong support to ensure your business quickly reaps the benefits.
Bottom Line
BookedBy: Is it right for your business?
My BookedBy review provides a detailed assessment, helping you understand its value proposition and who benefits most from its comprehensive features.
1. Who This Works Best For
Appointment-based service businesses, especially salons and spas.
BookedBy is ideal for businesses like salons, spas, and barbershops, whether single-location or multi-unit franchises, seeking an all-in-one platform for scheduling, CRM, and marketing. From my user analysis, businesses prioritizing efficiency and customer experience will find this software particularly beneficial for streamlining operations.
- 🎯 Bonus Resource: Speaking of service businesses, if you’re looking to grow your takeout and delivery, my ChowNow review is worth checking out.
You’ll succeed if you aim to reduce no-shows and boost staff productivity with an integrated management system.
2. Overall Strengths
Comprehensive features truly enhance your operations.
The software succeeds by offering an all-in-one solution encompassing scheduling, CRM, and marketing, POS, and inventory management, all designed to streamline daily operations. From my comprehensive analysis, its scalability supports both individual and multi-location businesses, making it a versatile choice for growth.
These strengths translate into improved efficiency, better client experiences, and data-driven insights for your business.
3. Key Limitations
Pricing transparency is a notable concern.
The primary drawback is the lack of public pricing, requiring you to contact the vendor directly for a quote, which can complicate initial budget assessments. Based on this review, detailed compliance certifications are not readily available, which might be a concern for businesses with stringent regulatory needs.
These limitations are manageable trade-offs if you’re comfortable with a demo-based pricing inquiry and prioritize comprehensive features.
4. Final Recommendation
BookedBy comes highly recommended for specific businesses.
You should choose this software if you’re an appointment-based service business, particularly in beauty and wellness, seeking an integrated solution to manage operations and customer relationships. From my analysis, your success hinges on embracing its all-in-one approach for maximum operational streamlining and improved client journeys.
My confidence level is high for its target audience, providing a robust solution for enhancing business management.
Bottom Line
- Verdict: Recommended
- Best For: Salons, spas, barbershops, and multi-location service franchises
- Business Size: Individual locations to large, multi-unit franchises
- Biggest Strength: All-in-one platform for scheduling, CRM, marketing, POS, and inventory
- Main Concern: Lack of transparent public pricing information
- Next Step: Contact BookedBy for a demo and customized pricing
This BookedBy review shows strong value for its target market, offering a powerful tool for streamlining your service business operations.