Most salon software comparisons rank features. Almost every platform has a calendar, reminders and a client list. Features are not where these products differ.
The difference is how they charge you. Two of the five below take a percentage of every new client who books through them.
That percentage costs more than any subscription on this page, and it is the reason the cheapest-looking option is often the dearest.
This guide compares the five on money, not on feature lists. Prices were checked in September 2026 and change often, so verify before you sign up.
The comparison, at a glance
Read the commission column first. A platform with no monthly fee can still be the most expensive one you use.
| Platform | Monthly cost | Commission on a new client | Free plan | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Abeautella | €0 forever, then €10 | None | Yes, permanent: 50 bookings a month | Solo specialists and small teams who want to keep their margin |
| Fresha | Around €20 | 20% of the first booking, minimum around €6 | No, the free plan ended in July 2026 | Salons that want a marketplace to bring them clients |
| Booksy | From around €45 | 30% on Boost, optional | No, trial only | Established salons that can absorb a fixed fee |
| Treatwell | Varies by contract | 35% of the first visit | No | Salons in tourist areas with high walk-in demand |
| Square Appointments | €0 at the base tier | Payment processing only | Yes, limited | Businesses already using Square to take payments |
The three ways salon software charges you
Every platform on this page uses one of three models. Knowing which one you are on tells you more than any feature list.
Fixed subscription
You pay the same amount whether you take ten bookings or three hundred. Predictable, and it gets cheaper per booking as you grow.
The risk is at the start. A quiet month costs you the same as a busy one, which hurts most when you are just opening.
Commission on new clients
The software looks free or cheap. Then the platform takes a percentage of every client it sends you, on their first visit.
This is the model that surprises people. A 20% cut on a €60 colour service is €12, and you pay it before you pay your own rent.
Free with paid extras
A working free tier, with a limit you can measure. You pay only when you cross it, and you know in advance what crossing it costs.
Abeautella: free forever, no commission
We built this, so read the rest with that in mind. What follows is checkable on the pricing page.
The free plan is permanent, not a trial. It covers 50 bookings a month for one person, with no card required to start.
There is no commission at any tier. A client who books through your link is yours, on the first visit and on the fiftieth.
Pro is €10 a month for 500 bookings and three team members. That is roughly what a single new client costs you on a commission platform.
What you get: online booking around the clock, a calendar that blocks double bookings, automatic reminders, a client record and review requests. The full list is here.
Where it loses: we have no marketplace. We do not send you strangers. You bring your clients through your own booking link, from Instagram, TikTok or Google.
That is a real trade, and it cuts both ways. If you have no clients at all, a marketplace genuinely helps.
If you already have a following, you are paying a marketplace for people who were coming to you anyway.
Fresha: free software, paid clients
Fresha is one of the largest platforms in this category. The management software carries a modest subscription, around €20 a month, published on their business page.
The marketplace is where the cost sits. Fresha charges 20% of the first booking for any new client who finds you through it, with a minimum of about €6.
On a €60 service that is €12. On a €25 manicure the minimum fee applies, so you pay €6, close to a quarter of the price.
Returning clients cost nothing. The model only bites on acquisition, which is exactly when a new salon has the least room.
Booksy: the highest fixed fee
Booksy starts around €45 a month, plus roughly €5 for each extra team member. That is the highest base subscription on this page.
In exchange, commission is optional. Booksy takes a cut only when you switch on Boost, its promotion feature, at around 30%. Booksy makes this point itself in its own comparison.
That is a more honest structure than a default commission. You choose when to pay for reach, instead of paying automatically.
The problem is the floor. At €45 a month you are paying €540 a year before your first booking, which is heavy for a solo specialist.
Put in money: on a €40 first visit you keep €40 with us, €32 with Fresha, €28 with Booksy Boost and €26 with Treatwell.
Treatwell: the most expensive first visit
Treatwell takes 35% of a new client's first booking. It is the highest commission of the five, and it applies before anything else.
There is a detail worth reading twice, covered in independent fee breakdowns.
If a client has not visited in over twelve months, many marketplaces count them as new again, and charge you a second time.
For a salon with seasonal clients, that means paying acquisition commission on people you acquired years ago.
Treatwell earns its place where demand is heavy and unpredictable, in tourist districts and city centres. Elsewhere the maths is hard to justify.
Square Appointments: the generalist
Square is a payments company that also does booking. The base tier is free and the calendar works, which is more than a lot of free tools manage.
It is not built for beauty. There is no colour formula history, no separate duration for a first-time consultation, no waitlist tuned to same day cancellations.
If you already take payments through Square, the integration is genuinely convenient. If you do not, you are adopting a payments processor to get a calendar.
The maths on 60 bookings a month
Numbers beat adjectives. Take a small salon: 60 bookings a month, average service €40, and 10 of those bookings are new clients.
| Platform | Subscription a year | Commission a year | Total a year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Abeautella Pro | €120 | €0 | €120 |
| Fresha | €240 | €960 if all new clients come from the marketplace | €240 to €1,200 |
| Booksy | €540 | €0 without Boost | €540 |
| Treatwell | Varies | €1,680 at 35% of €40, 120 new clients | €1,680 and up |
| Square Appointments | €0 | Card fees only | Card fees only |
The spread is the point. The cheapest and the most expensive option differ by more than €1,500 a year, on identical work.
That gap is not a subscription decision. It is a decision about who finds your clients, you or a marketplace.
Which one fits which salon
- You have an Instagram following and no software. Start free. You already have the audience a marketplace would charge you for.
- You are opening in a city centre with no clients. A marketplace can fill your first months. Budget the commission as marketing spend, and plan an exit.
- You have two or three staff and a full book. A fixed subscription is predictable. Compare €10 against €45 for the same job.
- You already use Square for payments. Try their calendar before adding a second system.
- Your services have very different lengths. A nail salon, a colour salon and a massage studio each need durations the calendar respects, not one generic slot.
- You run a [barbershop](/for/barbers) with several chairs. One booking link, one calendar per barber. A cosmetics studio needs the client record instead.
- You are a [solo specialist](/for/independents). Commission is the worst model for you. One person cannot absorb 20% on acquisition.
What to check before you sign up
- Is the free plan permanent or a trial? A 14 day trial is not a free plan.
- What is the commission on a new client, and what is the minimum fee? The minimum matters more than the percentage on cheap services.
- When does a client stop being new? If it resets after twelve months, you pay twice for the same person.
- Can you export your client list? If not, you cannot leave.
- Does the price rise per team member? A €45 base can become €70 with two staff.
- Is there a fee per booking on top? Some platforms charge both.
Verdict
If you bring your own clients, commission platforms are the most expensive way to run a salon. You pay a finder's fee for people who already follow you.
If you have no clients and no audience, a marketplace buys you time. Treat the commission as an advertising budget with an end date.
For everyone in between, a fixed low subscription with no commission is the cheapest structure.
It is also the only one where growing your salon does not raise your cost per booking.
If you want it walked through on your own numbers rather than ours, ask us and we will do the arithmetic with you.
One last thing worth saying, because every comparison skips it. The cheapest platform is not the one with the lowest number on its pricing page.
It is the one whose charging model matches how your clients actually arrive. Get that right and the price differences mostly stop mattering.
