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Square Appointments Alternatives: 6 Booking Apps Compared On Fees

Here are 6 booking apps for independent beauty and wellness pros to weigh against Square Appointments, with what each one charges, read off its own pricing page: the monthly cost at three sizes of book, the card rates, and what each takes from a new client. Fidden is ours, so it is listed first, and the table shows where it costs more as well as where it costs less.

What Square Appointments Charges

Plans
Free, or $49 a month for Plus and $149 for Premium, per location. No-show fees start on Plus
Card rates
On Free, 2.6% + 15¢ in person and 3.3% + 30¢ online. 3.5% + 15¢ on a card on file
New clients
No new-client fee
Includes
The rest of Square, from invoicing to online selling

Prices as published at squareup.com/us/en/appointments/pricing, checked October 13, 2026.

What A Month Costs

The plan price plus every percentage and per-payment fee, on card payments for services, for one provider. Each app is shown at its lowest in-person card rate on the plan named, without the price of any card reader. Per-payment fees assume a $75 average service. Tips and new-client fees are left out of every figure.

Monthly cost of each plan at 3 levels of monthly service payments
Plan $250 a month $5,000 a month $10,000 a month
Square Free Free, 2.6% + 15¢ $7.00 (lowest) $140.00 (lowest) $280.00
Square Plus $49/month, 2.5% + 15¢ $55.75 $184.00 $319.00
Fidden Foundation Free, 9.7% + 15¢ $24.75 $495.00 $990.00
Fidden Momentum $39.99/month, 2.7% + 15¢ $47.24 $184.99 $329.99
GlossGenius Standard $24/month billed annually, 2.6% $30.50 $154.00 $284.00
Booksy $29.99/month, 2.49% + 10¢ $36.55 $161.16 $292.32
StyleSeat $35/month, 2.5% + 30¢ $42.25 $180.00 $325.00
Vagaro $30/month, 2.6% + 10¢. Over $4,000, $40/month, 2.29% + 19¢ $36.83 $167.17 $294.33
Fresha Independent $19.95/month, 2.29% + 20¢ $26.34 $147.78 $275.62 (lowest)

Fidden's monthly plans are shown at full price. A new business gets its first 2 months of Momentum or Icon free, once. Your month looks different? Put your own numbers in the fee calculator .

Of the alternatives, at $250 a month in bookings it is Fidden Foundation, at $24.75; at $5,000, Fresha Independent, at $147.78; and at $10,000, Fresha Independent, at $275.62.

What Each App Includes

Deposits at booking
Listed Fidden, Square Appointments, GlossGenius, Booksy, StyleSeat, Vagaro, Fresha
Not listed None
No-show and late-cancellation fees
Listed Fidden, Square Appointments (Plus and up), GlossGenius, Booksy, StyleSeat, Vagaro, Fresha
Not listed None
No fee on new clients
Listed Fidden (Momentum and Icon), Square Appointments, GlossGenius, Vagaro
Not listed Booksy, StyleSeat, Fresha
Waitlist
Listed Square Appointments (Plus and up), GlossGenius (Gold and up), Booksy, StyleSeat (Smart Waitlists), Vagaro, Fresha
Not listed Fidden
Client marketplace
Listed Booksy, StyleSeat, Vagaro, Fresha
Not listed Fidden, Square Appointments, GlossGenius
AI assistant
Listed Fidden (Fidda), Square Appointments (Square AI, in beta), GlossGenius (AI teammates, Gold and up), Booksy (AI Receptionist, in beta), StyleSeat (Sage), Vagaro (Vera), Fresha (AI Concierge)
Not listed None
Tap to Pay on a phone
Listed Fidden (iPhone), Square Appointments (iPhone), GlossGenius (iPhone and Android), Booksy, StyleSeat (iPhone), Vagaro (Tap to Phone), Fresha
Not listed None
A plan with no monthly fee
Listed Fidden, Square Appointments
Not listed GlossGenius, Booksy, StyleSeat, Vagaro, Fresha

Each app's features as its own pages list them, checked October 18, 2026: Square Appointments at squareup.com/us/en/appointments/pricing, its Tap to Pay page and its Square AI announcement; GlossGenius at glossgenius.com/pricing; Booksy at biz.booksy.com/en-us/features; StyleSeat at styleseat.com/pricing; Vagaro at vagaro.com/pro/pricing, its Online Shopping Cart help article, its no-show fee help article and its card rates article; Fresha at fresha.com/for-business/features, fresha.com/pricing and its AI Concierge page. Not listed means we did not find it there. For Fidden, it means Fidden does not have it. For new clients, it means the app takes a share of a new client's first visit, as its card below shows.

The Alternatives

Fidden (ours)

Plans
Foundation is free and takes 7% of each booking, never on tips. Momentum is $39.99 a month and Icon $89.99, with no commission, and both start with 2 months free
Card rates
Standard rates on every plan: 2.7% + 15¢ by Tap to Pay, 2.9% + 30¢ online
New clients
Nothing extra on Momentum or Icon. Foundation's 7% applies to every booking, new or returning: $8.40 on a $120 first visit
Includes
Fidda, an AI business partner that finds empty hours and drifting clients and acts on them, deposits at booking on every plan, and no booking fee for your clients
Against Square
Momentum: $44.99 a month more than Square at $5,000 in bookings. Foundation: $17.75 a month more than Square at $250 in bookings

Square Appointments fees vs Fidden, in full

GlossGenius

Plans
From $24 a month billed annually, or $28 month to month (Standard)
Card rates
2.6% flat on card payments, with no per-payment fee
New clients
No new-client fee
Includes
Marketing and inventory tools, and a payroll add-on
Against Square
$14.00 a month more than Square at $5,000 in bookings

GlossGenius fees vs Fidden, in full

Prices as published at glossgenius.com/pricing, checked October 12, 2026.

Booksy

Plans
$29.99 a month, plus $20 a month per additional staff member
Card rates
2.49% + 10¢ on Booksy's card reader, sold separately. 2.69% + 30¢ for payments in the app
New clients
Booksy's Boost, if you turn it on, takes 30% of a new client's first visit, up to $100. That is $36 on a $120 first visit
Includes
Its consumer marketplace and 2,000 marketing texts a month
Against Square
$21.16 a month more than Square at $5,000 in bookings

Booksy fees vs Fidden, in full

Prices as published at biz.booksy.com/en-us/pricing, checked October 12, 2026.

StyleSeat

Plans
$35 a month on standard terms. New pros are currently offered $19 a month for a limited time
Card rates
2.5% + 30¢ by Tap to Pay, 2.6% + 30¢ on a card on file
New clients
StyleSeat's New Client Connection, if you turn it on, takes 30% of a new client's first appointment, up to $50, per its cost guide. That is $36 on a $120 first visit
Includes
Its consumer marketplace
Against Square
$40.00 a month more than Square at $5,000 in bookings

StyleSeat fees vs Fidden, in full

Prices as published at StyleSeat's cost guide, checked October 12, 2026.

Vagaro

Plans
$30 a month for one person, $40 for two. $23.99 for your first 6 months
Card rates
2.6% + 10¢ in person under $4,000 a month, 2.29% + 19¢ plus $10 a month over it. 3.5% + 19¢ on deposits, cards on file and online payments
New clients
No new-client fee
Includes
Its consumer marketplace, 1,000 marketing emails a month and a card reader
Against Square
$27.17 a month more than Square at $5,000 in bookings

Vagaro fees vs Fidden, in full

Prices as published at vagaro.com/pro/pricing, checked October 13, 2026.

Fresha

Plans
$19.95 a month for one provider, $14.95 per bookable team member on a team
Card rates
2.29% + 20¢ in person, plus 10¢ by Tap to Pay. 2.79% + 20¢ online
New clients
Fresha takes 20% of a new marketplace client's first visit, at least $6. That is $24 on a $120 first visit
Includes
Its consumer marketplace and 100 free text reminders a month
Against Square
$7.78 a month more than Square at $5,000 in bookings

Fresha fees vs Fidden, in full

Prices as published at fresha.com/pricing, checked October 12, 2026.

Common Questions

What is the cheapest alternative to Square Appointments?

It depends on how much you book. On plan price and in-person card processing, for one provider, at $250 a month in bookings it is Fidden Foundation, at $24.75; at $5,000, Fresha Independent, at $147.78; and at $10,000, Fresha Independent, at $275.62. New-client fees come on top of these where an app charges them.

Is there a free alternative to Square Appointments?

Yes. Fidden's Foundation plan has no monthly fee and takes 7% of each booking, never on tips, with deposits at booking included.

Which Square Appointments alternatives charge no new-client fee?

GlossGenius and Vagaro charge nothing extra for a new client, and neither do Fidden's Momentum and Icon plans. Fidden Foundation's 7% applies to every booking, new or returning. Booksy's Boost, if you turn it on, takes 30% of a new client's first visit, up to $100. StyleSeat's New Client Connection, if you turn it on, takes 30% of a new client's first appointment, up to $50, per its cost guide. Fresha takes 20% of a new marketplace client's first visit, at least $6.

Is Fidden cheaper than Square Appointments?

Than Square Free, on plan price and in-person processing, no: it has no monthly fee and a lower in-person rate, so it costs less than every Fidden plan. Than Square Plus, the cheapest Square plan with no-show fees, yes up to about $4,500 a month in bookings: Fidden Momentum costs less below that. Deposits cost less to take on Fidden at any volume, since its online rate is lower than Square Free's.

Payments Aren't A Feature Of Fidden.

They're one of its three products — and they're built with the same posture as everything else:

Confidence, in writing.

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