Search "spa scheduling software" and you'll mostly find vendors ranking their own product. But for a small day spa (0–5 people) there are actually two separate purchases hiding under one phrase: an all-in-one booking, POS and CRM platform that runs your calendar and takes payments, and a phone/text answering layer that catches the calls and DMs that come in while your hands are busy. Some platforms now bundle the second piece; most still don't. This comparison treats them as two decisions instead of one, using a day-spa scenario — 60–90 minute facials and massages, a first-visit consultation, and a 6-session package with rebooking every 4–6 weeks — to see how the recommendation changes with your specifics.
Category one: the booking, POS and CRM platform
This is the system of record — your calendar, service menu with durations, client profiles, deposits, packages/memberships, and payment processing. Vagaro, Fresha, Square Appointments, Acuity Scheduling and GlossGenius are all built around this job, and they differ mainly in how they charge (per bookable staff member vs. flat per-location tiers) and which no-show/cancellation protections are included at which tier.
Category two: who answers the phone and books the call
This is a newer, uneven category. As of this writing, Fresha ships a paid "AI Concierge" add-on that answers calls and messages and books directly into the Fresha calendar. GlossGenius has announced an equivalent, "Reception by GlossGenius," but it is listed as coming soon — not something you can buy or use today. Vagaro's "Vera Receptionist" replies to chat, SMS and marketplace messages, but it does not answer inbound phone calls. Square Appointments has no first-party call-answering AI bundled at any tier — the AI receptionist tools available to Square merchants, such as NextClient AI, are third-party apps listed on Square's App Marketplace, not a Square-built feature — and Acuity Scheduling's own top-tier "AI Booking Assistant" is described by Acuity itself as an AI-powered chat widget on the business's booking page, not a phone answering system. Beside sits outside all five platforms: it's a standalone phone/text answering layer that connects to a Google Calendar or its own bookable-hours setup, so it can sit on top of whichever booking platform you already run — but it has no native write-path into Vagaro, Fresha, GlossGenius, Square Appointments or Acuity Scheduling, so it never becomes your POS or client database.
| Option | Category | Base price (per US pricing pages) | Phone/call answering | No-show / cancellation fee handling |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vagaro | Booking/POS/CRM platform | ~$23.99/mo for 1 bookable calendar, +$10/mo per additional calendar (up to 7) | Vera Receptionist answers chat/SMS/marketplace messages only, not phone calls | Can auto-charge a cancellation/no-show fee if online cancellation rules and a card on file are set up |
| Fresha | Booking/POS/CRM platform | Independent: $19.95/mo for one person; Team: $14.95/mo per bookable team member; 20% one-time fee on new marketplace-sourced clients | AI Concierge add-on (shipped): ~$99.95/location/mo, 200 mins included, books into the same calendar | Deposits and cancellation fees are available through integrated payments; confirm the rules for your setup. |
| Square Appointments | Booking/POS/CRM platform | Free / Plus ~$49/location/mo / Premium ~$149/location/mo | No first-party/native call-answering AI; third-party marketplace apps (e.g., NextClient AI) exist as separate add-ons, not a Square feature | Automatic cancellation/no-show fees and multi-staff booking require Plus or higher |
| Acuity Scheduling | Booking/POS/CRM platform | Starter $16/mo, Standard $27/mo (up to 6 calendars), Premium $49/mo (annualized) | None (Premium's "AI Booking Assistant" is Acuity's own description of a website chat widget, not phone answering) | No named automatic no-show fee feature — deposits/prepayment or a manually-charged card on file only |
| GlossGenius | Booking/POS/CRM platform | Standard $24/mo, Gold $48/mo flat for up to 9 staff (annualized) | "Reception by GlossGenius" announced, listed as coming soon — not available to buy today | Deposits, card-on-file and cancellation/no-show policies on Gold, but fee collection is discretionary/manual, per GlossGenius's own product page — not an automatic charge |
| Beside | Standalone phone-answering layer | Baseline $29.99/mo (30 answered calls), Unlimited $99.99/mo (uncapped); 1 phone line included | Answers calls and texts on your own number; books into a connected Google Calendar or Beside's own bookable hours; no native connection to any platform above | Not a booking-platform feature; doesn't charge or track no-show fees itself |
Worked scenario: a 3-person day spa
Picture an owner plus two estheticians offering 60–90 minute facials and massages, a 15–30 minute consultation add-on for first-time clients, and a 6-session facial package that needs rebooking every 4–6 weeks. Variable service durations mean the calendar has to hold different slot lengths without double-booking; first-visit consultations mean intake matters as much as the time slot; and package rebooking means the system needs to nudge repeat clients on a cadence, not just confirm one appointment. None of that changes which category you need — it changes how much weight to put on each platform's package/membership tools, reminder cadence and no-show handling versus whether you also need a phone-answering layer.
| Setup | Approx. monthly cost | What you get |
|---|---|---|
| Vagaro alone (3 calendars) | ~$44/mo | Full booking/POS/CRM, automatic no-show fee, chat/SMS-only AI (no phone answering) |
| Vagaro + Beside | ~$74–$144/mo | Adds phone/text answering on your own number; Beside runs on its own bookable hours or a connected Google Calendar, with no native write-back into Vagaro |
| Fresha alone (3 team members) | $44.85/mo (3 x $14.95; plus applicable marketplace/payment fees) | Booking/POS/CRM, deposits and marketplace listing |
| Fresha + AI Concierge | ~$144.80/mo ($44.85 base + ~$99.95 AI Concierge) | Adds phone/message answering that books directly into the same Fresha calendar — the only option here with a native write-path |
| GlossGenius alone (Gold, flat for up to 9 staff) | $48/mo | Full booking/POS/CRM, deposits, cancellation/no-show policies, Google Booking |
| GlossGenius + Beside | ~$78–$148/mo | Adds phone answering today, since "Reception by GlossGenius" is announced but not yet available |
What Beside actually does — and doesn't do
- Answers inbound calls and texts on your spa's own number (Baseline $29.99/mo for 30 answered calls, Unlimited $99.99/mo uncapped; one phone line included)
- Books appointments into a connected Google Calendar, or into bookable hours you set directly in Beside
- Includes call recording with an automatic consent notice; transcripts, call summaries and a Daily Recap are standard on both plans, not gated to a higher tier
- Does not integrate natively with Vagaro, Fresha, GlossGenius, Square Appointments or Acuity Scheduling — it works alongside them via calendar sync, not inside them
- Does not itself track packages, memberships, deposits or automatically charge no-show fees — that stays with your booking platform
One caveat worth stating plainly: Beside's "automatic consent notice" announces that a call may be recorded, but it does not by itself guarantee legal compliance. Beside's own Terms of Service state that customers must obtain consent, implement any required opt-in/opt-out process themselves, and remain solely responsible for adhering to applicable call-recording and telemarketing law — Beside does not provide built-in opt-in/opt-out mechanisms and disclaims liability for non-compliant calls or texts. At least 11 US states, including California, Florida and Illinois, require all-party consent to record a call, so check your own state's rules (and any texting/telemarketing rules that apply to your outreach) before turning this on, rather than assuming the notice covers it.
When to keep your current provider
If you're already on Vagaro, Fresha, Square Appointments (Plus or above), Acuity Scheduling or GlossGenius, and call/text volume is low enough that your current setup is keeping your book full, adding a second tool is a cost with no clear return. Vagaro and Square Appointments (Plus and above) already include a way to automatically charge a no-show or cancellation fee without buying anything extra; GlossGenius (Gold) lets you collect a no-show fee through a card on file, but per GlossGenius's own no-show-protection page that charge is made at the owner's discretion, not automatically — so it takes a manual step each time. Acuity Scheduling requires a deposit at booking or a manually-charged card on file instead of an automatic fee. A spa that gets most new clients through Fresha's marketplace may prefer Fresha's own AI Concierge specifically because it writes into the same book those marketplace leads already flow through — even though, at roughly $99.95/location/month on top of the base plan, it costs more than Beside's Baseline plan by itself.
How to decide
- Start with the booking platform: pick based on how it charges (per staff vs. flat), whether it handles packages/memberships and consultations the way your service menu needs, and whether it can automatically charge a no-show fee if that matters to you.
- Only then ask about phone/text answering: is missed-call volume actually costing you bookings? If yes, check whether your chosen platform already ships one (currently only Fresha does), has one announced but unavailable (GlossGenius), covers chat/SMS but not calls (Vagaro), or offers none natively (Square Appointments, Acuity Scheduling).
- If you need phone answering now and your platform doesn't offer it, compare the standalone cost of a phone layer like Beside against a platform's native add-on where one exists — and factor in that a native add-on writes into your existing calendar automatically, while a standalone layer runs on its own calendar or a Google Calendar bridge instead.