If you have landed on this page then we assume that you are looking and researching salon management software for your beauty and wellness business. You already got to know about Salonist salon software but you want to weigh all the other options available to make a better decision for your salon.
You are looking for an opportunity that can help your salon & spa to stand apart from competitors and something that can help to grow your business and can help you to scale it, to help you to achieve the success your salon deserves.
Well, that’s the purpose of this post to help you to choose the best Salonist alternatives that you must consider over Salonist.
After spending hours on research on finding the best Salonist alternatives, I have documented all the features and benefits of the best salon management software respectively that can be a good substitute and a better option for you to consider for your salon or spa. So that you do not make any decision you regret. In this article, I have tried to put it all Salonist alternatives together in a simple overview.
This is what you will find in this article today:
My shortlist of the five best Salonist alternatives-
Let’s dive right in:
Zylu comes out to be the best value-for-money alternative for Salonist. It’s simply easy to use User-friendly interface makes it easier for anyone to use the software without having any technical skills. A simple demo is enough to get going.
Everything is there to manage your salon or spa which makes it one of the top Salonist alternatives. It has Integrated payments, a built-in marketplace with zero commissions that are not available in Salonist, point-of-sale (POS), inventory management, reports and analytics, social media integrations, dedicated coupons, a digital menu, exceptional salon marketing support, etc. to run your salon or spa smoothly.
This is for the salon that needs more than just online appointment scheduling. It is recommended for salons that want software that helps salons to manage their daily activities while sending them customers without charging a commission.
It also provides your salon or spa with an app where local customers can directly book an appointment at your salon from the internet. Zylu also optimises your salon or spa menu for search engines like google.
It may not have some fancy features like Salonist but it has all the necessary features required to manage the salon effortlessly. Therefore the affordability and value for money for its features make Zylu to be one of the best Salonist alternatives.
Vagaro is a sophisticated salon management software and seems to be a good option as a Salonist alternative if you have a friendly budget.
They have plenty of add-on features that make them a decent alternative. Vagaro is cheaper than Salonist but is still relatively higher than other alternatives like Zylu, and Easy salon.
It comes with Dedicated hardware, integrated payments, payroll support, native booking & online store integration with your website, a client marketplace, and salon marketing support.
You’ll also find advanced features that you might not find elsewhere, like live video streaming, subscription payments, and agency design services. You can even get a custom mobile app built for your salon.
But you have to pay extra for all these additional features like the custom app, live streaming etc.
The interface is easy to use but sometimes the app gets glitchy and difficult to use. It has automated reminders and confirmations for salon owners to stay tuned with the bookings. Overall it offers some variety and can be an option to look out for while looking for the best Salonist alternatives.
Fresha, formerly known as Shedul is a well-known software platform. It does have a marketplace like Zylu that helps you to get appointments for your salon or spa.
It does not charge a subscription fee and has no limit on usage instead charges a 20% commission on unique customers with additional transactional charges. It has got nearly all the features we discussed above but comes with a commission model.
The advantage of a commission model is that you don’t pay a price upfront for the software and the risk is low. But if you look closer it turns out to be a more costly option lately because they charge you 15-25% of commission for every transaction. According to research, Operating Expenses (mainly in the form of rent and labour ) can account for as much as 70-80% of a salon’s revenue. The realised outcome is eventually low in a commission model.
The limitation you may find with Fresha is the lack of customisation options. It looks great out-of-the-box so this will likely not be a big issue. However, you will for example not be able to change the design of your booking page or have bookings integrated into your website. The support is also not good compared to others and the business app faces issues over time. Regardless it is a good alternative for Salonist.
Appointy | Online Scheduling Software For Better Appointment Management
Appointy is also a well-known appointment software and can be a good alternative for Salonist. It is also packed with a decent amount of features like appointment scheduling, social media integration, forms, coupons, an app to get bookings, staff management, customer management etc. Appointy comes with a free option but the features offered are limited and maybe you will have to upgrade it shortly to be able to use more sophisticated features. This helps you in the online management of your salons or spas.
The subscription cost is subsequently high. The software is easy to use and is quite handy with staff. The app is good but requires paying more attention to the user journey for both customers and salons. Its complex features helped Appointy to make it up to this list and turn out to be a good option if you have a good amount of money on the table
Easy Salon | Manage Your Salon
Easy Salon provides your salon or spa with a lot of marketing tools like bulk SMS, E-Mail marketing, online appointment booking with payment options, membership, reward points, referral codes, service bundles etc.
This helped easy salon to make it up to the best Salonist alternatives list. Easy Salon is relatively cheaper than Salonist and comes with handy features that might help you to grow your salon.
The user interface is decent but not like the software mentioned above.
Easy Salon gives you an online appointment booking feature but does not have a dedicated marketplace like Zylu to get more local customers. If you are looking for more of a marketing tool then you should consider Easy salon.
The software is quite affordable but would not be a top priority while looking for a Salonist alternative. But overall it does appear to be a decent alternative for Salonist.
Conclusion
The right salon software can really be a game-changer for your salon or spa business.
In this review of the best Salonist alternatives in India for 2022, I’ve really tried to go beyond just a list with user ratings (that you can find on other websites).
Now, it’s your time to give the platform you think is right for you a try. Signup for a consultation if you are still confused about which one to choose from.