Acuity Scheduling vs Picktime (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 12, 2026, Picktime grades higher than Acuity Scheduling: 2.8 against 2.2 out of 4.0.
Checked Oct 5, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 · graded Oct 10, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 by ToolGPA
Acuity Scheduling grades higher on features. Picktime grades higher on value for money and the free plan. They get the same grade on ease of use and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Acuity Scheduling
Appointment booking, payments and reminders for service businesses
Picktime
Appointment and class booking software with a free plan
Which one is for you
Pick Acuity Scheduling if
- Fits if you run a salon, studio, tutoring or coaching business and want clients to book and pay themselves
- Works for businesses that take a deposit or the full fee at booking to cut no-shows
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you want to start free: there's no free plan, and the trial lasts 7 days
- Pricey if you're one person who just needs a booking link, at $16 a month ($20 monthly) for one calendar
- Tight if you have staff or locations: Starter has 1 calendar, Standard 6 and Premium 36
- Watch out: text reminders, the waitlist, packages, memberships and gift certificates start on Standard at $27
- Pricey if you need a HIPAA BAA, the Acuity footer removed, or the custom API: all Premium only, at $49
Pick Picktime if
- Fits if you are a small studio or salon that wants a free booking page
- Works for teams of up to 10 that run classes
Look elsewhere if
- Tight if you stay free: 3 users, 3 resources, 2 locations and 2 classes
- Skip it if you have more than 10 users and resources, as Pro stops there
- Watch out: SSO, vouchers and class packs on Pro are not available yet
- Watch out: Starter and Pro prices are billed annually, and SMS reminders start on Starter
How we grade them
| 2.2GPAAcuity SchedulingFair | 2.8GPAPicktimeGood | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | DStarter is $16 a month billed annually, $20 monthly, and buys exactly one calendar. The dear end of this category is $10. Then the things a real business needs climb further: text reminders, packages and memberships on Standard at $27, and the HIPAA agreement and logo removal on Premium at $49, against a $6 middle. | AFree is substantial, and Pro is $2.25 per user a month billed annually, under 60% of the category's $4.99 cheapest quarter. |
| Free plan and trial | CNothing free to keep. There's a 7-day trial of any plan with no card asked, and a week is short to build a booking page, set your availability and test a payment before the bill starts. | BFree covers 3 users, 3 resources, 2 locations, 2 classes and unlimited appointments, which one person could run a business on. |
| Features | BCovers the whole booking job: a branded page, intake forms, deposits or full payment through Stripe, Square or PayPal, invoices, email reminders, buffers and daily limits, group classes, and tap-to-pay in the phone app. Text reminders, packages and the AI assistant wait on higher plans. | CBooking page, classes, payments, calendar sync and reminders. Pro lists SSO, vouchers and class packs as coming soon. |
| Ease of use | CNo rating on record, and the work falls on you before any client sees it: services to define, availability rules, buffers, daily limits, intake forms, a payment processor and a calendar to sync. Clients booking themselves from a link is the easy half. | CNo store rating on record. Services, staff and the booking page are yours to set up. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb plus iPhone and Android, with no desktop app of its own. It does sync with Google Calendar, Outlook and iCloud so busy time is blocked, and connects out to Stripe, Square, PayPal, Zoom and Squarespace, with the custom API Premium only. | BWeb plus iOS and Android, with Google Calendar, Outlook, Zoom, Meet, Stripe, Square, Mailchimp and HubSpot. No desktop app. |
| Best for | taking bookings and payment in one go | appointment and class booking for small teams |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: Acuity Scheduling and Picktime. How we grade
Price against what you get
Acuity Scheduling starts at $16 a month and scores 2.7 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Picktime starts at $3 a month for each person and scores 2.3.
Acuity Scheduling scores higher, and starts $13 a month higher: the question is whether the extra is worth that to you. Of the other calendar and scheduling apps on the chart, 17 score higher than Acuity Scheduling for less, and 11 score higher than Picktime for less.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Where they differ
- Picktime also covers calendar, appointment booking and class booking.
At a glance
| Acuity Scheduling | Picktime | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free trial | Free plan |
| Starts at | $16 per month, billed annually ($20 billed monthly) | $3 per user / month, billed annually ($4 billed monthly) |
| Free plan | None | Free: 3 users, 3 resources, 2 locations, 2 classes, unlimited appointments, email notifications and PayPal payments. |
| Free trial | 7-day free trial of any plan, no credit card needed | None listed |
| Web | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Made by | Squarespace, Inc. | Picktime |
| Price read from | acuityscheduling.com | picktime.com |
| Checked | Oct 5, 2026 | Nov 12, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Acuity Scheduling
- There is no free plan. When the 7-day trial ends, a paid plan is needed to keep using the account.
- Plans are capped by calendars, which map to staff or locations: 1 on Starter, 6 on Standard and 36 on Premium.
- Text reminders, the waitlist, memberships, packages and gift certificates need Standard or Premium.
- Hiding the "Powered by Acuity Scheduling" footer, signing a HIPAA BAA, and custom API and CSS are Premium-only.
Picktime
- Free caps the account at 3 users, 3 resources, 2 locations and 2 classes.
- Pro is capped at 10 users and resources; larger teams are told to contact support.
- Pro lists SSO, vouchers and class packs as coming soon, not yet available.
- Saving shown for yearly billing is up to 25 percent versus monthly.
Key features
Acuity Scheduling
- Branded booking page
- Clients self-schedule, reschedule or cancel on a page with your logo and colors. Share it as a link or QR code, or embed it in a Squarespace site or another website.
- Payments, deposits and invoicing
- Take full payment, a deposit or a card on file at booking through Stripe, Square or PayPal, and send invoices. The mobile app accepts in-person payments, including tap-to-pay.
- Reminders and intake forms
- Automated email confirmations, updates and reminders on every plan, with custom intake forms at booking. Text message reminders start on Standard.
- Calendar sync and availability rules
- Syncs with Google Calendar, Outlook and iCloud to block busy times. Set daily appointment limits, buffers between bookings and room or resource restrictions.
- Classes, packages and memberships
- Offer one-to-one services or group classes and workshops. Standard and Premium can sell appointment packages, subscriptions, memberships and gift certificates.
- AI Booking Assistant
- An AI chat bot that helps clients get booked on the scheduling page. It is available on the Premium plan only.
Picktime
- Online booking page
- Customers book from a hosted page or a widget for WordPress, Wix, Squarespace and other site builders, with unlimited appointments on every plan.
- Classes, resources and locations
- Manage group classes, rooms or equipment and several locations; the free plan allows 2 classes and 2 locations.
- Payments
- Free accepts PayPal only; Starter and Pro add Stripe and Square.
- Calendar sync
- Syncs with Google, Outlook, iCloud and Exchange calendars: one way on Free, two way from Starter.
- Reminders and notifications
- Email notifications are on every plan; email reminders and SMS notifications start at Starter, subject to the vendor's SMS policy.
- Round robin and waitlist
- Pro adds round-robin assignment, a waitlist, booking approval, discount coupons and a custom booking flow.
Plans
Acuity Scheduling
Starter$16
per month, billed annually ($20 billed monthly)
1 calendar, payments through Stripe, Square, PayPal or Venmo, email reminders, custom client forms and automatic time zone conversion.
Standard$27
per month, billed annually ($34 billed monthly)
Up to 6 calendars, plus text reminders, an appointment waitlist, memberships, packages and gift certificates.
Premium$49
per month, billed annually ($61 billed monthly)
Up to 36 calendars, plus the AI Booking Assistant, a BAA for HIPAA compliance, logo removal, per-staff time zones, and custom API and CSS.
EnterpriseCustom
Unlimited calendars and scheduling instances, VIP account management, additional APIs and a central dashboard; priced through sales.
Picktime
Free$0
3 users, 3 resources, 2 locations, 2 classes, unlimited appointments and one-way calendar sync.
Starter$3
per user / month, billed annually ($4 billed monthly)
3 users, 5 classes, SMS reminders, recurring bookings, two-way calendar sync, Stripe and Square.
Pro$2.25
per user / month, billed annually ($3 billed monthly)
10 users and resources, unlimited locations and classes, round robin, waitlist and discount coupons.
Ways to pay less
Acuity Scheduling
- Annual discount
Save 20% by paying annually
Acuity's pricing page lists a 20% saving on annual billing: Starter is $16 instead of $20 per month, Standard $27 instead of $34 and Premium $49 instead of $61.
Picktime
- Annual discount
Save up to 25% with yearly billing
The pricing page shows Starter at $3 and Pro at $2.25 per user a month billed annually, against $4 and $3 billed monthly.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Acuity Scheduling or Picktime?
As of Nov 12, 2026, Acuity Scheduling starts at $16 per month, billed annually ($20 billed monthly), and Picktime starts at $3 per user / month, billed annually ($4 billed monthly). One is priced for each person and the other is not, so which costs less depends on how many of you use it.
Which has a free plan, Acuity Scheduling or Picktime?
As of Nov 12, 2026, only Picktime has a free plan. Acuity Scheduling does not, though it has a free trial.
More comparisons
How this page was made
- The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
- The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
- Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
- The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.