Acuity Scheduling vs Reservio (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 12, 2026, Acuity Scheduling and Reservio share a 2.2 GPA, and only Reservio has a free plan.
Checked Oct 5, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 · graded Oct 10, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 by ToolGPA
Acuity Scheduling grades higher on features. Reservio grades higher on value for money. They get the same grade on the free plan, 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
Reservio
Online booking system with client management and mobile apps
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 Reservio if
- Fits if you run a small salon or clinic and want client records with bookings
- Works for someone starting out with under 40 bookings a month
Look elsewhere if
- Tight if you stay free: 40 bookings per 30 days and 100 clients
- Pricey if you need SMS reminders, which are bought as credit bundles on every plan
- Skip it if you want to pay monthly, because plans are prepaid for 6 months, 1 year or 2 years
- Watch out: API integrations, user permissions and brand removal need Pro at $40 a month
- Watch out: prices exclude VAT
How we grade them
| 2.2GPAAcuity SchedulingFair | 2.2GPAReservioFair | |
|---|---|---|
| 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. | C$10 a month for Starter, prepaid for 6 months, at the edge of the category's dearer quarter, plus VAT and payment fees of 3.50% + $0.35. |
| 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. | CFree covers 40 bookings per 30 days and 100 clients. That is a cap a busy business hits. |
| 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 site, client records, passes, memberships, payments and calendar sync. SMS reminders are an extra on every plan. |
| 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. The booking site, services and payments are yours to build. |
| 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 and iCal. No desktop app. |
| Best for | taking bookings and payment in one go | bookings and client records with mobile apps |
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 Reservio. 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. Reservio starts at $10 a month and scores 2.3.
Acuity Scheduling scores higher, and starts $6 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 29 score higher than Reservio 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
- Acuity Scheduling also covers invoicing.
- Reservio also covers calendar, appointment booking and class booking.
At a glance
| Acuity Scheduling | Reservio | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free trial | Free plan |
| Starts at | $16 per month, billed annually ($20 billed monthly) | $10 per month, prepaid for 6 months ($60), plus VAT |
| Free plan | None | Free: 40 bookings per 30 days, 100 clients, a booking website, mobile apps, email booking messages and attendance tracking. |
| Free trial | 7-day free trial of any plan, no credit card needed | None listed |
| Web | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Made by | Squarespace, Inc. | Reservio |
| Price read from | acuityscheduling.com | reservio.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.
Reservio
- Plans are prepaid for 6 months, 1 year or 2 years rather than billed monthly, and prices exclude VAT.
- SMS reminders are an add-on sold as credit bundles; they cost extra on every plan.
- Booking caps are per 30 days: 40 on Free, 200 on Starter, 500 on Standard.
- API integrations, user permissions and brand removal need the Pro plan.
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.
Reservio
- Booking website
- Clients book from a booking website on every plan; Standard adds a custom domain and design options for the site.
- Client management
- Keeps client records and attendance tracking; the free plan holds 100 clients and paid plans hold unlimited clients.
- Mobile apps
- The free plan includes web, Android and iOS apps for managing bookings on the go.
- Passes and memberships
- Standard and Pro sell credit passes, visit passes and memberships.
- Online payments
- Takes payments in the booking flow; the fee from 2.90% to 3.90% plus $0.35 depends on the plan.
- Calendar sync and statistics
- Starter and above sync with Google, iCal and Outlook calendars and add statistics and data export.
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.
Reservio
Free$0
40 bookings per 30 days and 100 clients. Payment fees from 3.90% + $0.35.
Starter$10
per month, prepaid for 6 months ($60), plus VAT
200 bookings per 30 days, unlimited clients, calendar sync and statistics. Payment fees from 3.50% + $0.35.
Standard$20
per month, prepaid for 6 months ($120), plus VAT
500 bookings per 30 days, passes and memberships, custom domain. Payment fees from 3.30% + $0.35.
Pro$40
per month, prepaid for 6 months ($240), plus VAT
Unlimited bookings, user permissions, brand removal and API integrations. Payment fees from 2.90% + $0.35.
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.
Reservio
- Other savings
Free months on longer prepaid terms
The pricing page shows 1 month free on the 1-year term ($120 for 13 months on Starter) and 3 months free on the 2-year term ($240 for 27 months).
- Other savings
15-day money-back guarantee
The pricing page offers a full refund on your first paid order within 15 days.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Acuity Scheduling or Reservio?
As of Nov 12, 2026, Reservio is cheaper to start with: $10 a month, against $16 a month for Acuity Scheduling. Acuity Scheduling starts at $16 per month, billed annually ($20 billed monthly), and Reservio starts at $10 per month, prepaid for 6 months ($60), plus VAT.
Which has a free plan, Acuity Scheduling or Reservio?
As of Nov 12, 2026, only Reservio 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.