Acuity Scheduling vs Trafft (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 12, 2026, Trafft grades higher than Acuity Scheduling: 3.0 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
Trafft grades higher on value for money and the free plan. They get the same grade on features, 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
Trafft
Appointment booking with a free plan for one user
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 Trafft if
- Fits if you are one person who wants a free booking page
- Works for a small team of up to 3 or 5 on a very low price
Look elsewhere if
- Tight if you stay free: 1 user, 1 location and 100 appointments a month
- Watch out: the sale shows crossed-out prices with a countdown and no end date, so prices may rise
- Pricey if you pay monthly: 50% or more above the annual rate
- Watch out: SMS credits are sold separately, with none on Mini or Growth
- Watch out: each user over the plan limit is charged extra
How we grade them
| 2.2GPAAcuity SchedulingFair | 3.0GPATrafftVery good | |
|---|---|---|
| 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. | AMini is $3.99 a month billed annually for 3 users, about $1.33 a head, under 60% of the category's $4.99 cheapest quarter. The page shows $7.99 crossed out. |
| 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 1 user, 1 location and 100 appointments a month, enough for one person starting out. |
| 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. | BBooking site, payments and deposits, staff, services, locations, reminders, WhatsApp, group and recurring bookings and an API. |
| 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 site have to be 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, Zoom, Teams, WhatsApp, Stripe, PayPal, Square and Zapier. No desktop app. |
| Best for | taking bookings and payment in one go | booking for one or two people on a tight budget |
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 Trafft. 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. Trafft starts at $3.99 a month and scores 2.7.
They score the same, and Trafft starts $12.01 a month lower. Of the other calendar and scheduling apps on the chart, 17 score higher than Acuity Scheduling for less, and 8 score higher than Trafft 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.
- Trafft also covers reports, appointment booking and whatsApp messaging.
At a glance
| Acuity Scheduling | Trafft | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free trial | Free plan |
| Starts at | $16 per month, billed annually ($20 billed monthly) | $3.99 per month, billed annually ($5.99 billed monthly) |
| Free plan | None | 1 user, 1 location and 100 appointments a month, with the same booking website as the paid plans. |
| Free trial | 7-day free trial of any plan, no credit card needed | None listed |
| Web | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Made by | Squarespace, Inc. | Trafft |
| Price read from | acuityscheduling.com | trafft.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.
Trafft
- The free plan is limited to 1 user, 1 location and 100 appointments a month.
- The pricing page shows a sale with crossed-out prices and a countdown timer but no end date, so the listed prices may rise.
- SMS credits are sold separately; Mini and Growth include none, Professional 5 a month and Business 10.
- Monthly billing costs 50% or more above the annual rate, and each user over the plan limit is charged extra.
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.
Trafft
- Booking website
- Trafft generates a standalone booking page for each business that can be customized, shared as a link or QR code, or embedded. A custom domain and removal of Trafft branding are listed too.
- Payments and deposits
- Take payment at booking through Square, Stripe, PayPal, Authorize.net or Mollie, plus deposits, coupons and gift cards. The Mini plan lists Square payments only.
- Staff, services and locations
- Set up employees with their own working hours and calendars, services with extras and packages, and several business locations. Location counts depend on the plan.
- Reminders and WhatsApp
- Automated and custom notifications go out by email, and WhatsApp messaging is listed on every paid plan. SMS credits are not included on Mini and Growth.
- Group and recurring bookings
- Group bookings, recurring appointments, waiting lists and resource management (rooms or equipment) are listed in the plan comparison.
- Mobile apps and API
- Android and iOS apps are listed on every plan, and the plan lists include an API with webhooks. A white-label mobile app is available on request.
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.
Trafft
Free$0
1 user, 1 location and 100 appointments a month.
Mini$3.99
per month for 3 users, billed annually ($5.99 billed monthly)
Unlimited appointments, 3 locations, extra users $3.99 each. Page shows $7.99 crossed out for annual billing.
Growth$9.99
per month for 5 users, billed annually ($14.99 billed monthly)
5 locations, multiple payment methods, extra users $4.99 each. Page shows $19.99 crossed out for annual billing.
Professional$19.99
per month for 15 users, billed annually ($29.99 billed monthly)
Unlimited locations, 5 SMS credits a month, extra users $5.99 each. Page shows $37.99 crossed out for annual billing.
Business$31.99
per month for 30 users, billed annually ($47.99 billed monthly)
Unlimited locations, 10 SMS credits a month, extra users $7.99 each. Page shows $62.99 crossed out for annual billing.
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.
Trafft
- Annual discount
Lower price with annual billing
Trafft's pricing page shows lower per-month prices when billed annually, for example $3.99 for Mini against $5.99 monthly.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Acuity Scheduling or Trafft?
As of Nov 12, 2026, Trafft is cheaper to start with: $3.99 a month, against $16 a month for Acuity Scheduling. Acuity Scheduling starts at $16 per month, billed annually ($20 billed monthly), and Trafft starts at $3.99 per month, billed annually ($5.99 billed monthly).
Which has a free plan, Acuity Scheduling or Trafft?
As of Nov 12, 2026, only Trafft 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.