Shore vs Vagaro (2026): which should you pick?
As of Oct 24, 2026, we pick Vagaro: it is third in our ranking of salon, spa and studio booking apps, and it grades higher too, 2.6 against 2.2.
Checked Oct 24, 2026 · graded Oct 24, 2026 by ToolGPA
Vagaro grades higher on value for money and features. 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.
Shore
German-made booking and marketing software for salons and studios
Vagaro
Booking, payments and marketing for salons, spas and studios
Which one is for you
Pick Shore if
- Fits if you run a small salon and want a booking page without building a website
- Works for owners who want reminders sent for them, and Google review requests too on Booking + Marketing
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if your staff or clients use Android, as Shore lists only the browser and iOS
- Watch out: yearly billing starts a 12-month term, and monthly plans need 14 days' notice to cancel
- Tight if you need campaigns or staff management, which start on Booking + Marketing at $69.90 a month
- Pricey if you want a managed website ($100 a month) or a branded app ($80 a month) on top of the package
- Watch out: the pricing page doesn't say whether a package covers one location or several, and over 10 locations get a quote
Pick Vagaro if
- Fits if you run a salon, spa or barbershop on one to seven bookable calendars
- Works for studios that run classes alongside appointments in one calendar
Look elsewhere if
- Watch out: $23.99 a month lasts 6 months, then one calendar is $30 and each added calendar $10, up to seven
- Pricey if you want text marketing, a branded app or a MySite website, as the page sells them à la carte with no price
- Watch out: the free card reader needs Vagaro Merchant Services, whose rates are advertised from 2.2%
- Skip it if you have several locations and want a price up front, as multi-location plans are quoted by sales
How we grade them
| 2.2GPAShoreFair | 2.6GPAVagaroGood | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | CBooking is $49.90 a month billed yearly ($59.90 monthly), right at this category's middle of $49.90, and Booking + Marketing is $69.90. A managed website ($100) and a branded app ($80) are monthly extras. | BOne calendar is $30 a month after an introductory $23.99 for 6 months, level with this category's cheaper quarter ($29.99). Each added calendar is $10 up to seven, so five people pay $70, but extras like text marketing have no published price. |
| Free plan and trial | CNo free plan, but a 14-day free trial. The listing doesn't say whether it needs a card. | CNo free plan, but a 30-day free trial. The listing doesn't say whether it needs a card. |
| Features | CThe basics: booking from your site, Google, Instagram and Facebook, deposits, a card reader, reminders and customer records. The listing shows gaps: no memberships, packages or gift cards, and staff management needs Booking + Marketing. | BBooking from its marketplace, Google, Apple Maps and Instagram, classes and resources, checkout with Affirm, memberships, forms and SOAP notes, payroll and multi-location tools. That's the whole booking job, for salons and studios alike. |
| Ease of use | CNo app store rating on record. Shore makes a mini-website for bookings automatically, but you still set up services, staff, deposit rules and payments. | CNo rating for the business app is on record, since the App Store listing found is the client-facing app. You set up services, staff and payments before taking bookings. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb and iPhone, with Google Calendar, Reserve with Google, Instagram, Facebook, PayPal, Stripe and WhatsApp. No Android app is named, there's no desktop app, and no API is on record. | BWeb, iPhone and Android, with QuickBooks, Xero, Affirm, Google, Apple Maps, Instagram, Facebook and Salesforce, and APIs and webhooks for multi-location accounts. No desktop app. |
| Best for | online booking for small salons and studios | booking for salons, spas and fitness studios |
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: Shore and Vagaro. How we grade
Price against what you get
Shore starts at $49.90 a month and scores 2.3 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Vagaro starts at $23.99 a month and scores 2.7.
Vagaro scores higher and starts $25.91 a month lower. Of the other salon, spa and studio booking apps on the chart, 6 score higher than Shore for less, and 1 scores higher than Vagaro 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
- Shore also covers marketing automation, whatsApp messaging and review collection.
- Vagaro also covers forms, payroll, inventory and class booking.
At a glance
| Shore | Vagaro | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free trial | Free trial |
| Starts at | $49.90 per month, billed annually ($59.90 billed monthly) | $30 per month for 1 calendar, after $23.99 a month for the first 6 months |
| Free plan | None | None |
| Free trial | 14-day free trial | 30-day free trial |
| Web | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Made by | Shore GmbH | Vagaro, Inc. |
| Price read from | shore.com | vagaro.com |
| Checked | Oct 24, 2026 | Oct 24, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Shore
- Shore lists use in a browser and on iOS; its pricing page names no Android app.
- Yearly billing commits you to a 12-month initial term; monthly contracts can be cancelled with 14 days' notice.
- A managed website costs $100 a month and a branded customer app $80 a month on top of either package.
- The pricing page does not say whether a package covers one location or several; businesses with more than 10 locations get a quote.
Vagaro
- The $23.99 price lasts 6 months; after that one calendar costs $30 a month and each added calendar $10, up to seven.
- The pricing page calls its model à la carte but gives no prices for extras such as text marketing, a branded app or a MySite website.
- The free card reader requires signing up for Vagaro Merchant Services, which advertises processing rates from 2.2%.
- Multi-location pricing is quoted by sales, with each location priced by the features chosen for it.
Key features
Shore
- Online booking everywhere
- Clients book from an automatic mini-website, an embedded widget, Google, Instagram or Facebook, and get confirmations and reminders by WhatsApp, email or text.
- Calendar and staff planning
- See which staff member has which appointments, plan shifts, vacations and absences, and limit what each person sees with user roles.
- Deposits and payments
- Ask for a deposit or full payment at booking by card, Google Pay, Apple Pay or PayPal, refund it in a few clicks, and take in-person payments with Shore's card reader.
- Customer records
- Each booking builds a customer history with notes, preferences, custom fields such as allergies, and uploaded files and images.
- Campaigns and review requests
- Send email or WhatsApp campaigns to customer segments and automatic birthday messages; feedback requests pass good reviews on to Google and keep bad ones internal.
Vagaro
- Online booking and calendar
- Clients book through Vagaro's marketplace, a website widget, Google, Apple Maps, Instagram, Facebook or Alexa, with waitlists, classes and resource scheduling.
- Checkout and card readers
- Take Apple Pay, Google Pay and cards on Vagaro's own readers and terminals, offer Affirm pay-later plans, and sell memberships, packages and gift certificates.
- Forms and SOAP notes
- Intake forms and SOAP notes sit on each client profile, which also tracks history, retention and loyalty points.
- Vera AI assistant
- Vera helps write marketing and service descriptions, answers client messages, and its Fill My Books feature promotes open slots to Vagaro's customer network.
- Payroll and team access
- Vagaro Payroll pays staff and booth renters, tracks hours and time off, and access levels set what each employee can see at each location.
- Multi-location tools
- Sync services, clients, classes, products and pricing across locations, with SSO and SCIM, APIs and webhooks, and exports to Power BI, Salesforce and other tools.
Plans
Shore
Booking$49.90
per month, billed annually ($59.90 billed monthly)
Online calendar and booking from your website, Google and Instagram, card prepayment, reminders, customer records and statistics.
Booking + Marketing$69.90
per month, billed annually ($79.90 billed monthly)
Adds email marketing, Google review requests, employee management, birthday reminders, PayPal and bookable add-ons.
Vagaro
One location$30
per month for 1 calendar, plus $10 per added calendar
Advertised at $23.99 a month for the first 6 months. Calendars beyond seven cost nothing extra; 1,000 emails a month and a marketplace listing are included.
Multiple locationsCustom
Features chosen per location, with SSO, data lake exports, a dedicated success manager and data migration, through sales.
Ways to pay less
Shore
- Annual discount
Save $120 a year with yearly billing
Shore's US pricing page says yearly billing saves $120: $49.90 instead of $59.90 a month for Booking, and $69.90 instead of $79.90 for Booking + Marketing.
Vagaro
- Other savings
$23.99 a month for the first 6 months
Vagaro's pricing page shows a one-calendar account at $23.99 a month for the first 6 months, against the regular $30.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Shore or Vagaro?
As of Oct 24, 2026, Vagaro is cheaper to start with: $23.99 a month, against $49.90 a month for Shore. Shore starts at $49.90 per month, billed annually ($59.90 billed monthly), and Vagaro starts at $30 per month for 1 calendar, after $23.99 a month for the first 6 months.
Which has a free plan, Shore or Vagaro?
As of Oct 24, 2026, neither Shore nor Vagaro has a free plan. Both have a free trial.
Which platforms do Shore and Vagaro run on?
As of Oct 24, 2026, only Vagaro lists an Android app. Both list a web app and an iOS app. A platform missing from a listing is one its maker's pages did not mention.
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.