Timely review (2026): is it worth $26 a month?
Salon booking software priced per bookable staff member
Black Friday: is there a Timely sale?
Timely report card
Fair · out of 4.0 · graded Nov 13, 2026
Best for salon booking priced per staff member
Timely does online booking, client profiles, forms and reminders for salons at $26 a staff member a month. The price scales with staff, texts are capped at 100 to 350 a month, and payments work in only some countries.
Who Timely is for
- Fits if you run a small salon and want booking and client notes
- Works for businesses that take bookings from Instagram
Who Timely is not for
- Skip it if you are in a country outside its payments list
- Pricey if you have a big team, as the price is per staff member
- Tight if you text a lot, as texts are included up to 100, 200 or 350
- Watch out: the pricing page shows monthly billing only
Why Timely gets a 2.2
Five grades, each with its reason. The GPA is their average: an A is 4 points, an F is none.
- CValue for money$26 a staff member a month on monthly billing, just above the $25 mark, so ten staff pay $260.
- CFree plan and trialA 14-day trial with no card. No free plan.
- CFeaturesOnline booking, consultation forms, client profiles, reminders and staff management. Payments work only in Australia, New Zealand, the US, UK and most of the EU.
- CEase of useNo store rating on record. Staff, services and forms have to be set up.
- BPlatforms and integrationsWeb, iPhone and Android, with Instagram, Facebook and Messenger links.
What these grades rest on. Graded from this listing, whose facts were read from Timely's own pages on 13 November 2026. Not based on using the product, and shorter than our full reviews. How we review and grade.
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<a href="https://toolgpa.com/tools/gettimely#review"><img src="https://toolgpa.com/badge/gettimely.svg" alt="Timely: 2.2 GPA on ToolGPA" width="196" height="56"></a>Where Timely stands among salon, spa and studio booking apps
Timely's GPA of 2.2 is higher than 48 of the 85 other salon, spa and studio booking apps we grade, and level with 9.
It stands best on platforms and integrations (B, above 22 of 85) and worst on features (C, above 0).
Its paid plans start at $26 a month, against a middle price of $49 for the category: 17 of the 57 others that charge start lower.
On features, ease of use and platforms it scores 2.3 out of 4. 9 tools score higher and cost less.
Each grade against the category
Every bar is all 86 salon, spa and studio booking apps we grade, cut by the letter each got. Timely’s own letter is outlined.
- CValue for moneyAbove 12 of 85, level with 56
- CFree plan and trialAbove 47 of 85, level with 35
- CFeaturesAbove 0 of 85, level with 41
- CEase of useAbove 0 of 85, level with 80
- BPlatforms and integrationsAbove 22 of 85, level with 61
Price against what you get
Each dot is one of 58 salon, spa and studio booking apps. Further left costs less, and higher up scores better on features, ease of use and platforms. Point at a dot to see which tool it is.
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
Keep Timely, or make your own?
Keep it
To replace Timely you would be making texts to thousands of numbers, registered with the carriers. That is not a weekend's work, with an AI app builder or without one.
It costs $312 a year.
What you could make
- Appointment booking, forms, review collection and inventory: an app builder makes these well.
What you could not
- Texts to thousands of numbers, registered with the carriers.
- A real app for iOS and Android. Something home-made would be a web page.
What this rests on. Timely’s listing: what it does, where it runs, what it plugs into and what it costs. It is a judgement about the kind of software this is. We have not built a replacement for it, and making your own means looking after it too. How we decide, and every tool’s verdict.
What is Timely?
Timely is booking software for hair and beauty businesses. Three plans, Build, Elevate and Innovate, are priced per bookable staff member per month, and none charges a fee on new clients. Each plan includes a monthly allowance of SMS messages.
Worth knowing
- Price scales with bookable staff, so a ten-person salon pays ten times the per-staff rate.
- SMS is included up to 100, 200 or 350 messages a month depending on the plan; the page footnotes SMS terms.
- Payments are only available in Australia, New Zealand, the USA, UK and most of the EU.
- The pricing page lists monthly billing only; no annual price is shown.
Key features
- Online booking
- Clients book 24/7 online, and booking buttons can be added to Instagram, Facebook and Messenger. Gaps between appointments can be minimized.
- Consultation forms
- Forms can be built in the Consult app for iOS and sent before appointments from Elevate; Innovate can send them automatically.
- Client profiles
- Profiles with appointment history and notes; Elevate and Innovate add before-and-after photos, uploaded documents and loyalty rewards.
- Reminders and messages
- Email and SMS confirmations and reminders. Rebooking reminders, thank-you messages and review requests depend on the plan.
- Staff management
- Rosters, timesheets, staff logins and performance dashboards on every plan; weekly and monthly staff targets are on Innovate.
Timely pricing
As of Nov 13, 2026, Timely is a paid product with a free trial, starting at $26 per staff / month, billed monthly.
- Starts at
- $26 per staff / month, billed monthly
- Free plan
- None
- Free trial
- 14-day free trial, no credit card required
| Plan | Price | What you get |
|---|---|---|
| Build | $26per staff / month, billed monthly | Online booking, social media booking buttons, reminders and stock levels. 100 SMS a month included. |
| Elevate | $39per staff / month, billed monthly | Everything in Build, plus digital consultation forms, client photos, add-on services and a waitlist. 200 SMS a month. |
| Innovate | $47per staff / month, billed monthly | Everything in Elevate, plus automatic forms, rebooking reminders and staff targets. 350 SMS a month. |
Read from gettimely.com on Nov 13, 2026. Prices change, so confirm with Timely before you buy.
Works with
Timely alternatives
- Timely vs Fresha
Free trial · from $19.95/mo
- Timely vs Vagaro
Free trial · from $30/mo
- Timely vs Booksy
Free trial · from $29.99/mo
- Timely vs Salonized
Free trial · from €35/mo
Common questions
Does Timely have a Windows app?
No Windows app was listed when its pages were read on Nov 13, 2026. Timely is listed for Web, iOS and Android.
Does Timely have a macOS app?
No macOS app was listed when its pages were read on Nov 13, 2026. Timely is listed for Web, iOS and Android.
Is Timely open source?
Timely is not described as open source on its own site, as read on Nov 13, 2026.
Sources for this page
The prices, plans, platforms and features above were read from these pages on Nov 13, 2026.