The zcal Insider’s Guide
Everything we know about zcal in one document: what it costs, its grades, getting a refund, getting help and what else to look at. Read it here, or keep a copy.
zcal
The Insider’s Guide
Free booking links with heavily customizable scheduling pages
Every plan, grade, refund rule and rival among calendar and scheduling apps, read from zcal’s own pages.
Made by zcal, Inc. · checked Oct 5, 2026 · toolgpa.com
Contents
- 01WelcomeWhat it is, who it suits, its grades and the ten things to know first
- 02What it costsEvery plan, the free plan, ways to pay less and how prices have moved
- 03What it doesIts main features, where it runs, what it works with and who makes it
- 04Where it standsIts grades against its category, and whether to keep it or make your own
- 05The alternativesThe tools it is most often weighed against, side by side
- 06Quick answersThe questions people ask about it, each answered in a line or two
- 07About ToolGPAWho made this guide, what else is on the site, and how to cite it
ToolGPA put this guide together from zcal’s own pages, its app-store listings and our grades. Every fact in it is on zcal’s page too, where it is kept up to date. Checked Oct 5, 2026.
Part 01 · Overview
Welcome
What it is, who it suits, its grades and the ten things to know first
2.4
GPA, above 18 of the 74 other calendar and scheduling apps we grade
zcal is a browser-based scheduling tool that turns a host's availability into a booking page styled with a cover image, welcome video, colors and layouts. The Free Forever plan covers individual use, with unlimited booking links, calendar connections and meeting polls. The paid Pro and Business plans add team scheduling, SMS reminders, branding removal and custom domains.
To get you started, here are 9 things to know about zcal, taken from its own pages and our grades.
No rating on record, and getting a page you'd send means picking a design template, connecting a calendar and writing your own questions.
- 1
Best for styled booking pages on a free plan
zcal's free plan has no cap on booking links, calendars or meeting polls, on a page you can style with a cover image and a welcome video.
- 2
Paid plans start at $7 a month for each person
As its pricing page puts it: $7 per user / month, billed annually ($10.50 billed monthly).
- 3
There is a free plan
Free Forever plan: unlimited invite links and meeting polls, calendar sync, video conferencing links, custom questions, email reminders, and Zapier and Stripe integrations.
- 4
It runs on Web
Web.
- 5
Styled scheduling pages
Start from a design template and adjust layout, colors and media, add a welcome video, and ask custom questions. Custom fonts and unlimited videos are Pro features.
- 6
Unlimited links and calendars
The free plan puts no cap on booking links or connected calendars, and checks Google, Outlook and Apple calendars to avoid double bookings.
- 7
Team scheduling
Pro adds teams with a shared team page, collective events that need every selected host to be free, and round robin events with priority for chosen members.
- 8
A 2.4 GPA, above 18 of 74
That is against the other calendar and scheduling apps we grade, on value, the free plan, features, ease of use and platforms.
- 9
Keep it
The plain part of zcal you could make: templates. What surrounds it you could not. The 3 things listed below take a company, not a weekend.
zcal at a glance
- Pricing
- Free plan, from $7 per user / month, billed annually ($10.50 billed monthly)
- Free plan
- Yes
- Free trial
- 14-day free trial of Pro or Business, cancel anytime
- Runs on
- Web
- Made by
- zcal, Inc.
- Category
- Calendar & Scheduling
- Our grade
- 2.4 GPA, fair
The report card
Best for styled booking pages on a free plan
zcal's free plan has no cap on booking links, calendars or meeting polls, on a page you can style with a cover image and a welcome video. But Free takes a 3% cut of Stripe payments and puts zcal's name on your page, teams, round robin and SMS need Pro at $7 a user, custom domains need Business at $12, there's no phone app, and the pricing FAQ says zcal doesn't give refunds.
| Subject | Grade | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | C | Pro is $7 a user a month billed annually, $10.50 monthly, for teams, round robin, SMS reminders, no zcal branding and no commission on payments. That's in the middle of calendar tools, and a custom domain means Business at $12. |
| Free plan and trial | B | Free Forever puts no cap on invite links, meeting polls or calendar connections, and includes custom questions, email reminders and Stripe payments. One person could really live on it. The price is zcal's branding on your page and a 3% commission on every payment. |
| Features | C | Pages styled from templates with colors and a welcome video, polls, group invites, paid bookings, email reminders, and round robin, collective events and follow-ups on Pro. It does the booking-link job fully, and that is all it does: no calendar of your own, no reporting and no API, only webhooks on Pro. |
| Ease of use | C | No rating on record, and getting a page you'd send means picking a design template, connecting a calendar and writing your own questions. It's all in the browser, at least, with nothing to install. |
| Platforms and integrations | B | A web app, and the site describes no mobile or desktop apps. It checks Google, Outlook and Apple calendars and works with Google Meet, Teams, Zoom, Stripe and Zapier, with webhooks on Pro. |
An A is worth 4 points, a B 3, a C 2, a D 1 and an F nothing. The GPA is the average of the five.
Who zcal is for
- Fits if you want unlimited booking links without paying
- Works for coaches or consultants who want the booking page styled to their brand
Who it is not for
- Pricey if you take payments on the free plan, where zcal keeps a 3% commission
- Tight if you're a team on Free, since teams, round robin, SMS reminders and removing the branding all need Pro
- Skip it if you want a phone app, as the site describes none
- Not for you if you like a refund safety net, because the pricing FAQ says zcal doesn't offer refunds
- Too light for reporting, as there's none, and no API beyond webhooks on Pro
Good to know
Good for
- Individuals who want unlimited booking links without paying
- Coaches and consultants who want a booking page that matches their brand
- Small teams that need round robin or collective scheduling
Worth knowing
- Teams, round robin and collective events, SMS reminders and removing zcal branding all need Pro.
- On the free plan zcal takes a 3% commission on Stripe payments, on top of Stripe's own fees.
- Custom domains and sending notifications from your own email domain need Business.
- The site describes no mobile or desktop apps, and zcal's pricing FAQ says it does not offer refunds.
Part 02 · Pricing
What it costs
Every plan, the free plan, ways to pay less and how prices have moved
$7
A month to start, for each person. There is a free plan too
zcal has a free plan. Paid plans start at $7 per user / month, billed annually ($10.50 billed monthly).
Free Forever
$0
For individuals: unlimited invite links, meeting polls and calendar connections, custom questions, email reminders and Stripe payments.
Pro
$7
per user / month, billed annually ($10.50 billed monthly)
Teams, round robin and collective events, branding removal, custom fonts, SMS reminders, follow-up emails, webhooks and no zcal commission on payments.
Business
$12
per user / month, billed annually ($18 billed monthly)
Everything in Pro, plus custom domains, notification emails sent from your own domain, unlimited teams and twice the SMS credits.
The free plan
Free Forever plan: unlimited invite links and meeting polls, calendar sync, video conferencing links, custom questions, email reminders, and Zapier and Stripe integrations.
Trying it first
14-day free trial of Pro or Business, cancel anytime
Read from zcal.co on Oct 5, 2026.
Ways to pay less
Annual discount
About a third off with annual billing
zcal's pricing page shows Pro at $7 per user / month on annual billing against $10.50 monthly, and Business at $12 against $18, about 33% less.
Stated on zcal.coEducation
Discounts for students, teachers and nonprofits
The pricing FAQ says students, teachers and nonprofits can get a discount by emailing zcal support. No rate is published.
Stated on zcal.co
Part 03 · Features
What it does
Its main features, where it runs, what it works with and who makes it
1
Place it runs: Web
Free booking links with heavily customizable scheduling pages. Here is what it does, as its own site describes it, and what it covers: templates, booking links.
It does the booking-link job fully, and that is all it does: no calendar of your own, no reporting and no API, only webhooks on Pro.
- Styled scheduling pages
- Start from a design template and adjust layout, colors and media, add a welcome video, and ask custom questions. Custom fonts and unlimited videos are Pro features.
- Unlimited links and calendars
- The free plan puts no cap on booking links or connected calendars, and checks Google, Outlook and Apple calendars to avoid double bookings.
- Team scheduling
- Pro adds teams with a shared team page, collective events that need every selected host to be free, and round robin events with priority for chosen members.
- Meeting polls and group invites
- Polls let guests vote on proposed times before the host sets the final slot, and are unlimited on the free plan. Group invites let several people book one slot.
- Paid bookings through Stripe
- Charge invitees at booking through a connected Stripe account. The free plan adds a 3% zcal commission; Pro removes it and adds coupon codes.
- Reminders and follow-ups
- Email reminders are free. Pro adds SMS reminders, multiple and customized reminder messages, and automatic follow-up emails after a meeting.
Where it runs
- Web
What it works with
- Google Calendar
- Outlook Calendar
- Apple Calendar
- Google Meet
- Microsoft Teams
- Zoom
- Stripe
- Zapier
zcal is made by zcal, Inc.
Part 04 · Standing
Where it stands
Its grades against its category, and whether to keep it or make your own
18/74
Other calendar and scheduling apps it is graded above
zcal's GPA of 2.4 is higher than 18 of the 74 other calendar and scheduling apps we grade, and level with 11.
It stands best on free plan and trial (B, above 41 of 74) and worst on ease of use (C, above 0).
Its paid plans start at $7 a month for each person, against a middle price of $6 for the category: 30 of the 52 others that charge start lower.
On features, ease of use and platforms it scores 2.3 out of 4. 23 tools score higher and cost less.
Each grade against the category
Every bar is all 75 calendar and scheduling apps we grade, cut by the letter each got. zcal’s own letter is outlined.
- CValue for moneyAbove 10 of 74
- BFree plan and trialAbove 41 of 74
- CFeaturesAbove 3 of 74
- CEase of useAbove 0 of 74
- BPlatforms and integrationsAbove 25 of 74
Price against what you get
Each dot is one of 67 calendar and scheduling apps. Further left costs less; higher up scores better on features, ease of use and platforms. zcal is the marked dot.
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
Keep it, or make your own?
Whether this is something you could build for yourself with an AI app builder, and what you would give up.
Keep it
The plain part of zcal you could make: templates. What surrounds it you could not. The 3 things listed below take a company, not a weekend.
That makes this kind of software worth paying for, not this one in particular: 45 of the 74 other calendar and scheduling apps grade higher. It costs $84 a year.
What you could make
- Templates: an app builder makes this well.
What you could not
- Booking pages that read and write other people's calendars and send the emails.
- It is priced for each person, which means accounts and billing for a team.
- It plugs into other products, Google Calendar, Outlook Calendar and Apple Calendar among them.
What this rests on. zcal’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.
Part 05 · Alternatives
The alternatives
The tools it is most often weighed against, side by side
Calendly, Cal.com, Koalendar, TidyCal and Doodle
The 5 tools zcal is most often weighed against, with where each one differs from it.
- 2.8GPA
Calendly
Free plan · from $10/mo
Booking links and team scheduling for external meetings.
- Only Calendly lists iOS and Android apps.
- Only Calendly lists a browser extension.
- zcal also covers templates.
- 3.0GPA
Cal.com
Free plan · from $12/mo
Scheduling platform with a free plan, API and embeds.
- Only Cal.com lists macOS, Windows, Linux, iOS and Android apps.
- Only Cal.com lists a browser extension.
- Cal.com is self-hostable, according to its own site.
- 2.4GPA
Koalendar
Free plan · from $6.99/mo
Booking pages with unlimited bookings on the free plan.
- Only Koalendar lists iOS and Android apps.
- Only Koalendar lists a browser extension.
- zcal also covers templates.
- 2.8GPA
TidyCal
Free plan · from $29 one-time
Booking pages with paid bookings and one-time lifetime plans.
- TidyCal can be bought with a one-time purchase.
- zcal also covers templates.
- 2.2GPA
Doodle
Free plan · from $11/mo
Group polls, booking pages and sign-up sheets for scheduling.
- zcal also covers templates.
- Doodle also covers reports.
Part 06 · Questions
Quick answers
The questions people ask about it, each answered in a line or two
15
Questions, each answered in a line or two
The short version of everything above, for when you only need the answer. Each one is told in full in its part of the guide.
Is zcal free?
zcal has a free plan. Free Forever plan: unlimited invite links and meeting polls, calendar sync, video conferencing links, custom questions, email reminders, and Zapier and Stripe integrations.
How much does zcal cost?
zcal lists 3 plans. Free Forever: $0.
What platforms does zcal work on?
zcal is available on Web.
Does zcal offer any discounts?
zcal publicly lists the following: About a third off with annual billing; Discounts for students, teachers and nonprofits.
Does zcal have an Android app?
No Android app was listed when its pages were read on Oct 5, 2026. zcal is listed for Web.
Does zcal have an iPhone app?
No iPhone app was listed when its pages were read on Oct 5, 2026. zcal is listed for Web.
Is zcal open source?
zcal is not described as open source on its own site, as read on Oct 5, 2026.
What does zcal integrate with?
zcal's listing names Google Calendar, Outlook Calendar, Apple Calendar, Google Meet, Microsoft Teams, Zoom, Stripe and Zapier.
Does zcal have a student discount?
Discounts for students, teachers and nonprofits. The pricing FAQ says students, teachers and nonprofits can get a discount by emailing zcal support.
Does zcal have a free trial?
Yes. 14-day free trial of Pro or Business, cancel anytime.
Who makes zcal?
zcal is made by zcal, Inc.
What are the alternatives to zcal?
The closest alternatives to zcal in our directory are Calendly, Cal.com, Koalendar, TidyCal and Doodle.
How does zcal compare with other calendar and scheduling apps?
zcal's GPA of 2.4 is higher than 18 of the 74 other calendar and scheduling apps we grade, and level with 11.
Is zcal good value for money?
ToolGPA grades zcal C for value for money. Its paid plans start at $7 a month for each person, against a middle price of $6 for the category: 30 of the 52 others that charge start lower.
Could I make my own version of zcal?
The plain part of zcal you could make: templates. What surrounds it you could not.
Where this guide comes from
The prices, plans, platforms and features were read from zcal’s own pages on Oct 5, 2026, and the grades were given on Oct 10, 2026. Graded from this listing, whose facts were read from zcal's own pages on 5 October 2026. Its pricing page on 9 October 2026 gave our reader the same plan names but no prices, so the prices could not be compared again. Also tested with a demo account on 2026-04-01.
Every tool we list gets five grades, A to F, each with its reason, and a GPA that averages them. How each is decided is at toolgpa.com/grades. This guide is ToolGPA’s own work; it is not made, paid for or approved by zcal, Inc. Prices change, so check zcal.co before you buy.
Part 07 · About
About ToolGPA
Who made this guide, what else is on the site, and how to cite it
3,189
Tools graded, in 94 categories
ToolGPA grades software the way a school report grades a pupil: five subjects, a letter for each with the reason written beside it, and a GPA that averages them. Prices, plans and platforms are read from each maker’s own pages and dated, so you always know how fresh a figure is.
Every grade, review and ranking on ToolGPA is our own judgement. No company can pay for a grade or change one. Every tool on the site has a guide like this one, free to download and pass on. It all lives at toolgpa.com.
3,189
tools graded
94
categories
426
price changes on record
579
apps priced in 12 countries
What else is on toolgpa.com
- zcal, kept up to dateEverything in this guide, with prices and grades as they are todaytoolgpa.com/tools/zcal
- How grades are givenThe rules behind every letter and every GPAtoolgpa.com/grades
- Value chartsWhat each tool costs against what it scores, for every categorytoolgpa.com/charts
- CompareAny two tools side by side, plan by plantoolgpa.com/compare
- Price changesEvery price rise and cut on record, each with its sourcetoolgpa.com/price-changes
- Prices by countryWhat apps cost on the App Store in 12 countriestoolgpa.com/prices-by-country
- Pay lessEvery public discount: yearly billing, students, nonprofitstoolgpa.com/save
- Keep or makeWhich tools are worth paying for, and which you could build yourselftoolgpa.com/keep-or-make
Scan for the live page
Prices and grades as they are today
Quoting this guide?
Please name ToolGPA and link to the live page, so readers can check the figures for themselves:
ToolGPA, "zcal: The Insider's Guide", checked Oct 5, 2026. https://toolgpa.com/tools/zcal
Know someone choosing between calendar and scheduling apps?
Send them this guide: toolgpa.com/tools/zcal/guide
ToolGPA elsewhere: youtube.com/@toolgpa
See our other guides
The best-graded calendar and scheduling apps after zcal, each with an Insider's Guide of its own.
- Calendar & Scheduling Insider's GuideEvery one of the 75 calendar and scheduling apps we grade, compared
- Notion Calendar Insider's GuideFree calendar app that connects to Notion databases3.6 GPA
- Google Calendar Insider's GuideOnline calendar from Google, free with a personal account3.4 GPA
- World Time Buddy Insider's GuideVisual time zone converter and world clock for planning calls3.4 GPA
Choosing software? Every tool graded, every price dated.
Compare tools at toolgpa.com ›Everything in this guide is ToolGPA’s own summary of what zcal’s pages, its app-store listings and public reviews said on the dates shown. Grades are our judgement under the rules at toolgpa.com/grades. Every grade, review and ranking on ToolGPA is our own judgement. No company can pay for a grade or change one. zcal is a trademark of its owner, and this guide is not made, paid for or approved by zcal, Inc. Prices and plans change: check zcal.co before you buy.