Fresha vs. Boulevard – which salon and spa software is right for your business?
Choosing the right software is an important decision. Fresha and Boulevard are two popular options, each with unique features designed with a different user and business in mind.
Fresha made waves initially with its completely free salon software platform. In 2025, they made a significant shift to a two-tiered pricing structure. While they still offer a basic free plan, it’s extremely limited in functionality. The new Plus subscription starting at $9.95 monthly per bookable team member unlocks essential features, and their marketplace continues to help businesses attract new clients, albeit with commission fees.
Boulevard has established itself as the go-to platform for upscale salons and spas seeking sophisticated features. As a relative newcomer to the industry, they’ve reimagined salon software with contemporary design and smart technology that is intended to appeal to premium brands.
In this comparison post, we’ll analyze each platform’s features, interfaces, pricing models, and who they are designed for.
Should you choose Fresha for its simplicity and affordability? Or does Boulevard better align with your brand identity and business needs?
We’ll take an in-depth examination of these two popular salon and spa software options to determine which is the better salon management software for you in 2025.
Here’s what you’ll find in this Fresha vs. Boulevard comparison:
Fresha vs Boulevard
Let's kick off with an overview of the two platforms we're diving into today.
Fresha
Boulevard
Overall score
Note
The overall score considers ease of use, customer service, features, user ratings, and cost. Scores are determined solely by our editorial team.
Average price
Note
Assumes you run a business with a mid-size team and have activated the more common add-ons. What you will pay will be lower or higher than this. See the separate section about pricing for full details.
Who is it for
Ease of use
Customer Service
Countries
Available in 22 languages in over 120 countries worldwide
U.S.
Key features
- Subscription free for solo practitioners, affordable pricing for teams
- Fresha marketplace where clients can discover your salon
- Easy to use with a modern minimalistic design interface
- Available in over 120 countries!
- Easy-to-use interface
- Excellent online booking
- Integrated email marketing suite
- Highly detailed custom reports [on Premiere and above]
A Closer Look: Fresha vs. Boulevard
Let’s cover what these systems are and the pros and cons of each in this Fresha vs. Boulevard head-to-head comparison.
Fresha At a Glance
Overall score
Fresha serves 450,000+ professionals across 120 countries with an intuitive interface that prioritizes simplicity over customization.
The platform offers two pricing tiers: a basic free plan for solo practitioners and a Plus plan at $9.95 per team member monthly, with transaction fees and a 20% marketplace commission on new clients.
Recent upgrades include automated waitlists, comprehensive client profiles, and a Team Pay system that streamlines staff management with automated commission calculations.
Their consumer marketplace showcases your services to Fresha’s large user base, helping attract new clients without additional marketing efforts.
Pros and Cons
- Subscription free for solo practitioners, affordable per-staff pricing for teams
- User-friendly and easy to learn
- Available in many countries and languages
- Marketplace where you can promote your salon
- Limited options to customize the appearance (default designs look good, though)
- Clients are required to create a Fresha account to book
- Online booking cannot be integrated with your website (need to link out to your Fresha page)
- Limited support for integration with other platforms. You’re locked into using the Fresha tools.
Boulevard At a Glance
Overall score
Boulevard is an up-and-coming cloud-based beauty and wellness software that offers a strong toolset of core features like appointment booking and POS, as well as advanced marketing features and two-way messaging.
It natively integrates with over a dozen apps, including Quickbooks, Instagram, Shopify, and more.
It is quite a pricey option, however, coming in at a starting price of $175 for the lowest-tier plan, which we (and Boulevard themselves) don’t recommend as it lacks some of Boulevard’s best reporting, marketing, and inventory features.
Boulevard offers a free trial, but they require a 12-month minimum contract to sign up, so make sure you are 100% sure about your choice before signing up.
Pros and Cons
- Client data that you can actually use to boost client retention and sales
- Can integrate with a large number of third party applications
- Precision Scheduling™ tech to fill the best gaps on the calendar first
- Well designed & easily-searchable help center
- High price-point across all plans
- Essentials plan lacks many of the best features Boulevard offers
- Boulevard Professional mobile app is buggy & has low ratings on iOS & Android
- Marketing suite can’t differentiate between bookings from emails vs other factors (you may end up paying more)
How Do They Compare? Strengths and Weaknesses
Fresha and Boulevard both aim for an intuitive user experience but take different approaches.
Fresha is easy to use, making it accessible to users of all technical abilities. Recent updates have brought welcome additions like smart waitlist management and enhanced booking options. The trade-off for this simplicity is limited customization, and the requirement for clients to create accounts remains a minor friction point in the booking process.
Boulevard takes a more sophisticated approach with its polished interface and innovative dashboard that tracks client flow from arrival to departure. The platform offers deep customization possibilities and connects smoothly with essential business tools, though mastering these features requires more time investment.
One significant advantage for Fresha users is access to their growing marketplace platform, which helps salons attract new clients. However, this convenience comes with a 20% commission fee on first-time clients booked through the marketplace.
A key strength of Boulevard is its Precision Scheduling technology that optimizes bookings. Fresha also provides booking options, but Fresha requires linking to an external page for booking, which is not as seamless.
In summary, Boulevard excels at delivering a high-end brand experience, while Fresha focuses on no-frills ease of use.
Fresha vs Boulevard
Let's look at how these two platforms differ.
Ease of use
Design
Customer service
Pricing
Calendar and appointment management
Online booking
Point of sale and check out
Client data
Client communication
Inventory management
Team Management
Payroll
Marketing support
3rd party integrations
Mobile and tablet apps
Let’s Talk Features: Fresha vs. Boulevard
Fresha provides a solid foundation of essential features that cover most salon needs. You’ll find appointment booking and calendar management, along with enhanced client profiles that track everything from allergies to preferences and history.
Fresha includes basic marketing tools and automated notifications, integrated payment processing, and standard point-of-sale features. Their marketplace integration helps with client acquisition, while recent additions like group booking and automated waitlist management round out the essential toolkit.
Boulevard takes a more comprehensive approach with premium features designed for sophisticated operations. Their Precision Scheduling technology stands out as a cornerstone feature, complemented by advanced marketing automation with two-way texting capabilities. The platform offers extensive customization options for services and booking flows, backed by robust inventory management and detailed analytics.
The key difference lies in depth versus simplicity. Fresha offers straightforward tools that work well for basic salon operations, while Boulevard provides deeper functionality for businesses ready to invest in a more sophisticated system. Consider your business needs carefully – while Boulevard offers more features, you’ll need to decide if the additional complexity and learning curve are worth it for your operation.
Feature Comparison
Boulevard will be richer in features even if there are areas where Fresha outperforms.
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Fresha
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Boulevard
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| Online Booking | Fresha | Boulevard |
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Website booking widget Note Can you integrate the entire online booking experience directly into your website? |
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Branding control Note Can you customize the look and feel of the booking experience to fit your brand? |
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No-show protection Note Can you store credit card details and charge deposits to reinforce your cancellation policy? |
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Service customization Note Can clients adapt their service when they book, and can this change the price and duration of the booked appointment? |
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Free from account creation Note Can clients book without having first to create an account with the software? |
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Integrated gift cards Note Can you sell digital gift cards as part of the booking process? |
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| Calendar and Appointment Management | ||
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Customize notification messages Note Can you change the text sent to your clients as part of appointment reminders and other messages? |
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Customize notification timings Note Can you change when reminders and other messages go out to your clients? |
Note Full customization not available. Options are limited to: 2 Days Before, 1 Day Before, and Same Day. |
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| Client waitlist management | ||
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Rooms and resource scheduling Note Can you manage equipment, rooms, and other resources required to complete a service? |
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Repeat appointments Note Can you schedule clients for recurring appointments? |
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Time block Note Can you block out time on your calendar? |
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Processing time Note Can you allow for double booking of service providers by accepting appointments during service processing time? |
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Duration and price by staff Note Can you adapt the price and time needed for a service based on who is performing the service? |
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Automated check-in Note Can clients check in to their appointments themselves? |
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| Point of Sale/ Check out | ||
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Tablet compatible Note Can you run the POS on any tablet or do you need special hardware? |
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Dedicated POS hardware Note Does the system provider offer hardware to improve the check out expereince? |
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Self check out Note Can clients check out from their appointment themselves? |
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Route payments to renters Note If you have booth renters in your business, can you route payments directly to them? |
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Cards on file Note Can you store credit card details and charge the customer later? |
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Integrated payments Note Does the software offer a first-party payment processing solution? |
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| Client Data & Communication | ||
| SMS Notification | ||
| Email Notificition | ||
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Dedicated business SMS number Note Do you get a business phone number that your messages and notifications are send from? |
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| Two way SMS communication | ||
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Forms Note Can you create intake forms, store SOAP notes, and have clients sign your forms? |
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Client notes Note Can you store notes about clients on their profile? |
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Client files and images Note Can you store files and image on in the client’s profile? |
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| Inventory and Product Types | ||
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Inventory tracking Note Will the system keep track of stock levels, notify you when it’s time to re-order? |
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Purchase orders Note Can the system create automatic purchase orders for you? |
Note Not available on Essentials plan. |
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| Retail | ||
| Memberships | ||
| Packages | ||
| Gift cards | ||
| Team Support & Payroll | ||
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Fully integrated payroll Note Can you run payroll and cut paychecks directly through the software? |
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3rd party payroll integration Note Does the software allow you integrate and share data with a 3rd party payroll solution (e.g. Gusto, ADP, Paychex, etc)? |
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| Payroll reports |
Note Fresha offer reports on staff commission, working hours, tips, and service and product sales by staff |
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Commission support Note Can you track and report on commission for service, retail, and other product types? |
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Multi-location support Note Does the system have specific support for businesses with multiple locations |
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Booth renter support Note Can the system help with rent collection, payments, and other booth renter management tasks. |
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| Marketing Support | ||
| Email marketing | ||
| SMS marketing | ||
| Website builder | ||
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Client marketplace Note Does it offer a platform where potential clients can browse businesses using the software? |
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Add-on offers Note Can you promote service add-ons/upsells as part of the online booking flow? |
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| Cloud & Mobile App Access | ||
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Full-featured mobile app Note Can you access all software features in the mobile app? |
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| Web browser | ||
| iPad | ||
| iPhone | ||
| Android | ||
Integrating with Other Platforms for Additional Features
Fresha deliberately focuses on providing an all-in-one salon management solution rather than integrating with other platforms. This allows for simplicity as all core features like booking, payments, and messaging are housed in one intuitive interface.
In contrast, seamless third-party integrations are a key strength of Boulevard’s offering. It includes direct integrations with popular apps like Shopify, Facebook, and Instagram Book Now. This modular approach gives salons the flexibility to augment Boulevard’s customized branding and booking capabilities.
Integrations
These platforms do not offer integration support.
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Fresha
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Boulevard
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Custom integrations Note Does the platform allow you to create new integrations to support your business-specific needs? |
Note On Enterprise plan only. |
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Native integrations Note Built-in integrations that you can activate as needed |
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Pricing: Boulevard vs. Fresha
Fresha’s pricing strategy combines marketplace opportunities with affordable software access. Solo practitioners can start with the free tier for basic operations, while growing businesses can upgrade to Plus for $9.95 per staff member monthly.
While the marketplace’s 20% commission on new clients needs to be factored in, it can be a valuable source of business growth. Users should carefully import their existing client database before activating marketplace features to avoid unnecessary commission fees.
However, the free plan is very limited. To unlock more advanced capabilities like marketing tools, businesses must pay for add-ons.
Boulevard takes a different approach with its pricing, offering tiered plans that require an annual commitment. While you can’t test drive the software first, their entry point is competitive despite having fewer features than higher tiers.
Fresha vs Boulevard Pricing
It's not super easy to fully understand what you will be paying with any of these two. Fresha will depend on usage and Boulevard has a fairly complex pricing model.
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Fresha
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Boulevard
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| Average Price | ||
| Trial Options | ||
| Minimum contract length | ||
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Plans
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Add-ons
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| Add-ons | ||
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Credit card fees
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| Credit card fees | ||
What Do Users Think of These Platforms?
While I’ve given my thoughts on these two systems, it’s important to remember not to rely solely on my opinion. To give you a more complete picture, here’s a summary of how users have rated these platforms.
User Reviews Compared
Let's compare scores for these systems on the major user review sites.
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Fresha
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Boulevard
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What Fresha & Boulevard Alternatives Should You Consider?
Fresha and Boulevard are both great options for a variety of businesses. However, if you’re feeling a bit unsure, I highly recommend taking a look at the platforms listed below. They might just have what you’re looking for!
Mangomint is the highest-rated software for salons and spas. If you have a team, this is the alternative you should try.
GlossGenius is a popular alternative to Fresha, serving independent professionals on a budget.
Mangomint vs GlossGenius
A quick comparison of the two Boulevard and Fresha alternatives.
Mangomint
GlossGenius
Overall score
Note
The overall score considers ease of use, customer service, features, user ratings, and cost. Scores are determined solely by our editorial team.
Average price
Note
Assumes you run a business with a mid-size team and have activated the more common add-ons. What you will pay will be lower or higher than this. See the separate section about pricing for full details.
Who is it for
Ease of use
Customer Service
Countries
U.S. and Canada
U.S.
Key features
- Modern, intuitive, and easy to use
- Smart automations that help cut down on time spent managing business operations
- Open data ownership and no contracts (you’re not locked into anything)
- Can integrate with any other platform who allows for integrations
- Highest-rated customer service on the market
- Premium beauty-inspired interface design
- Professional-looking website in just a few clicks
- Integrated payment and card reader with customizable design
- Affordable, transparent, flat fee pricing
Conclusion
I hope this comparison between Fresha and Boulevard was helpful in your search for the ideal salon software.
For more alternatives, I highly recommend you read my top list of the best salon and spa software.
