Are you looking for a free appointment scheduler?
Then I think this review of Square Appointments will interest you.
You’ve probably already heard about this appointment booking app used primarily by businesses like beauty salons, spas, barbershops, and other local service providers. It’s one of the alternatives in my list of the best online booking and salon management software in 2024.
This is an honest review where I’ll go over all the pros and cons of Square Appointments that I’ve discovered as I’ve been using and testing all the functions of the software.
Now, let’s dive into the review.
Square Appointments at a Glance
Watch My Square Appointments Video Review
I will go quite in-depth in this article, break down all the features, and show you exactly how it works and the pros and cons. However, I have also recorded a video where I walk you through the tool if you prefer to sit back and watch instead 🙂
How Users Rate and Review Square Appointments
Square has very solid user ratings for both app stores and on the main online review sites.
Which Features Do Square Appointments Support?
By joining Square, you get access to more than just Square Appointments. Even if that might be the only feature you need right now, you can easily integrate their credit card payment tools, marketing features, payroll & team management, and much more when needed. Square is set up to grow with you as your business grows and is a complete partner also for the bigger business.
Square Appointment Features
Salon software often includes the following common features. The table below indicates which of these features are supported by Square.
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Square Appointments
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| Online Booking | Square Appointments | |
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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? |
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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 |
Note Clients can confirm appointments by replying to SMS |
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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? |
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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 | ||
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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 | ||
Square Integration Support
If the platform doesn’t support the functionality you need, you can extend it. Square offers integration support with a wide range of other software.
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Square Appointments
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Custom integrations Note Does the platform allow you to create new integrations to support your business-specific needs? |
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Native integrations Note Built-in integrations that you can activate as needed |
The Square App Marketplace offer a lot of integrations. Some popular examples are:
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Square Appointments Pricing
A free base plan and the ability to cancel at any time is great. Credit card fees are a bit higher than some other alternatives.
$45 per month
Free base tier plan
Cancel any time
- Free: $0/month (only very essential features)
- Plus: $29 per location (includes core features like client notifications and cancellation policy)
- Premium: $69 per location (includes more sophisticated features like resource management).
- Unlimited calendars on all plans
- Email marketing: $15/month
- SMS marketing: $10/month
- Square loyalty: $45/month
- Square Payroll: $35 + $6 per user/month
- In-person: 2.6% + 10 cents (2.5% + 10 cents on paid plans)
- Online (card): 2.9% + 30 cents
- Manually Keyed-In: 3.5% + 15 cents
Square Appointments Alternatives
Here are my recommended alternatives to Square Appointments. Mangomint if you run a business with a team and want more. GlossGenius if you are a solopreneur or have a small team.
Browse all Square Appointments Alternatives.
Mangomint
Read my detailed Square Appointments vs. Mangomint comparison
Who is it for
The highest-rated software for salons & spas. Designed for businesses with a team who want the best design experience, smart automations, and the flexibility to integrate with other systems.
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.
$245 per month
Supported countries
U.S. and Canada
Note
The overall score considers ease of use, customer service, features, user ratings, and cost. Scores are determined solely by our editorial team.
GlossGenius
Read my detailed GlossGenius vs. Square Appointments comparison
Who is it for
For independent professionals who want to start accepting payments and get appointment scheduling, a website and marketing up fast without compromising on the experience of their brand
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.
$48 per month
Supported countries
U.S.
Note
The overall score considers ease of use, customer service, features, user ratings, and cost. Scores are determined solely by our editorial team.
Square Appointments Main Features
Square Appointments is part of Square’s family of business tools. This review focuses on the appointment software but will mention other products.
I will include the free Square features with Square Appointments, even if they’re not in the Square Appointments App, as they’re linked with Square Appointments.
More Features with Other Relevant Square Products
When you log into Square Appointments the first time, you’ll see a range of other “apps” next to Appointments in the menu that you can use with Square Appointments. Some are activated from the start to manage appointments (e.g. customer list, inventory, reports, etc.) but you can activate more as needed.
Let’s review the extra tools before we dig into the core features of Square Appointments.
Square Payments
Square Payment feature is a core component of Square. It allows you to collect any type of payment – via a card reader, by manually entering card details, online payments, or via invoice.
Square is on my list of the best credit card processors.
Additional Business Management Features
Other than Appointments, Payments and POS are big solutions from Square. But on top, they also have some powerful business tools that you can activate. I want you to be aware that they exist but I won’t go into a detailed review of each here:
- Square Payroll (from $35/mo): Manage your business complete payroll
- Square Marketing & Loyalty Program (from $15/mo): Run sophisticated e-mail marketing campaigns and build client loyalty
- Square Installments (from 3.5%): Offer payment plans for your customers
- Square Team Management (free): Time reports and other team management tools
- Square Capital: Business loans to support your business
Now, let’s dive into the details of Square Appointments.
- Appointment Management
- Online Booking
- Appointment Notifications
- Client Data Management
- Inventory Management
- Point of Sale System
- Appointment Apps
Calendar Management
The appointment calendar is at the heart of any local service business. You’ll look at this view several times a day to keep track of where you are and plan your week ahead.
The Square Appointments calendar is super intuitive and easy to use. Each member of staff can have their color associated with them so that you can get a quick overview of your total team’s calendar.
You can switch between day view, week view, or month view. And you can view each staff as a separate agenda or all combined.
I have a hard time finding any flaws with the calendar – it works, has all the features you need, and is easy to use.
To change an appointment, you can just drag and drop it in your calendar (for a new time) or open it to configure all details.
To add an appointment, click on the calendar or on the “Create Appointment” link. It’s super easy to use, and you’ll get a hang of it immediately.
When adding an appointment you just pick an existing customer or create a new one. You choose the member of staff that will take care of the client and set the time. Square will show you any calendar conflicts and also give you historical information about your client’s appointments.
You can pick the service that you will provide and add any other further details needed for the appointment.
When you save it, you’ll also have the option to send a notification to your client as well as to the staff member who has been assigned. This all works beautifully and saves you a lot of time managing communication with staff and clients.
Online Booking
In today’s world, any local service provider needs to provide means for online bookings. And Square manages this very well. In fact, it’s even made it to my list of the best software for online booking.
The software offers multiple ways to allow your clients to book with you. Let’s look at each one.
Dedicated Booking Website
If you don’t already have a website, you can create a dedicated site for appointment scheduling within Square Appointments.
It’s very easy to do. You just need to add in your business details and you’re ready to publish your booking website.
This also means you’re rather limited to what you can actually change. The website is standardized but looks clean and is functional to use.
You can write a biography about your business, configure your opening hours, add contact details, link out to your social media accounts, and add your logo. But it’s clear that it’s not a full-blown website builder.
And that’s not their intent either. In fact, they’ve put a lot of effort into ensuring their booking integration integrates seamlessly so that you can choose the best website builder for your business to add Square Appointments to it. We’ll look at how in the next sections.
Example of a salon booking website created with Square Appointments.
Linking to Your Booking Website
One very straightforward way to integrate Square Appointments into your current website is to link it to your salon website. If you’ve read my guide on creating a salon website, you’ll have heard me talking about the importance of having a visible book now button on your website.
Well, the team at Square understands this too and provides a simple tool that helps you generate a book now button that you can place anywhere on your website.
Just decide how you want it to look and Square Appointments will generate a piece of HTML code that you can copy and paste onto your website.
How you can customize your Book Now button with Square Appointments.
Embed the Full Booking Experience on Your Website
Now to an even better way to get your booking feature up and running on your website. Don’t leave it at just the button linking to your website, integrate the complete booking feature directly on your website.
Square gives you three different “appointment booking widgets” that you can use. Just like with the button, pick the one you want and Square will generate a code for you that you can copy and paste onto your website.
The booking widget can then show your services, staff, and available time in your calendar without the user having to leave your website.
How you can integrate the Square Appointments booking widget.
Setup Google Appointment Booking
If you’re a frequent reader of my blog, you’ve heard me talk about the importance for any local business to show up on high on Google.
Square Appointments offers booking integration modules that allow you to connect directly with Google so that people can book you directly on the search results page.
Notifications & Alerts
Square Appointments offers sophisticated support for appointment reminders.
You can set up customized notifications for all types of events associated with your appointments. Send out booking confirmations, notify if any changes are made to an appointment, and remind ahead of the appointment.
Each message can be customized to fit the specific event.
You can also have your clients respond to you directly via SMS so that they don’t even need to visit your website. This feature is called the Square Assistant.
I cannot see any feature missing when it comes to notifications with regard to appointments. However, you cannot go beyond appointments. You can even send notifications on birthdays (even if these specific features are part of Square Marketing and not Square Appointments).
Client Data Management
It’s really easy to manage clients’ information in Square Appointments. You can add new customers yourself or they can register their profile on your booking website.
You’ll have access to a searchable directory of customers where you can access and edit all details about your clients. You can track their history and activity as well as store files, images, and notes.
But you can do much more with your client information than just storing data. Square allows you to issue feedback emails so that your customer can rate their visit after the appointment and send private comments to you.
This is powerful. And few other salon software or booking apps support this.
By constantly collecting feedback, you can spot weaknesses early and see how you improve your service over time. This can also be the basis of a feedback discussion with one of your staff members.
You’ll also be able to pull more sophisticated reports based on your customer data so that you can track KPIs such as retention rate and visit frequency.
Inventory Management
Square comes with rich support for managing your inventory of products and services. You can configure all the details you need for each product and service. You can also set up packages, add discounts, and more.
Managing Products
You’ll find all the support you need to manage your inventory in Square.
It’s easy to set up new products in Square – you can create new ones one-by-one or via bulk upload using a template. You can set minimum inventory levels and get alerts when stock is running low. You can also group products into categories and set up variations (like product size) for each product. And you can define how and where a product can be sold.
All the functionality you need is there – even if you have a large retail business
Managing Services
Managing your services is as easy as managing products. You can configure all details you need. Some important ones are:
- Who in your staff can be booked for the service
- How much time to allocate to the service
- Empty time needed in the calendar after the service
- Price and price variations
Point of Sale System
Square has a full-blown point-of-sale system with all the features you need to manage your checkout. All Square products have a very sleek and modern interface and their physical POS system is not an exception.
It’s of course fully integrated with Square Appointments so that you can check out your client using their data from the appointment.
It’s one of the top POS systems I list in my review of point-of-sale systems for salons and spas.
Even though this is not a review of Square POS but Square Appointments, you’ll for sure use the Square POS functionality to check out your clients.
The Square POS solution is free and integrates with Square Appointments so that you can check out your clients directly from the Appointments app.
Square Appointments App
The Square suite is built for mobile use first so you should expect the best from their mobile app versions. It works beautifully on Android and iOS and has top ratings on App Store by its users.
You can run your total business on a mobile device with Square. For checkout and payments, there’s also a range of hardware to support effective integration.
I have a hard time finding any limitations with Square’s mobile apps which, out of the ones I’ve tested, is the most solid platform.
Summary
I hope you found this Square Appointments review helpful and decided whether Square Appointments is right for your business.
Here’s a quick summary of this review.
Square Appointments
Square Appointments is a cloud-based appointment scheduling software for beauty salons and other local service businesses. It integrates with the full suite solutions from Square. And, it is free for individuals and has become a popular platform for one-person businesses like beauty booth renters and individual professionals.
Operating System: iOS, Android
Application Category: Business/Productivity
4.1
Pros
- Free for individuals
- Well designed, easy to use, interface
- Very strong client notification support
- Integration with the full suite of Square applications
Cons
- Limited flexibility when designing online booking page, booking widget, and e-mails
- Gets a bit expensive for the small team that just exceeds the free plan
To learn more about alternatives to Square for salon and spa businesses, I strongly encourage you to read my list of the best salon and spa software.
