Vagaro vs. Zenoti: Which is the Superior Salon and Spa Software in 2024?

Vagaro vs. Zenoti: Clash of the titans of beauty and wellness software

Let the challenge begin!

Vagaro, headquartered in Dublin, California, seems like a fresh face in the world of salon and spa software but has actually been around since 2009.

Originally intended to sway businesses away from pen-and-paper booking with an affordable digital solution, Vagaro has come a long way since its founding, integrating a whole tool chest of features and a massive client marketplace.

Zenoti, originally founded as ManageMySpa in 2010, has become wildly popular and one of the more prominent names in the salon software world, raising hundreds of millions in funding, employing over 650 staff members, and powering more than 25,000 businesses.

Vagaro vs. Zenoti: The Basics

So, how do these teenage salon software companies stack up against each other in the mid-2020s?

If I had to narrow down “Vagaro vs Zenoti” into just a few words, I would describe it as a “battle for the biggest tool chest”.

If you are a cost-conscious solopreneur or have a small team, you might consider Vagaro an attractive option.

This all-in-one software company has many features to support your salon, spa, or fitness business: from POS, online appointment scheduling, advanced business reporting, email/SMS marketing, and credit card processing to subscription payments, eCommerce, payroll, a website builder, and even video streaming.

Zenoti is a solid pick for salon and spa owners with larger teams and bigger budgets who want highly detailed reporting and in-depth reputation management tools (and don’t mind a bit of a stiff and dated interface).

Zenoti rivals Vagaro with its massive suite of features that build on the blueprint established by businesses like Booker and Mindbody, and expand the customizability and capability of those features with control over even the most minute details.

Let’s take a closer look at these two platforms.

Here is a breakdown of everything you will learn in this Vagaro vs. Zenoti comparison:

• An overview of each system
• A comparison of the differences that separate them
• A feature-by-feature comparison
• Pricing differences
• Ratings & reviews from their users.

Vagaro vs Zenoti

Let's kick off with an overview of the two platforms we're diving into today.

Vagaro

Zenoti

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.

4.1

3.6

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.

$120 per month

$350 per month

Who is it for

For cost conscious solopreneurs or smaller teams who are looking for an all-in-one software, with a lot of features, to support their salon, spa, or fitness business.

Business owners who want a highly-detail-oriented piece of salon and spa software that offers deep data insights and great reporting and who need in-depth reputation management tools to build their brand online.

Ease of use

3

3.5

Customer Service

3

4.0

Countries

U.S., Canada, Australia, and the UK

Available in nearly 50 countries worldwide

Key features

• A client marketplace where they can browse and find your business
• Very comprehensive marketing suite.
• Vagaro branded POS hardware
• Support for classes (as also used by fitness businesses)

• Integrated email marketing suite
• Two-way client messaging (via paid add-on feature: ezConnect)
• Reputation management suite (via paid add-on feature: ezRepute)
• Employee performance tracking (via paid add-on feature: ezPulse)

A Double-Click on Each System: Vagaro vs. Zenoti

Let’s cover what these systems are and the pros and cons of each in my Vagaro vs. Zenoti guide.

How Do They Compare? Strengths and Weaknesses

Vagaro stands out for its balance of simplicity and affordability, and its broad feature set. For the price, there isn’t another software suite that offers anything close to the amount of features Vagaro does. Vagaro also offers a large client marketplace where businesses can create a listing and advertise to potential clients.

While Zenoti offers nearly the same suite of features as Vagaro, it’s much more expensive. What stands out with Zenoti are its robust reputation management features. The ability to monitor and manage reviews across over 200 platforms is really impressive, and for those who care about their brand and want to be in control of the conversation about it online, that toolset can be a great asset.

On the flip side, there are cons to both platforms.

A lack of quality mars the beauty of Vagaro’s many features. For starters, the website builder could use some polish. Pages need to be able to load faster, and in our testing, the experience was a bit buggy. And while Vagaro offers online booking, it requires clients to create a Vagaro account first.

Meanwhile, Zenoti is plagued by a high cost of entry, no free trial, and a mandatory 12-month contract. Additionally, the mobile app has a low-to-mixed rating on the Apple App Store and Google Play Store.

Let’s Talk Features: Vagaro vs. Zenoti

Vagaro is feature-rich and can even support fitness businesses with classes, much like Mindbody does.

It also sports a massive client marketplace for beauty, wellness, and fitness businesses, a feature that Zenoti has intentionally foregone to avoid their customers cannibalizing each others’ business. Vagaro also offers an integrated payroll processing solution, which is pretty rare.

Both Vagaro and Zenoti have impressive email and SMS marketing tools, advanced business reporting features, and more.

Zenoti has some key paid add-on features, such as two-way client messaging, a robust reputation management suite, and employee performance tracking.

Vagaro vs Zenoti

Vagaro and Zenoti offer many features. Let's go through what these features are and where they differ.

	Vagaro	Zenoti
Online Booking	Vagaro	Zenoti
Website booking widget Note Can you integrate the entire online booking experience directly into your website?
Branding control Note Can you customize the look and feel of the booking experience to fit your brand?	Note Very limited: Change accent color but all else is Vagaro standard.
No-show protection Note Can you store credit card details and charge deposits to reinforce your cancellation policy?
Service customization Note Can clients adapt their service when they book, and can this change the price and duration of the booked appointment?
Free from account creation Note Can clients book without having first to create an account with the software?
Integrated gift cards Note Can you sell digital gift cards as part of the booking process?
Calendar and Appointment Management
Customize notification messages Note Can you change the text sent to your clients as part of appointment reminders and other messages?
Customize notification timings Note Can you change when reminders and other messages go out to your clients?
Client waitlist management
Rooms and resource scheduling Note Can you manage equipment, rooms, and other resources required to complete a service?
Repeat appointments Note Can you schedule clients for recurring appointments?
Time block Note Can you block out time on your calendar?
Processing time Note Can you allow for double booking of service providers by accepting appointments during service processing time?
Duration and price by staff Note Can you adapt the price and time needed for a service based on who is performing the service?
Automated check-in Note Can clients check in to their appointments themselves?		Note Not by default. Available through Zenoti Go add-on.
Point of Sale/ Check out
Tablet compatible Note Can you run the POS on any tablet or do you need special hardware?
Dedicated POS hardware Note Does the system provider offer hardware to improve the check out expereince?
Self check out Note Can clients check out from their appointment themselves?		Note Not by default. Available through Zenoti Go add-on.
Route payments to renters Note If you have booth renters in your business, can you route payments directly to them?
Cards on file Note Can you store credit card details and charge the customer later?
Integrated payments Note Does the software offer a first-party payment processing solution?
Client Data & Communication
SMS Notification
Email Notificition
Dedicated business SMS number Note Do you get a business phone number that your messages and notifications are send from?		Note Available through ezConnect premium add-on for an additional fee
Two way SMS communication		Note Available through ezConnect premium add-on for an additional fee
Forms Note Can you create intake forms, store SOAP notes, and have clients sign your forms?
Client notes Note Can you store notes about clients on their profile?
Client files and images Note Can you store files and image on in the client’s profile?		Note Can upload files to forms, but not client profiles
Inventory and Product Types
Inventory tracking Note Will the system keep track of stock levels, notify you when it’s time to re-order?
Purchase orders Note Can the system create automatic purchase orders for you?
Retail
Memberships
Packages
Gift cards
Team Support & Payroll
Fully integrated payroll Note Can you run payroll and cut paychecks directly through the software?
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)?
Payroll reports
Commission support Note Can you track and report on commission for service, retail, and other product types?
Multi-location support Note Does the system have specific support for businesses with multiple locations
Booth renter support Note Can the system help with rent collection, payments, and other booth renter management tasks.
Marketing Support
Email marketing
SMS marketing
Website builder
Client marketplace Note Does it offer a platform where potential clients can browse businesses using the software?
Add-on offers Note Can you promote service add-ons/upsells as part of the online booking flow?
Cloud & Mobile App Access
Full-featured mobile app Note Can you access all software features in the mobile app?
Web browser
iPad
iPhone
Android

Integrating with Other Platforms for Additional Features

A plus for both Vagaro and Zenoti is the ability to integrate with other platforms. Here, Zenoti slightly outshines Vagaro.

Vagaro vs Zenoti

These platforms both offer third-party integration.

	Vagaro	Zenoti
Custom integrations Note Does the platform allow you to create new integrations to support your business-specific needs?
Native integrations Note Built-in integrations that you can activate as needed	Gusto Quickbooks Zoom Xero	Quickbooks Xero Smartkart Wisely Gantner Gympass

Pricing: Vagaro vs. Zenoti

Surprisingly, despite all the built-in features, Vagaro remains one of the cheapest platforms to use in the marketplace.

Unfortunately, Zenoti doesn’t offer transparency in their fee structure. They claim not to provide traditional monthly plan pricing. On the demo call, we were shown a presentation with features and benefits before a “custom pricing” slide listing three “recommended package options.”

If price is important to you, Vagaro is the true value winner, and their pricing transparency is a major plus. For other salon and spa software suggestions, read my list of the top salon software of 2024.

Vagaro vs Zenoti Pricing

Vagaro is more attractively priced than Zenoti.

	Vagaro	Zenoti
Average Price	$120 per month	$350 per month
Trial Options	30 day free trial	No free trial
Minimum contract length	Cancel any time	12 months
Plans Monthly subscription fee starts at $25 for individuals $10 for every additional user Everyone after the 7th user is free Multi-location businesses require Vagaro’s enterprise platform with personalized prizing. Zenoti doesn’t offer transparent pricing information on their website. These are the “recommended packages” they offered us as a potential salon client: “Recommended Option #1” – $350 (per month, per location) “Salon Core Package” ezConnect (two-way SMS feature) 7500 marketing emails 1000 marketing texts “Recommended Option #2” – $450 (per month, per location) Everything in Option #1, plus “Marketing Plus Package” Custom-branded client-facing mobile app ezRepute (review management feature) “Recommended Option #3” – $500 (per month, per location) Option #1, plus Smartbot (AI powered chatbot feature)
Plans	Monthly subscription fee starts at $25 for individuals $10 for every additional user Everyone after the 7th user is free Multi-location businesses require Vagaro’s enterprise platform with personalized prizing.	Zenoti doesn’t offer transparent pricing information on their website. These are the “recommended packages” they offered us as a potential salon client: “Recommended Option #1” – $350 (per month, per location) “Salon Core Package” ezConnect (two-way SMS feature) 7500 marketing emails 1000 marketing texts “Recommended Option #2” – $450 (per month, per location) Everything in Option #1, plus “Marketing Plus Package” Custom-branded client-facing mobile app ezRepute (review management feature) “Recommended Option #3” – $500 (per month, per location) Option #1, plus Smartbot (AI powered chatbot feature)
Add-ons Automated text marketing: $20/month Website builder: $10/month Forms: $10/month Cloud storage: $10/month Check-in app: $10/month Additional visibility at the Vagaro client marketplace: $10/month Branded app: $200/month SMS marketing: $20/mo for 500 sms and they offer plans up to $400/mo for 20,000 sms. Email marketing: 1000 emails/mo are included in your plan. If you need more, you pay $10/mo for 5 000 emails up to $90/mo for 100 000 emails. ezConnect – In-App Two-Way Text Messaging: $29 – $169 per month per location ezRepute – Reputation Management Suite: $189 per month per location Smart Bot (Web / IVR): $150 – $400 per month per location ezPulse – Employee Performance Tracking Suite: $49 per month per location Credits (Email & SMS Marketing Campaigns): $180 – $1500
Add-ons	Automated text marketing: $20/month Website builder: $10/month Forms: $10/month Cloud storage: $10/month Check-in app: $10/month Additional visibility at the Vagaro client marketplace: $10/month Branded app: $200/month SMS marketing: $20/mo for 500 sms and they offer plans up to $400/mo for 20,000 sms. Email marketing: 1000 emails/mo are included in your plan. If you need more, you pay $10/mo for 5 000 emails up to $90/mo for 100 000 emails.	ezConnect – In-App Two-Way Text Messaging: $29 – $169 per month per location ezRepute – Reputation Management Suite: $189 per month per location Smart Bot (Web / IVR): $150 – $400 per month per location ezPulse – Employee Performance Tracking Suite: $49 per month per location Credits (Email & SMS Marketing Campaigns): $180 – $1500
Credit card fees Small merchants (less than $4000/month): 2.75% per swipe, 3.5% + $0.15 per keyed-in transaction. Multiple merchants (less than $4000/month): 2.5% + $0.10 per swipe, 3.5% +$0.15 per keyed-in transaction. Large merchants (more than $4000/month): 2.2% + $0.19 per swipe, 3% + $0.19 per keyed-in transaction. Monthly cost $10. Credit card processing rates through Zenoti Payments: Card Present All cards except Amex: 2.45% + 10c Amex:  2.95% + 10c Card Not Present All cards except Amex: 2.95% + 10c Amex:  3.25% + $0.10
Credit card fees	Small merchants (less than $4000/month): 2.75% per swipe, 3.5% + $0.15 per keyed-in transaction. Multiple merchants (less than $4000/month): 2.5% + $0.10 per swipe, 3.5% +$0.15 per keyed-in transaction. Large merchants (more than $4000/month): 2.2% + $0.19 per swipe, 3% + $0.19 per keyed-in transaction. Monthly cost $10.	Credit card processing rates through Zenoti Payments: Card Present All cards except Amex: 2.45% + 10c Amex:  2.95% + 10c Card Not Present All cards except Amex: 2.95% + 10c Amex:  3.25% + $0.10

What Do Users Think of These Platforms?

You’ve read what I think. Now, let’s look at what users have to say.

Vagaro vs Zenoti

Let's compare scores for these systems on the major user review sites.

	Vagaro	Zenoti
	4.7	4.4
	4.4	4.2
	4.7	2.6
	4.4	1.4

What Alternatives Should You Consider?

While either Vagaro or Zenoti are attractive options, there are some incredible alternatives that may be a better fit for your business.

Mangomint is the highest-rated software for salons and spas. If you have a team, I highly encourage you check out this option.

Boulevard is the luxury option for beauty and wellness businesses with several service providers who want flexible reporting options and need an all-in-one marketing suite.

Mangomint vs Boulevard

A quick comparison of the two Vagaro and Zenoti alternatives.

Mangomint

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.

4.9

4.3

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.

$245 per month

$425 per month

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.

Established beauty and wellness businesses with several service providers who want flexible reporting options and need an all-in-one marketing suite baked right into the software

Ease of use

5

4.5

Customer Service

5

5.0

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

• Easy-to-use interface
• Excellent online booking
• Integrated email marketing suite
• Highly detailed custom reports [on Premiere and above]

Conclusion

I hope this comparison between Vagaro and Zenoti helpful in your search for the perfect salon and spa software.

For more alternatives, please read my top list of the best salon and spa software for 2024.

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