Free salon software: what free actually includes (2026)

Search for free salon software and you will mostly find advice that expired. The biggest name in "free" - Fresha - stopped being free, Square still has a real free plan for solos, and most of the rest never had one. Here is the current map of what free actually includes for a salon, barbershop, or beauty studio in 2026, written by a booking tool, competitors included.

What "free" means in salon software

• A genuine free tier: hard limits, a paid plan above it, and no cut of your revenue. The software is the product; your clients are not.
• Payments-funded: the booking features cost nothing because the company earns a percentage of every card payment you run through it.
• Free that quietly ended: some tools built their name on free and later moved to subscriptions. Old blog posts and forum advice have not caught up.

hey.booked: free forever for a one-person salon

hey.booked's free plan is built for a solo stylist, barber, or therapist: your own branded booking page, one staff member, three services, email confirmations and reminders, post-visit star reviews, and 30 confirmed bookings a month. No card to sign up, no commission, no marketplace - your page shows you, never a list of your competitors. When you outgrow it, Pro is $15 a month or $150 a year, flat: unlimited staff, services, and bookings, text reminders, and two-way Google Calendar sync.

The honest gap: hey.booked does not process client payments. That means no processing fees ever, but also no deposits, no card-on-file, and no POS. If charging no-show fees at the front desk is non-negotiable, you want a payments-first tool.

Square Appointments: free for solos, funded by processing

Square Appointments has a genuinely useful free plan for a solo operator at a single location, and it comes welded to Square's payments: 2.6% + $0.15 in person and 2.9% + $0.30 online on the free tier. Cancellation and no-show fees need Plus at $49 a month per location, and the beauty-specific features are thinner than in the salon-first suites. If a Square reader already sits on your counter, it is the natural pick.

Fresha is not free anymore

For years, "just use Fresha, it's free" was the default advice in every stylist group. As of July 2026 that advice is wrong: Fresha charges $19.95 a month for an independent (one bookable team member) or $14.95 a month per bookable team member on the Team plan, plus a one-time 20% fee - minimum $6 - on the first visit of any new client who finds you through its marketplace. Returning clients stay fee-free, and card processing runs 2.29% + $0.20 in person and 2.79% + $0.20 online.

Fresha is still a polished product with a huge marketplace and strong inventory and POS - for a team that wants discovery, the math can work. It is simply no longer the free option, and many owners found that out the hard way.

The rest start paid

The other names you will meet in salon software have no free tier at all: Booksy starts at $29.99 a month plus $20 per extra team member, GlossGenius at $28 a month, Vagaro at $30 a month for one calendar, and Acuity Scheduling at $20 a month. All are capable tools - Booksy's marketplace genuinely brings barbers clients, GlossGenius is a polished all-in-one - but free is not on their menu, only trials.

Free plans side by side

A realistic month for a solo chair

Say you take 60 appointments a month at $50 each - $3,000 of revenue. On hey.booked, 60 bookings passes the free cap, so you would be on Pro: $15 flat, and you keep taking payment however you do today. On Square Appointments the software is $0, but if all $3,000 runs through Square in person you pay about $87 in processing (2.6% + $0.15 per transaction). On Fresha you pay $19.95 plus about $81 in processing (2.29% + $0.20), plus at least $6 for each new marketplace client. None of these numbers is shocking - the point is that free and cheapest are rarely the same tool.

What free salon software usually hides

Wherever you land, read the free tier twice. The usual catches:

• Processing fees: if the tool is also your card processor, free software still costs 2.3 to 2.9% of every ticket.
• Upgrade walls: the feature that made you sign up - no-show fees, a second chair, text reminders - often sits one paid tier up.
• Caps: booking or client limits are fine, as long as you know the number before your busiest month, not during it.

Is there genuinely free salon software?

Yes. hey.booked has a free-forever plan (one staff member, three services, 30 confirmed bookings a month, email reminders), and Square Appointments is free for a solo operator at one location. Most other salon tools start paid.

Is Fresha still free?

No. As of July 2026 Fresha charges $19.95 a month for independents or $14.95 a month per bookable team member on the Team plan, plus a one-time 20% fee (minimum $6) on a new marketplace client's first visit.

What does free salon software usually leave out?

Text reminders, no-show and cancellation fees, extra staff members, and calendar sync are the usual paid-tier features. Payments-funded tools also earn a percentage of every card payment, so free software is not the same as a free month.

Does hey.booked take a commission or a booking fee?

No. There is no marketplace, no commission, and no per-booking fee. hey.booked also does not process client payments, so there are no processing fees - and no deposits or card-on-file either.

When should a salon start paying for booking software?

When a free cap starts costing you bookings, or when you need text reminders, more staff, or calendar sync. On hey.booked that step is $15 a month flat; elsewhere expect $20 to $50 a month plus payment processing.