Vagaro vs GlossGenius: an honest comparison for 2026

Vagaro and GlossGenius keep landing on the same shortlist, and for good reason - they are two of the most complete booking platforms in the beauty industry. Both give you a calendar, online booking, card payments, reminders, and marketing tools. The real differences live in how each one prices, who it is built for, and what happens to your monthly bill as your team grows.

One disclosure before the numbers: we make hey.booked, a much smaller booking tool that does not compete with either of these on payments or point of sale. This comparison sticks to the published facts as of July 2026, names what each platform genuinely does well, and only mentions our own tool at the end - clearly labelled, so you can skip it.

Pricing compared

The two companies price in opposite shapes. Vagaro charges per bookable calendar: $30 a month for the first, then $10 a month for each additional one up to seven, where the base fee caps at $90 - and every calendar from the eighth onward is free. The base subscription is only the start, though. Text marketing runs from $20 a month, forms cost $10, the online shopping cart $10, the website builder $20, extra storage from $10, the check-in app $10, and a branded app is $100 a month. None of these are required, but a shop that wants the full toolkit builds its bill one add-on at a time.

GlossGenius sells three tiers instead, with everything in a tier included: Standard at $28 a month ($24 billed annually), Gold at $56 ($48 annual), and Platinum at $168 ($148 annual), plus medspa plans from $168 to $298. The catch is what Standard leaves out - forms, waivers, and booking through Google start at Gold. So growth on GlossGenius means a tier jump, and the first one doubles your subscription.

Concrete math helps. A solo who needs intake forms pays Vagaro $30 plus the $10 forms add-on - $40 a month, or $60 with text marketing. On GlossGenius, the same solo needs Gold at $56, with forms and marketing included. A team of three pays Vagaro $50 in base fees against GlossGenius's $56 Gold. A team of ten flips the picture entirely: Vagaro caps at $90 because calendars eight through ten are free, while a shop that has outgrown Gold's limits is looking at Platinum's $168.

Processing follows the same pattern. Vagaro charges 2.6% + $0.10 on swiped cards and 3.5% + $0.15 keyed while you take under $4,000 a month, then 2.2% + $0.19 plus a $10 monthly fee above that - cheaper at volume, but two rate schedules to track. GlossGenius charges a flat 2.6% on every plan and every card type, with instant payouts costing an extra 1.8%. High-volume shops can pay less with Vagaro; anyone who values a predictable rate gets exactly that with GlossGenius.

Where Vagaro wins

Vagaro is the deeper platform. It runs a real consumer marketplace, so new clients can find you inside the app they already use - genuine discovery that GlossGenius does not offer. Its POS, retail, membership, and package tools are among the most mature in the category, its multi-staff scheduling has had years of polish, and payroll is cheaper at $34 a month plus $5 per employee. For big teams, the pricing turns unusually kind: once you pass seven calendars, every additional one is free, so a fifteen-person shop pays the same $90 base as an eight-person one. Add the 30-day trial and the lower processing rate above $4,000 a month, and Vagaro rewards the shops that are already busy.

Where GlossGenius wins

GlossGenius wins on polish and predictability. Its booking sites are genuinely beautiful - among US beauty pros, the brand carries real weight - and the flat 2.6% processing rate applies to every plan and every card type, with no separate rate for tap, card-on-file, or keyed entry. Your bill is one line, not a stack of add-ons: what a tier includes, it includes. There is no marketplace, which cuts both ways - no discovery, but also no page where your listing sits beside a competitor running a discount. The 14-day trial asks for no card. For a solo or a small team that wants software to feel finished rather than configurable, this is the calmer buy.

Who should pick which

Pick GlossGenius if you are solo or running a small team, you want the product to look great out of the box, and you would rather absorb a tier jump than manage a list of add-ons. Be aware that forms and Google booking start at Gold, so budget for $56 rather than $28 if you need them.

Pick Vagaro if you run a larger team - especially eight calendars or more, where its pricing gets genuinely generous - or if marketplace exposure, retail POS, memberships, and payroll matter to your business. Go in knowing the sticker price is the floor, not the bill, and decide deliberately which add-ons you actually need.

The quiet third option

This is the part where we talk about our own tool, so weigh it accordingly. hey.booked is a booking page, not an all-in-one platform. The free plan covers one staff member, three services, and 30 confirmed bookings a month, with email reminders and your own page to share. Pro is a flat $15 a month, or $150 a year, for unlimited staff, services, and bookings, 100 SMS texts a month, and two-way Google Calendar sync. No commission, no per-staff fees, no marketplace.

The honest catch: 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 built-in payments are on your must-have list - and for many salons they rightly are - both Vagaro and GlossGenius serve you better.

But if what you actually need is a calm calendar, a booking link clients can use without an account or an app, and one flat price that never grows with your headcount, the smaller tool might be the right size. Plenty of solo pros discover they were paying for an all-in-one and using a tenth of it.

How much does Vagaro cost per month?

As of July 2026, Vagaro starts at $30 a month for one bookable calendar, plus $10 a month for each additional calendar up to seven, where the base fee caps at $90. Calendars eight and up are free. Add-ons like text marketing (from $20), forms ($10), and the website builder ($20) cost extra.

How much does GlossGenius cost per month?

As of July 2026, GlossGenius Standard is $28 a month ($24 billed annually), Gold is $56 ($48 annual), and Platinum is $168 ($148 annual). Medspa plans run from $168 to $298 a month. Every plan includes the flat 2.6% card processing rate.

Does Vagaro take a commission on bookings?

No. Vagaro charges a subscription, optional add-ons, and card processing fees, but no commission on your bookings. Its consumer marketplace does list your business beside competitors, which is worth knowing before you rely on it for discovery.

Which is cheaper for a solo professional?

On base price they are close: Vagaro at $30 versus GlossGenius Standard at $28. The gap opens with features. Forms cost $10 extra on Vagaro but require the $56 Gold tier on GlossGenius, while GlossGenius includes its flat 2.6% processing on every plan.

Does GlossGenius have a client marketplace?

No. GlossGenius gives you your own booking site but no consumer marketplace, so new clients will not discover you inside the app. Vagaro does run a marketplace - real exposure, with the trade-off that your listing appears next to competitors.