What your booking app costs over three years, and what it leaves out
The monthly price is only part of the bill, so here is the full arithmetic over 36 months and the costs that never appear on the pricing page.
The subscriptions on their own
Prices below are in pounds. Fresha's are before 20% sales tax and Booksy says VAT is added to its price. Over 36 months:
| Option | Monthly | 36 months |
|---|---|---|
| Fresha Independent | £14.95 | £538.20 |
| Fresha Independent plus Smart Website add-on (£12.95) | £27.90 | £1,004.40 |
| Booksy | £40 | £1,440.00 |
| Treatwell | Not stated on the page we checked | Not calculated |
| Square Appointments Free | £0 | £0 |
| Square Appointments Plus | £29 | £1,044.00 |
| Square Appointments Premium | £69 | £2,484.00 |
Square's page does not say whether its prices include VAT, so check that before you rely on it. Treatwell's page mentions a monthly fee but gives no amount, so ask Treatwell for the figure before you compare.
To be fair about it: on subscriptions alone, several of these are cheap, and two are free. If that were the whole story, there would be little to discuss.
Cost one: commission on new clients
Some platforms charge when they send you a new client. Fresha charges a 20% one-time commission on new clients from its marketplace, with a minimum charge. Booksy's Boost charges 30%, minimum £5, but only if you switch it on. Treatwell charges 35% commission on the first booking from a new marketplace client, and 2.5% on online prepayments, both plus VAT.
Here is an illustration only. Suppose a first appointment is worth £40 and you gain 20 new marketplace clients over three years. At Fresha's 20% that is £8 each, so £160. Booksy Boost at 30% is £12 each, so £240. Treatwell at 35% is £14 each, so £280. Your numbers will differ, so swap in your own price and your own count.
Commission is often worth paying, because it brings in people you would not otherwise meet. The point is simply to know the figure.
Cost two: your time between tools
If your booking, forms, reminders, payments and notes sit in different places, someone has to move information between them. That someone is you. Count it honestly: how many minutes a week do you spend copying a client's details, chasing a form, or checking a payment? Multiply by your hourly rate, then by 156 weeks. We are not going to guess your number, because only you can count it, and it is often the largest of the three.
Cost three: not owning the platform
We build it and set it up; you approve it.
When you leave, you generally keep what you can export and lose the rest. Fresha, for example, says marketplace profiles are unlisted and card details cannot be transferred. That is not a complaint, it is how these services work. But it means the value you build, such as your reviews, your page and your booking history, sits on someone else's land. "Your platform. Not ours." is the alternative: your own accounts, domain and records.
Where The Finisher fits
We are not going to claim that we win on subscription alone. A one-finished-system approach is about the second and third costs: fewer tools to stitch together by hand, and a system you own. Whether it is better for you depends on your numbers, so work them out first.
Do this next
- Write down what you actually pay each month, including add-ons.
- List how many new clients came through a marketplace in the last year and what they paid.
- Time yourself for one week on admin between tools.
- Multiply by 36 and compare it with the table above.
- Ask any provider for their exit terms in writing.
Want to see what a finished system looks like for your craft? Start at our page for your craft.
Sources
- fresha.com: Pricing (read 22 Oct 2026, used for the 20% one-time new-client commission)
- fresha.com: Manage your fresha plan (read 22 Oct 2026)
- fresha.com: Export your client list (read 22 Oct 2026)
- biz.booksy.com: Pricing (read 22 Oct 2026)
- treatwell.co.uk: Pricing (read 22 Oct 2026)
- squareup.com: Pricing (read 22 Oct 2026)
Last checked 22 October 2026. General guidance, not legal or tax advice.
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