BeautiDock vs Fresha: fees, features and who it suits (2026)

Fresha is a booking app with a large marketplace, POS and in-person payments, reported at $19.95 a month plus a fee on each new marketplace client; BeautiDock is your own booking website with deposits, email reminders and a loyalty card, with no new-client fees and a cost capped at $19 a month. If you need Fresha to find clients, it can earn its fee; if your book is mostly regulars, BeautiDock is usually cheaper and simpler.

Fresha's pricing page shows prices by country and served us European prices, so US figures below are reported by Pabau (updated September 2026).

Where Fresha is stronger

• Marketplace. Fresha lists you in a consumer app where clients search for nearby salons. The new-client fee is charged once and never on returning clients. BeautiDock has no marketplace.
• Payments in the salon. Fresha takes card payments at the chair (reported 2.19% + 20¢ in person in the US) and has a POS. BeautiDock only processes online deposits.
• Cheaper online card rate. A reported 2.79% + 20¢ online, versus BeautiDock's Stripe fee + 0.9% (about 3.8% + 30¢ on a US card).
• SMS available. Fresha sends text and WhatsApp messages (a small free allowance, then paid). BeautiDock is email only for now.
• Team pricing at scale. A reported $14.95 per team member beats a $19 cap per professional for larger teams.

Where BeautiDock is stronger

• No new-client fee. Every client who books on your site is yours, with no percentage taken. On Fresha, a $90 new marketplace client costs you a reported $18.
• Loyalty card included. Stamps per visit and a reward you choose. Fresha sells loyalty as an add-on (EUR 59.95 a month per location on its European page).
• Pay as you grow, with a cap. First 30 online bookings free, then $0.50 each, never more than $19 per professional per month. Bookings you add yourself are free.
• Your brand. A booking website with three templates, your colors and photos, a page per service and a team page; your own domain with the optional Pro look ($9/month).
• Deposits that refund themselves before your cancellation window, paid into your own Stripe account.
• Retention emails included: rebooking reminders and Google review requests.

What it costs: a worked example

Assumptions (labelled): one nail tech, 80 online bookings a month, average service $70, 4 of them new clients from the Fresha marketplace. Card processing and SMS excluded.

Honest caveats: if those 4 clients only found you through Fresha and keep coming back, $14 each is a fair price. And if you take a lot of online deposits, Fresha's lower online card rate narrows the gap. BeautiDock is the better deal when your new clients already come from Instagram, Google and referrals.

Switching from Fresha

1. Export your clients. In Fresha, go to Clients, then Clients list, then Options, and export to Excel or CSV (per Fresha's help center).
2. Set up BeautiDock: services, durations, prices, hours, deposits and your cancellation window. Import the CSV.
3. Book yourself on your new page, then cancel and rebook.
4. Share your new link in your Instagram bio, Google Business Profile, and with every client at checkout.
5. Keep Fresha until existing appointments are done, then cancel.

Weighing other options? Read Fresha and Booksy alternatives and free salon software, or start free on BeautiDock, no card needed.

Sources

• Pabau: Fresha pricing (updated September 2026)
• Fresha pricing page
• Fresha pricing, France (loyalty add-on, SMS)
• Fresha Help Center: Export your client list
• Stripe pricing
• BeautiDock pricing