SimplyBook.me

Overview

SimplyBook.me is a booking and scheduling platform for service businesses that want clients to arrange appointments across several channels. It suits solo operators and growing teams that need payments and staff calendars alongside booking; its main trade-off is that monthly booking quotas and provider caps rise by plan.

Businesses can collect payments and deposits, offer group and recurring bookings, and send automated reminders. Two-way calendar sync and a broad range of integrations make it useful when scheduling needs to connect with existing business tools.

Key features

• Client booking and payments: Clients can book through websites, social media, Google, and client apps. Businesses can collect payments and deposits through bookings, making SimplyBook.me a fit for services that want scheduling and payment in one workflow.
• Scheduling and team management: Two-way sync with Google Calendar and Outlook helps keep calendars aligned. Paid plans support multiple providers, system users, roles, and team calendars. Group and recurring bookings are supported, but there is no round-robin scheduling, so it is a weaker fit for businesses that need appointments automatically distributed among providers.
• Integrations: Connections include Facebook, Instagram, Google My Business, QuickBooks, FreshBooks, Xero, WordPress, and APIs, as well as more than 5,000 integrations overall. That breadth can help businesses fit bookings into an existing workflow.
• Mobile, security, and support: Web, iOS, and Android access includes apps for administrators to manage bookings and clients to make them. Security measures include ISO 27001, SSL, SSO, daily backups, and GDPR compliance. HIPAA-enabling features require specific settings and are not active by default. Human support is available 24/7, with weekday chat and email coverage; agents support English, Portuguese, Spanish, Chinese, French, Italian, and Ukrainian.

Pricing

The free plan costs nothing and has no time limit, but it must be renewed monthly. It allows 50 bookings per month, one custom feature, and one provider. That is a sensible starting point for a solo provider with modest volume, but the caps leave little room for a busy schedule or additional staff.

Basic costs €11.9 per month billed annually or €13.9 per month billed monthly. It raises capacity to 100 bookings, three custom features, and five providers, making it the first step for small teams that have outgrown the free limits. Standard costs €24.9 per month billed annually or €29.9 per month billed monthly, with 500 bookings, eight custom features, and 15 providers; it is better suited to a busier operation with more staff and varied booking needs.

Premium costs €49.9 per month billed annually or €59.9 per month billed monthly. It allows 2,000 bookings, unlimited custom features, and 30 providers, so it suits larger teams that would otherwise run into feature or capacity ceilings. Enterprise has custom pricing, custom booking capacity, unlimited custom features, and custom provider limits for organizations that need a tailored scale.

Annual billing offers a 17% saving. A 14-day trial includes most custom features, with several exclusions, and requires no credit card or payment information. That gives businesses a chance to assess broader access before choosing a tier.

Platforms

SimplyBook.me runs on the web and has iOS and Android apps. Clients can book through websites, social media, Google, and client apps, while the mobile apps also let administrators manage bookings.

Who it's for

SimplyBook.me is a strong match for solo professionals and service businesses growing into multi-provider teams, especially those that want payments, group bookings, reminders, and calendar sync together. Its plan ladder spans small businesses through enterprises. It is less suitable for businesses that need round-robin assignment or require HIPAA-related settings to be active without configuration.

Pros and cons

• Pro: Booking, deposits, payments, reminders, recurring appointments, and group bookings cover much of the client appointment workflow in one service.
• Pro: Provider and booking quotas scale across plans, while team calendars, roles, and system users support larger teams.
• Pro: The free plan has no time limit, and the 14-day trial does not require payment information.
• Con: The free tier is capped at 50 monthly bookings, one provider, and one custom feature, limiting its use for busy or multi-person businesses.
• Con: Round-robin scheduling is not supported, which rules it out for teams that need automatic provider rotation.
• Con: HIPAA-enabling features are not active by default and need specific settings.

Alternatives

Setmore is worth considering for a small team that wants a free plan supporting up to four users; its listed Pro plan costs $5 a month.

Salonist is another freemium option, with a free marketplace-listing plan that includes 50 appointments per month, online booking, and calendar and scheduling tools.

Zoho Bookings may suit a solo user looking for a free plan and a 15-day premium trial without credit card details; its free tier is limited to one user and one event type.

Salonized is a paid alternative with a free trial and an Appointments plan priced at €21.00 per month, with annual billing available at a 10% discount.

Acuity Scheduling is a paid option with a free trial; its Starter plan costs $20 a month when paid annually and includes one calendar.

Orbis Salon is a paid alternative with a free trial.

GlossGenius is a paid option with a free trial; its Standard plan costs $28 a month.

Kitomba is a paid alternative with Lite and Grow plans.

For more options, browse salon and spa scheduling software or appointment scheduling software.

Verdict

Choose SimplyBook.me if your service business needs client-facing booking, payment collection, and room to scale from one provider to a larger team. Its combination of booking channels, calendar sync, and integrations is the clearest reason to choose it; look elsewhere if you need round-robin scheduling or want HIPAA-enabling settings active without extra configuration.