Fresha Pricing 2026: Real Costs & Hidden Fees
Fresha's subscription starts at CA$29.95/month for a one-person business (CA$19.95 per team member per month for teams, per Fresha's own pricing page), but the real cost includes payment processing of 2.79% + CA$0.20 per online transaction, a 20% one-time commission (minimum CA$6) on every brand-new client who first books you through the Fresha marketplace, and paid add-ons like the AI Concierge at CA$139.95 per location monthly. If you want a booking system plus a full AI-run website, CRM, and content engine for a flat CA$497/month with a CA$1,497 one-time setup, AI Business Sites is the done-for-you alternative with no per-transaction or marketplace fees.
Bottom line: Fresha wins on low entry cost and a mature salon booking toolset; AI Business Sites wins if you want your own website, SEO content, and AI back office with no transaction or marketplace commissions. The right pick depends on whether you need a booking app or a full online presence.
TL;DR
- •Fresha's subscription is CA$29.95/month for a solo professional or CA$19.95 per bookable team member per month for teams, with a 7-day trial on both plans.
- •Payment processing on Fresha costs 2.79% + CA$0.20 per online transaction and 2.29% + CA$0.20 in person (plus CA$0.15 per Tap to Pay authorization).
- •Every brand-new client who first books you through the Fresha marketplace triggers a one-time 20% commission with a minimum fee of CA$6 per client; returning clients are always free.
- •Optional add-ons include the AI Concierge (CA$139.95 per location/month with 200 minutes included, then CA$0.84 per extra minute), Client Loyalty (CA$79.95), Google Rating Boost (CA$20.95), and Team Connect (CA$3.95 per team member).
- •Payment terminals start at CA$189 per device, and marketing texts cost CA$0.08 each after 100 free monthly notifications.
- •AI Business Sites charges a $1,497 one-time setup and $497/month flat — no transaction fees or marketplace commission — and includes a custom 85+ page website, CRM, AI chat and voice booking, and 14+ SEO content pieces monthly.
- •Fresha suits salons and spas that want marketplace-driven new clients; AI Business Sites suits service businesses that want to own their web presence and avoid per-booking fees.
| Dimension | Fresha | AI Business Sites |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | CA$29.95/mo (Independent) or CA$19.95 per team member/mo (Team); 7-day trial; Enterprise customwinner | $1,497 one-time setup + $497/mo flat, month-to-month |
| Payment processing | 2.79% + CA$0.20 online; 2.29% + CA$0.20 in person (+CA$0.15 Tap to Pay); Klarna 6.99% + CA$0.30 | Stripe payments built in; no platform transaction feewinner |
| New-client acquisition | Marketplace listing brings new clients at a 20% one-time commission (min CA$6); free Facebook/Instagram/Google bookings | SEO content engine (14+ pieces/month) plus comparison pages targeting competitor searches |
| Website & SEO | No website builder — online presence is a Fresha marketplace profile | Custom 85+ page website with schema markup, AI featured images, and automated internal linkingwinner |
| Ease of use | Intuitive drag-and-drop calendar; some learning curve for advanced features | Nothing to run — vendor manages everything; client approves via one queuewinner |
| Support | Email and chat (Independent); phone, chat, and email (Team) | Vendor team manages, monitors, and improves the system ongoingwinner |
| Integrations | Facebook, Instagram, Google bookings; Klarna BNPL; limited third-party integrations | Stripe, Google Business Profile, Search Console, booking calendars, Cal.com/Calendly (Receptionist) |
| Setup | Self-serve signup, 7-day free trial, no build projectwinner | $500 deposit, 7-day build, 85+ pages live at launch, approval before balance due |
| Ownership & exit | Cancel anytime; workspace access and marketplace listing end with the billing cycle (reviews restored on reactivation) | Client owns code, content, data, domain; full code to GitHub + database export on exitwinner |
Fresha
fresha.com ↗Fresha is a cloud-based booking and business management platform for salons, barbers, spas, medspas, massage, fitness, tattoo, and pet grooming businesses, claiming 130,000+ partner businesses, 450,000+ professionals, and over 1 billion appointments booked across 120+ countries. The platform combines a color-coded drag-and-drop calendar with unlimited bookings, waitlists, group appointments, and processing times; client management with appointment history, service notes, consultation forms, and lifetime-value tracking; built-in POS with retail and inventory; and marketing tools including deals, gift cards, packages, and memberships. Online booking is available through a client booking app, direct booking links, and free Facebook, Instagram, and Google bookings, plus listing on the Fresha consumer marketplace — the world's largest beauty and wellness marketplace — where new clients can discover your business. Payments are integrated with upfront payments, deposits, no-show fees, Klarna Buy Now Pay Later, and daily payouts. Fresha monetizes through a subscription per bookable team member plus payment processing fees and a one-time commission on marketplace-acquired new clients. Reviews collected after appointments power marketplace visibility with AI-powered summaries.
| Plan | Price | What you get |
|---|---|---|
| Independent | $29.95/mo | 1 bookable team member, single calendar column, 100 free messages, 50 free marketing emails, email and chat support, 7-day trial |
| Team (per team member) | $19.95/mo | Unlimited team members billed per bookable member, multiple calendar columns, 100 free messages per member, 50 free marketing emails per member, phone/chat/email support, 7-day trial |
| Enterprise | — | Custom rates for high-volume businesses with over 20 team members |
Pros
- +Low subscription entry point at CA$29.95/month for independents with a 7-day free trial
- +Free online booking across the client app, direct links, Facebook, Instagram, and Google
- +Marketplace listing can bring in brand-new clients (over 1 billion appointments booked platform-wide)
- +Deep salon-specific feature set: POS, inventory, gift cards, packages, memberships, consultation forms, patch tests
- +No-show reduction tools via upfront payments, deposits, and cancellation fees
- +Free automated email notifications and 100 free monthly text/WhatsApp notifications
Cons
- −The 20% one-time marketplace commission (minimum CA$6) applies to every new client Fresha sends you
- −Payment processing is mandatory for online bookings: 2.79% + CA$0.20 online, 2.29% + CA$0.20 in person
- −Marketplace profiles sit alongside competing salons and med spas, and clients book through a Fresha account rather than your own site
- −Support is email and chat only on the Independent plan; phone support requires the Team plan
- −No website builder — your online presence is a Fresha marketplace profile, not your own website
- −Add-ons add up: AI Concierge CA$139.95/location/month, Client Loyalty CA$79.95, Google Rating Boost CA$20.95
Best for: Salons, barbershops, spas, and beauty/wellness professionals who want a mature, salon-specific booking and POS system and are willing to pay processing fees and marketplace commissions in exchange for a steady stream of new marketplace clients.. Avoid if: You want your own branded website with SEO content, dislike per-transaction and marketplace fees, or need deep third-party integrations like QuickBooks or payroll..
AI Business Sites
aibusinesssites.com ↗AI Business Sites, built by AIQ Labs, is a done-for-you AI business operating system: the vendor builds and runs your entire online presence — a custom website with 85+ pages live at launch, Google Business Profile setup, and an AI back office including a CRM, 24/7 chat and voice agents, a content engine, and automations. Everything is live within 7 days of kickoff, and the client owns everything: code, content, data, and domain. The $497/month plan includes hosting, 14+ new SEO content pieces per month, daily industry news, a field-service module with jobs, quotes, scheduling, and invoicing, and online selling with Stripe (store, restaurant menus, bookings, tickets). Four optional add-ons are available: Lead Generation ($149/mo), Outreach ($229/mo), Social Content ($299/mo), and an AI Receptionist with a dedicated 24/7 phone number ($199/mo). It is month-to-month with 30 days' notice, and leaving clients receive their full website code and a database export.
| Plan | Price | What you get |
|---|---|---|
| Setup (one-time) | $1497/one_time | $500 deposit to start, $997 due at launch; custom 85+ page website, Google presence, CRM, chat/voice agents, live in 7 days |
| Managed subscription | $497/mo | Hosting, 14+ content pieces/month, 24/7 chat and voice, CRM, jobs & estimates, store/bookings with Stripe, 3 user seats |
| AI Receptionist add-on | $199/mo | Dedicated phone number answered 24/7, appointment booking, call transcripts and summaries |
| Lead Generation add-on | $149/mo | AI B2B lead discovery with business-intelligence summaries |
| Outreach add-on | $229/mo | AI cold email engine with human approval and CRM reply classification |
| Social Content add-on | $299/mo | Daily posts across 9 platforms with AI images/videos |
Pros
- +One flat price — no per-transaction processing fees and no commission on any client, however they find you
- +Fully done-for-you: built, managed, monitored, and improved by the vendor, live in 7 days
- +You own everything — code, content, data, domain — with a clean exit path (GitHub repo + database export)
- +Includes a real website with 85+ pages and ongoing SEO content, not just a marketplace profile
- +Booking, payments, CRM, reviews, and content in one system instead of multiple subscriptions
- +Month-to-month with no long-term contract
Cons
- −Higher entry cost: $1,497 setup plus $497/month versus Fresha's CA$29.95/month subscription
- −Not salon-specific — no Fresha-style consumer marketplace to source new beauty clients
- −No 7-day free trial; you commit to the $500 deposit to start the build
- −Phone answering requires the $199/mo AI Receptionist add-on (the included voice agent is website-only)
Best for: Local service businesses — trades, clinics, salons, restaurants, agencies — that want their own website, SEO content, and an AI-run booking/CRM back office managed entirely for them, with no per-booking fees.. Avoid if: You want the cheapest possible booking tool, enjoy running your own stack DIY, or rely on a consumer marketplace app to fill your calendar..
Pricing compared: subscription vs. the real cost per booking
Fresha's headline subscription is CA$29.95/month for a one-person business or CA$19.95 per bookable team member per month for teams, both with a 7-day trial, per Fresha's own pricing page. That is dramatically cheaper month-to-month than AI Business Sites' $497/month managed plan with a $1,497 one-time setup ($500 deposit, $997 at launch). But Fresha's model monetizes activity: online payments cost 2.79% + CA$0.20 per transaction, in-person payments 2.29% + CA$0.20 (plus CA$0.15 per Tap to Pay authorization), manual card entry 3.30% + CA$0.20, and Klarna Buy Now Pay Later 6.99% + CA$0.30. The most consequential fee is the marketplace commission: every brand-new client who first discovers and books your business through the Fresha marketplace triggers a one-time 20% commission with a minimum of CA$6 per client — returning clients are always free. A salon doing CA$20,000/month in card volume would pay roughly CA$578/month in online processing alone at the 2.79% + CA$0.20 rate, before any marketplace commissions. AI Business Sites charges no platform transaction fee (standard Stripe card fees apply) and no commission on any client, so at higher volumes the flat $497/month can cost less overall — while also including the website, CRM, and content engine that Fresha doesn't offer. Add-ons differ too: Fresha's AI Concierge is CA$139.95 per location/month with 200 minutes included (then CA$0.84/extra minute), versus AI Business Sites' AI Receptionist at $199/mo with unlimited concurrent calls on a dedicated phone number.
The hidden costs of 'free' marketplace visibility
Fresha's marketplace is genuinely powerful — the platform reports 130,000+ partner businesses and over 1 billion appointments booked across 120+ countries, and a salon owner testimonial on Fresha's site credits the marketplace with hundreds of reviews and a 31% sales increase. But visibility has a price structure worth understanding before you opt in. First, the 20% one-time commission on every new client acquired through the marketplace (minimum CA$6) means your customer-acquisition cost scales directly with marketplace success — a CA$150 service booked by a new marketplace client costs you CA$30. Second, your marketplace profile is not an exclusive storefront: clients browsing Fresha see your business alongside competing salons, barbers, and med spas nearby, and bookings happen through the client's Fresha account rather than your own website. Third, if you cancel your Fresha plan, your workspace access and marketplace profile are removed at the end of the billing cycle — reviews become invisible to clients (though restored on reactivation). AI Business Sites takes the opposite approach: it builds your own 85+ page website with schema markup, publishes 14+ SEO content pieces monthly targeting your services and service areas, and generates comparison pages that target searches like '[competitor] pricing' and '[competitor] alternative' — so new-client acquisition compounds on a domain you own, with no per-client fee. The trade-off: Fresha's marketplace delivers demand in week one; SEO takes months to compound.
Features and fit: salon toolset vs. full business OS
Fresha is purpose-built for beauty and wellness: a color-coded drag-and-drop calendar with recurring bookings, group appointments, waitlists, and patch-test tracking; client profiles with color formulas, consultation forms, and lifetime-value calculations; built-in POS with retail and inventory; gift cards, packages, memberships, and deals; and automated post-appointment review invitations with AI-powered summaries on your marketplace profile. Communication is metered but generous at the base: 100 free monthly text/WhatsApp notifications (then CA$0.03 per text), 50 free marketing emails (then CA$0.02 each), and marketing texts at CA$0.08. Optional add-ons extend it: AI Concierge (CA$139.95/location/month), Client Loyalty (CA$79.95), Google Rating Boost (CA$20.95), Team Connect (CA$3.95 per team member), and terminals from CA$189 per device. AI Business Sites covers a broader service-business footprint: the website itself (85+ pages at launch), 24/7 chat and an embedded browser voice agent answering from your knowledgebase, a CRM with pipelines and instant lead follow-up, a Jobs & Estimates module (AI-drafted quotes with online approval, job board, visit calendar, invoices with card payment, automated review requests), Stripe-based selling (store, restaurant ordering, bookings, tickets), and the AI assistant with 250+ tools plus scheduled reports. Fresha wins for a salon that lives in its calendar and POS; AI Business Sites wins for a service business that needs the whole online operation — site, content, follow-up, and billing — run for it.
Which should you choose?
If you Run a salon, barbershop, or spa and want the lowest possible monthly software cost — choose Fresha — The Independent plan is CA$29.95/month with a 7-day trial, and the calendar, POS, and client tools are purpose-built for beauty and wellness..
If you Want new clients sourced for you immediately — choose Fresha — The Fresha marketplace is the world's largest beauty and wellness marketplace — though each brand-new marketplace client costs a one-time 20% commission (minimum CA$6)..
If you Want your own branded website that ranks on Google instead of a profile next to competitors — choose AI Business Sites — You get a custom 85+ page website with schema markup and 14+ new SEO content pieces monthly, all on a domain you own..
If you Do meaningful card volume and resent per-transaction and per-new-client fees — choose AI Business Sites — The flat $497/month has no platform transaction fee and no marketplace commission — at CA$20,000/month volume, Fresha's online processing alone would run roughly CA$578/month..
If you Quote, schedule, and invoice jobs in the field (trades, cleaners, mobile techs) — choose AI Business Sites — The Jobs & Estimates module — AI-drafted quotes, job board, visit calendar, invoices with card payment, and automated review requests — is included in the monthly price..
If you Want a done-for-you system where nothing technical is ever your job — choose AI Business Sites — The vendor builds, hosts, manages, and improves everything — live in 7 days — with month-to-month billing and full code/data ownership on exit..
Frequently asked questions
How much does Fresha actually cost per month in 2026?
Fresha's subscription is CA$29.95 per month for the Independent plan (one bookable team member) or CA$19.95 per bookable team member per month for the Team plan, each with a 7-day free trial, according to Fresha's own pricing page. Enterprise rates are custom for businesses with over 20 team members. On top of the subscription, you pay payment processing (2.79% + CA$0.20 online, 2.29% + CA$0.20 in person), a one-time 20% commission (minimum CA$6) on each brand-new client who first books through the Fresha marketplace, and optional add-ons such as the AI Concierge at CA$139.95 per location per month.
What is Fresha's 20% marketplace fee and when does it apply?
When a brand-new client discovers your business through the Fresha marketplace and books for the first time, Fresha charges a one-time commission of 20% of the booking, with a minimum fee of CA$6 per client. The fee applies only once per new client — returning clients can book through the marketplace indefinitely at no charge. Bookings that come through your own direct booking links, the client app shared with your business, Facebook, Instagram, or Google bookings do not trigger the commission.
Does Fresha charge for payment processing?
Yes. Fresha's rates are 2.79% + CA$0.20 per online payment, 2.29% + CA$0.20 per in-person payment (plus CA$0.15 per Tap to Pay authorization), 3.30% + CA$0.20 for manual card entry, and 6.99% + CA$0.30 for Klarna Buy Now Pay Later instalments. Payment terminals start at CA$189 per device. Processing is how Fresha monetizes the platform alongside the subscription, so a busy salon's effective monthly cost is substantially higher than the CA$29.95 or CA$19.95-per-member subscription alone.
Is AI Business Sites cheaper than Fresha?
It depends on volume and what you need. Fresha's subscription is much cheaper at the entry tier — CA$29.95/month versus AI Business Sites' $497/month plus a $1,497 one-time setup. But AI Business Sites charges no platform transaction fee and no marketplace commission, includes a custom 85+ page website, CRM, chat and voice agents, and 14+ SEO content pieces monthly, and is month-to-month with 30 days' notice. A business processing several thousand dollars monthly through Fresha could find the flat fee costs less overall while delivering assets Fresha doesn't provide.
Can clients book through my own website with Fresha?
Fresha provides free direct booking links and free Facebook, Instagram, and Google bookings, and clients can book through the Fresha client app — but Fresha does not include a website builder. Your online storefront on Fresha is a marketplace profile that appears alongside competing salons and med spas, and clients book through a Fresha account. If you want bookings embedded in your own branded website with your own SEO content, that requires a separate website — which is what AI Business Sites builds and manages as part of its $497/month plan.
What happens to my Fresha reviews and data if I cancel?
When you cancel your Fresha plan, workspace access and your marketplace profile are removed at the end of the current billing cycle. Your reviews are no longer visible to clients but are not deleted — they are restored if you reactivate the plan. Fresha also notes that client reviews remain visible even if a client's account is deleted or an appointment is refunded. AI Business Sites takes a different exit approach: you own the code, content, data, and domain from day one, and if you leave, the full website code is pushed to a GitHub repo in your name along with a complete database export.
Sources
- 1.Fresha | Salon Software and Booking System | Pricing — used for: pricing, features
- 2.Fresha | Top Salon Software | Salon Management Software — used for: features, reviews
- 3.Fresha - Instantly book salons and spas nearby — used for: reviews
- 4.Manage your Fresha plan — used for: pricing, features
- 5.Understand how clients leave reviews on Fresha — used for: features
- 6.Best Salon Software 2026: The Ultimate Comparison Guide — used for: features, reviews
- 7.AI Business Sites — done-for-you AI business presence — used for: pricing, features
Pricing verified as of 2026. Always check the vendor's site.
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