Booking Apps for Makeup Artists, Compared
Last updated October 24, 2026 · By StyleSeat Editorial Team
The alarm goes at 4:50. The bride’s suite is on the ninth floor. The elevator is slow, so you carry the kit up in two trips.
Someone hands you a coffee. The light in that room is bad, and you knew it would be, so the ring light came too.
By 9:15 six faces are done and you are loading the car. The booking for this morning was taken nine months ago.
A booking app for makeup artists has to do three things. Hold a date months out, take money up front, and still find you someone new. Plenty of apps do the first. The third is where the list gets short.
Highlights
- StyleSeat is $35 a month, with a promotion running at $19, after a 21-day free trial. Prepaid packages and the marketing tools are included.
- Acuity starts at $20 a month for one calendar, and text reminders begin on the $34 plan.
- Booksy is $29.99, Fresha $19.95, Vagaro $30 list and GlossGenius $28 for Standard.
- A new client from StyleSeat’s marketplace costs 30% of that first booking, capped at $50, once ever.
A bridal calendar is not a salon calendar
A stylist books three weeks out. You book seasons out, and you block a whole Saturday for one person.
That changes what the software has to survive. A trial in March, the wedding in October, and a bridal party that grows by two in August. Meanwhile someone wants a 5:30am call time in a hotel you have never parked at.
So the deposit is not a nice extra. It makes a held date real, and deposits beat a policy every time.
What each booking app for makeup artists costs
| Monthly | Sends you new clients | New-client fee | Strong at | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| StyleSeat | $35, with a promotion running at $19; 21-day trial | Yes — a marketplace with 74M+ visits a year | 30% of the first visit, capped at $50, once per client | Prepaid packages, discovery, marketing in the price |
| Acuity Scheduling | $20 Starter · $34 Standard · $61 Premium | No marketplace or directory | None — it sends none | Intake forms, six calendars on Standard |
| Booksy | $29.99, plus $20 per extra user | Yes | Boost: 30% of the first visit, $10 minimum, $100 ceiling | A large consumer app |
| Fresha | $19.95 Independent · $14.95 per team member on Team | Yes | 20% one-time, $6 minimum, with a cap it does not publish | A marketplace and a long add-on menu |
| GlossGenius | $28 Standard · $56 Gold · $168 Platinum | No marketplace or directory | None — it sends none | Design, a tidy solo setup |
| Vagaro | $30 list, plus $10 per added calendar up to seven | A free listing, reach not published | Fill My Books: 20% of a new client, with a ceiling Vagaro does not publish; 5% of a returning one | A deep add-on menu |
| Square Appointments | Plus $49 per location | Square Go, a free profile | None | Card hardware and retail |
One line matters more for you than for a stylist in a chair. You often charge a card you cannot tap, because the client is in another city.
On StyleSeat that keyed and card-on-file rate is 2.6% + 30¢, after 1.9% + 30¢ for the first six months. Read the rates in that table at your own average ticket, not at a demo’s.
Money up front is the feature you are actually shopping for
A blocked Saturday that cancels in September is not an inconvenience. It is the whole weekend’s income, and it is gone too late to rebook.
StyleSeat handles the money-up-front side with Service Packages. A client buys two to twenty visits in advance, at up to half off. Redeeming one carries no fee.
That is how a trial, a touch-up and a wedding day end up paid before anyone gets in a car. Here is how to take prepaid appointments without chasing payments.
The part no app ever sees
You matched four skin tones under a window and a tungsten bulb this morning. Nobody books that. They book the photo afterwards.
Then there is the mother of the bride, who sat down saying she never wears makeup. Twelve minutes later she looked at herself and got quiet.
And on Sunday you depot, sanitise, label and repack a kit that costs more than your car payment. That is the job. The software is only there so the job starts on time.
A soft February has a price of its own
Acuity and GlossGenius both run no marketplace, and they say so plainly. They are clear about it, and that is a real trade to make. A pricing page can only price what it charges you.
A February with white space in it costs you as well. No subscription line shows that. For a freelance artist, one bridal party is often the difference.
StyleSeat spends millions a year in ads to find your next client. No new client, no fee. When one books, the fee is 30% of that first visit, capped at $50 and charged after the service. Every booking after that is yours, with no fee.
In a professional’s first year, New Client Connection drove an average of $1,904 in service revenue against $370 in fees. Put a $200 bridal booking through it. The cap holds the fee at $50. Add the tip and $190 stays with you, assuming a 20% tip.
It also runs beside what you already do, rather than replacing it. Keep the referrals and the Instagram work; five marketing tactics for makeup artists still do the heavy lifting.
The other half is what you charge
None of Acuity, Booksy, GlossGenius, Square or Vagaro raises your price when a date is in demand. Fresha lets you set a higher price in advance, by day and time window.
StyleSeat’s SmartPricing finds the busy slot and lifts the price, up to 20%. StyleSeat charges about 5.5% of a smart-priced appointment, capped at $16.50.
Professionals who use it average $385 a year in extra service revenue, and the busiest tenth clear over $1,000. That is written for a different artist than the empty-February one. She is already booked, and she wants prom weekend to pay like prom weekend.
How this works on StyleSeat
Your own booking page holds your regulars, your trials and your packages. The marketplace sits beside it, carrying your portfolio to people searching your city.
A stranger arrives as a request, not a surprise on your calendar. You have 24 hours to accept or decline, and less if the date is sooner.
That one subscription also covers email and text marketing, reminders and an automated booking assistant. Analytics, promotions, a loyalty program and review management come with it too. Reminders and confirmations are not metered. Texts you send yourself run on credits, with 500 free to start, then 750 for $5.
Who this is for
StyleSeat fits you if… your season has soft months you want strangers to fill. Or your season is already full, and you want SmartPricing to earn more from the dates you already work. Or you want prepaid packages, reminders and marketing inside one price.
Look at Acuity if… long intake forms and six separate calendars are the job, and discovery is not. Booksy and Fresha are the other two here with marketplaces. If you employ artists and need payroll, commission splits or stock-level inventory, Mangomint and Boulevard specialize in that.
Questions professionals ask
What does a booking app for makeup artists cost?
StyleSeat’s standing price is $35 a month, with a promotion running at $19. Promotional pricing moves, so confirm before you budget. The trial runs 21 days and asks for no card. Fresha is $19.95 for one person and Acuity $20 for one calendar. GlossGenius is $28 for Standard, Booksy $29.99 and Vagaro $30 list. Square Appointments Plus is $49 per location. Prepaid packages and the marketing tools sit inside the StyleSeat price.
Which of these apps can send a makeup artist new clients?
StyleSeat, Booksy and Fresha all run consumer marketplaces. Square has Square Go, a free profile. Vagaro offers a free listing whose reach neither company publishes. Acuity and GlossGenius run no marketplace at all, so every new client is one you found yourself.
Can a bride pay up front before I block the date?
Yes, through Service Packages. A client prepays two to twenty visits, at up to 50% off, and redemption carries no fee. Packages need Payments turned on and $1,000 processed.
What does a new client cost on StyleSeat?
No new client, no fee. When the marketplace brings one, you pay 30% of that first booking. The fee is capped at $50 and charged after the service. Every booking that client makes afterwards carries no fee at all.
Do text reminders cost extra?
On StyleSeat, appointment reminders and booking confirmations come with the subscription and are not metered. Texts you write and send yourself run on credits: 500 free to start, then 750 for $5. On Acuity, text reminders start on the $34 Standard plan rather than the $20 Starter plan.
Which app suits a team of artists?
StyleSeat includes staff calendars at no extra cost, so the subscription stays $35 a month, promoted at $19. Shared calendars with a receptionist are in beta. On Vagaro each added bookable calendar is $10 a month, up to seven. Booksy adds $20 per extra user.
Should I switch in the middle of wedding season?
Move your service menu over in a quiet week. Keep both calendars open for one cycle, and let the deposits tell you it worked. Know what you want fixed first — a messy inbox and an empty March are different problems. Work out what a new client actually costs before you decide.
Open last year’s calendar and find the months with white space in them. That space is not a verdict on your work; it is a gap in who has heard of you. Building a freelance makeup clientele starts there. The subscription is $35 a month, with a promotion running at $19, and your first 21 days are free. Pricing, fees and trial terms all sit on the StyleSeat pricing page.
StyleSeat is not affiliated with Acuity Scheduling, Booksy, Fresha, GlossGenius, Vagaro, Square, Mangomint or Boulevard. This post is general information, not legal or tax advice.
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