Covered Beauty vs Fresha.
More room in the budget.
Been charged for a client who was already yours? Here nobody takes a cut of a booking. Their first, their fiftieth, never. When we checked on 1 November 2026, Fresha’s plan for one person was £14.95 a month excluding VAT, with a one-time 20% fee, minimum £4, on a new client from its marketplace. On a £45 first visit that’s £9.00 plus VAT.
Fresha, side by side
From Fresha’s own UK pages, read on 3 November 2026. We make Covered Beauty, so check us: every Fresha line is linked.
| What | Fresha | Covered Beauty |
|---|---|---|
| One person, a month | £14.95 before VAT, £17.94 with it. Source: Fresha UK pricing | £9 for Solo, and that’s the total billed. Pro is £14. |
| Five people, a month | £49.75 before VAT, £59.70 with it. Source: Fresha UK pricing | £19.99 for the Team plan, up to five people. |
| Fee on a new client | 20% once, £4 minimum, plus VAT, on a new client from its marketplace. £9 on a £45 visit. £4 on a £15 visit, which is 27%. Source: Fresha UK pricing and Fresha partner terms | £0 on any client. |
| Who counts as new | Someone who first finds you on its marketplace, books online and isn’t on your Clients list. It tracks their online activity to check. Source: Fresha help: Marketplace new client fees | With no fee, nobody has to decide. |
| The link you share | Links made inside your own profile carry no fee. Others made on Fresha do, and it isn’t responsible for refunding one if you used the wrong link. Source: Fresha partner terms | One link for your booking page. |
| Disputing a fee | Tell Fresha in writing within 10 days of receiving your monthly statement, or it’s treated as accepted. Source: Fresha partner terms | No booking fee to dispute. |
| Texts a month | 20 a month per person, then 6p a text. Reminder emails are free. Source: Fresha UK pricing | 50 on Solo, 150 on Pro, 300 on the Team plan. They cover confirmations, changes and cancellations as well as reminders, so a booking with a confirmation and a reminder uses two. When they run out, texts pause until the 1st, or 150 more cost £6.50. Reminder emails are included. |
| Card fee on a £45 online payment | 88p, at 1.40% + 25p. Source: Fresha UK pricing | 88p, at Stripe’s 1.5% + 20p on a standard UK card. |
| Getting help | One person: email, typical reply 2 days, and live chat. Phone comes with the Team plan. Source: Fresha UK pricing | Help chat, answered by an AI assistant, and email, on every plan. No phone line. |
| Notice before a price change | 30 days in writing. Source: Fresha partner terms | At least 30 days by email, in our Terms. |
| Free trial | 7 days. Source: Fresha UK pricing | 7 days, no card. |
Where Fresha is the better choice
If its marketplace is filling your diary, the fee can pay for itself. We don’t have a big marketplace, so we won’t find you new clients the way it can. It also has phone support on its Team plan, and add-ons we don’t match, such as an AI that answers calls.
Fresha’s pricing page says its rates are exclusive of 20% sales tax without saying which, so we’ve added VAT to the plans and the new client fee and left it off the card fees, which can only make Fresha look cheaper. Its pricing page showed no monthly fee until at least 30 January 2025, and one-person plans began between 16 August and 18 September 2025, going by saved copies in the Internet Archive, which were in US dollars. KKR invested $80m at a valuation over $1bn in May 2026, City AM reported. See every dated change in our booking app fee tracker, or work out what Fresha cost you this year with our cost calculator.
How much does Fresha cost compared with Covered Beauty?
A subscription is only part of the picture. Check the team allowance, commission rules and payment fees before choosing.
| What you are comparing | Covered Beauty | Fresha |
|---|---|---|
| One practitioner | Solo: £9/month, or Pro with the extras: £14/month | Independent: £14.95/month, excluding VAT. No free plan listed Source: Fresha UK pricing |
| Five bookable people | Team plan: £19.99/month for up to five | Team: £9.95 per person/month. Five people: £49.75, excluding VAT Source: Fresha UK pricing |
| New-client commission | 0%, including a client's first booking | 20% once for a new client introduced through its marketplace, minimum £4, excluding VAT. On a £45 first visit that’s £9.00 plus VAT Source: Fresha UK pricing |
| How a client counts as new | There’s no new-client fee, so nobody has to decide who counts as new | Its pricing page says clients who find you through your own website, Instagram or Facebook aren’t charged. Its help centre says the fee applies when a client first discovers you on its marketplace, books online and isn’t on your Clients list, and that it tracks their online activity Source: Fresha UK pricing and Fresha help: Marketplace new client fees |
| Direct and repeat bookings | No booking commission | No new-client commission on direct bookings or returning clients Source: Fresha UK pricing |
| Card payments | Stripe’s fee, 1.5% + 20p on a standard UK card online | Online 1.40% + 25p. In person 1.19% + 20p, plus 7p for each Tap to Pay. Typed in by hand 2.20% + 20p Source: Fresha UK pricing |
| Deposits and saved cards | Card deposits through Stripe on every plan, paid into your own Stripe account | Need Fresha Payments switched on Source: Fresha help: Payment policies overview |
| Text messages | 50 texts a month on Solo, 150 on Pro and 300 on the Team plan, then top-ups if you need them | 20 free a month on Independent, then 6p a text. Marketing texts 8p a text Source: Fresha UK pricing |
Fresha prices and terms checked 1 November 2026 on Fresha UK pricing, Fresha help: Marketplace new client fees and Fresha help: Payment policies overview. Covered Beauty prices are the advertised monthly subscriptions in our pricing section. Fresha’s VAT exclusions are stated in its column. Card processing and optional extras are separate. Features and tax treatment differ, so this is not a like-for-like total-cost quote. Check each provider’s current terms before signing up.
Is Covered Beauty a good Fresha alternative?
Covered Beauty is worth a look if you want your own branded booking page, client records and deposits, with a small monthly subscription. For up to five people, the Team plan is one price for the team.
We do not market to your client list. You can export your records and cancel your subscription. Read our promise for the details.
See how online booking works and what is in a client record.
Weighing up more than two systems? Read Fresha alternatives for small UK salons, with how each one charges and who it suits, or the best salon booking software in the UK, with twelve options and the kind of business each one fits.
Not sure what Fresha costs you now? Read Is Fresha free? What it costs a UK salon in 2026, with every charge from its own pages.
Choosing between the big three? Read Fresha vs Booksy vs Treatwell, side by side from their own pages.
Who is Fresha better for?
Fresha combines business software with a consumer marketplace and supports larger teams. If that marketplace brings you profitable new business, include its value in your decision.
Count what a new client costs, then count the team.
On a £45 first visit from its marketplace, Fresha’s fee is £9.00, or £10.80 with VAT if you can’t claim it back. Here it’s £0, and Stripe’s card fee still applies when a client pays by card. For five bookable people, the listed monthly subscriptions are £19.99 for the Covered Beauty Team plan and £49.75 excluding VAT for Fresha Team. Those are subscription figures, not total running costs. Add payment processing, messaging and any marketplace charges that actually apply to your business.
How do I switch from Fresha to Covered Beauty?
- Add a few treatments with the prices and durations you actually use.
- Set your working hours and open the booking page on your phone.
- Check the diary, a client record and the consent forms you need.
- Export your client list from Fresha and upload it to Covered Beauty as it is. We pick out each client’s name, email and phone.
- Ask us about future appointments and any prepaid balances. Keep access to Fresha until you have checked everything.
Every step, with what Fresha lets you export and how we can do the move for you, is in our guide to moving from Fresha.
Need help working out the move? Tell us what you use now. We can confirm what is possible before you commit. Our salon software checklist covers the rest of the move.
Questions about switching from Fresha
Is Fresha free?
No. When we checked on 1 November 2026, Fresha’s UK pricing page listed no free plan. Independent is £14.95 a month for one person and Team is £9.95 per team member a month, both excluding VAT, each with a 7-day free trial. Marketplace new client fees and card fees are on top. Saved copies of its pricing page in the Internet Archive, in US dollars, show no monthly fee until at least 30 January 2025, a paid Team plan between 30 January and 25 April 2025, and one-person plans starting between 16 August and 18 September 2025. UK App Store reviews say UK owners started paying in October 2025. We couldn’t find Fresha’s own notice of the change.
Does Fresha charge 20% on every booking?
No. Its UK pricing page describes a one-time fee for a new client introduced through the Fresha marketplace. Direct bookings and returning clients do not attract that new-client fee. Covered Beauty charges no booking commission.
How does Fresha decide who counts as a new client?
Its help centre says the fee applies when a client first discovers you on its marketplace, then books online, and isn’t already on your Clients list. It says it tracks the client’s online activity to check. Clients you’ve added or imported beforehand aren’t charged. Each fee shows in your business wallet as a New Fresha client fee, with the client’s name, so you can count them.
Can I try Covered Beauty before switching?
Yes. You get seven days free, with no card needed. Add a card before the trial ends if you want to carry on, and your chosen plan starts when it does. Solo is £9/month, Pro £14 and the Team plan £19.99 for up to five people. Stripe processing fees and optional extras are separate.
How does Covered Beauty compare with other systems?
Covered Beauty
vs Treatwell
Compare a direct booking system with a salon marketplace.
Read the comparisonCovered Beauty
vs Booksy
Compare subscriptions, extra users and optional Boost.
Read the comparisonFresha alternatives
for small UK salons.
Seven booking systems small salons look at instead of Fresha, four more you may come across, and how each one charges.
Read the guideSee all 22 comparisons on one page.
