Which is cheapest: Fresha, Booksy or Treatwell?
For one person, Treatwell’s Connect Freelancer plan has the lowest monthly price at £9.99 plus VAT, then Fresha Independent at £14.95 plus VAT and Booksy at £40 plus VAT. The monthly price isn’t the whole bill. Fresha takes 20% once on a brand-new marketplace client, Treatwell takes 35% on a new client’s first marketplace booking, and Booksy only takes a fee when you switch on Boost. So the cheapest for you is the one whose monthly price and marketplace fees add up to least, which depends on how many new clients each one sends you. If your clients mostly come from Instagram, Google and word of mouth, an app with no marketplace costs less again: Covered Beauty, which we make, is £9 a month with no commission. Prices read on 2 November 2026.
We make Covered Beauty, so read this knowing that. Every other figure comes from the provider’s own page, linked under each table with the day we read it, and there are no affiliate links on this page.
What does each cost a month?
All three add VAT to their prices. If you aren’t VAT registered you can’t claim it back, so the columns with VAT are what leaves your bank.
| App | Just you | With VAT | Five people | With VAT |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fresha | £14.95 (Independent) | £17.94 | £49.75 (Team) | £59.70 |
| Booksy | £40 (One plan) | £48 | £60 (One plan) | £72 |
| Treatwell | £9.99 (Connect Freelancer) | £11.99 | £24.99 (Connect Advanced) | £29.99 |
Fresha’s Team plan is £9.95 for each team member, so it grows with your team. Booksy is one plan with everything in it, and each extra person adds £5. Treatwell’s Connect Advanced plan has no limit on people, and its Expert plan, for established salons, is £59 a month plus VAT.
Sources: Fresha UK pricing, Fresha help: new client fees, Booksy UK pricing, Booksy Boost and Treatwell UK pricing, checked 2 November 2026.
What does each take on a new client?
This is where the three differ most. Each can charge once on a new client its marketplace finds you, at a different rate. Here’s one new client’s first £40 visit.
| App | How it charges | Fee | With VAT |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fresha | 20% once on a brand-new marketplace client, minimum £4, plus VAT | £8 | £9.60 |
| Booksy | None unless you switch on Boost: 30% once on a Boost client's first visit, minimum £5, plus VAT | £12 | £14.40 |
| Treatwell | 35% + VAT on a new client's first marketplace booking, no minimum | £14 | £16.80 |
Booksy’s fee is only there with Boost switched on. Booksy says clients who come through your Instagram or Facebook button, Google, your own link or a QR code carry no commission either way. With Treatwell, a client who hasn’t booked with you on Treatwell for 365 days counts as new again.
Who counts as new, and how long you have to dispute a fee, differs too. Our post on who counts as your client sets out each one’s rules from its own pages.
Source: Booksy Boost, checked 2 November 2026.
Card fees, texts, deposits and forms
| In the plan | Fresha | Booksy | Treatwell |
|---|---|---|---|
| Card fees | 1.40% + 25p online, 1.19% + 20p in person | 1.29% + 20p + VAT | 2.5% + VAT on online prepayments |
| Texts | 20 a month, then 6p each | Confirmations and reminders free, 500 marketing texts | Free SMS confirmations and reminders |
| Deposits | Yes | No-show protection, card fees apply | Prepayment on Connect, deposits listed under Expert |
| No-show fees | Yes | Yes | Not stated |
| Consultation forms | Yes, and patch tests | Custom forms and waivers | Not stated |
| Free trial | 7 days | 7 days, no card | Start for free, terms not stated |
Where a cell says “Not stated”, the provider’s pricing page didn’t say, so ask them before you count on it.
Sources: Fresha UK pricing, Fresha help: new client fees, Booksy UK pricing, Booksy Boost and Treatwell UK pricing, checked 2 November 2026.
Which one suits you?
- Fresha if you want a marketplace and a low monthly price for one person, and you’re happy to pay once on each brand-new client it finds you. At £17.94 a month with VAT it costs less than Booksy for one person.
- Booksy if clients near you look for you in the Booksy app, and you’ll use its marketing texts and waitlists. You choose whether to pay for new clients, by switching Boost on or off.
- Treatwell if its marketplace sends you clients and you want the lowest monthly price of the three, at £11.99 with VAT. It takes the highest rate of the three on a new client, 35% plus VAT, but with no minimum, so on a first visit under £11.43 it takes less than Fresha or Booksy Boost would.
- None of them if most of your clients find you on Instagram, Google or by word of mouth. Look at where your last 20 new clients came from. If few came from the app, you’re paying for reach you aren’t using.
To work it out with your own numbers, the free booking app cost calculator adds up a year on each from your bookings, fees and VAT.
If you don’t need a marketplace
Covered Beauty, which we make, is booking software with no marketplace and no booking commission. It’s £9 a month for one person, £14 for Pro, or £19.99 for the Team plan, with no VAT added. Card deposits and no-show fees go into your own Stripe account, every plan has consultation forms with 25 ready-made templates, and Solo includes 50 texts a month. It’s 7 days free with no card.
Be clear about what you give up: it won’t find you new clients the way these three can. It suits people whose clients already know where to find them. Our guide to booking apps with no commission sets out the others, and the plans say what each includes.
Moving from one of them
Your clients come with you. Fresha and Treatwell let you export your client list, and Booksy’s UK help centre says to ask its support team for it. Each guide covers what comes with you, what stays behind and when to cancel:
- Moving from Fresha to Covered Beauty
- Moving from Booksy to Covered Beauty
- Moving from Treatwell to Covered Beauty
Sources: Fresha help: Export your client list, Booksy UK help: How do I obtain a copy of my client list and Treatwell help: How can I export my client list, checked 24 October 2026.
Questions about Fresha, Booksy and Treatwell
Which is cheapest: Fresha, Booksy or Treatwell?
For one person, Treatwell’s Connect Freelancer plan has the lowest monthly price at £9.99 plus VAT, then Fresha Independent at £14.95 plus VAT and Booksy at £40 plus VAT. The monthly price isn’t the whole bill. Fresha takes 20% once on a brand-new marketplace client, Treatwell takes 35% on a new client’s first marketplace booking, and Booksy only takes a fee when you switch on Boost. So the cheapest for you is the one whose monthly price and marketplace fees add up to least, which depends on how many new clients each one sends you. If your clients mostly come from Instagram, Google and word of mouth, an app with no marketplace costs less again: Covered Beauty, which we make, is £9 a month with no commission. Prices read on 2 November 2026.
Is Fresha cheaper than Booksy?
On the monthly price for one person, yes: Fresha Independent is £14.95 plus VAT and Booksy is £40 plus VAT. Fresha also charges 20% once on a brand-new client its marketplace finds you, with a £4 minimum, plus VAT. Booksy charges nothing on new clients unless you switch on Boost.
Does Booksy take commission?
Only through Boost, which is optional. With Boost on, Booksy takes 30% of a Boost client’s first visit once, with a £5 minimum, plus VAT. With Boost off, marketplace bookings carry no commission.
How much does Treatwell take from a booking?
35% plus VAT on a new client’s first booking through its marketplace, with no minimum. On a £40 first visit that’s £14, or £16.80 with VAT. A client who hasn’t booked with you on Treatwell for 365 days counts as new again.
Which suits a solo nail or lash tech?
It depends where your clients come from. If a marketplace keeps sending you new clients who come back, its fee can pay for itself. If most of your clients find you on Instagram, Google or by word of mouth, you’re paying for reach you don’t use, and a plan with no marketplace fee may well cost less.
Can I take my clients with me if I move?
Yes. Fresha and Treatwell let you export your client list, and Booksy’s UK help centre says to ask its support team for it. Our guides to moving from each one say how.
Is there a booking app with no commission at all?
Yes. Covered Beauty, which we make, charges no booking commission and no new client fee on any plan, from £9 a month, and there are free plans with limits from other providers. Stripe’s own fee applies to card payments.
Spotted something out of date? Email hello@covered.technology and we’ll check it and change it.
What else should you read?
Is Fresha free? What it costs a UK salon in 2026
What Fresha costs a UK salon today, with VAT, what it takes on new clients and what’s still free.
Read the guideBooksy alternatives for UK salons, and is Booksy worth it?
What Booksy costs with VAT, when it pays for itself, how Boost works and what to use instead.
Read the guideTreatwell alternatives for UK salons
What Treatwell charges, why a salon might look elsewhere, the alternatives with and without a marketplace, and how to move.
Read the guideEvery plan from every provider we could read is on UK booking app prices, cheapest first.
