Acuity Scheduling
Calendly
| Feature | Acuity Scheduling | Calendly |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | From $20/mo | Free / from $12/mo |
| Free Plan | ✗ No | ✓ Yes |
| Rating | 4.4 / 5 | 4.6 / 5 |
| Best For | service-providers, consultants, salons-spas, fitness-trainers | sales-teams, recruiters, consultants, freelancers, customer-success |
| Founded | 2006 | 2013 |
| Online Booking | ✓ | ✗ |
| Payment Processing | ✓ | ✗ |
| Reminders | ✓ | ✗ |
| Packages Memberships | ✓ | ✗ |
| Intake Forms | ✓ | ✗ |
| Calendar Sync | ✓ | ✓ |
| Group Classes | ✓ | ✗ |
| Gift Certificates | ✓ | ✗ |
| Scheduling | ✗ | ✓ |
| Routing | ✗ | ✓ |
| Workflows | ✗ | ✓ |
| Team Pages | ✗ | ✓ |
| Analytics | ✗ | ✓ |
| Integrations | ✗ | ✓ |
✓ Acuity Scheduling Pros
- Highly customizable for service businesses
- Integrated payment processing (Stripe, Square, PayPal)
- Robust reminder and follow-up email system
- Supports packages, memberships, and gift certificates
✗ Acuity Scheduling Cons
- No free plan available
- Interface feels dated compared to modern alternatives
- Limited to Squarespace ecosystem for some features
✓ Calendly Pros
- Eliminates scheduling friction completely
- Integrates with all major calendars
- Routing forms for lead qualification
- Team scheduling with round-robin
✗ Calendly Cons
- Free plan limited to one event type
- Can feel impersonal to some recipients
- Advanced routing only on higher plans
The Verdict
Acuity Scheduling is built for service providers and consultants, with a focus on online-booking and payment-processing. Calendly targets sales teams and recruiters and leads with scheduling and calendar-sync.
On pricing, Calendly is the clear winner for budget-conscious users — starting at $12/mo compared to $20/mo for Acuity Scheduling. That $8/mo difference adds up quickly for growing teams.
Calendly has a free plan, which gives it a meaningful edge for individuals and small teams exploring their options. Acuity Scheduling requires a paid subscription from day one.
Feature-wise, Acuity Scheduling offers broader built-in capabilities (8 features vs 7), while Calendly takes a more focused approach — which can mean a simpler, faster onboarding experience.
Both tools are a solid fit for consultants — in those cases, the decision often comes down to workflow style and how your team prefers to organize work.
This is a genuinely close comparison. If you can, sign up for both free trials (where available) and run a one-week test with your actual team tasks before deciding.
