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Scheduling · head to head

Amilia SmartRec vs SimplyBook.me

Amilia SmartRec logo

Amilia SmartRec

Scheduling

Registration and activity management for community recreation, with a 1% fee on top of the subscription

From
$99/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
SimplyBook.me logo

SimplyBook.me

Scheduling

Online booking system for service businesses

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only SimplyBook.me has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Amilia SmartRec the 1% fee on each new invoice item sits on top of both the subscription and card processing, so an organisation invoicing two million dollars pays around twenty thousand a year in a fee that never appears in a plan comparison.; SimplyBook.me pricing model includes many features locked behind custom add-ons
  • They diverge on capability: Amilia SmartRec covers Activity registration, SimplyBook.me covers Booking website.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Amilia SmartRec and SimplyBook.me actually diverge.

Attributes where Amilia SmartRec and SimplyBook.me differ
AttributeAmilia SmartRecSimplyBook.me
Starting price$99/monthFree
Pricing modelPer month plus 1% of invoiced itemsfreemium
Free tierNoYes
FoundedUnknown2009

Identical on both: platforms (Web, iOS, Android), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Scheduling).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Amilia SmartRec

  • Activity registration
  • Family accounts
  • Memberships
  • Facility booking
  • Point of sale
  • Online store
  • Financial reporting
  • Bilingual interface

Only in SimplyBook.me

  • Booking website
  • Client management
  • Payment processing
  • Marketing tools
  • Custom branding
  • Google Calendar
  • Outlook
  • Zoom

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Amilia SmartRec

  • A municipal recreation department replacing paper and phone registration for seasonal programmesnot SimplyBook.me
  • A community centre that needs one family account covering several children across different activitiesnot SimplyBook.me
  • A bilingual Canadian organisation required to serve residents in English and Frenchnot SimplyBook.me
  • A sports club running leagues, camps and memberships that currently sit in three separate systemsnot SimplyBook.me

SimplyBook.me

  • Schedulingnot Amilia SmartRec
  • Appointment bookingnot Amilia SmartRec
  • Time trackingnot Amilia SmartRec
  • Resource managementnot Amilia SmartRec
  • Team coordinationnot Amilia SmartRec

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Amilia SmartRec

  • The 1% fee on each new invoice item sits on top of both the subscription and card processing, so an organisation invoicing two million dollars pays around twenty thousand a year in a fee that never appears in a plan comparison.
  • Implementation is charged separately, from $899 on Standard and $2,999 on Advanced, which for a small community organisation is several months of subscription before the system goes live.
  • Parks and facilities management is shallower than a dedicated municipal recreation platform, so departments managing complex field allocation and maintenance schedules will still need another system.
  • Reporting is oriented towards revenue rather than programme utilisation, so recreation managers analysing attendance patterns and capacity end up exporting to spreadsheets.
  • Its strength is in Canada, and US municipalities find fewer local references, fewer integrations with American finance systems and less familiarity with state-specific requirements.

SimplyBook.me

  • Pricing model includes many features locked behind custom add-ons
  • No built-in video conferencing, requiring third-party integration
  • Limited CRM capabilities compared to dedicated sales platforms
  • Free plan capped at 5 bookings per month, limiting small business use

Pricing, plan by plan

Amilia SmartRec

$99/month
  • Standard$99/month
    • Activity registration and online store
    • Family accounts
    • 1% fee on each new invoice item
  • Advanced$499/month
    • Memberships, facility booking and point of sale
    • Advanced reporting
    • 1% fee on each new invoice item
  • Custom$undefined/year
    • For YMCAs, JCCs and parks and recreation departments
    • Scoped and quoted individually
    • Fee structure negotiated

SimplyBook.me

Free
  • FreeFree
    • 50 bookings/month
    • Booking website
    • Basic features
  • Basic$8.25/month
    • 100 bookings
    • Custom features
    • Payments
  • Standard$24.9/month
    • 500 bookings
    • All features
    • Multiple locations

Which should you pick?

Choose Amilia SmartRec if

  • You need activity registration.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android.
  • You also want family accounts.
Amilia SmartRec review

Choose SimplyBook.me if

  • You need booking website.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android.
  • You also want client management.
SimplyBook.me review

Questions people ask

Is Amilia SmartRec or SimplyBook.me better?
Neither clearly leads. Amilia SmartRec starts at $99/month and SimplyBook.me at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Amilia SmartRec or SimplyBook.me?
SimplyBook.me has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at $99/month for Amilia SmartRec and Free for SimplyBook.me.
Does Amilia SmartRec or SimplyBook.me run on more platforms?
Both run on Web, iOS, Android, so platform support will not decide this one for you.
Can I use SimplyBook.me for free?
Yes. SimplyBook.me has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Amilia SmartRec starts at $99/month.
What is Amilia SmartRec best used for?
Amilia SmartRec is most often used for a municipal recreation department replacing paper and phone registration for seasonal programmes, a community centre that needs one family account covering several children across different activities, a bilingual canadian organisation required to serve residents in english and french, a sports club running leagues, camps and memberships that currently sit in three separate systems. Of those, a municipal recreation department replacing paper and phone registration for seasonal programmes and a community centre that needs one family account covering several children across different activities are not what SimplyBook.me is typically brought in for.
What can Amilia SmartRec do that SimplyBook.me cannot?
Amilia SmartRec covers Activity registration, Family accounts, Memberships, Facility booking. SimplyBook.me covers Booking website, Client management, Payment processing, Marketing tools.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Amilia SmartRec: What is the real total cost?

Subscription from $99 or $499 a month, plus roughly 1% on each new invoice item, plus card processing around 2.85% plus $0.30, plus a one-off implementation fee. The percentage fees dominate at any real volume.

SimplyBook.me: Does SimplyBook.me offer a free plan?

Yes, SimplyBook.me offers a free plan for small businesses, though advanced features and custom add-ons require paid plans.

Source
Amilia SmartRec: Is the 1% negotiable?

On the Custom tier for larger organisations, the fee structure is part of the negotiation. On the published plans it is not.

Amilia SmartRec: Does it work in French?

Yes, throughout. That is a practical requirement for Quebec and many bilingual Canadian public bodies and a genuine reason to choose it there.

Amilia SmartRec: Can it replace a municipal recreation system?

For registration and memberships, often yes. For parks asset and facility maintenance management, no.

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