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Scheduling & Booking · head to head

Fresha vs Sage 50

Fresha logo

Fresha

Scheduling & Booking

Free salon and spa software

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Sage 50 logo

Sage 50

Scheduling & Booking

Powerful desktop accounting for small businesses

From
$29/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Fresha has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Fresha fresha charges a 50 percent one time commission on each new client booked through its marketplace, subject to a minimum fee per client; Sage 50 sage 50 tiers as captured in 2022: Pro Accounting $595/year for 1 user, Premium Accounting $970/year for 1-5 users with multi-company support, Quantum Accounting $1,610/year for larger teams
  • They diverge on capability: Fresha covers Online booking, Sage 50 covers General ledger.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Fresha and Sage 50 actually diverge.

Attributes where Fresha and Sage 50 differ
AttributeFreshaSage 50
Starting priceFree$29/month
Pricing modelfreesubscription
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsWeb, Ios, AndroidWindows
CategoryScheduling & BookingUnknown
Founded20151981

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated).

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 Fresha

  • Online booking
  • Appointment management
  • Client database
  • Point of sale
  • Staff scheduling
  • Marketing tools
  • Reports & analytics
  • Google Calendar

Only in Sage 50

  • General ledger
  • Invoicing
  • Job costing
  • Budgeting
  • Microsoft 365
  • Salesforce
  • Local encryption
  • Backup

Both cover

  • Inventory management

What people use each for

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

Fresha

  • Running appointment booking and point of sale for salons and spasnot Sage 50
  • Attracting new clients through the Fresha consumer marketplacenot Sage 50
  • Sending appointment reminders and marketing campaigns to clientsnot Sage 50

Sage 50

  • Desktop accountingnot Fresha
  • Job costingnot Fresha
  • Inventory trackingnot Fresha

Where each one falls short

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

Fresha

  • Fresha charges a 50 percent one time commission on each new client booked through its marketplace, subject to a minimum fee per client
  • Online card payments carry a 4.90 percent plus fixed fee per transaction charge on top of the subscription
  • Only 20 SMS or WhatsApp notifications and 50 marketing emails are free each month; everything beyond that is billed per message
  • Team and Enterprise plans are quoted as custom rates with no published figure
  • Add ons such as Team Connect and Insights are billed per team member per month on top of the plan
  • Enterprise pricing applies to businesses with 20 or more team members

Sage 50

  • Sage 50 tiers as captured in 2022: Pro Accounting $595/year for 1 user, Premium Accounting $970/year for 1-5 users with multi-company support, Quantum Accounting $1,610/year for larger teams

Pricing, plan by plan

Fresha

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Unlimited appointments
    • Unlimited staff
    • Online booking
  • Payments (Add-on)$2.19/transaction
    • Card payments
    • Contactless payments
    • Online payments
  • Marketing (Add-on)$0.01/message
    • Email campaigns
    • SMS marketing
    • Automated messages

Sage 50

$29/month
  • Pro Accounting$50/month
    • Core accounting
    • 1 user
    • Basic reports
  • Premium Accounting$85/month
    • 5 users
    • Job costing
    • Inventory

Which should you pick?

Choose Fresha if

  • You need online booking.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Ios, Android.
  • You also want appointment management.
Fresha review

Choose Sage 50 if

  • You need general ledger.
  • You work on Windows.
  • You also want invoicing.
Sage 50 review

Questions people ask

Is Fresha or Sage 50 better?
Neither clearly leads. Fresha starts at Free and Sage 50 at $29/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Fresha or Sage 50?
Fresha has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Fresha and $29/month for Sage 50.
Does Fresha or Sage 50 run on more platforms?
Fresha runs on Web, Ios, Android. Sage 50 runs on Windows.
Can I use Fresha for free?
Yes. Fresha has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Sage 50 starts at $29/month.
What is Fresha best used for?
Fresha is most often used for running appointment booking and point of sale for salons and spas, attracting new clients through the fresha consumer marketplace, sending appointment reminders and marketing campaigns to clients. Of those, running appointment booking and point of sale for salons and spas and attracting new clients through the fresha consumer marketplace are not what Sage 50 is typically brought in for.
What can Fresha do that Sage 50 cannot?
Fresha covers Online booking, Appointment management, Client database, Point of sale. Sage 50 covers General ledger, Invoicing, Job costing, Budgeting. Both handle Inventory management.
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