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Calendars · head to head

Harvest Forecast vs Sawyer

Harvest Forecast logo

Harvest Forecast

Calendars

Simple visual resource planning

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Sawyer logo

Sawyer

Scheduling

Class and camp booking software for children activity businesses, with a marketplace that takes up to 30 percent

From
$189/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Harvest Forecast has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Harvest Forecast the free plan allows a single seat and 2 projects; Sawyer the Launch plan looks free but forces a marketplace listing at 30 percent commission, so a single high-value camp booking through the marketplace can cost more than a year of the Grow subscription would have.
  • They diverge on capability: Harvest Forecast covers Visual scheduling, Sawyer covers Class and camp registration.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Harvest Forecast and Sawyer actually diverge.

Attributes where Harvest Forecast and Sawyer differ
AttributeHarvest ForecastSawyer
Starting priceFree$189/month
Pricing modelsubscriptionPer business per month, plus marketplace commission
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsWebWeb, iOS, Android
CategoryCalendarsScheduling
Founded2006Unknown

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 Harvest Forecast

  • Visual scheduling
  • Capacity planning
  • Project assignments
  • Utilization reports
  • Harvest integration
  • Harvest
  • Google Calendar
  • iCal

Only in Sawyer

  • Class and camp registration
  • Memberships and class packs
  • Consumer marketplace
  • Auto-billing
  • Waivers and e-signature
  • Multi-location

What people use each for

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

Harvest Forecast

  • Team scheduling and capacity planningnot Sawyer
  • Project utilization optimizationnot Sawyer

Sawyer

  • A new kids activity studio with no mailing list that wants the marketplace to fill its first termsnot Harvest Forecast
  • An established music school moving off spreadsheets that will run Sawyer as software only and never list on the marketplacenot Harvest Forecast
  • A gym selling memberships, class packs and birthday parties that needs all three billed from one systemnot Harvest Forecast
  • A provider running summer camps alongside term-time classes who wants a single parent account for bothnot Harvest Forecast

Where each one falls short

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

Harvest Forecast

  • The free plan allows a single seat and 2 projects
  • Paid plans bill per seat with usage charged beyond the base rate rather than being purely flat
  • The Enterprise plan is $14 per seat per month against $9 on Teams
  • The 20% saving requires annual payment
  • Enterprise Plus is custom priced

Sawyer

  • The Launch plan looks free but forces a marketplace listing at 30 percent commission, so a single high-value camp booking through the marketplace can cost more than a year of the Grow subscription would have.
  • Marketplace commission applies to the order value, not the margin, so low-margin providers can lose money on a marketplace booking.
  • Payment processing fees are charged separately by Stripe on top of the subscription and any commission, which the plan comparison does not surface clearly.
  • The step from Grow to Scale doubles the monthly cost for account management and integrations rather than for capability most providers need, making the middle tier the only sensible choice for many.
  • It is built for consumer activity businesses, so providers who invoice schools, councils or corporate clients will find the billing model a poor fit.

Pricing, plan by plan

Harvest Forecast

Free
  • Monthly$6.25/month
    • Per-person billing
    • Team scheduling
    • Shift assignments and timelines
  • Annual$5/month
    • Per-person billing
    • 20% discount vs monthly

Sawyer

$189/month
  • Launch$undefined/month
    • No monthly subscription fee
    • 3 percent per transaction
    • Marketplace listing required, 30 percent commission on marketplace orders
  • Grow$189/month
    • 189 USD per month billed annually, 219 monthly
    • Marketplace listing optional, 20 percent commission if used
    • Advanced scheduling, waitlists, free trials
  • Scale$379/month
    • 379 USD per month billed annually, 399 monthly
    • Marketplace listing optional, 15 percent commission if used
    • Dedicated account manager and registration launch support
  • Enterprise$undefined/month
    • Custom pricing for large multi-site operators

Which should you pick?

Choose Harvest Forecast if

  • You need visual scheduling.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You also want capacity planning.
Harvest Forecast review

Choose Sawyer if

  • You need class and camp registration.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android.
  • You also want memberships and class packs.
Sawyer review

Questions people ask

Is Harvest Forecast or Sawyer better?
Neither clearly leads. Harvest Forecast starts at Free and Sawyer at $189/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Harvest Forecast or Sawyer?
Harvest Forecast has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Harvest Forecast and $189/month for Sawyer.
Does Harvest Forecast or Sawyer run on more platforms?
Harvest Forecast runs on Web. Sawyer runs on Web, iOS, Android.
Can I use Harvest Forecast for free?
Yes. Harvest Forecast has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Sawyer starts at $189/month.
What is Harvest Forecast best used for?
Harvest Forecast is most often used for team scheduling and capacity planning, project utilization optimization. Of those, team scheduling and capacity planning and project utilization optimization are not what Sawyer is typically brought in for.
What can Harvest Forecast do that Sawyer cannot?
Harvest Forecast covers Visual scheduling, Capacity planning, Project assignments, Utilization reports. Sawyer covers Class and camp registration, Memberships and class packs, Consumer marketplace, Auto-billing.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Harvest Forecast: How much does Harvest Forecast cost?

Harvest Forecast costs $6.25/person/month with monthly billing or $5/person/month with annual billing (20% discount).

Source
Sawyer: Is the Launch plan really free?

No. It has no monthly fee but charges 3 percent per transaction and requires a marketplace listing that takes 30 percent of marketplace orders.

Harvest Forecast: Is Harvest Forecast free?

Harvest Forecast offers a 30-day free trial with no credit card required, but there is no permanent free plan.

Source
Sawyer: Can I use Sawyer without the marketplace?

Yes, on Grow and Scale the listing is optional. On Launch it is required.

Harvest Forecast: Do nonprofits and educational institutions get discounts on Forecast?

Yes, Harvest Forecast offers special pricing for nonprofits, educational institutions, and classroom use.

Source
Sawyer: What does the marketplace commission apply to?

The full order value of bookings originating on hisawyer.com, not to bookings from your own website.

Sawyer: Is there a contract?

Monthly plans are month to month with 30 days notice; annual billing saves roughly 5 to 14 percent depending on tier.

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