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Harvest Forecast vs Square Appointments

Harvest Forecast logo

Harvest Forecast

Software

Simple visual resource planning

From
$5/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Square Appointments logo

Square Appointments

Software

Free scheduling for beauty businesses

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Square Appointments 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; Square Appointments the free plan is aimed at solo professionals; booking across multiple staff requires the paid Plus plan
  • They diverge on capability: Harvest Forecast covers Visual scheduling, Square Appointments covers Online booking.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Harvest Forecast and Square Appointments actually diverge.

Attributes where Harvest Forecast and Square Appointments differ
AttributeHarvest ForecastSquare Appointments
Starting price$5/monthFree
Free tierNoYes
PlatformsWebWeb, Ios, Android
Founded20062009

Identical on both: pricing model (subscription), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Unknown).

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
  • iCal

Only in Square Appointments

  • Online booking
  • Client management
  • Point of sale
  • Payment processing
  • Automated reminders
  • Instagram booking
  • Google booking
  • Mobile app

Both cover

  • Google Calendar
  • Web support

What people use each for

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

Harvest Forecast

  • Time tracking and invoicing against client projectsnot Square Appointments
  • Forecasting team capacity and scheduling worknot Square Appointments

Square Appointments

  • Online appointment booking for salons, barbers and personal servicesnot Harvest Forecast
  • Taking card payments and deposits at the time of bookingnot Harvest Forecast
  • Managing staff calendars, waitlists and no-show policiesnot 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

Square Appointments

  • The free plan is aimed at solo professionals; booking across multiple staff requires the paid Plus plan
  • Cancellation policies, no-show fees and waitlists require the Plus plan
  • Resource management, service cost tracking and the future bookings report require the Premium plan
  • Custom processing rates are reserved for Square Pro, which is aimed at businesses processing over $250,000 a year
  • Card processing fees are charged on top of the plan fee on every tier including the free one

Pricing, plan by plan

Harvest Forecast

$5/month
  • Per seat$5/month
    • Visual planning
    • Harvest integration
    • Team scheduling

Square Appointments

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Unlimited appointments
    • Online booking
    • Client management
  • Plus$29/month
    • Everything in Free
    • Multiple staff calendars
    • No-show protection
  • Premium$69/month
    • Everything in Plus
    • Multi-location
    • Staff management

Which should you pick?

Choose Harvest Forecast if

  • You need visual scheduling.
  • You also want capacity planning.
Harvest Forecast review

Choose Square Appointments if

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

Questions people ask

Is Harvest Forecast or Square Appointments better?
Neither clearly leads. Harvest Forecast starts at $5/month and Square Appointments at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Harvest Forecast or Square Appointments?
Square Appointments has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at $5/month for Harvest Forecast and Free for Square Appointments.
Does Harvest Forecast or Square Appointments run on more platforms?
Harvest Forecast runs on Web. Square Appointments runs on Web, Ios, Android.
Can I use Square Appointments for free?
Yes. Square Appointments has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Harvest Forecast starts at $5/month.
What is Harvest Forecast best used for?
Harvest Forecast is most often used for time tracking and invoicing against client projects, forecasting team capacity and scheduling work. Of those, time tracking and invoicing against client projects and forecasting team capacity and scheduling work are not what Square Appointments is typically brought in for.
What can Harvest Forecast do that Square Appointments cannot?
Harvest Forecast covers Visual scheduling, Capacity planning, Project assignments, Utilization reports. Square Appointments covers Online booking, Client management, Point of sale, Payment processing. Both handle Google Calendar, Web support.
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