Scheduling · head to head
Picktime vs SimplyBook.me
Picktime
Scheduling
Appointment, class and resource booking with an unusually capable free tier
- From
- Free
- Rated
- -
The short version
- Each has a real cost: Picktime the Pro plan is cheaper per user than Starter because it is sold in a ten user block, so a business with four or five staff pays more per head than a business with ten and has no tier that fits it well.; SimplyBook.me pricing model includes many features locked behind custom add-ons
- They diverge on capability: Picktime covers Free tier with three staff, SimplyBook.me covers Booking website.
- Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Picktime and SimplyBook.me actually diverge.
| Attribute | Picktime | SimplyBook.me |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing model | Per user per month | freemium |
| Founded | Unknown | 2009 |
Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), 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 Picktime
- Free tier with three staff
- Resource booking
- Class and course booking
- SMS reminders
- Two way calendar sync
- Payments
- Multilingual booking pages
- Booking approval
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.
Picktime
- A public library booking study rooms and equipment where there is no budget for scheduling software at allnot SimplyBook.me
- A two person tutoring business that needs a booking page, reminders and card payment for under ten dollars a monthnot SimplyBook.me
- A community centre running classes with capacity limits and a waitlist across two venuesnot SimplyBook.me
- A small salon that wants staff and chair availability booked together rather than assuming every stylist has a stationnot SimplyBook.me
SimplyBook.me
- Schedulingnot Picktime
- Appointment bookingnot Picktime
- Time trackingnot Picktime
- Resource managementnot Picktime
- Team coordinationnot Picktime
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
Picktime
- The Pro plan is cheaper per user than Starter because it is sold in a ten user block, so a business with four or five staff pays more per head than a business with ten and has no tier that fits it well.
- SMS is only on paid plans and the free tier is email only, so the no cost option loses the single feature that most reduces no shows.
- Reporting is limited to basic booking counts and revenue totals, so any business that wants utilisation by resource, staff productivity or cohort retention will be exporting data and analysing it elsewhere.
- Integrations beyond calendar, payments and Zapier are sparse, with no native connection to mainstream CRM or practice management systems, meaning customer data lives in a second silo that someone reconciles manually.
- Support is email only with no phone or guaranteed response time, which is acceptable at three dollars a user but a genuine risk if the booking page goes down on a trading day.
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
Picktime
Free- FreeFree
- Three staff members
- Two locations and three resources
- Unlimited appointments
- Starter$3/month
- Per user, billed annually
- Three staff and two locations
- SMS notifications and reminders
- Pro$2.25/month
- Per user, billed annually, minimum ten users
- Unlimited locations
- Customisable emails
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 Picktime if
- You need free tier with three staff.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on Web, iOS, Android.
- You also want resource booking.
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.
Questions people ask
- Is Picktime or SimplyBook.me better?
- Neither clearly leads. Picktime starts at Free and SimplyBook.me at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, Picktime or SimplyBook.me?
- Picktime starts at Free and SimplyBook.me at Free.
- Does Picktime 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 Picktime for free?
- Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
- What is Picktime best used for?
- Picktime is most often used for a public library booking study rooms and equipment where there is no budget for scheduling software at all, a two person tutoring business that needs a booking page, reminders and card payment for under ten dollars a month, a community centre running classes with capacity limits and a waitlist across two venues, a small salon that wants staff and chair availability booked together rather than assuming every stylist has a station. Of those, a public library booking study rooms and equipment where there is no budget for scheduling software at all and a two person tutoring business that needs a booking page, reminders and card payment for under ten dollars a month are not what SimplyBook.me is typically brought in for.
- What can Picktime do that SimplyBook.me cannot?
- Picktime covers Free tier with three staff, Resource booking, Class and course booking, SMS reminders. SimplyBook.me covers Booking website, Client management, Payment processing, Marketing tools.
Answered from the vendors’ own pages
Picktime: Is the free plan actually usable long term?
Yes. It allows three staff, two locations and unlimited appointments permanently. The main limits are no SMS and PayPal only for payments.
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.
SourcePicktime: Can it book rooms and equipment?
Yes. Resources are first class objects and can be booked alongside or independently of staff.
Picktime: Why does Pro cost less per user than Starter?
Pro is priced for a block of ten users. Below that headcount the per user rate on Starter is what you pay.
Picktime: Does it take card payments?
Stripe and Square on paid plans; the free plan supports PayPal only.
Related pages
More on SimplyBook.me
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