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Beauty · head to head

Treatwell vs Zcal

Treatwell logo

Treatwell

Beauty

Beauty and wellness booking platform

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Zcal logo

Zcal

Scheduling

Scheduling with an unusually large free tier and heavy branding control

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Treatwell treatwell charges 35 percent commission on the first booking from a client introduced through its marketplace, and the rate is subject to location; Zcal zcal branding stays on the free booking page, so the tier that is otherwise generous is not usable as a customer facing page for a business that cares how it looks.
  • They diverge on capability: Treatwell covers Online booking platform, Zcal covers Unlimited booking links.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Treatwell and Zcal actually diverge.

Attributes where Treatwell and Zcal differ
AttributeTreatwellZcal
Pricing modeltransactionPer user per month
PlatformsWeb, Ios, AndroidWeb
CategoryBeautyScheduling
Founded2008Unknown

Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), 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 Treatwell

  • Online booking platform
  • Business profile
  • Customer reviews
  • Appointment management
  • Payment processing
  • Mobile app
  • Analytics
  • Google

Only in Zcal

  • Unlimited booking links
  • Branded booking pages
  • Meeting polls
  • Group events
  • Round robin and collective
  • SMS reminders
  • Paid bookings

What people use each for

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

Treatwell

  • Listing a salon on the Treatwell consumer booking marketplacenot Zcal
  • Free salon calendar, POS and client records for freelancers and small teamsnot Zcal
  • Taking online prepaid bookings with daily payoutsnot Zcal

Zcal

  • A consultant who runs several different meeting types and refuses to pay a subscription for the privilege of having more than one booking linknot Treatwell
  • A coach or recruiter who wants a branded page with a welcome video and intake questions before the call happensnot Treatwell
  • A small team that needs round robin distribution of inbound calls without buying a full sales engagement platformnot Treatwell
  • Anyone taking payment at the point of booking, where the Stripe connection removes an invoicing step afterwardsnot Treatwell

Where each one falls short

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

Treatwell

  • Treatwell charges 35 percent commission on the first booking from a client introduced through its marketplace, and the rate is subject to location
  • Online prepayments carry an additional 2.5 percent processing fee plus VAT
  • All commissions and fees are subject to VAT on top of the quoted percentages
  • The commercial model depends on marketplace introductions: there is no commission on direct or social media bookings, so the software is free only where the salon brings its own clients

Zcal

  • Zcal branding stays on the free booking page, so the tier that is otherwise generous is not usable as a customer facing page for a business that cares how it looks.
  • Paid tier prices are not stated plainly in the product documentation and third party sources disagree on the figure, so the paid step up has to be confirmed on the vendor pricing page before budgeting for a team.
  • SMS reminders are credit metered on paid tiers, so a high volume booker can exhaust the allowance and be pushed up a tier by message count rather than by needing any feature.
  • The integration list is short next to established competitors, and there is no deep native CRM object writing, so a sales team that wants bookings to create and update CRM records will need automation glue.
  • It is a small vendor in a category dominated by much larger companies, which is fine for a personal booking link and a real consideration if booking is a core business process you cannot afford to migrate off in a hurry.

Pricing, plan by plan

Treatwell

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Online booking
    • Business profile
    • 25% commission
  • Premium$49/month
    • Everything in Free
    • 15% commission
    • Advanced analytics

Zcal

Free
  • Free ForeverFree
    • Unlimited booking links
    • Unlimited connected calendar accounts
    • Meeting polls and group events
  • Pro$undefined/month
    • Per user per month, priced on the vendor pricing page
    • Team creation and team pages
    • Round robin and collective events
  • Business$undefined/month
    • Per user per month, priced on the vendor pricing page
    • Everything in Pro
    • Custom domain and custom sending email domain

Which should you pick?

Choose Treatwell if

  • You need online booking platform.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Ios, Android.
  • You also want business profile.
Treatwell review

Choose Zcal if

  • You need unlimited booking links.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You also want branded booking pages.
Zcal review

Questions people ask

Is Treatwell or Zcal better?
Neither clearly leads. Treatwell starts at Free and Zcal at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Treatwell or Zcal?
Treatwell starts at Free and Zcal at Free.
Does Treatwell or Zcal run on more platforms?
Treatwell runs on Web, Ios, Android. Zcal runs on Web.
Can I use Treatwell for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Treatwell best used for?
Treatwell is most often used for listing a salon on the treatwell consumer booking marketplace, free salon calendar, pos and client records for freelancers and small teams, taking online prepaid bookings with daily payouts. Of those, listing a salon on the treatwell consumer booking marketplace and free salon calendar, pos and client records for freelancers and small teams are not what Zcal is typically brought in for.
What can Treatwell do that Zcal cannot?
Treatwell covers Online booking platform, Business profile, Customer reviews, Appointment management. Zcal covers Unlimited booking links, Branded booking pages, Meeting polls, Group events.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Zcal: Is the free plan actually usable?

Yes. Unlimited booking links and unlimited calendar connections, which is more than most competitors allow, but Zcal branding stays on the page.

Zcal: What do you pay for?

Team features, round robin and collective events, branding removal, custom fonts, SMS reminders and custom domains.

Zcal: Can I take payment for bookings?

Yes, through the Stripe connection at the point of booking.

Zcal: Does it do round robin?

Yes, on the paid tiers. Round robin and collective events are not on the free plan.

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