The Vagaro alternative built for one chair.
For solo and small-team service businesses who want booking and client follow-up, on one flat monthly fee, without the retail and payroll side.
Last updated
Run both on your own numbers.
The honest version
When Vagaro is the right call
Vagaro is the better fit in some clear cases:
- You want to take card payments in the same system as your bookings.
- You sell products and want inventory and gift certificates handled for you.
- You want payroll, a branded app and text marketing in one platform.
- You want a consumer app where clients can find and book you.
When Aasure is the right call
Aasure is built for solo and small-team service businesses who want focused software:
- You're the business — one chair, one room, one calendar — or you have a team on one site.
- You'd rather have fewer features than pay for ones you will not use.
- You want one flat monthly price for up to 2, 7 or 20 staff, rather than a price per calendar.
- You do not sell retail stock or run payroll through your booking software.
The honest version
Vagaro is a genuinely good platform, and it is not only for chains: its UK pricing starts with a single bookable calendar. The real difference is scope. Vagaro covers payments, retail, payroll and marketing as well as bookings. If you use those, it does a lot that Aasure does not.
Aasure covers less, and charges one flat fee for it. It is shaped around how a small practice works — book, deliver, follow up, repeat. If you take card payments today, that matters: Aasure does not yet. Read the full breakdown of solo-operator software fit.
Vagaro and Aasure, side by side. Read it row by row; the one that matters most to you decides it.
Vagaro is capable software with a wide feature set, from card payments and inventory to payroll and a branded app. It serves solo providers as well as multi-location businesses. Aasure does less, on purpose: bookings, client records and follow-up, with no card payments yet. Here is how the two compare.
| How they compare | Vagaro | Aasure |
|---|---|---|
| Built for | Beauty, wellness and fitness businesses, from solo providers to multi-location companies | Solo and small-team service businesses (up to 20 staff) |
| Pricing model | Priced by bookable calendar: £20 a month for one on its UK pricing page, more for each extra calendar | Flat monthly fee set by team size, every feature on every plan |
| Payments | Card payments built in through Vagaro's own processing | Not yet. Card payments and deposits are on the way. You record payments by hand for now |
| Beyond bookings | Inventory, payroll, gift certificates, email and text marketing, a branded app and forms | Bookings, client records, email campaigns, and email reminders and follow-ups you switch on |
| Best when | You want one platform for payments, retail, payroll and marketing as well as bookings | You want the diary and the client relationship, without the retail and payroll side |
| Switching | — | We import your client list for you, free |
What Aasure looks like. The diary and a client record, filled with example bookings for a hair salon.
What matters to you? Pick one, and see which row decides it.
Choose a priority and it will say which row of the table decides it.
Switching from Vagaro, step by step. We move your client list for you, free.
- Get your client list out. Export it from Vagaro if your account offers an export. If not, send us whatever list you have; a spreadsheet is fine.
- Send it to us. Email it to hello@aasure.app and we import it into Aasure for you, free.
- Set up your services. Add your services, prices and opening hours, and your booking page is live. Most owners are set up in under an hour.
- Run both for a few weeks. Share your new link with your regulars, in your Instagram bio and on Google. Keep Vagaro running until most of them have rebooked on Aasure.
As a launch offer, the first 200 businesses to sign up get a 60-day free trial. After that, every plan starts with a 30-day free trial. Neither needs a card or setup fee. Plans are $45, $85 or $125 a month, and every plan includes every feature. All prices include 10% GST.
Common questions
Is Aasure a Vagaro alternative?
Yes, for solo operators and small teams who want software designed for their size. Vagaro says it is built for every business, from independent providers to multi-location ones. Aasure is built only for independent practices running their own chairs, solo or with a team.
I'm a solo operator — am I too small for software like this?
Aasure is designed for exactly this profile. The interface, defaults and pricing are tuned for one-chair salons, sole-practitioner therapists and freelance personal trainers. Nothing assumes a head office or a second branch. And if you add chairs later, the plan grows rather than the software changing.
Can I switch from Vagaro mid-year?
Yes. A quieter week is the easiest time to move. Keep your existing platform live for around a month while regulars rebook on the new one. Once roughly 80% of regulars have moved across, cancel the old subscription. Migrating salon software does not need a hard cutover.
How much is Vagaro?
Vagaro's UK pricing page shows £20 a month for one bookable calendar, against a crossed-out £30. It does not say how long that rate lasts or whether VAT is included. Its FAQ prices extra calendars only in US dollars, at $10 each up to seven. There is a 30-day free trial. That is what the page showed in October 2026. Aasure is a flat $45, $85 or $125 a month including VAT.
How much does Vagaro charge per transaction?
In the UK, Vagaro lists card processing at 1.15% + £0.20 for each chip or tap payment and 1.40% + £0.25 for each keyed-in payment, with £0.07 more for Tap to Pay, and no monthly fee for processing. That is from Vagaro's UK card-processing page, read in October 2026. Aasure does not take card payments yet, so it has no processing fee to compare.
Is Vagaro good for solo professionals?
It can be. Vagaro serves one-person businesses as well as multi-location ones. The question is whether you will use what you pay for, such as payments, inventory and the marketplace. If you only need bookings, reminders and client records, a focused tool may be simpler. On price alone, Vagaro's £20 for one calendar is below Aasure's £29.
How do I cancel my Vagaro account?
Vagaro's help centre says only the business account owner can cancel, under Settings, then Manage Subscription. It recommends exporting your sales data and customer list first. Also settle any gift cards, memberships or packages you have sold. Then send us the list: we import it into Aasure for you, free.
Built for your size.
Take the free 2-minute Solo Business Health Score — twelve questions, a score out of 100, and a clear breakdown of what's working and what's leaking.
Take the assessment Or read: Software Built for the Solo OperatorComparing other tools too?
See how Aasure stacks up against Fresha (marketplace booking) or Square Appointments (free plan, card payments built in). Or browse all comparisons.