Calendly alternatives & competitors for 2024

It's no secret that here at Clockwise, we're all about showing you the latest and greatest time-management tools that can help you maximize your efficiency and streamline your workflow. Today, we wanted to explore a type of tool that we believe is among the most powerful-yet-underrated tech solutions: appointment scheduling software. 

If you think appointment scheduling software is just for salespeople or small business owners, think again. Automating appointment scheduling benefits everyone. If you could think of a better use for your time than going back-and-forth trying to find a time to meet, finding free time on someone’s calendar, and manually rescheduling when conflicts arise, then appointment scheduling software is for you. 

Calendly is among the most recognizable appointment scheduling tools on the market. But they’re not the only game in town. The appointment scheduling tools we'll cover today will save you time and help you take control of your schedule, instead of it feeling like it has control over you. 

The benefits of appointment scheduling software

You might be wondering if using an appointment scheduling tool will make you seem less personable or approachable. In reality, using appointment scheduling software sends the message that you value your time (and that of everyone you're trying to schedule with). 

Automating scheduling adds valuable hours back into everyone’s week. And, it makes collaborating easier. It helps avoid miscommunications, since everyone’s details are organized in one place.

So, which solution is best for you and your team's needs? Yes, Calendly is an industry leader. And that might work great for you. But we know not everyone’s needs are identical. 

That’s why we searched high and low for the best alternatives to Calendly to help you take the guesswork out of making a decision. Let’s get into it. First, let’s talk about the big dog. 

What is Calendly?

Let’s talk about Calendly, just in case you’re not already familiar with this online scheduling app. Calendly is a simple way to book 1:1 meetings with your customers and/or team members. All you have to do is sign up for one of the plans, input your availability, and set up the kind of appointments you want to offer (example: 30-minute consultation call). With that information, Calendly creates a custom booking page for you. You can add your custom link to emails, social media profiles, websites, or any other online platform.

Calendly integrates with other calendar providers, such as Google Calendar, Office 365, and Outlook to ensure your clients and team members receive meeting reminder notifications no matter which platform they use. It also integrates with other useful platforms such as Zoom, Slack, PayPal, Stripe, Trello, Google Meet, and so much more.

While there’s a free version for people who just need “the basics,” you can upgrade to their Premium plan ($8-$10/month), Professional plan ($10-$15/month), or Teams plan ($16-$20/month) for more customization options and scheduling tools.

Calendly is a great option as an appointment scheduling software, but it still has its limitations. So let’s get into the best calendly alternatives, how they’re similar to Calendly, and how they differ.

1. Doodle

We’re starting off strong with one of the biggest Calendly competitors: Doodle.

How they’re similar:

Calendly and Doodle are similar in many ways, but the highlights? It’s important to have an interface people don’t have to be trained to use. Both appointment scheduling software options are intuitive-to-use, have modern-looking interfaces, and provide that seamless and user-friendly experience. They also both work across platforms (including mobile).

While Doodle has more branding options, Calendly still looks very professional.

How they’re different:

Designed more for one-on-one meetings, Calendly makes it easy for people who have busy or complicated schedules to share their calendar with individual clients.

While Doodle has 1:1 functionality, its best feature is the ability to coordinate group meetings. You can think of it like a Calendly alternative for teams. Doodle creates polls you can share with your team members. With a simple click of a button, they can check off which times they’re free, so you can easily schedule meetings without feeling like your head is spinning. If you’ve ever tried to coordinate large group meetings, you’ll instantly recognize how much of a relief this can be!

Pricing:

Unlike Calendly, Doodle doesn’t offer a free plan. It offers a 14-day free trial, but after your trial finishes, you’ll automatically get placed in one of their paid plans. Their subscriptions are:

• Pro ($6.95/month), which accommodates one user
• Team ($8.95/month), which accommodates up to 20 users
• Enterprise (custom price)
  

While all plans come with the basic tools (e.g. calendar integrations), premium features (e.g. Doodle Zapier integration), and advanced customization (e.g. logo and branding), the Pro plan lacks key features for teams (e.g. onboarding and user training) and both the Pro and Team plans lack service & support (e.g. terms of service).

2. Acuity Scheduling

Next, let’s talk about Acuity Scheduling, the more robust Calendly alternative.

How they’re similar:

Both Calendly and Acuity Scheduling have a ton of great options for integrations. First, both can connect with Zapier — always a good sign because you’ll have access to hundreds of apps. Some other notable integrations (assuming you have the highest tier plan): Zoom, Google Calendar, Microsoft Teams, Mailchimp, Stripe, and Office 365.

How they’re different:

Calendly focuses mainly on being the appointment calendar software. They concentrate solely on organizing their users' schedules so you can avoid overbooking yourself, reduce your no-shows, and improve your client experience. In a nutshell, Calendly is a minimalist’s dream come true.

Acuity acts more like a personal assistant, especially aimed at salespeople and small business owners. It doesn't just book meetings for you, but also offers a variety of CRM tools, such as email integration with MailChimp, payment ability through Stripe, and accounting with Quickbooks. Calendly also offers email integration and payment functionality, but you have to upgrade to their Professional plan, which could be a barrier to some people.

Pricing:

Acuity Scheduling's target audience seems to be more well-established businesses who need sophisticated appointment calendar software that can handle the steps immediately before (worldwide text notifications, email confirmations, payment abilities, etc.) and after (CRM, email blasts, group events, etc.) an appointment. That’s why you’ll see their plans on a higher price tag.

1. Emerging plan ($14-$15/month)
2. Growing ($23-$25/month)
3. Powerhouse ($45-$50/month)
   

It can be intimidating signing up for this Calendly alternative when Calendly already has a free plan, but remember: in the end, the scheduling app you end up choosing will depend on the needs of your business and what will make both your and your clients’ experience much more streamlined!

3. Picktime

Now to move on to a free Calendly alternative: Picktime.

How they’re similar:

We mentioned earlier that Calendly is a minimalist's dream, but the same could be said for Picktime. Picktime and Calendly focus on creating a hassle-free appointment scheduling experience, no matter what time zone you and your clients are in. All you have to do for both is create some reservation rules and viola! Your booking page is ready to send to your clients. 

Both also offer high-quality free plans, but if you need to upgrade to accommodate more team members or need advanced tools, you can do that too. 

How they’re different:

Picktime and Calendly offer very similar tools, but they differ on which features they offer on their free plans.  Which feature set you think is more comprehensive will depend on your and your team’s needs.

For example, Calendly doesn't let you connect with Paypal and Stripe on their free plan, but Picktime will let you integrate with Paypal. Picktime also has compatibility with MailChimp, Hubspot, Squarespace, and Google Analytics, among other CRM tools. And although Calendly doesn't have those integrations on their free plan, they offer compatibility with some other popular tools that Picktime doesn't, such as Zapier, Microsoft Teams, Google Meet, and Zoom.

One drawback of Picktime? It isn’t (currently) compatible with iOS or Android. Hopefully, that will come in the future. But for now, if the people you’re scheduling with like having cross-platform functionality, that could be a factor in why you don’t choose Picktime.

Pricing:

Picktime offers a free plan, but in case you find yourself needing more integrations, you can upgrade to one of their premium plans.

• Starter ($9.99/month) 
• Pro ($19.99/month)
  

Whether Calendly is better than Picktime or vice versa depends on what your team needs. It might be a bummer to not have a Zoom integration, but maybe a Paypal integration is more important to you. Also consider whether having mobile (Android and iOS) compatibility is important to you and your clients or team members. 

4. Hubspot Free Scheduling Software

Let’s take a look at another free Calendly alternative: Hubspot Free Scheduling Software

How they’re similar:

Hubspot and Calendly were designed to allow busy people who need flexibility and options to quickly book meetings and remove the tedious back-and-forth. Both scheduling apps can set up team meetings or group events. 

Both have the standard compatibility with popular calendars such as Office 365, Outlook, and Google Calendar. Plus, you can use both scheduling apps on iOS, Android, and the web, giving the people you schedule with a variety of options to join in on your meetings. And of course, they both have automatic time zone detection.

When it comes down to it, these appointment calendar software are very similar (even more similar than Calendly and Picktime when it comes to functionality). So what you end up choosing might be based on aesthetics alone. Hubspot has a more corporate or industrial look to it, while Calendly is a bit more modern and Millennial. However, they still differ ever-so-slightly in their integrations. So let’s talk about that now.

How they’re different:

One main way that Hubspot's free plan differs from Calendly's free plan is the number of integrations Hubspot offers. While Calendly includes about 10 native integrations, Hubspot boasts over 135 native integrations.

Hubspot also offers more booking and CRM tools that you can only get on one of Calendly's paid plans. For example, on this Calendly alternative's free plan, you can brand your booking page to have your logo and brand colors, so you always remain cohesive in front of clients. 

Plus, you can set up round robin-style meetings and group meetings on the free plan, while you have to pay for that feature on Calendly. You can also get access to reporting and analytics tools, which aren't included in Calendly's free plan. Another fantastic feature is that Hubspot will automatically sync meeting details to your contacts in HubSpot CRM, so you can keep track of your customers and leads in one place. You can take a look at all their features by clicking here.

All in all, we would say you get more bang for your buck with Hubspot's Free Scheduling Software if you're a small-to-midsize team. If you’re just starting out, Calendly might be a better, simpler option until you grow your team or client base.

Pricing:

Hubspot doesn't have a paid version of its online appointment scheduling software. Since Hubspot targets mid-to-large sized teams, you'll find all their other business tools have a hefty price tag on them compared to the rest of these Calendly alternatives. However, the investment may be worth it if you have a fast-growing team that needs an all-inclusive service for marketing, sales, customer service, CMs, or operations. Take a look at all their business bundles here.

5. YouCanBook.Me

YouCanBookMe is a Calendly alternative that has slightly more flexibility than Calendly.

How they’re similar:

When it comes down to it, Calendly and YouCanBookMe are very similar. Both offer a variety of popular integrations (YCBM is especially great at their Google Calendar integration, but struggles a bit with iCal. That’s where Calendly may reign supreme), features, ease of use, iOS and Android functionality. And they’re both great for solopreneurs or small businesses.

How they’re different:

YouCanBookMe's free plan is quite basic. It gives you all the nuts and bolts to get started (even some extra features that Calendly doesn't include, such as payments through Stripe and SMS notifications). But, we highly recommend going with one of its paid plans.

With a paid plan, you can accomplish many of the same things Calendly's paid plan can, such as post-appointment follow-ups via email, booking widgets for Facebook, group events, custom notifications and reminders, and custom cancellation policy. Where it differs mainly is the way YouCanBookMe’s prices their plans, which we’ll into now. 

Pricing:

YouCanBookMe has very similar pricing as Calendly, but you will get slightly more “supercharged features” that might be useful for you if you need a more versatile platform. It’s also interesting the way they price their subscriptions, since YCBM charges by the calendar.

Per calendar, you can expect to pay $10/month if you bill monthly, $9/month if you bill annually, or $8/month if you bill for every two years.

6. Clockwise

Lastly, let’s take a look at Clockwise, the scheduling solution that also helps you focus.

How they’re similar:

Calendly and Clockwise both manage your team’s calendar to find the best time when everyone can meet. The goal is to help you focus on your work, not micro-managing your calendar. 

Both are also great at streamlining scheduling with team members. Both help minimize miscommunication and the tedious back-and-forth. With Clockwise Links you can find the best time, not just the next time. So you can schedule meetings in a snap and preserve your Focus Time in the process. Plus, Links is free!

Though they have these similarities, Calendly and Clockwise have one major differentiator, which we'll get into right now.

How they’re different:

So, what is this Calendly alternative's major differentiator? The fact that it also emphasizes Focus Time. Now, it's not exactly shocking to hear that workers get easily distracted, but it's still surprising to know these stats:

• The average employee wastes up to 41% of their time at work on low-value tasks.
• 53% of employees waste at least one hour every day dealing with distractions.
• Social media takes up 44 minutes of the average worker’s day.
  

At Clockwise, we call two or more hours of uninterrupted work time Focus Time. Focus Time is essential for mitigating this problem and to shifting attention away from distractions and towards real work. Rather, Focus Time is about getting more done in less time.

To create more Focus Time, Clockwise can automatically move your meetings to the least-interruptive time for all attendees and schedule Focus Time on your calendar to prevent overbooking — something Calendly doesn’t account for.

Pricing:

At Clockwise, we offer both a free plan and premium plans. With the free plan, you can expect 75 schedule assists/week for Focus Time holds, launch holds, travel time holds, personal-to-work calendar sync, and smart scheduling suggestions. As you go up in the tiers, you can get unlimited schedule assists for everything already listed at a cost that doesn't hurt your wallet.

• Pro ($5/ month)
• Business (custom pricing)
  

What else can you expect with the premium pans? Advanced calendar controls, team productivity tools, personalized onboarding training, and custom contracts and invoices.

Going forward

After reading our round-up of the best Calendly alternatives, hopefully, you have some clarity on which appointment scheduling software will be best for you and your team! Whether scheduling office hours, sales calls, or anything else, scheduling software can make the process faster and easier.

While each has its strengths and weaknesses, at the end of the day, using any of these scheduling apps will help your work life run smoothly. They're going to save you a lot of time, prevent miscommunication, help you avoid burnout from overscheduling yourself, and improve your client experience.

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Read next, Microsoft Bookings vs Calendly vs Clockwise for insight on how these tools compare for scheduling efficiency.