Top 8 Calendly Alternatives for Scheduling

Here at Clockwise, we're all about showing you the latest and greatest time management tools to help you maximize your efficiency and streamline your workflow. Today, we’re exploring a type of tool that we believe is among the most powerful-yet-underrated tech solutions: appointment scheduling software. 

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If you think appointment scheduling software is just for salespeople or small business owners, think again. This type of scheduling solution can benefit anyone! Automation is at the core of these tools, streamlining the process of arranging appointments and eliminating the need for back-and-forth communication.

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Calendly is among the most recognizable appointment scheduling tools on the market. But, it’s not your only option. 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.

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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 your invitees). 

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Automating scheduling adds valuable hours back into everyone’s week. And, it makes collaborating easier and more organized. So, which solution is best for you and your team's needs? Although Calendly is a popular option, that doesn’t necessarily mean it’ll work great for you. Everyone has unique scheduling needs, depending on your industry, your role, and so on.

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That’s why we searched high and low for the best alternatives to Calendly to help you take the guesswork out of your decision. 

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 meetings and events. All you have to do is sign up for one of the plans, input your availability, and set up the kind of events you want to offer (i.e. consultations, meetings, webinars).

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With that information, Calendly creates a custom booking page for you to share with team members, customers, or anyone else looking to book appointments with you. You can also add your custom link to emails, social media profiles, websites, or any other online platform.

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Calendly integrates with other calendar providers, such as Google Calendar, Office 365, and Outlook to ensure invitees receive meeting reminder notifications no matter which platform they use. It also integrates with other useful platforms like Zoom, Slack, Salesforce, PayPal, Stripe, Trello, and Google Meet.

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While there’s a free version for people who just need the basics, you can upgrade to their Standard plan ($10–$12 per seat per month), Teams plan ($16–$20 per seat per month), or Enterprise plan (starting at $15k per year) for more customization options and scheduling tools.

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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.

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Top Calendly Alternatives

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1. Clockwise Scheduling Links

Clockwise Scheduling Links simplifies the scheduling process, while optimizing your Google Calendar or Outlook calendar for greater focus and productivity.

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How they’re similar

Both Calendly and Clockwise Scheduling Links let you create booking pages that streamline scheduling for everyone involved. Similar to Calendly, Clockwise Scheduling Links make it easy for you to share your availability simply by sharing a link. From there, invitees can book a meeting with you in just a few clicks. You’ll then receive any booking confirmations in your work Gmail or Outlook account. 

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How they’re different

Despite the similarities between the two platforms, Clockwise Scheduling Links isn’t your average scheduling tool. Whereas Calendly gives bookers all your available time slots, encouraging them to book whatever’s open, Clockwise takes a more thoughtful approach. With the help of AI, Clockwise analyzes your unique preferences and suggests meeting times that optimize your schedule for more Focus Time. With Clockwise, you’re not just filling up your schedule based on when you’re free — you’re strategically building your ideal day.

Plus, you can create unlimited links completely free with Clockwise Scheduling Links, whereas Calendly’s free version comes with only one event type. Clockwise also comes with other AI-powered meeting tools, like smart Focus Time blocks and syncing across calendars.

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Pricing

Clockwise Scheduling Links is free to use, and you can create as many links/booking pages as you like. For group scheduling links and Focus Time features, upgrade to a Teams plan starting at $6.75 per user per month. 

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2. Doodle

Next up, we have Doodle, an online meeting scheduling tool for entrepreneurs, freelancers, and leaders.

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, have modern interfaces, and provide a seamless and user-friendly experience. Both tools also offer a mobile app (Android and iOS), making it possible to manage your bookings on-the-go.

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.

On the other hand, Doodle is best used for coordinating group meetings. In fact, you get unlimited group meetings with Doodle on the free plan, whereas it’s a paid feature with Calendly. 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

Doodle offers four plans:

• Free: Free forever
• Pro: $6.95 per user per month, paid annually
• Team: $8.95 per user per month, paid annually
• Enterprise: Contact for price

All plans come with the basic features like unlimited group polls, one custom booking page, and video conferencing integrations. For more features like unlimited booking pages, upgrade to a Pro plan or above.

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3. Acuity Scheduling

Next, let’s talk about Acuity Scheduling — a great option for business owners who don’t mind paying for a subscription.

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.

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, with no free version available.

Acuity Scheduling offers four plans:

• Emerging: $16 per month, paid annually
• Growing: $27 per month, paid annually
• Powerhouse: $49 per month, paid annually
• Enterprise: Contact for price

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4. 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 which time zones you and your clients are in. All you have to do for both is create some reservation rules and voilà! 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 depends on your team’s scheduling needs.

For example, Calendly doesn't let you connect with Paypal and Stripe on their free plan, but Picktime does 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, including Zapier, Microsoft Teams, Google Meet, and Zoom.

Pricing

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

Picktime offers three plans:

• Free: Free forever
• Starter: $3 per user per month, paid annually (for up to 3 users)
• Pro: $2.25 per user per month, paid annually (for 10+ users)

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5. HubSpot Free Meeting Scheduler

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HubSpot’s meeting scheduler is a free tool that’s built into the HubSpot CRM. 

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. Plus, 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). 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. However, they still differ ever-so-slightly in their integrations. 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 HubSpot’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 helps in routing your customer’s bookings to the HubSpot CRM, so you can keep track of your customers and leads in one place.

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 medium team. If you’re just starting out, Calendly might be a better option until you grow your team or client base.

Pricing

HubSpot’s scheduling tool is included with HubSpot’s free plan, making it completely free to use. However, you can always upgrade to one of HubSpot Sales paid plans, starting at $20 per seat per month, for even more CRM support.

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6. YouCanBookMe

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

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How they’re similar

Both platforms excel when it comes to ease of use, integrations, and team management. Their free plans are also comparable, providing similar functionality. 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, notifications and reminders, and custom cancellation policy.

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All in all, both are great options for small to medium businesses. 

How they’re different

As we mentioned above, YouCanBookMe and Calendly are almost equal as far as their free plans go. The only difference is that YouCanBookMe provides payments through Stripe and SMS notifications on their free plan. Calendly charges for both of these features. The main difference between the two tools is pricing. Whereas Calendly offers four plans, YouCanBookMe offers two plans, which are detailed below.

Pricing

YouCanBookMe keeps it simple with two types of plans:

• Free: Includes basic features like customizable meeting availability, cancellations and rescheduling, and branding. 
• Paid: $10.80 per connected calendar per month. Provides advanced features like round robin scheduling, team availability, and different meeting types.

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7. Microsoft Bookings

Included with all Microsoft 365 subscriptions, this next option is great if you’re a fan of the Microsoft ecosystem.

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How they’re similar

Like Calendly, Microsoft Bookings simplifies the online scheduling experience, especially for service providers and their clients. Create a customizable booking page that streamlines scheduling, fits your brand identity, and adapts to your business’s needs.

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Microsoft Bookings also includes convenient features like confirmations and reminders, website embedding, and video conferencing integration.

How they’re different

Because Microsoft Bookings is designed with Microsoft users in mind, it’s limited in its integrations. For example, Microsoft Bookings only connects with your calendar in Outlook. On the other hand, Calendly connects with calendars on Google, Microsoft 365, Outlook.com, iCloud, and Exchange. As for video conferencing, Microsoft Bookings is compatible with Microsoft Teams and Skype only. 

Pricing

To get access to Microsoft Bookings, you’ll need a Microsoft 365 subscription, which starts at $6 per month. 

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8. Square Appointments

Square Appointments is a comprehensive suite of tools for business owners, including online appointment scheduling.

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How they’re similar

Scheduling features on Square Appointments share a few things in common with Calendly. First, both tools allow you to create a booking page, as well as embed your booking workflow into your website. Both tools provide automated email and text reminders, allow clients to book more than one service (while choosing from different staff), and more. 

How they’re different

Square Appointments is primarily designed with service providers in mind (think: massage therapists, estheticians, and consultants). With features like online booking, payments, invoicing templates, and client and staff management, Square Appointments gives you all the tools you need to run your business. Compare this to Calendly, which is more adaptable across different industries and use cases.

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It’s also important to note that the free version of Square Appointments does not connect with Google Calendar, which may be a dealbreaker for some.

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Square is also one of the few tools on this list that includes full customer support with a free plan! 

Pricing

Square Appointments offers three plans:

• Free
• Plus: $29 per month per location
• Premium: $69 per month per location

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.

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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.