- Bottom Line
- Pain Point #1: StyleSeat Has Payment System Problems
- Pain Point #2: StyleSeat Has Customer Service Issues
- Pain Point #3: StyleSeat Sometimes Has Booking Scams
- Pain Point #4: StyleSeat Has App Problems
- Pain Point #5: StyleSeat Gives Inconsistent Search Visibility
- Paint Point #6: StyleSeat Has Limited Form Customization
- Pain Point #7: StyleSeat Has High Hidden Fees
- Summing Up
Last Updated on August 28, 2025 by Ewen Finser
What do salons and spas have in common? Turns out quite a lot. They primarily operate on a pre-booked schedule. They rely heavily on specialized software. They need to maintain detailed client records.
I used to think StyleSeat was the go-to booking and calendar management software solution to solve all these problems because of their supposed straightforward monthly fee. But the 30% New Client Connection fee every time I booked a new client via the platform, the customers I lost because of scam charges to their account, and the limited visibility for the business profile I had worked so hard to set up, had me looking at StyleSeat alternatives.
If you’re like me, here are some great options I found out there.
Bottom Line
There are a lot of great alternatives, but the best one for you is the platform that solves your biggest headache with StyleSeat:
StyleSeat Pain Point | Top Alternative | Runner-up |
|---|---|---|
Payment system issues | ||
Customer service issues | ||
Booking scams | ||
App problems | ||
Inconsistent search visibility | ||
Limited form customization | ||
High & hidden fees |
Let’s take a closer look at each of these.
Pain Point #1: StyleSeat Has Payment System Problems
A lot of salon and spa operators have reported unauthorized charges with StyleSeat. Imagine working for months to gain the trust of a new customer, only to have that customer say they’ve opted out of automatic payments on their account and yet still get unauthorized charges. This can be damaging when it comes to building good customer relationships.
Top StyleSeat Alternative: GlossGenius
GlossGenius has competitive payment processing. You get charged a flat 2.6% processing fee on all payments. That also doesn’t change if you have set up tap-to-pay, card on file, or have to manually enter the card data, unlike some competitors.
Runner Up: Vagaro
Vagaro is a good runner-up for an effective and simple payment system. They have a base monthly subscription. And don’t tie you down with contract fees, cancellation fees, setup fees, or signup fees.
Pain Point #2: StyleSeat Has Customer Service Issues
No one likes to be on hold, especially when they are in the middle of foiling or have another massage booked in 5 minutes. Or imagine having to deal with an unresponsive or slow customer service process when trying to solve a messy situation, such as a customer who’s irate about an unauthorized charge on their credit card.
StyleSeat simply doesn’t have a direct phone line and other support channels that you can reach out to immediately to solve any of these issues.
Top StyleSeat Alternative: MangoMint
MangoMint is well known for its customer service; they’ve got a responsive team that is knowledgeable, answers the phone, or is available to respond to your emails. They get ranked among the top platforms for their customer service time and time again.
Runner Up: Boulevard
Boulevard also has great customer service, equal to the options available through MangoMint. Moreover, they also have much more comprehensive onboarding processes with dedicated onboarding specialists and several hours of onboarding training spread out over the course of a few weeks. These training sessions ensure you get the best out of the system and solve some of the hiccups that show up yourself immediately.
Pain Point #3: StyleSeat Sometimes Has Booking Scams
There have been reports from users about fake bookings, where people create accounts, but they don’t actually book any services. This issue has resulted in financial losses for operators who’ve put in the time and money toward marketing efforts on profiles that turn out to be fake.
Where payments are concerned, there have been reports of scammers trying to extract extra payments from the app, making it a serious problem for clients and customers alike.
Top StyleSeat Alternative: Boulevard
A primary competitor, Boulevard is well known for being a scam-free platform. They are Level 1 PCI-compliant and offer features like role-based permissioning and HIPAA compliance. They give users guidelines on being HIPAA-compliant with the software, have the ability to securely store credit card information, migrate stored credit cards, and manage billing dates and terms.
Runner Up: MangoMint
MangoMint doesn’t have the same scam-related problems. In fact, they have next to no scam-related issues reported by their users, which makes it a reliable alternative for those who are struggling with fake bookings and lost income. They also don’t share data with third parties and run a secure payment processing system: one with BAA, data deletion, data protection, data encryption, and HIPAA compliance.
Pain Point #4: StyleSeat Has App Problems
It is not uncommon for StyleSeat users (store owners and clients alike) to have glitches with the StyleSeat calendar function. This issue has led to missed appointments and, of course, lost income. The problems with the app don’t stop there; many customers experience glitches where just trying to log into the account itself is problematic. All these inhibit all aspects of business management.
Top StyleSeat Alternative: Phorest
Phorest is known for its HIPAA compliance, for med spas in particular. That said, it also offers a lot of protection and security features that StyleSeat doesn’t. These security implementations go a long way toward protecting the functionality of the app, too. With the right security, users don’t experience payment glitches because of undated security certifications or platform log-in issues because of poor data communication.
Runner Up: Boulevard
Designed for salons, barber shops, med spas, and the like, Boulevard has equal support measures for security, data encryption, and protection in the app. This, too, offers a similar resolution to app problems by overcoming them with better security design and function.
Pain Point #5: StyleSeat Gives Inconsistent Search Visibility
If your business is looking to maximize visibility and marketing through your booking platform, you might run into the same issue that many others have, which is StyleSeat’s tendency to provide inconsistent and inaccurate profile results.
You can see in the image below that StyleSeat has a platform where you can book services after searching for professionals by category. But when you list on the platform, the information is sometimes inaccurate, or your profile stops showing up from time to time. This can impede your bookings and, subsequently, revenue.
Top StyleSeat Alternative: MindBody
MindBody might be geared more toward a wider range of fitness and health departments, but it also works well for salons and stylists who want better visibility on a client-facing marketplace.
You can see in the image above that the layout of their front-facing marketplace is significantly cleaner and leaner. It also encourages people to book based on last-minute offers, deals, and what they call ClassPasses, where customers can get a discount when they book several services in a package, like three massages or three cut and color sessions.
Runner Up: Vagaro
Vagaro has a competitive marketplace too, where customers can book appointments online or through the app.
The layout is a little different, and it doesn’t have the same type of passes you get with MindBody. But it does offer daily deals where, for example, if you have a lot of openings in your schedule, you can promote yourself on the marketplace with daily deals that offer discounts. You can also get additional reviews and ratings from your customers, upload photos, and make it a page where people can view important information about your organization.
Paint Point #6: StyleSeat Has Limited Form Customization
If you run a MedSpa or services like saunas and float tanks, you’ll need customized forms and waivers. When we installed a float tank, we needed better waivers than what we found with even the premium plan. You really don’t have a lot of flexibility when it comes to customizing forms and waivers with StyleSeat.
Top StyleSeat Alternative: Vagaro
Vagaro has a lot of great options for form customization. You can create web-based client forms and waivers using automation tools. You also have the option of building custom forms with drag and drop tools and using different models like short answers, multiple choice, drop-down menus, scales, and a section to upload pictures. All of this helps create a great booking experience and ensure you keep HIPAA-compliant records.
Runner Up: Phorest
Phorest is a great runner-up for two reasons: their customized forms and their video consultations. Depending on your industry, the video consultations might be one of the more attractive features for you; a service that makes it easy to check in with your clients beforehand.
Having customized documents makes it a lot easier for customers to ask questions they might have. While the video consultations can be particularly important for people who run a MedSpa or a salon, and might need to look at certain hair color or skin types before deciding which treatments are best.
Pain Point #7: StyleSeat Has High Hidden Fees
There are a lot of fees hidden behind StyleSeat’s monthly subscription fee. For example, there’s the 30% new client connection fee. Getting that deducted from your credit card can be problematic, especially if you are just starting out or you are working as an independent stylist. This means every time you book a new client to build out your portfolio, you lose a substantial chunk of that money to StyleSeat.
Clients aren’t also enthused with their “tax” charge; a booking fee charged for appointments, which is non-refundable if the client cancels.
Top StyleSeat Alternative: Boulevard
Boulevard certainly costs more than StyleSeat, but you won’t face hidden fees. The comprehensive membership plan is a little bit more expensive at face value, but that’s because everything is included. And any add-ons, such as forms, QuickBooks, or email blasts, have explicit fees, unlike StyleSeat’s approach.
You won’t look at your monthly bill and see it fluctuating with a 30% loss every time you add a new client or hidden tax surcharges on your clients. Boulevard has earned quite a reputation for being a comprehensive solution that covers things like bookings, calendar functions, a unique front desk function, POS, client management system, and marketing system, all from a single platform without hidden fees.
Runner Up: Square
Square is a runner-up here as its core POS software is free, and the pricing is built around a clear, percentage-based transaction fee. What you see is what you get, so if you are an independent stylist looking for something a bit more affordable that doesn’t have additional fees every time you turn around and book a new client, Square is a good starting point.
Summing Up
Overall, there are a lot of great alternatives to StyleSeat, but the best one is really based on the pain point with which you struggle most.
- If you are having issues with the payment system, consider GlossGenius or Vagaro.
- If you are having issues with customer service, consider MangoMint or Boulevard.
- If you are having issues with scams, go for Boulevard or MangoMint.
- If you are having issues with the app, consider Phorest or Boulevard.
- If they are giving you inconsistent search visibility for your profile, check out MindBody or Vagaro.
- If you are struggling with limited form customization, go with Vagaro or Phorest.
- If your problem is hidden fees, stick with Boulevard or Square.