all in one salon software

Phorest vs Vagaro

Phorest and Vagaro are both all-in-one platforms, but they win different arguments. Phorest is built around client retention: rebooking prompts, lapsed-client reactivation, a branded client app, and marketing that targets the right people automatically. Vagaro is built around breadth and price: booking, POS, payroll, forms, and marketing across salons, spas, barbershops, and even fitness, plus a consumer marketplace that puts you in front of new clients. For an independent owner the choice usually comes down to whether your bottleneck is keeping the clients you have or finding new ones, because retention is where the money quietly lives: a 5% retention gain lifts profit 25% to 95%, and one extra visit per client per year can raise revenue by up to 30%.

Pricing tells the rest of the story. Vagaro starts near $24 a month for one bookable calendar and scales per staff member, which keeps it genuinely accessible for solos and small teams. Phorest is custom, typically in the $99 to $139 a month range, and asks you to invest in a heavier retention and marketing engine. Given that acquiring a new client costs five to 25 times more than keeping one, Phorest's premium is really a bet on lifetime value, while Vagaro's marketplace is a bet on discovery. This page compares them on the axes that decide it.

Phorest compared with Vagaro, dimension by dimension.
Dimension	Phorest	Vagaro
Pricing model	PhorestCustom, typically around $99 to $139/mo. A single retention-and-marketing platform priced as an investment.	VagaroFrom about $24/mo for one bookable calendar, scaling per staff member. Genuinely accessible for solos and small teams.
Core strength	PhorestClient retention, rebooking, and lifetime value. The rebooking and reactivation tooling is its signature.	VagaroBreadth and value: a complete toolkit across salon, spa, barbershop, and fitness, at a low entry price.
New-client discovery	PhorestNo consumer marketplace. Growth comes from your own audience, referrals, and Phorest's marketing tools.	VagaroBundled Vagaro consumer marketplace and app, so clients can discover and book you directly. Real exposure, at the cost of sharing a marketplace.
Marketing and retention tools	PhorestDeep: smart campaigns that auto-target the right clients, reactivation of lapsed clients, and rebooking prompts. Automated software can push rebooking rates past 75%.	VagaroPractical and add-on style: AI-drafted marketing emails and captions, smart review requests, reminders, and waitlist fill. Useful, but less of a single retention engine.
Branded client app	PhorestA branded client app is a core part of the offering, keeping you in front of regulars between visits.	VagaroClients use the shared Vagaro app rather than an app branded to your salon.
Reviews and reputation	PhorestBuilt-in reputation and review generation as part of the marketing engine. Responding to reviews is worth it: it can lift revenue about 35%.	VagaroAutomated review requests are included as one of many tools rather than a dedicated reputation engine.
Business types covered	PhorestFocused on hair salons, spas, and clinics that prioritize repeat visits and lifetime value.	VagaroBroad: salons, spas, barbershops, nail studios, and fitness, which suits multi-service or hybrid businesses.
AI features	Phorest2 of 6 AI jobs live: AI text and chat replies (Front Desk AI); AI marketing writer (Ads Manager ad copy). Announced, not yet live: AI business assistant (Insights AI). Evidence, checked October 13, 2026.	Vagaro5 of 6 AI jobs live: AI text and chat replies (Vera Receptionist); AI marketing writer (Vera, Enhance with AI); AI review replies (Enhance with Vera); AI business assistant (Ask Vera about your reports); AI scheduling and pricing (Vera Fill My Books). Evidence, checked October 13, 2026.

Phorest profile Vagaro profile All all-in-one

The verdict

Which one, and the catch either way.

Bottom line

Choose Phorest if your growth problem is retention: you have steady demand but want a serious engine for rebooking, reactivating lapsed clients, and building lifetime value, and you are willing to pay for it. Choose Vagaro if you want a complete, affordable toolkit and value the marketplace exposure to win new clients, especially as a solo or small team watching every dollar. Use the free planning tools here to outline your salon's digital work and prepare an editable brief for Founden. Creating a brief does not connect accounts or activate services. Keep what already works. Connections and automations depend on supported provider access, your account permissions, and the workflow. Check those dependencies and running costs in Founden, then test before activating a connection.

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Questions

What buyers ask.

Is Vagaro's marketplace worth it, or does it just share my clients?

Both are true. The marketplace genuinely surfaces you to nearby searchers looking to book, which is real discovery a solo operator cannot easily buy. It also lists you alongside competitors, so you compete on the platform's terms. If new-client flow is your bottleneck it is a plus; if retention is your issue, Phorest's owned-audience approach fits better.

Does Phorest justify its higher price?

It depends on whether you will use the retention engine. With a 5% retention gain lifting profit 25% to 95% and repeat clients retaining at 75% versus 35% for first-timers, the tools pay for themselves if you actually run the campaigns. If you will not, the premium is wasted.

Can I switch from Vagaro to Phorest later?

Treat a switch as a separate migration project. Confirm which client, appointment, membership, and payment records can be transferred, and test each website link and automation against the new platform. Existing connections do not automatically carry over. Decide whether the benefit justifies the migration work before replacing a working system.

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