We use provider pages as the source of truth.
Pricing, plan names, free plan availability, and trial details are checked against official provider pages before being used in ProPicked scores. Vendor relationships do not change rankings, scores, or recommendations.
Provider Pricing Facts
Provider pricing facts: Cal.com offers a free plan; Acuity Scheduling starts at $20/mo.
Source and Freshness Note
Source and freshness note: pricing, free-plan, and feature signals are compared from public provider data and updated comparison records. Last checked May 2026.
Cal.com vs Acuity Scheduling: Honest Comparison (2026)
Cal.com
Open-source scheduling infrastructure that can be self-hosted or used as a service
Acuity Scheduling
Powerful online appointment scheduling for service-based businesses
We may earn a commission through links on this page · Editorial policy
Quick Verdict:
It's a tie — both score 8.6/10. Choose Cal.com for overall value. Choose Acuity Scheduling for ease of use.
Both tools are evenly matched at 8.6/10. Cal.com offers a free plan. Cal.com stands out for open-source and self-hostable for complete data ownership, while Acuity Scheduling excels at highly flexible scheduling rules with buffer times, notice periods, and recurring options. However, Acuity Scheduling leads in our detailed feature analysis (8.6 vs 8.0).
| Feature | Cal.com | Acuity Scheduling |
|---|---|---|
| Overall Rating | 8.6/10 | 8.6/10 |
| Ease of Use | 8.3/10 | 8.8/10 |
| Features | 8.3/10 | 8.5/10 |
| Value for Money | 8.5/10 | 8.4/10 |
| Customer Support | 8.9/10 | 8.2/10 |
| Free Plan | Yes ✓ | No |
| Starting Price | $15/mo | $20/mo |
| Feature Score | 8.0/10 | 8.6/10 |
| Top Strength | Open-source and self-hostable for complete data ownership | Highly flexible scheduling rules with buffer times, notice periods, and recurring options |
| Biggest Weakness | Self-hosted deployment requires technical setup and maintenance | Built-in payment collection through Stripe, Square, and PayPal reduces no-shows |
| Best For | - | Acuity Scheduling is best for service-based businesses including therapists |
| Winner | Tie (8.6/10) | |
What is Cal.com?
Open-source scheduling infrastructure that can be self-hosted or used as a serviceCal.com is an open-source scheduling infrastructure platform that provides Calendly-like scheduling functionality with the added benefits of self-hosting capability, full API access, and unlimited customization. The platform offers individual and team scheduling, round-robin assignment, collective availability for group meetings, recurring bookings, and workflow automations triggered by booking events. Cal.com supports multiple calendar integrations including Google Calendar, Microsoft Outlook, and Apple Calendar, video conferencing through Zoom, Google Meet, and Microsoft Teams, and payment collection through Stripe. The open-source nature means organizations can self-host Cal.com for complete data ownership and customize the platform to match specific requirements that proprietary scheduling tools cannot accommodate. The platform provides embeddable booking widgets, branded booking pages, custom workflows that send emails, SMS, or webhook notifications at configurable intervals around bookings, and a developer-friendly API for building scheduling into custom applications.
- +Open-source and self-hostable for complete data ownership
- +Unlimited booking pages and event types on all plans
- +API and Atoms enable building scheduling into custom products
What is Acuity Scheduling?
Powerful online appointment scheduling for service-based businessesAcuity Scheduling (Squarespace) is the appointment scheduling platform serving 100,000+ businesses including yoga studios, consultants, salons, and clinics. Calendar sync (Google, Outlook, iCloud), payment processing, intake forms, group classes, packages, and gift cards. Pricing: Emerging $20/mo, Growing $34/mo, Powerhouse $61/mo. Strong fit for service-based businesses with paid bookings.
- +Highly flexible scheduling rules with buffer times, notice periods, and recurring options
- +Built-in payment collection through Stripe, Square, and PayPal reduces no-shows
- +HIPAA-compliant plan available for healthcare and therapy practices
- •Acuity Scheduling is best for service-based businesses including therapists
- •consultants
- •fitness instructors
Cal.com vs Acuity Scheduling: Key Differences
Cal.com vs Acuity Scheduling: Quick Verdict
Decision Summary
Who wins in each scenario? A quick look at how Cal.com and Acuity Scheduling compare across different buyer needs.
Both score 8.6/10 overall
Both score 8.5/10 on value
Ease of use: 8.8/10 vs 8.3/10
Features + support avg: 8.6/10 vs 8.3/10
Free plan available + 8.5/10 value
Free plan available vs $20/mo
Choose Cal.com if you need...
- ✓Open-source and self-hostable for complete data ownership
- ✓Unlimited booking pages and event types on all plans
- ✓API and Atoms enable building scheduling into custom products
- ✓A free plan to get started
- ✓Lower starting price ($15/mo vs $20/mo)
- !Self-hosted deployment requires technical setup and maintenance
- !Some enterprise features only available on managed cloud plans
Choose Acuity Scheduling if you need...
- ✓Highly flexible scheduling rules with buffer times, notice periods, and recurring options
- ✓Built-in payment collection through Stripe, Square, and PayPal reduces no-shows
- ✓HIPAA-compliant plan available for healthcare and therapy practices
- !Highly flexible scheduling rules with buffer times, notice periods, and recurring options
- !Built-in payment collection through Stripe, Square, and PayPal reduces no-shows
Our Take: Cal.com vs Acuity Scheduling
This is one of the closer matchups we've reviewed. Cal.com (8.6/10) and Acuity Scheduling (8.6/10) are separated by just 0.0 points — practically a statistical tie. Your decision should come down to workflow fit, not scores.
Where they differ: Cal.com's biggest strengths are open-source and self-hostable for complete data ownership and unlimited booking pages and event types on all plans. Acuity Scheduling, on the other hand, shines with highly flexible scheduling rules with buffer times, notice periods, and recurring options and built-in payment collection through Stripe, Square, and PayPal reduces no-shows. These reflect fundamentally different product priorities.
Cal.com has a free plan, giving it a lower barrier to entry. If you're not sure yet, start there.
Cal.com vs Acuity Scheduling Score Comparison
| Category | Cal.com | Acuity Scheduling |
|---|---|---|
🏆Overall Score | 8.6 | 8.6 |
💫Ease of Use | 8.3 | ▲8.8 |
⚙Features | 8.3 | ▲8.5 |
💰Value for Money | 8.5▲ | 8.4 |
💬Customer Support | 8.9▲ | 8.2 |
Why These Scores? Our Reasoning
- +Open-source and self-hostable for complete data ownership
- +Unlimited booking pages and event types on all plans
- +API and Atoms enable building scheduling into custom products
- -Self-hosted deployment requires technical setup and maintenance
- -Some enterprise features only available on managed cloud plans
Acuity Scheduling — 8.6/10- +Highly flexible scheduling rules with buffer times, notice periods, and recurring options
- +Built-in payment collection through Stripe, Square, and PayPal reduces no-shows
- +HIPAA-compliant plan available for healthcare and therapy practices
- -Highly flexible scheduling rules with buffer times, notice periods, and recurring options
- -Built-in payment collection through Stripe, Square, and PayPal reduces no-shows
Cal.com vs Acuity Scheduling Pros & Cons
+Strengths
- ✓Open-source and self-hostable for complete data ownership
- ✓Unlimited booking pages and event types on all plans
- ✓API and Atoms enable building scheduling into custom products
- ✓Workflow automations trigger actions around booking events
- ✓No per-seat pricing on the self-hosted version
-Weaknesses
- ✗Self-hosted deployment requires technical setup and maintenance
- ✗Some enterprise features only available on managed cloud plans
- ✗Smaller integration ecosystem than Calendly
- ✗UI polish slightly behind Calendly for non-technical users
Acuity Scheduling8.6/10+Strengths
- ✓Highly flexible scheduling rules with buffer times, notice periods, and recurring options
- ✓Built-in payment collection through Stripe, Square, and PayPal reduces no-shows
- ✓HIPAA-compliant plan available for healthcare and therapy practices
- ✓Excellent client-facing booking experience with customizable branding
- ✓No per-user fees makes it cost-effective for multi-staff businesses
-Weaknesses
- ✗Highly flexible scheduling rules with buffer times, notice periods, and recurring options
- ✗Built-in payment collection through Stripe, Square, and PayPal reduces no-shows
- ✗HIPAA-compliant plan available for healthcare and therapy practices
- ✗Excellent client-facing booking experience with customizable branding
- ✗No per-user fees makes it cost-effective for multi-staff businesses
Who Should Use Cal.com vs Acuity Scheduling?
Cal.com is ideal for
Acuity Scheduling is ideal for
- •Acuity Scheduling is best for service-based businesses including therapists
- •consultants
- •fitness instructors
- •and healthcare providers who need robust appointment scheduling with payment collection. It excels for businesses requiring HIPAA compliance
- •multi-staff calendar management
When NOT to Choose Cal.com or Acuity Scheduling
Knowing when a tool is the wrong fit is just as important as knowing its strengths
Skip Cal.com if...
- ✗Self-hosted deployment requires technical setup and maintenance
- ✗Some enterprise features only available on managed cloud plans
- ✗Smaller integration ecosystem than Calendly
- ✗UI polish slightly behind Calendly for non-technical users
Skip Acuity Scheduling if...
- ✗Highly flexible scheduling rules with buffer times, notice periods, and recurring options
- ✗Built-in payment collection through Stripe, Square, and PayPal reduces no-shows
- ✗HIPAA-compliant plan available for healthcare and therapy practices
- ✗Excellent client-facing booking experience with customizable branding
- ✗No per-user fees makes it cost-effective for multi-staff businesses
- ✗You need a free plan — Cal.com has one, Acuity Scheduling doesn't
Cal.com vs Acuity Scheduling Decision Framework
Choose based on what matters most to you
Acuity SchedulingAcuity SchedulingCal.com vs Acuity Scheduling Pricing
| Pricing Feature | Cal.com | Acuity Scheduling |
|---|---|---|
| Free Plan | ✓ Yes | ✗ No |
| Starting Price | $15/mo | $20/mo |
| Free Trial | 14 days | 7 days |
| Number of Plans | 3 | 4 |
| Value Rating | 8.5/10 | 8.4/10 |
Cal.com Plans
- ✓1 user
- ✓Unlimited event types
- ✓Unlimited calendar connections
- ✓Stripe payments integration
- +1 more
- ✓Multiple users
- ✓Round-robin scheduling
- ✓Routing forms
- ✓Team workflows
- +1 more
- ✓Everything in Teams
- ✓SSO and SCIM
- ✓SOC 2 / HIPAA compliance
- ✓Dedicated support
- +1 more
Acuity Scheduling Plans
- ✓1 calendar
- ✓Unlimited appointments
- ✓Payment processing
- ✓Email notifications
- ✓6 calendars
- ✓SMS reminders
- ✓Intake forms
- ✓Group scheduling
- ✓36 calendars
- ✓HIPAA compliance
- ✓Multiple time zones
- ✓Advanced customization
- ✓Unlimited calendars
- ✓Custom integrations
- ✓Dedicated support
- ✓Advanced security
What You Get: Plan Feature Comparison
Comparing Cal.com's Teams ($15/mo) vs Acuity Scheduling's Emerging ($20/mo)
| Feature | Cal.com | Acuity Scheduling |
|---|---|---|
| Multiple users | ✓ | ✗ |
| Round-robin scheduling | ✓ | ✗ |
| Routing forms | ✓ | ✗ |
| Team workflows | ✓ | ✗ |
| Remove branding | ✓ | ✗ |
| 1 calendar | ✗ | ✓ |
| Unlimited appointments | ✗ | ✓ |
| Payment processing | ✗ | ✓ |
| Email notifications | ✗ | ✓ |
Which Should You Choose?
Cal.com
Acuity Scheduling
Quick Buyer's Guide
Based on our analysis, here's who each tool is best suited for
- ✓Users who need open-source and self-hostable for complete data ownership
- ✓Users who need unlimited booking pages and event types on all plans
- ✓Users who want a free plan to start with
- ✓Teams with tighter budgets ($15/mo vs $20/mo)
Acuity Scheduling is best for:- ✓Acuity Scheduling is best for service-based businesses including therapists
- ✓consultants
- ✓Users who need highly flexible scheduling rules with buffer times, notice periods, and recurring options
Cal.com vs Acuity Scheduling: The Bottom Line
A genuine tie between Cal.com and Acuity Scheduling at 8.6/10.
Cal.com and Acuity Scheduling both deliver solid scheduling capabilities. Cal.com is ideal if you want an intuitive interface with quick setup, while Acuity Scheduling works better for teams that need advanced customization and integrations. With virtually identical scores, the best choice depends entirely on your workflow, budget, and which specific features you'll use daily.