Appointa vs Fresha vs Booksy: what actually makes sense for a Croatian salon?

If you're shopping for booking software and googling comparisons, you'll mostly find articles written for the US or Polish market. For a salon in Croatia the picture is quite different, so let's start with the short answer: Booksy is not officially available in Croatia — its list of supported countries simply doesn't include us. Fresha does work here and is a serious global platform, but it dropped its free plan in 2025, lists prices excluding VAT, and charges a 20% commission on new clients who come through its marketplace. Appointa is a Croatian-built tool with a flat subscription, no commissions of any kind, Croatian-language support and a free Starter plan.

One thing up front: Appointa is our product, so obviously we have a horse in this race. That's why this article contains no "we're the best at everything" — it contains numbers with sources, the date we verified them, and an honest answer to when the competition is the better pick.

Quick overview

	Appointa	Fresha	Booksy
Officially available in Croatia	Yes	Yes	No
Free plan	Yes (up to 30 appointments/mo)	No (dropped in 2025, 7-day trial)	No (14-day trial)
Price — solo	€0 or €20/mo (€15/mo billed yearly)	€17.95/mo + VAT	$29.99/mo + tax
Price — per staff member	included up to 3 (Pro) / 5 (Premium), then €5/mo	€9.95/mo + VAT each	$20/mo each additional
New-client commission	None	20% of first visit (min €3) for marketplace clients	30% of first visit for Boost clients
Online card processing	— (pay at the salon)	1.29% + €0.20 per transaction	2.49–2.69% + fixed part
Support in Croatian	Yes	No	No

Prices verified on 8 August 2026 on the official pricing pages. If you're reading this later, double-check the current numbers — stale pricing is exactly where most comparisons on the internet fall apart.

Booksy: a good tool — but not for Croatia

Booksy is one of the world's biggest booking platforms, particularly strong in the hair and barber world. And that's roughly where the comparison ends for us: Booksy officially operates in the US, the UK, Poland, Spain, France, Mexico, Brazil and South Africa. Croatia isn't on that list, and a Booksy account is tied to its country of registration — you can't just point it at a Croatian salon, Croatian clients and the Croatian language.

For reference, where it is available Booksy costs $29.99 per month plus $20 per month for each additional team member, and clients acquired through its Boost promotion carry a one-time commission of 30% of the value of their first visit.

If your salon is in Zagreb, Split or Osijek, the realistic choice comes down to the other two names in the title.

Fresha: a global platform with a new-client commission

Fresha is a mature, globally distributed product, and it's fair to say: if being discoverable inside a big international app matters most to you, Fresha is the strongest card in the region. Its client app is available in Croatian too.

What to know about the cost:

• There is no free plan anymore. Fresha ended its "free forever" model in 2025. Today you get a 7-day trial, then you pick a plan: Independent at €17.95/mo (for solo businesses) or Team at €9.95/mo per bookable team member.
• Prices are listed excluding VAT. With Croatia's 25% VAT, Independent realistically comes to about €22.44/mo and each Team member to about €12.44/mo.
• The marketplace is not a free channel. A new client who finds and books you through Fresha's marketplace carries a one-time commission of 20% of the first visit's value, minimum €3. Returning clients and bookings via your own link or website are commission-free.
• Online card payments cost 1.29% + €0.20 per transaction, and a card terminal starts at €339.
• Support is in English — for a salon owner who doesn't use English every day, every billing or calendar problem means a support conversation in a foreign language.

In short: Fresha is an excellent acquisition machine, but its model is built so you pay for growth per head (per staff member) and per new client (commission).

Appointa: a Croatian-built tool with a flat price

Appointa is built for Croatian service businesses — from hair and beauty salons to physiotherapists and trainers. The model is deliberately the opposite of marketplace logic: the clients are yours, the price is flat, commissions don't exist.

• Starter: €0. Up to 30 appointments per month, one staff member. Not a trial — free for as long as it's enough for you.
• Pro: €20/mo, or €15/mo billed yearly. Up to 3 staff members included, each additional seat €5/mo.
• Premium: €40/mo, or €30/mo billed yearly. Up to 5 staff members, additional seat €5/mo — plus client-retention tools (loyalty, promotions, waitlist).
• Client reminders (e-mail and push) are included in the price, as are your business's online booking page and mobile apps — one for you and your team, one for your clients.
• Fiscalised invoices on the Pro and Premium plans, at no extra cost, for businesses in Croatia: you issue the client's invoice from Appointa, on the web or in the team app, and the client gets it in the app or by e-mail. You still take the money at the salon — Appointa doesn't charge your clients.
• Data lives on EU servers (Germany), and support is in Croatian.

And where is Fresha objectively stronger? Appointa has no global marketplace with millions of users — you bring in new clients through your own channels: a booking link on Instagram and Google, a QR code in the window, referrals. If passive acquisition through a big international app is a key line item for you and you're happy to pay a commission for it, that's a legitimate reason to pick Fresha.

The maths: a salon with three staff members

Take a typical salon: three staff members, yearly billing where available, and say five new clients per month arriving through a marketplace (average first visit €30).

• Appointa Pro: €15/mo × 12 = €180 per year. All three staff members included, €0 commission.
• Fresha Team: 3 × €9.95/mo = €29.85/mo, with VAT €37.31/mo = about €448 per year. Add marketplace commissions for new clients: 5 × €6 = €30/mo, i.e. another €360 per year — about €808 in total. If you skip the marketplace and clients come through your own links, the commission disappears — but then you're paying for a global platform without using its acquisition edge.
• Booksy: not available — for reference, $29.99 + 2 × $20 ≈ $70/mo would make it the most expensive of the three.

The numbers are easy to redo for your own case: with Fresha the cost grows with every staff member and every new marketplace client; with Appointa it's flat up to your plan's capacity.

Which one is right for you

• You're solo and just starting with online booking: Appointa Starter — €0, zero risk, and you'll see whether you need more.
• You want tourists and internationals to find you inside a big global app, and you accept the commission as a marketing cost: Fresha.
• You have regular clients, a team, and want a predictable flat cost, Croatian support and retention tools: Appointa Pro or Premium.
• You've moved your business to Warsaw or London: there's your Booksy moment.

Frequently asked questions

Is Booksy available in Croatia? Not officially. Booksy operates in the US, UK, Poland, Spain, France, Mexico, Brazil and South Africa, and an account is tied to its country of registration.

How much does Fresha cost in Croatia? Independent at €17.95/mo, Team at €9.95/mo per team member — both excluding VAT. New marketplace clients carry a one-time commission of 20% of the first visit (min €3); online card processing is 1.29% + €0.20.

Does Fresha have a free plan? Not anymore — it was discontinued in 2025. What remains is a 7-day trial.

Does Appointa charge commissions? No. A flat subscription (€0 / €20 / €40 per month, cheaper billed yearly) and that's it — no commissions per booking, per client or per staff member within your plan's capacity.

Can I try before I pay? Appointa Starter is free permanently. Fresha gives you 7 days, Booksy 14 — where it's available.

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Prices and terms verified on 8 August 2026 on Fresha's and Booksy's official pages. If you spot a number that no longer holds, let us know — we'll update the article, because a comparison is only worth as much as its data is fresh.