Online Scheduling and Appointment Booking System – Bookly vs Koalendar – Easy Appointment Scheduling & Booking Plugin

Bookly is a free scheduling plugin for WordPress that allows accepting online bookings on your website and automating your reservation system. Manage your booking calendar, services, client base, save time and money – all in one place. Join more than 70,000 businesses all around the world that have already automated their online booking system! Bookly is designed to grow your online sales and make easy appointments. This is a one-stop shop for any businesses from hair salons or photography to wealth management and transportation. You can start easily with the free version of Bookly and once your business scales you can operate ultimate scheduling software with the paid version available with the Bookly Pro add-on, and various add-ons. PLEASE NOTE that online payments, unlimited number of staff members and services, and ability to install add-ons are NOT AVAILABLE in the free version. If you would like to find out more about features available with the Bookly PRO add-on, please check our demo. Bookly Homepage | Pro Features (Bookly Pro add-on required) | Add-ons (Bookly Pro add-on required) | Bookly Help Center | Demo 1. Benefits for the customers Online Scheduling with Bookly couldn’t be any easier for your customers. The booking form is perfectly responsive on any device, and all that customers need to do is pick their desired service and time, provide you with a few personal details, and voilà – it’s done! Your customers will receive an email or SMS notification before the appointment, and it will be automatically added to your Appointment Booking Calendar. 1.1 When you install Bookly on your website, your customers will be able to: – quickly schedule and book appointment without having to directly contact you or your employee; – make a booking on any device, since Bookly design is fully responsive; – select the category, the service, and employee to perform the service; – define the dates and time that work best for them and the booking system will offer only available time slots; – fill in the minimum amount of contact details; – get an email and SMS notification confirming their online reservations; – get SMS reminder about an upcoming appointment. 1.2 Bookly Key Benefits Saves time – no action necessary after booking is confirmed Friendly booking interface – easy navigation Minimal data input required Responsive booking form – works on any device Never forget a booked appointment with SMS and email notifications 2. Benefits for the business owner No coding experience required to set up Bookly. We did our best to make it as easy and quick as possible to install and start using Bookly free scheduling software on your WordPress website. And with our Bookly Pro add-on and other add-ons, you will bring online scheduling experience for you and your customers to the next level. You will be able to navigate the Booking Admin Panel like a pro, approve and adjust your appointments, and automate your online scheduling to concentrate on the most important part of your business – serving your customers and grow sales. You can change the layout and modify the appearance of the booking form to match your business, website, and branding, manage your services and the customers’ list and send email and SMS notifications – all in one place. You can use a wide range of Bookly features to configure your Appointment Scheduler and manage your bookings effectively: – easily and effectively manage your Customer list and Appointment Calendar online from the Admin panel; – add an unlimited number of clients to your searchable and sortable Customer list; – add new customer directly from the calendar; – setup and customize SMS settings right from Bookly backend; – notify customers and a service provider about approved, pending and canceled appointments via SMS and Email notifications; – view calendar in monthly/weekly/daily format; – filter, search and sort booking list; – automatically approve or cancel appointments. Configure the booking form to suit your needs: – customize every step of your booking form, including editable headings, texts, and buttons; – translate all user interface and notifications into 40+ languages via WPML plugin; – add as many booking forms on your website as you want; – show or hide specific fields if you don’t want them to be visible to your customers; – use pre-defined default values for Category, Service and Employee fields in your booking form; – choose the way your customers will see your booking form on the front-end (e.g., show or hide the calendar, show each day in one column, display blocked time slots); – display available time slots in the client’s time zone; – set duration for each service separately; – choose an individual color for each service in order to color code appointments internally in your Appointment Booking Calendar; – organize services into categories (you can add up to five services with the free version of Bookly); 2.1 Key Features Fast online booking with intuitively manageable forms The fully customizable appearance of the booking form with no coding involved Unlimited number of booking forms on your site Comprehensive admin area with an intuitive interface Monthly/weekly/daily calendar view for the service provider Manageable list of your customers Filterable, sortable and searchable booking list of your customers Variable duration for each service (5 min – 7 days) Services grouped into categories Customizable SMS and email notifications settings right from the Bookly backend WPML integration for multi-language support Automated SMS Mailing Campaigns for various marketing purposes Blocks for Elementor and Gutenberg 3. Bookly Pro add-on features: Bookly Pro add-on allows you to use more features and settings, install other add-ons for Bookly, includes six months of customer support, and provides you with advanced capabilities for automating your online scheduling system. Some of them include: Unlimited number of staff members with an individual working schedule and ability to manage their profiles and online booking calendar Unlimited number of services with additional settings (padding time, visibility, limitations, etc.) Ability to receive secure and flexible online payments on your website Online payment processing with PayPal, Stripe, 2Checkout, Authorize.Net, Mollie, Payson, PayUbiz, PayU Latam Additional templates for Email notifications (e.g., reminders about upcoming appointments, follow-up messages, birthday greetings, next day agenda, etc.) Advanced features for customizing your online booking form (show address fields, birthday fields, Facebook login, timezone switcher) Google Calendar integration WooCommerce compatibility Importable and exportable customer list which includes info about appointments and payments Built-in analytics so you will be able to see a comprehensive report about the number of bookings, customers and payments received Integration with Zoom, Google Meet and Jitsi Mailchimp integration (via add-on) Ability to export appointments via ICalendar feed Ability to purchase and use dozens of paid add-ons for deeper customization of your booking system (group bookings, custom fields, service extra items, recurring appointments, deposits, coupons, personal staff cabinet and user account for your clients, automatic invoicing, waiting list, and much more!) 4. Who can benefit from using Bookly: Bookly for WordPress is designed to be used by local businesses or individual providers who offer different services to customers. Since the booking form can be fully customized and personalized, it is successfully used in many business segments such as Healthcare, Beauty, Education, Medicine, Consulting etc., as well as by individual professionals. Also, Bookly is an excellent solution for web studios and developers, who are looking for ways to improve the appointment process for their customers. Online scheduling for: Salon & Beauty (hair salons, nail salons, cosmetology centers, tanning studios, barbershops) Health and wellness (wellness, spa & massage, aromatherapy, baths) Medicine (clinics, doctors, dentists, medical centers) Education (education centers, tutors, language schools, private lessons) Fitness & Gyms (yoga classes, personal trainers, health clubs, fitness centers, dance instructors) Professional services (coaches, consultants, lawyers, photographers, consulting psychologist, cleaning services) or any other services which can be scheduled and reserved online using the booking system. FURTHER READING Bookly Online Scheduling plugin official page Help center Bookly demo Bookly Pro add-on demo Add-ons for Bookly Pro Youtube channel AFTER ACTIVATION Add at least one service (Bookly menu > Services). Add a staff member linked to your service (Bookly menu > Staff members). Customize the appearance of your online booking form (Bookly menu > Appearance). Publish the booking form on your website (WordPress sidebar menu > Pages/Posts).

Koalendar is a WordPress booking and appointment scheduling plugin that lets visitors book meetings, services, and appointments directly from your website. It removes the back and forth emails and manual coordination by syncing bookings automatically with your calendar. Built for WordPress users, Koalendar is easy to install, simple to configure, and works out of the box for individuals and small teams. It keeps availability up to date, prevents double bookings, and helps you turn any WordPress site into a complete online booking system in just minutes, with a Free Forever plan to get started. See Koalendar in action Watch how easy it is to set up and start accepting bookings on your WordPress website: Top Features WordPress booking and appointment scheduling plugin Unlimited booking pages and appointments Calendar sync with Google Calendar, Outlook, and iCloud Accept online payments for services and appointments Personalized booking pages that match your website design Multiple appointment types with custom durations Group bookings and classes with attendee limits Smart availability rules, buffers, and time off Team scheduling with shared and round robin availability Automated booking confirmations and reminders Easy embedding using WordPress blocks, shortcodes, or widgets Perfect for Koalendar is designed for small businesses, professionals, and teams who need a reliable scheduling system: Consultants and freelancers Coaches, tutors, and educators Agencies and remote teams Service based businesses Sales teams booking meetings and demos Anyone who needs an online scheduling calendar on their WordPress website Integrations Koalendar integrates seamlessly with the tools you already use, so your online booking system, calendar, and business workflows stay perfectly aligned. This allows you to manage appointments, meetings, and services without manual updates or double bookings. Calendar integrations with Google Calendar, Outlook, and iCloud to keep availability accurate in real time Video meeting integrations with Google Meet and Microsoft Teams, automatically generating meeting links for online appointments Payment integrations with Stripe, allowing clients to pay when they book an appointment or service Automation platforms such as Zapier, Make, n8n, and Pabbly to connect Koalendar with hundreds of apps and automate follow ups or internal workflows WordPress friendly setup, plus productivity tools like a Chrome extension for quickly sharing booking links Personalized Booking Pages Create clean, professional booking pages that match your brand and website design. Your visitors can make an appointment without leaving your website. Customize colors and layout Share a direct booking link or embed on any page Works with WordPress blocks, shortcodes, or widgets Optimized for desktop and mobile users Smart Availability and Calendar Sync Koalendar connects to all your existing calendars to keep your schedule accurate at all times. Sync with Google Calendar, Outlook, and iCloud Prevent double bookings automatically Set working hours, buffers, and time off Control availability per meeting or service Team Collaboration Built for teams that need shared scheduling. Schedule meetings with multiple team members Round robin and collective availability options Each team member connects their own calendar Perfect for agencies and growing small businesses Multiple Services and Appointment Types Koalendar lets you create multiple services and appointment types within a single booking system, each with its own duration, availability, and rules. This makes it easy to offer different kinds of meetings or services on your WordPress website without juggling multiple calendars or tools. Visitors simply choose the service they need and book an appointment online that fits your schedule. For example, a service based business such as a wellness studio, repair service, or local professional can create appointment types like initial visits, recurring services, or premium sessions, each with its own time length and booking rules, making it easy for customers to schedule the right service directly from the website. Group Bookings and Classes Koalendar makes it easy to manage group bookings and classes directly from your WordPress website. You can allow multiple attendees to book the same session, set participant limits, and keep everything organized in one scheduling system. This is ideal for workshops, coaching programs, fitness or wellness classes, and training sessions, where multiple people need to book the same time slot while you stay in control of capacity and availability. Custom Automations and Reminders (included in PRO plan) Send personalized confirmation and reminder emails before each appointment or meeting. This helps keep clients informed, reduces no shows, and saves time spent on manual follow ups. Custom Booking Forms (included in PRO plan) Collect additional information at the time of booking, such as contact details, service preferences, or special requests. This is especially useful for service businesses that need context before an appointment. Payments (included in PRO plan) Accept online payments for appointments and services directly through your booking system. Charge for consultations, classes, or sessions in advance to simplify billing and secure bookings before they happen. Backlog updates Here are some recent product updates: Appointment types (services): list multiple services directly on your booking page, each with its own price and duration Multiple and recurring bookings: invitees can book multiple dates, or set up recurring bookings, in a single flow Booking durations in hours or days: configure event durations using hours or days New booking page editor: redesigned editor for faster page creation and updates Koalendar available in Spanish and French File upload: collect files with the Google Drive integration Stripe Checkout: offer more payment methods and collect taxes Gmail integration: send booking emails from your own address New integrations: Zapier and Telegram Apple Pay and Google Pay supported automatically on supported devices and browsers