Bookster – Appointment Booking Management System vs Koalendar – Easy Appointment Scheduling & Booking Plugin

Managing appointments through phone calls, texts, and emails is chaotic. You lose track of bookings, double-book appointments, and spend hours on scheduling instead of serving customers. Bookster turns your WordPress site into a 24/7 booking system. 🌐 View All Demos Customers book appointments themselves, see real-time availability, and receive automatic confirmations. Accept online or in-person payments seamlessly on your WordPress site. You manage everything from one dashboard. 📌 Documentation | Core Pro vs All Access 💫 Perfect For Hair salons and barbershops Spas and beauty clinics Massage therapists and wellness centers Personal trainers and fitness coaches Consultants and coaches Tutors and education services Medical and dental practices Any service business that takes appointments 💙 How It Works Customers visit your booking page, choose a service, pick their preferred staff member, select an available time slot, and book instantly. You receive an email notification and can view all appointments in your calendar dashboard. No more back-and-forth scheduling. 🔥 Key Features (100% Free) Unlimited Bookings & Services Create unlimited services with custom names, descriptions, and photos Set individual duration and pricing for each service Add taxes, fees and discounts to bookings No limits on number of appointments per month Offer service add-ons and upsell options Smart Scheduling Set your working hours for each day of the week Configure different availability for different services Add buffer time between appointments (e.g., 15-minute cleanup) Block off days for vacations or holidays Set minimum advance notice for bookings (e.g., require 24-hour notice) Customer Booking Experience Clean, mobile-friendly booking form that works on all devices Multi-step process: choose service → select staff → pick time → enter details → confirm Customers see only available time slots (no double-booking) Optional customer account dashboard to view and manage their bookings Customers can cancel or reschedule appointments themselves Payment Options Accept cash/check for in-person payment Accept PayPal payments online (customers pay when booking) Stripe integration available via premium addon for credit card payments Mark bookings as paid or unpaid manually Track revenue in the analytics dashboard Automatic Notifications Email confirmation sent to customers immediately after booking Reminder emails sent before appointment Email notifications sent to admin when new bookings arrive Customize email templates with your branding All emails sent automatically – no manual work required Admin Dashboard View all appointments in Bookster → Calendar menu Switch between day, week, and month calendar views Click any appointment to view or edit details instantly Filter appointments by status (confirmed, pending, cancelled) Search for specific customers or appointments Drag appointments to different dates to reschedule Color-coded by service or staff member for quick overview Analytics & Reports Track total bookings and revenue right from dashboard View performance by service (which services are most popular) Monitor individual agent performance Make data-driven decisions about staffing and services Premium Addons (Optional) Upgrade your booking system with these customizable options: Staff Management Add unlimited team members from Bookster → Agents menu Set individual working hours for each staff member Assign specific services to specific team members Let customers choose their preferred agent or assign automatically Track performance and bookings per agent Booking Form Customize booking form steps (reorder, add, or remove steps) Add custom fields to collect specific information Enable recaptcha, brand logo, timezone selector, and more for your booking system. Advanced Features (coming in future addons) Group bookings and classes Recurring appointments Multiple locations management SMS notifications via Twilio Design Toolkit for Block Editor and Elementor Getting Started Adding the Booking Calendar to Your Site Method 1: Shortcode (Works Anywhere) Add [bookster_booking_form] to any page, post, or widget area. Method 2: Block Editor 1. Edit the page where you want the booking form 2. Click the + button to add a block 3. Search for “Bookster” 4. Select the Bookster Booking Form block 5. Publish the page Method 3: Classic Editor Paste [bookster_booking_form] directly into your content. Viewing and Managing Appointments Go to Bookster → Calendar in your WordPress dashboard You’ll see all appointments in calendar format Click any appointment to view details or make changes Use the view buttons at top to switch between day/week/month views Use filters to show appointments based on agents or booking status Creating a Manual Booking (For Walk-Ins or Phone Bookings) Go to Bookster → Calendar Click the + New Appointment button (or click an empty time slot) Select the service and staff member Choose date and time Enter customer information (name, email, phone) Select payment method Click Create Appointment Customer automatically receives confirmation email Troubleshooting Booking calendar not showing on my page Check 1: Verify the shortcode Make sure you added [bookster_booking_form] exactly (with square brackets). Check 2: Clear cache If using a caching plugin, clear your cache: WP Rocket → Clear Cache or similar. Check 3: Theme conflict Temporarily switch to a default WordPress theme (Twenty Twenty-Five) to test. If it works, there’s a theme conflict. Customers not receiving email confirmations Check 1: Email settings Go to Bookster → Integrations → Email tab and confirm email notifications are enabled. Check 2: Check spam folders Ask customers to check spam/junk folders. Add your domain to their contacts. Check 3: WordPress email issues WordPress email can be unreliable. Install an SMTP plugin like YaySMTP to improve email delivery: 1. Install YaySMTP plugin 2. Connect it to Gmail, SendGrid, or Mailgun 3. Send a test email to verify Check 4: Test with yourself Create a test booking using your own email to confirm emails are sending. Time slots not showing as available Check 1: Working hours configured Go to Bookster → Settings → Schedule and verify hours are set for the day in question. Check 2: Agent availability If using staff members, check Bookster → Agents and verify the agent works on that day. Check 3: Minimum advance notice Check Bookster → Settings → General → Restrictions, if you require 24-hour notice, today’s appointments won’t show. Check 4: Service duration If your service is 2 hours but only 1 hour remains before closing time, that slot won’t appear. Double bookings happening This shouldn’t happen with Bookster. If it does: Check 1: Multiple admin users If multiple people manage bookings, ensure everyone refreshes the calendar before creating appointments. Check 2: Contact support If this persists, contact Bookster support with specific examples. PayPal payments not working Go to Bookster → Settings → Payments tab Verify your PayPal email address is correct Confirm PayPal is enabled (toggle should be blue/on) Test in PayPal sandbox mode first Check if PayPal account is verified and can accept payments Review PayPal transaction logs for error messages Calendar showing wrong timezone Go to Settings → General in WordPress Set your city timezone correctly (e.g., “New York” or “Berlin”) Save changes Go to Bookster → Settings and verify timezone matches Clear browser cache and reload Third-Party Services Bookster uses these external services to provide full functionality: FullCalendar.io Purpose: Renders the interactive booking calendar Privacy: No personal data sent to FullCalendar Terms: https://fullcalendar.io/license Stripe.com (Optional – only if using Stripe addon) Purpose: Process credit card payments Data shared: Customer name, email, payment amount Privacy: https://stripe.com/privacy PayPal.com Purpose: Process PayPal payments Data shared: Customer name, email, payment amount Privacy: https://www.paypal.com/privacy When customers make payments, they’re redirected to Stripe or PayPal’s secure servers. Bookster does not store credit card numbers. Support Need help? We’re here for you: Documentation: Visit Bookster’s detailed guides Support Forum: Post questions in the WordPress.org support forum Email & Live Chat Support: Contact us through the Bookster website Video Tutorials: Watch setup videos on our YouTube channel Response time: We typically respond within 4 hours on business days and 12 hours on weekends. We’d Love Your Feedback ❣️ If Bookster helps your business, please leave us a review on WordPress.org! It takes 60 seconds and brightens our day. Click here ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ to share your experience. Have a feature request? We’re actively developing new features based on user feedback. Submit your ideas here. Compatibility Works With All Major WordPress Themes: Brandy WP Shadcn GeneratePress OceanWP Divi Avada And thousands more Page Builders: Elementor Gutenberg (Block Editor) Classic Editor Beaver Builder WPBakery What’s Next? After installing Bookster: Run the setup wizard Add the booking calendar to a page Create a test booking to see the customer experience Customize email templates with your branding Share your booking page link with customers Start accepting appointments 24/7! Your new booking system is ready to help you grow your business. Welcome to Bookster! 🚀

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