Booking software for barbers
A barbershop lives on short slots and fast turnover: 30-minute cuts, 15-minute beard trims, a fade that runs long, and a regular who walks in while you are mid-cut. TimeToBook gives you a booking link clients use from their phone at 11pm, a calendar that fits 15-minute services, walk-ins added in a few taps from the app, and reminders that get people in the chair on time. One barber is free, and we never take a cut of a cut.
Free for one staff member. No card needed. Last updated 28 October 2026.
The short version
TimeToBook suits barbershops with one to about ten chairs that want online booking without a marketplace commission, a calendar that shows every barber side by side, and reminders that cut no-shows. It is deliberately simple: no walk-in queue screen, no till, no tipping, no loyalty points. If you want clients to book online and still take walk-ins, it does that well and cheaply.
Barbershops by the numbers
Figures we use when we talk to barbers. Every one links to where it came from.
- 7 in 10
- Barbershop customers walk in without an appointment at least sometimes; 35% usually or always do.
- 40%
- Of barbershop regulars say they always need to book outside business hours.
- 67%
- Of appointments at barbershops with online booking were booked online by the client.
- 2 to 4 weeks
- How often barbershop clients come back: skin fades every 1 to 2 weeks, scissor cuts every 3 to 4.
Source: Zenoti consumer survey, 2023
Source: Zenoti client survey, 2025
Source: Mangomint barbershop booking statistics, 2026
Source: Pall Mall Barbers, 2026
What barbers need from booking software
The problems that come up every time we talk to barbershop owners, and what TimeToBook does about each one.
| The need | How TimeToBook handles it |
|---|---|
| Short slots that stack cleanly | Services can be 15, 30 or 45 minutes (or anything from 5 minutes up) and online start times are offered every 15 minutes by default, or every 30 if you want a tidier day. A skin fade can carry a few minutes of buffer for clean-down while a beard trim carries none, so the calendar reflects how the day actually runs. Feature details |
| Walk-ins next to online bookings | Walk-ins are added from the TimeToBook app in a few taps, with a new client created on the spot, and they land on the calendar like any other booking. Online clients only see gaps that are genuinely free. There is no queue screen or QR check-in: if most of your trade is walk-in and you want a digital queue, that is not what we do. Feature details |
| Clients who always book the same barber | The booking page lets a client pick their barber or "any available". Each barber has their own hours, their own calendar column and their own app login showing their own bookings. With TimeToBook Plus, a one-tap rebook link in the reminder email pre-selects the same barber and service. Feature details |
| Bookings at 11pm without picking up the phone | The booking link sits in your Instagram bio, Google Business Profile and on a QR poster you can print from TimeToBook. Clients book, you get a push notification, and the appointment is on the calendar. Nothing to approve. Feature details |
| No marketplace taking 20 or 30% of new clients | TimeToBook has no marketplace and takes nothing from a booking made through your page. Fresha charges 20% of a new client's first booking through its marketplace and Booksy Boost takes 30% of a first visit; here the only fee is a flat monthly amount per extra barber, and a platform fee on deposits if you choose to take them. Feature details |
| Late arrivals that push every cut back | SMS reminders go out 24 hours before with the exact time; email reminders are free. Clients can cancel themselves from the manage link inside your notice window, which frees the slot for the next person. No-shows are marked on the client record, and where online payments are available you can ask repeat offenders for a deposit by requiring one on the services they book. Feature details |
| Kids, pensioner and student prices | List them as their own services with their own prices, or give the same service a different price per barber. Service categories keep the menu readable on a phone: Cuts, Beards, Kids, Shaves. Feature details |
A barbershop service menu, as TimeToBook stores it
Every service in TimeToBook has a duration, optional processing time (hands-off time another client can be booked into), optional buffer time (clean-down nobody can book into), a price, and a rebook interval that drives automatic rebooking reminders. Here is a typical barbershop menu set up that way. Durations are typical, not rules; adjust them to how you actually work.
Durations match what barbershops on Timely, Fresha and Booksy actually list: 30 for a cut, 40 to 45 for a fade, 15 for a beard. The rebook column drives Plus rebooking reminders; fades go out at two weeks, scissor cuts at four.
| Service | Duration | Buffer | Rebook | Typical price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Clipper cut | 30 min | – | 3 wks | £16 to £30 |
| Skin fade | 45 min | 5 min | 2 wks | £19 to £24 |
| Scissor cut | 30 min | – | 4 wks | £25 to £30 |
| Beard trim | 15 min | – | 3 wks | £6 to £20 |
| Cut and beard | 45 min | 5 min | 3 wks | £23 to £38 |
| Hot towel shave | 30 min | – | – | £17 to £25 |
| Head shave | 30 min | – | 2 wks | £15 |
| Buzz cut | 15 min | – | 3 wks | £14 |
| Kids cut | 30 min | – | 4 wks | £15 to £22 |
| Pensioner cut | 30 min | – | 4 wks | £14.50 to £15.50 |
Typical prices are UK ranges from published salon menus, checked October 2026. Set your own in TimeToBook; the software does not dictate pricing.
What TimeToBook costs a barbershop
The first staff member is free, forever. Each additional staff member is £10 a month. No marketplace commission, no contract.
Solo barbershop
Free
One bookable person. Online booking page, calendar, email reminders and confirmations, client records, the mobile app. Not a trial.
Three-chair shop
£20/month
3 bookable staff: the first is free, then 2 × £10. Three barbers on one calendar, each with their own hours, services and app login.
SMS reminders
Prepaid credits, £4 per 100. They never expire. Email reminders are free and unlimited.
Deposits
Take a deposit on online bookings with TimeToBook Plus. A 7% platform fee per deposit, card processing included. No monthly fee for payments.
No marketplace commission
Nobody takes a cut of a booking made through your page, and your clients are your clients. The only per-transaction fee is on payments taken through TimeToBook, where that is available, and it includes card processing.
Is TimeToBook right for your barbershop?
Simple on purpose. Here is who it suits best, and the few things we leave out.
A good fit if you…
- Run a one to ten chair shop and want online booking alongside walk-ins
- Are paying Booksy or Fresha per barber, plus commission on new clients, for features you do not use
- Want each barber to see their own day on their phone and get a push when someone books
- Want reminders and self-service cancellation without a card terminal or a contract
What we don’t do
- A digital walk-in queue with QR check-in and wait times on a screen
- A till, tipping, product sales or loyalty points inside the booking app
Questions barbers ask us
-
Can I take walk-ins and online bookings at the same time?
- Yes. Walk-ins are added from the app in a few taps and go straight onto the calendar, so the next online client only sees times that are actually free. Online bookings arrive as a push notification. There is no separate queue system; a walk-in is just a booking that starts now.
-
Can clients pick a specific barber?
- Yes. On the booking page the client chooses a service, then a barber or "any available", then a time. Each barber has their own hours and services, so a client who wants a hot towel shave only sees the barbers who offer it.
-
Does TimeToBook take a commission on bookings?
- Not on bookings. There is no marketplace and no per-booking fee; the first barber is free and each additional barber is a flat monthly fee. The only per-transaction fee is on payments taken through TimeToBook, such as online deposits (TimeToBook Plus, where available), and it includes card processing.
-
How do SMS reminders work and what do they cost?
- Reminders go out automatically 24 hours before the appointment with the time and your shop name. Email reminders are free and unlimited. SMS reminders use prepaid credits that never expire, bought in packs of 100; the pack price for your region is on the pricing page.
-
Can I block out lunch or a late start for one barber?
- Yes. Each barber has their own working hours, including a two-week A and B rota, and you can add one-off blocks (lunch, a course, a day off) from the calendar or the app. Online booking only offers times inside the barber's hours and your opening hours.
-
Can each barber have their own login?
- Yes. Invite each barber by email and set their role. A barber can be limited to seeing and managing their own bookings in the app, while the owner sees the whole shop.
-
Is it free for a one-chair barber?
- Yes, with no time limit. One bookable barber gets the booking page, calendar, email reminders and confirmations, client records and the mobile app for nothing. You pay only when you add a second barber, buy SMS credits, or choose TimeToBook Plus for extras like deposits and rebooking reminders.
Further reading
-
Online Booking That Works While You Work
Your clients want to book at 10pm on a Sunday. Here's how online booking pages let them do exactly that, without you lifting a finger.
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How SMS Reminders Reduce No-Shows
No-shows cost salons thousands every year. A simple text message the day before an appointment can cut them dramatically.
TimeToBook for other businesses
-
Hair salons
Booking software for hair salons: colour processing time, cut and colour in one booking, prices per stylist, SMS reminders, deposits. Free for one stylist.
-
Beauty salons and skin clinics
Booking software for beauty salons and skin clinics: mixed menus, mask time another client can book into, consultations, reminders and deposits. Free for one.
-
Tanning studios
Booking software for spray tan artists and tanning studios: short slots, same-day bookings, prep reminders, weekly rebook prompts. Honest about sunbed limits.
- All industries
Set up your barbershop in an afternoon
Type in your services, add your hours, share the link. Free for one person, £10 a month for each extra staff member after that.
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