Appointment scheduling for business owners who mean business
Acuity Scheduling is appointment booking software for service businesses. Acquired by Squarespace 2019. Trustpilot: 3.7/5 from 150 reviews. 37% of reviewers feel negative about pricing. 92% positive for client scheduling per GetApp.
Patterns extracted from real user feedback — not raw reviews.
The Acuity website crashes if you try to export more than a handful of appointments. This is a known issue with no timeline for resolution. It makes it nearly impossible to get your data out unless you pay for expensive API access, effectively locking users into the platform.
Users report the platform is 'not user friendly' with a 'poorly designed calendaring interface'. One review mentioned needing 17 steps just to purchase a class bundle. Navigation is unintuitive and business owners struggle to preview the customer experience.
Since being acquired by Squarespace, users are forced to re-log into their account roughly every half hour, which is extremely annoying for business owners managing appointments throughout the day.
Users note that Acuity has been 'stuck in the dark' and feels extremely outdated while Squarespace has done an excellent job updating other features. The platform desperately needs modernization but development seems stalled.
Acuity charges 3% per payment processed, and users are charged this fee even on refunds. Combined with already high monthly prices, this significantly eats into service business margins. 37% of reviewers feel negative about Acuity's value for money.
Unlike competitors like Calendly, Acuity has no free tier. Pricing starts at $16/month (annual) or $20/month (monthly). For businesses testing the waters or with light scheduling needs, this forces unnecessary expenditure.
Users report calendar syncing problems causing appointments to display incorrectly or show limited timeframes. Lost or disappeared bookings affect client relationships and business reputation. Issues persist even after customer service involvement.
Acuity offers no phone support, only email. Users report slow customer service and issues that remain unresolved despite multiple contact attempts. For service businesses with urgent booking problems, this is inadequate.
The group class booking system doesn't allow flexible scheduling across different weeks. Works well for private lessons but fails for group/package-based services, limiting its usefulness for yoga studios, fitness classes, and similar businesses.
Acuity has 30+ integrations while Calendly offers 140+. Video conferencing integration options are limited, and Apple Calendar/Zoom syncing occasionally fails. For businesses needing a connected tech stack, this is restrictive.
Built-in payment processing
Acuity allows collecting payments at booking time via Stripe, Square, or PayPal integration. For service businesses, this reduces no-shows and ensures payment before appointments.
Automatic timezone adjustment
The system automatically adjusts for different time zones, reducing confusion for businesses with clients in multiple locations. This is particularly useful for virtual service providers.
Intake forms and client management
Acuity allows custom intake forms at booking time, collecting necessary client information upfront. The client management features help track appointment history and notes.
Automatic reminders reduce no-shows
Email and SMS reminders help reduce appointment no-shows. Users report significant improvement in attendance rates when reminders are enabled.
Good Squarespace website integration
For businesses already using Squarespace, Acuity integrates seamlessly with booking widgets, unified billing, and consistent branding across the website.
Users: 1 calendar
Limitations: Single calendar only, No SMS reminders, Limited integrations, No packages or memberships
Users: 2-6 calendars
Limitations: Limited to 6 calendars, No custom API, No CSS customization
Users: Up to 36 calendars
Limitations: Still no phone support, Calendar limit even at highest tier
Users: Unlimited calendars
Limitations: No public pricing, Must contact sales
Service businesses taking payments (salons, spas, consultants)
Acuity's strength is payment collection at booking. For service businesses where no-shows are costly, the built-in payment processing justifies the 3% fee.
Squarespace website users
If you're already on Squarespace, Acuity integrates seamlessly with unified billing and consistent branding. The ecosystem benefits outweigh standalone alternatives.
Healthcare providers needing HIPAA compliance
Acuity offers HIPAA compliance with BAA on the Powerhouse plan ($61/mo). For healthcare practices, this regulatory compliance is essential and the cost is justified.
Service businesses
Built for salons, consultants, and service providers. Payment collection, intake forms, and packages. Perfect for appointment-based businesses.
Healthcare providers
HIPAA compliant option available. Intake forms and patient scheduling. Therapists and small practices use Acuity.
Group class/fitness businesses
The group booking system has limitations for flexible scheduling across weeks. It works for basic classes but may not fit complex fitness studio needs. Evaluate carefully.
Sales teams
Works but Calendly has better CRM integrations. Sales teams should use Calendly or HubSpot Meetings for lead routing.
Businesses needing to migrate or export data
The data export functionality crashes with more than a handful of appointments. This is a known issue with no fix timeline, effectively locking you into the platform or forcing expensive API access.
Budget-conscious solopreneurs
With no free plan and starting prices of $20/month plus 3% transaction fees, Acuity is expensive for light users. Calendly's free tier or Cal.com are better budget options.
Businesses needing extensive integrations
Acuity has only 30+ integrations vs Calendly's 140+. If you need a connected tech stack with multiple tools, Acuity's limited integration options will frustrate you.
Common buyer's remorse scenarios reported by users.
Users who chose Acuity for its payment features now find they can't migrate to alternatives because data export crashes. Years of client and appointment data is trapped in the platform.
Service businesses didn't calculate the cumulative cost of 3% fees on every transaction. Over time, especially with refunds also being charged, this significantly cuts into margins beyond the subscription cost.
Users who chose Acuity after the Squarespace acquisition expected platform improvements. Instead, the product has stagnated while dealing with new annoyances like frequent re-login requirements.
Business owners learned about disappearing appointments and sync failures through angry clients, damaging their professional reputation before they realized the technical issues.
Scenarios where this product tends to fail users.
The data export function crashes with more than a handful of appointments. Migration to any competitor requires expensive API access or losing your historical data entirely.
The 3% transaction fee compounds significantly at scale. A business processing $10,000/month in bookings pays $300 in Acuity fees alone, plus the monthly subscription.
The group booking system can't handle flexible scheduling across different weeks. Fitness studios and similar businesses with varied class schedules will outgrow Acuity's capabilities.
With email-only support and slow response times, urgent problems affecting your business (double bookings, disappeared appointments) can't be resolved quickly.
With only 30+ integrations compared to competitors' 100+, businesses needing to connect Acuity with their CRM, marketing tools, and other software will hit walls.
Cal.com
Users switch for the generous free tier with unlimited features, open-source flexibility, and lower pricing. Appeals to tech-savvy users who want control.
Calendly
Users wanting simpler scheduling switch to Calendly. Gain: cleaner UI, better known, more integrations. Trade-off: less service-business features.
Square Appointments
Square users switch for payment integration. Gain: unified payments, POS integration. Trade-off: Square ecosystem required.
SimplyBook.me
Users needing better customization and booking page flexibility switch to SimplyBook.me. More features for service-based businesses at similar pricing.
Setmore
Budget users switch for free tier. Gain: generous free plan, simple. Trade-off: fewer features, less customization.
