Running a salon in Australia means juggling appointments, walk-ins, retail, gift cards, and staff rosters — often across multiple chairs or rooms. The right booking software makes this manageable. The wrong one adds friction to every interaction.
What Australian salons need from booking software
- Appointment-first scheduling — salons run on 1:1 appointments, not classes. Your software needs to handle overlapping service times, buffer time between appointments, and multiple service providers working simultaneously.
- Walk-in management — not every client books ahead. You need a way to slot walk-ins into the current schedule without double-booking.
- Retail and gift card POS — selling products, gift cards, and vouchers at the front desk should be fast. Separate retail software is a pain.
- Client notes and history — "Sarah always gets a trim with no layers, allergic to product X." These details need to be visible before the appointment starts.
- GST-inclusive pricing — Australian pricing is GST-inclusive by convention. Your software should display prices the way your clients expect.
- Online booking link — your Instagram bio, Google Business Profile, and website all need a booking link that works on mobile.
Common platforms in Australia
Fresha is popular for salons because it is free for basic scheduling. The catch: Fresha takes a cut of every new client booking through their marketplace, and paid features (no-show protection, marketing tools) add up.
Timely is New Zealand-based and well-liked in Australia. Clean interface, good calendar, but limited POS and no branded app.
Square Appointments works well for solo operators but lacks depth for multi-staff salons.
Mindbody is used by larger salons and spas but the cost structure is designed for high-volume fitness studios, not beauty businesses.
How KOLLABO OS works for salons
When you set up KOLLABO OS and select "Beauty & Wellness" as your industry, the platform adapts. The customer app hides class tabs and shows appointment booking only. The staff app focuses on the daily appointment roster, walk-in management, and POS.
- Appointment scheduling with service duration, buffer time, and provider assignment
- Walk-in queue — add a walk-in to any open slot in two taps
- POS — sell services, retail, gift cards, and packs. Stripe processes the payment directly to your bank.
- Client profiles with notes, history, tags, and AI-generated briefs
- Branded app — your clients book from "your" app on their phone
- No transaction markup — just Stripe's standard fee
Plans start at $99 USD/month (~$155 AUD). No annual contract. Try it at os.kollabo.online.