Vagaro vs. Gloss Genius: The Power of Vagaro’s Base Plan

When comparing Vagaro vs Gloss Genius, one difference stands out right away: how each platform gives you access to the features your business actually needs.

Both Vagaro and Gloss Genius are popular booking and business management software options for beauty and wellness professionals. From salons and spas to fitness studios and independent service providers, both platforms promise to simplify scheduling, payments, and client management. But the way Vagaro and Gloss Genius structure pricing and features couldn’t be more different.

With Gloss Genius, many essential tools are locked behind higher pricing tiers. The moment your business grows beyond the basics, you’re pushed into the $56/month Gold plan, whether you need every feature or not. That means paying more simply to unlock tools that most businesses rely on to operate day to day.

We take a different approach at Vagaro. You start with a powerful core plan at just $23.99/month and add only the features that make sense for your business. No forced bundles. No paying for tools you’ll never use. Your software adapts to you, not the other way around.

Instead of letting a subscription tier decide when you’re ready to grow, Vagaro gives you control over how and when your business management system expands. Whether you’re a solo professional, a growing team, or managing multiple locations, Vagaro’s flexible model supports your goals without inflating your monthly costs.

Here’s how that difference shows up and where it matters most:

Does Your Payment Processing System Work for You or Against You?

Let’s start where money moves first because your payment processing system should support your growth, not quietly chip away at it.

Payment Processing

Vagaro offers payment processing as low as 2.2%, plus Instant Payout, you control how and when your money moves.

Gloss Genius charges a 2.6% flat rate, and features like instant payout come with additional fees and timing restrictions. For example, Gloss Genius quiet period restrictions prevent daily payouts between 6:30 PM and 9:00 PM ET. Is it really “instant” if there’s limits on when you can get paid out?

Both platforms handle payments well, but Vagaro gives businesses more flexibility and lower starting rates without requiring a premium plan.

Capital Funding

What if you want to grow your business, but don’t quite have the funds to take the plunge? When it comes to business funding, flexibility matters.

Vagaro provides access to capital up to $500,000, and that funding can be used for everything from growth initiatives to POS hardware and expansion.

Gloss Genius caps their funding option at $250,000, with more limited use cases.

For salon owners thinking long-term, Vagaro simply gives you more room to scale without turning to outside lenders.

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Are You Paying More Just to Manage Your Calendar?

Your calendar is the engine behind your business. From appointment scheduling to staff availability, the way you manage your bookings directly impacts your revenue, your client experience, and your sanity. And you shouldn’t have to upgrade your software just to run your schedule the right way.

With Vagaro, appointment scheduling tools are included in the base plan of $23.99/month, giving beauty and wellness professionals like you everything you need to stay organized from day one. Built-in features include:

• Waitlists to fill last-minute openings
• Resource management for rooms and equipment
• Staff calendar syncing across your team
• Processing time and buffer controls to prevent burnout
• Custom service hours that fit how you really work

Both Vagaro and GlossGenius support online booking and real-time availability, with Google Calendar integration to help manage multiple schedules. But here’s where the experience starts to look very different.

With GlossGenius, many of these tools are locked behind the $56/month Gold plan. Tools like waitlists, resource management, synced staff calendars, and gap-time controls require an upgrade, even though they’re basic needs for running a smooth operation.

With Vagaro, smarter scheduling isn’t a premium feature. It’s just how your calendar works from the start.

Client Experience: Is It Built in or Tier Locked?

Client experience isn’t a luxury feature. It’s a core part of running a successful beauty or wellness business. We’ve built that philosophy directly into the Vagaro platform.

Instead of locking client facing tools behind premium tiers, Vagaro offers a connected ecosystem, designed to support every stage of the client journey, including:

• The Vagaro Marketplace for built-in client discovery
• Client booking app (with an optional branded app available)
• Two-way SMS communication for easy client conversations
• Customer check-in app to streamline front-desk flow
• Live streaming tools for classes, services, and virtual events
• AI front desk tools to help with client communication
• Loyalty programs that encourage repeat visits and visits and long-term retention

Vagaro also offers deep customization across these tools, giving businesses control over appointment reminders, automated messages, and marketing touchpoints. That means your client experience feels polished, professional, and consistent.

One of the biggest advantages is visibility. Being listed on the Vagaro Marketplace helps businesses attract new clients month after month, with many generating up to $75,000 in revenue from marketplace bookings alone!

GlossGenius doesn’t offer a built-in marketplace, but it does focus on customization and integrated marketing tools to help businesses shape their brand presence. It’s doesn’t quite reach $75,000 like the Vagaro marketplace revenue, but it’s something.

The difference is impact.

Vagaro doesn’t just manage appointments and payments. It helps you build a connected client experience that supports engagement before, during and after every visit.

And when clients feel taken care of at every step, loyalty and repeat bookings ae more predictable.

Are Core Business Operations Included or Locked Behind a Paywall?

This is where the difference between Vagaro and GlossGenius becomes impossible to ignore. Not in flashy features, but in the core features that actually keep your business running.

Vagaro includes core features that most studios, salons, and spas need to stay organized and in control within the base price of $23.99/month. Your core operations are supported without forcing you into a higher tier:

• Staff permissions and custom access levels
• Commission customization
• Time tracking
• Basic inventory management
• Payroll (optional add-on with transparent pricing)

Vagaro lets you pick any additional tools a-la-carte only if you want them instead of building them into a bigger monthly tier. Other resources like equipment management, payment processing, and client management are also integrated into the platform to streamline your business operations.

On the other hand, GlossGenius places many core features behind its Gold Plan of $56/month, including:

• Custom access levels and permissions
• Commission structures on services and products
• Time tracking
• Separate banking tools for booth renters
• Client forms

GlossGenius also lacks built-in online retail sales and automated purchasing tools, which Vagaro allows you to enable a-la-carte.

When it comes to payroll, Vagaro’s offering is, again, more cost-effective: $34/month + $5/employee, versus $40/month + $6/employee on GlossGenius for the same core payroll functionality. Vagaro also offers payroll automation, so staff payments, commission tracking, and managing a team is more efficient.

The result? With Vagaro, you decide which tools you need and only pay for what you choose, not a prepackaged software tier you may never use.

Do Your Marketing Tools Grow Your Business Automatically?

When you choose a business management software, marketing tools matter just as much as scheduling. The right tools should help you attract new clients and keep existing ones coming back, not make growth feel complicated or expensive.

Vagaro approaches marketing with flexibility. Instead of locking essential growth tools behind higher pricing tiers, Vagaro lets you build your marketing system based on what your business actually needs.

With Vagaro, you get:

• Email marketing included in the base plan
• Optional add-ons for website building, online shopping, and text marketing
• AI tools that support messaging and customer communication when you choose to activate them

That means you’re not forced into a higher subscription just to access marketing features. You add the tools that fit your strategy, when they fit your budget.

GlossGenius takes a different approach. Many advanced marketing features, including campaign automation, enhanced email tools, and AI-assisted messaging, require upgrading to the $56/month Gold plan. Website customization is also more limited, and SEO-focused blogging tools are not part of the platform.

The difference comes down to control.

Vagaro gives you freedom to build a marketing system that grows with your business. GlossGenius requires you to upgrade your entire plan just to unlock the tools that help you scale.

And when marketing feels flexible instead of being forced, growth feels less like guesswork and a lot more like momentum.

How Easy Is It to Switch and Get Support When You Need It?

Even the best software only works when you have real humans backing it up.

Vagaro includes free data transfer with free onboarding, referral credits, ongoing education through Vagaro University, and 24/7 premium customer support. Vagaro also offers industry events for networking and education.

GlossGenius offers data transfer only without onboarding support. It doesn’t provide 24/7 human customer support or industry networking events.

For professionals switching software or scaling their business, that difference matters. Faster onboarding and real support reduce downtime and frustration.

When help is easy to reach, everything from setup to scaling feels a lot less stressful.

How Much More Do You Pay with Tiered Pricing?

This is where all the numbers finally come together.

One of the biggest differences between Vagaro and GlossGenius is how pricing scales.

With GlossGenius, many essential business tools require upgrading to the $56 per month Gold plan. That upgrade isn’t for luxury features. It’s for basic necessities as a business owner like waitlists, staff permissions, commissions, time tracking, marketing tools, and automation.

Vagaro includes these tools in the basic subscription at $23.99/month, which means your costs stay more predictable as your business grows.

Instead of paying more just to unlock features you need to operate, you can invest that money into marketing, staffing, or equipment that drives real revenue.

Because scaling your business should feel exciting, not like opening a new line item on your expenses spreadsheet.

What’s the Real Value Difference?

If you’re comparing Vagaro vs. GlossGenius and wondering which platform truly delivers more for your investment, it comes down to how your software grows with you.

Vagaro is built for beauty and wellness professionals who want their software to feel like a business partner, not a running meter that charges more every time they need a new tool. Instead of forcing upgrades through a tiered pricing, Vagaro gives you a strong foundation and the freedom to add features only when they make sense for your business.

With Vagaro, you get:

• Lower starting payment processing rates
• More access to business funding
• Advanced scheduling tools
• Built-in client discovery through the Vagaro Marketplace
• Flexible marketing tools you can add as needed
• Strong operational features without forced tier upgrades
• Hands-on onboarding and 24/7 support
• More predictable pricing as your business grows

GlossGenius may work well for some. But for businesses that plan to scale, Vagaro delivers more value in the base experience and more control over costs as your needs evolve while keeping things simple.

Because real value isn’t about paying less today.

It’s about having business management software that doesn’t charge you more every time you’re ready to grow.

Start your free trial today and see how much more your business can do with Vagaro. No contracts. No forced upgrades. Just smarter tools that grow with you.