If you are dealing in an appointment-based WooCommerce business but struggling to find the right plugin, you are not alone!
Yes, many WooCommerce users find it hard to set up the booking and appointment system along with an upfront payment schedule.
Do not worry! I am here to help you out. In this article, I am going to share some best WooCommerce booking and appointment plugins. I will highlight the features of each plugin and will share the pricing too.
Overview
Who Needs a Booking and Appointment Plugin?
Not every business requires bookings and appointments. However, some specific categories need bookings for carrying a smooth business process. Some of these businesses are listed below:
Rental Products
If you deal in renting out products like cars, apartments, event spaces, etc. a booking and appointment plugin can help you out. This plugin helps in making reservations and provides better customer service. Thus, it eliminates the need for paper-based booking and payment records. Consequently, customers will view the available products and make online payments.
Service-Based Businesses
Many service-based businesses like medical consultancy, salons, wedding photography, etc. can benefit from an automated appointment system. It helps in avoiding the rush and calling just the desired number of people. Similarly, people on the waiting list can automatically get a chance to visit in case of cancellation of any booking.
How to Find the Right WooCommerce Booking Plugin?
When you have tons of options, picking up the right plugin looks like a daunting task. However, you can make this process simple with a few steps. Firstly, determine your business needs. Are you having a product-based business or a service-based business? What options do you need in a booking plugin? Do you need to set an hourly rate or a fixed price? Do you want to have add-ons? These are the few things that you should answer before searching for a plugin.
Secondly, determine how much you can spend on this plugin. Are you looking for a lifetime membership or do you want a free version? Some affordable plugins are also available but are you ready to compromise on a few features?
Thirdly, define your business stage. If your business is new, investing in an expensive and complicated plugin might be a risk. Therefore, you should opt for the one that is intuitive and simple. Similarly, if it is a well-established business, you should look for a plugin with multiple add-ons and top-notch features.
You must have got a fair idea about these plugins. Without taking more time, let me now start sharing my list of the best booking and appointment plugins. So, here it is:
WooCommerce Bookings
This plugin maintains a comprehensive online system for making reservations, receiving online payments, and maintaining a booking record. Thus, you do not need to mark booking dates manually on a calendar.
Features
- It enables you to set a fixed time slot or even ask customers to set their preferred time.
- It allows you to set the total number of participants in one session. In this way, you can have both, one-on-one and multiple participant sessions.
- It gives you full control over the rules on appointment booking and cancellation.
- It helps you track all your booking dates and sync them with Google calendar. Thus, you can view your booking slots on the go.
Pricing
- An annual single site subscription costs $249
- 30-days money-back guarantee
Bookly
Bookly seamlessly integrates with WooCoommerce and lets you book online appointments with ease. Several kinds of businesses can use this plugin for taking reservations like law consultancy, salons, private clinics, etc.
Features
- It helps in saving a lot of time and eliminates the entire manual booking process.
- It enables consumers to book appointments at any time, even on the weekends and holidays.
- It allows you to enter multiple employees and consumers will be able to book any of their choice. The price of each employee is mentioned.
- There is no limit on entering business services. You can even categorize them for easier business management.
- It easily integrates with Google calendar.
Pricing
- The lifetime license costs $89
- 15-days money-back guarantee
- Support for 6 months
Booked
This online booking plugin features multiple customization options for making the booking process simple and easy. It lets you categorize bookings as paid bookings, guest bookings, registered bookings, etc. Besides this, you can use multiple calendars, set dates, and show available time slots.
Features
- It lets you receive quick online payments and offers a smooth checkout process.
- It offers multiple calendars for employees. Thus, each employee can manage time and availability.
- It enables visitors to book registrations by just providing their name and email address.
- It has a built-in color builder. Thus, you can personalize the calendar as per your brand’s identity.
- It allows you to display the booking calendar on your business site.
Pricing
- The regular license costs $49
YITH Booking and Appointment for WooCommerce
This exclusive plugin offers an online booking system irrespective of the business type. Be it an apartment booking or a service like dentistry, law, salon, etc. you can use this plugin for streamlining your bookings. It displays the available time slot and can also be synchronized with Google calendar.
Features
- It lets you set a booking system for living spaces such as apartments, villas, cottages, etc. You can set an hourly, weekly, or monthly rate.
- You can set booking limits by setting up the minimum or maximum days.
- It allows you to ensure a smooth business process by confirming each booking from the admin before approval.
- It easily synchronizes with Google calendar and lets you book services like beauty, medical, law, etc.
Pricing
- An annual single-site license costs $199.99
- 30-days money-back guarantee
WooCommerce Appointments
This WooCommerce plugin allows you to take online appointments with ease. It is fully integrated with WordPress, WooCommerce, and Google Calendar. Besides this, it lets you receive online appointment payments without any hassle.
Features
- The plugin is intuitive and even newbies can use it. You don’t need any professional coding skills for it.
- It offers two-way synchronization with the Google calendar. You can sync your bookings with the Google calendar and vice versa.
- It enables you to manage the entire team with their respective calendars, time, price, and availability.
- It offers add-ons for extending time or days.
- It lets you set the number of days before which a visitor can book an appointment.
Pricing
- The yearly single-site subscription costs $89
Conclusion
So, this was my research about the best plugins for booking and appointments. As per my experience, I believe that if you seriously want to integrate the appointment plugin and can invest a good amount, go for WooCommerce Bookings. Although it’s a bit expensive, the features are great.
However, if you have a limited budget in hand and cannot spend so much in just a single plugin, you can try out other reasonable options like Bookly and Booked. Jot down your business needs and analyze your budget before making any decision. This was my opinion and your preference can differ from mine. So, pick the one that looks good to you.