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Most buyers should pick Calendly.
Choose Calendly if you need team scheduling, routing, CRM connections, or its broader meeting tools; paid Standard starts at $10 per seat/month when billed yearly, and Callie and Notetaker add-on prices are not published. Choose TidyCal if low upfront cost matters more: it has a free plan, $29 and $79 lifetime options, and Pro at $99 yearly. Free and lifetime plans charge a 1% fee on paid bookings; Pro removes that fee. Calendly wins overall, but TidyCal offers lower upfront paid options.
01Side by side
| Calendly | TidyCal | |
|---|---|---|
| Starting paid price | Free; Standard is $10/seat/month, billed yearly | Free; $29 lifetime, or Pro at $8.25/month yearly |
| Free plan | One event type, one calendar, one-on-one scheduling | Unlimited bookings and types; one calendar; 1% paid-booking fee |
| Best for | Teams needing routing, shared scheduling, and admin controls | Solo service providers selling sessions or packages |
| Core strength | Team scheduling, routing, meeting recaps, and payment tools | Booking pages, recurring sessions, and prepaid packages |
| Ease of use | Review ease-of-use score: 7/10 | Review ease-of-use score: 6/10 |
| Integrations and calendars | Up to 6 calendars on paid plans; Salesforce, Marketo, Pardot | Google, Microsoft, Apple sync; Pro has unlimited calendars |
| Team and seat costs | Teams $16/seat/month yearly; Enterprise minimum 50 seats | Agency lifetime $79; no published seat-based price |
| Support | Review support score: 5/10 | Review support score: 4/10; reliability concerns reported |
Calendly Choose Calendly if
- Choose Calendly if you need round-robin scheduling or team routing.
- Choose Calendly if CRM connections like Salesforce matter.
- Choose Calendly if meeting recaps and AI scheduling appeal.
TidyCal Choose TidyCal if
- Choose TidyCal if you want a $29 lifetime option.
- Choose TidyCal if you sell recurring sessions or packages.
- Choose TidyCal if unlimited free bookings outweigh the 1% fee.
02Pricing compared
TidyCal has the lower upfront paid options: Individual Lifetime costs $29 once, and Agency Lifetime costs $79 once. Its Pro plan is $99 yearly ($8.25 per month equivalent) or $12 month to month. TidyCal’s free and lifetime plans charge a 1% fee on paid bookings; Pro removes it.
Calendly’s Free plan includes one event type and one calendar connection. Standard is $10 per seat per month when billed yearly, while Teams is $16 per seat per month on the same basis. Monthly-billed prices are not published. Enterprise starts at $15,000 per year and requires at least 50 seats. Callie and Notetaker add-on prices are not published. TidyCal is cheaper to start; compare its booking fee with Calendly’s per-seat cost before choosing.
03Features and depth
Calendly covers more than booking links: it offers calendar controls, automated email and text reminders, payments, meeting recaps, contact management, and its Callie AI scheduling assistant. Standard includes unlimited event types, up to six calendar connections, automations and reminders, and Stripe and PayPal connections. Teams adds round-robin and team scheduling, lead qualification and routing, plus Marketo, Pardot, and Salesforce connections. Callie and Notetaker are paid add-ons for Standard or Teams, with prices not published.
TidyCal focuses on booking and payments for service providers. It supports recurring bookings, prepaid session packages, calendar syncing with Google, Microsoft, and Apple, and automated email and SMS reminders. Its Free plan allows unlimited bookings and booking types, but only one calendar connection. Pro offers unlimited calendar connections and SMS reminders. TidyCal can cover recurring sessions and packages; Calendly has the stronger listed toolkit for routing, CRM connections, and meeting follow-up.
04Ease of use and learning curve
TidyCal’s pitch is straightforward: create a shareable booking page, set availability, connect calendars, and accept payments, without needing a domain, hosting, or design skills. That makes it a plausible fit for a solo provider who mainly needs clients to book and pay. Its free plan includes unlimited bookings and booking types, though calendar connections are capped at one.
Calendly also centers on shareable booking links, but its options extend into team routing, CRM connections, AI scheduling, and meeting recaps. That breadth is useful when those workflows matter, but may be more than a solo host needs. Invitees do not need Calendly seats; users who connect calendars and host meetings do.
Questions people ask
Which is cheaper, Calendly or TidyCal?
TidyCal has the lower upfront paid options: $29 for Individual Lifetime or $79 for Agency Lifetime. Pro is $99 yearly or $12 monthly. Calendly Standard is $10 per seat per month when billed yearly. TidyCal’s free and lifetime plans charge a 1% fee on paid bookings; Pro has no platform fee.
Does TidyCal have a free plan, and what are its limits?
Yes. TidyCal Free includes unlimited bookings and booking types, one calendar connection, basic integrations, and a 1% platform fee on paid bookings. Calendly Free is more limited by event type, with one event type and one calendar connection, plus one-on-one scheduling and a customizable booking page.
Which is better for team scheduling and routing?
Calendly is the stronger fit based on the listed team features. Its Teams plan includes round-robin and team scheduling, lead qualification and routing, and Marketo, Pardot, and Salesforce connections. TidyCal’s Agency Lifetime plan is a lower-cost team option, but the listed plan details do not include those routing or CRM features.
Can I collect payments with Calendly and TidyCal?
Both support paid bookings. Calendly Standard lists Stripe and PayPal connections, and Calendly also describes payments, invoices, meeting packages, and payment links. TidyCal accepts Stripe or PayPal; its Free and lifetime plans charge a 1% platform fee on paid bookings, while Pro removes that fee.