Packages, memberships and proper refunds.
An honest comparison to help you choose the right salon, spa or clinic software for your business — whatever its size.
Quick facts at a glance
A side-by-side overview of key differences
Prices shown in AUD (inc. GST)
Bella Booking: Starter plan for 1-3 team members, Professional for 4+ (unlimited). Competitor pricing from official sources, verified January 2026. Bella Booking features updated April 2026.
Which is right for you?
An honest look at when each platform makes sense
Consider Bella Booking if...
- Prepaid packages — sell a course of six facials or ten laser sessions, redeemed automatically at checkout
- Memberships with recurring Stripe billing, included sessions and benefit tracking
- Treatment plans published to the client's booking portal, for clinics and med spas
- Proper refunds — full or partial, with a reason and an audit trail, instead of a negative-quantity workaround
- Card on File — charge a saved card at checkout, or a late-cancellation fee when someone does not show
- AI Assistant on every plan, plus a weekly AI business digest
- Client reviews with verified appointments and AI moderation
- Waitlist with automatic slot matching and notifications
- Incomplete booking recovery with automated follow-up
- Find a Time wizard with gap-fill scoring, and three schedule optimisation modes
- Processing time — the team member is free while colour develops or a mask sets
- Service bundles that run in parallel across two team members
- Staff pricing tiers so a senior stylist charges more for the same service
- Resource management for rooms and equipment, with auto-assignment
- Family and dependent booking (children, partners, parents, pets)
- Roles and permissions — 4 roles and 50+ granular permissions
- Attendance tracking with a PIN time clock
- Afterpay / Clearpay processed natively for deposits, gift cards and packages
- Native online booking analytics — traffic sources, drop-off and conversion
- 25+ reports with period-over-period comparison and CSV export
- Self-service export of your client list, not just your transactions
- Accessibility and personalisation: dark mode, dyslexia-friendly fonts, themes, density modes
Consider Client Diary if...
- An integrated card terminal at the counter is your single biggest requirement
- You want cash drawer and petty cash tracking in the same system
- You want every feature on the cheapest plan rather than unlocking them as you grow
- You send very little SMS and would rather pay per message than for an allowance
- You want native Xero sync for your takings today
- You run a retail-heavy floor with barcode scanning
We believe in helping you find the right fit, even if it's not us.
Detailed feature comparison
A comprehensive look at what each platform offers
Payments & Checkout
Scheduling & Booking
Client Management
Team Management
Marketing & Communication
Business Management
AI & Intelligence
Platform & Support
Pricing breakdown
What you'll actually pay
Prices shown are starting prices and include GST. Bella Booking Starter includes up to 3 team members; Professional includes unlimited team members. Competitor pricing may vary based on team size.
Bella Booking
Solo (1 team): A$25/month AUD • Starter (1-3 team): A$47/month AUD • Professional (4+): A$79/month AUD
Client Diary
Additional costs to consider
- • SMS: 10c per message (client replies are free)
- • Email: 5c per message
- • Priced per location — a second site is a second subscription
- • An extra 1.05% applies when you pass transaction fees on to the client
Pricing information based on publicly available data as of August 2026. Visit each provider's website for current pricing.
Cost comparison by team size
Team Size Pricing Comparison
Monthly cost for different team sizes
Note: how team member limits work
Plan limits count the active team members on your Bella team roster. The comparisons in this table assume everyone listed is on the plan.
| Team Size | Bella Booking | Client Diary | Savings with Bella |
|---|---|---|---|
1 person | A$25/mo(Solo) | A$22/mo A$22 (Establish, 1–2 staff) | A$3/mo more |
3 people | A$47/mo(Starter) | A$45/mo A$45 (Expand, 3–5 staff) | A$2/mo more |
6 people | A$79/mo(Professional) | A$65/mo A$65 (Extend, unlimited staff) | A$14/mo more |
12 people | A$79/mo(Professional) | A$65/mo A$65 (Extend, unlimited staff) | A$14/mo more |
Bella Booking: Official pricing (Starter A$47/mo, Professional A$79/mo)
Client Diary: Official pricing page • Last verified: August 2026
Pricing may change. Please verify current prices on official websites before making decisions.
What Client Diary does well
We believe in honest comparisons. Here's what Client Diary excels at:
- 1Its own card-present ClientPay terminal, so the counter sale and the software are one system
- 2Every feature is on every plan — the tiers differ only by staff count
- 3Genuinely cheap: A$22 a month including GST for a one or two person business
- 4Australian-owned and Australian-priced, GST inclusive, no currency conversion
- 5Deep, publicly documented checkout: split bills, group checkout, held transactions, custom discount reasons, surcharges
- 6Cash drawer and petty cash tracking
- 7Barcode scanner support for retail sales
- 8Transparent messaging pricing — 10c an SMS with free client replies, 5c an email
- 9Four-week free trial with no credit card and no lock-in contract
- 10Native Xero sync for takings
- 11Free data import when you join
- 12A Sustainable Salons fee can be added as its own configurable line
Client Diary might be better if...
We believe in helping you find the right solution, even if it's not us. Here are some scenarios where other options might serve you better:
- 1An integrated card terminal — Bella has none yet, and this is the honest reason some salons choose Client Diary
- 2Cheaper card processing when you are not passing fees on — Bella adds 1% on top of Stripe
- 3Cash drawer and petty cash tracking
- 4Barcode scanner support at the point of sale
- 5Every feature available on the cheapest plan
Still not sure? - we'll give you an honest assessment of whether Bella Booking is right for your business.
Rated 5.0 on Capterra
“Streamlined patient booking with world-class support”
“The supportive & flexible system we have been asking for”
“Best Day Spa System Ever”
Switching from Client Diary?
We make it easy. Free data migration included with every plan.
How to switch from Client Diary
Step-by-step guide to export your data and move to Bella Booking. We offer free data migration with every plan.
- 1
Export your transaction data
Open the Reports menu, click Export Tools, choose your date range and press Export. The spreadsheet lands in your Downloads folder and covers your sales history.
- 2
Ask Client Diary for your client list
Client Diary documents a transaction export but not a client-list export. Contact their support and request a copy of your client records — it is your data. Send us whatever they provide.
- 3
List your outstanding vouchers, deposits and reward points
Note any unredeemed online vouchers, client account balances and reward point totals before you close the account. Bella has gift cards, client credit and a loyalty programme to recreate them in — but only if you have the list, so take it while you still have access.
- 4
Capture your service menu and stock list
Screenshot or export your services with prices and durations, plus your retail products with SKUs and barcodes. A link to your Client Diary booking page is enough for the service menu.
- 5
Email everything to hello@bellabooking.com
Send the exports, your balances list and your service menu. We validate, dedupe and import it all for you — free with every plan.
A note on appointment history
We generally recommend not importing old appointment history. Importing past appointments can trigger unintended automated messages (reminders, follow-ups) and cause data inconsistencies. Your clients and services are the essential data for a clean start. If you do want some history carried over, we recommend a tight recent range (e.g. the last 3 months) — our migration team will ensure no notifications are sent accidentally.
Good to know
Client Diary publishes a clear self-service export for transaction data. A client-record export is not documented publicly, so ask their support directly. Before you move, work out whether the card terminal matters more to you than packages, memberships and proper refunds — if it does, staying put is the right call and we would rather tell you that than sell you the wrong thing.
Official export documentation: Client Diary help centre
Can't export your data?
No problem — we can work with anything. Screenshots of your service list, a link to your public booking page, a photo of your price board, or even a typed-up list. Send us whatever you have and we will build your account from it.
Need help with the migration?
Our team will handle the data import, set up your services, and walk you through everything — included free with every plan. We accept data in any format — CSV, Excel, screenshots, photos, links, or anything else you can send.
Sources: Information gathered from clientdiary.com. Last verified: August 2026.
Found an error? and we'll correct it promptly.
Important Notice
The information about Client Diary on this page is based on publicly available data as of August 2026 and is provided for general comparison purposes only. Pricing, features, and policies may change at any time without notice. We make reasonable efforts to keep this information accurate, but we cannot guarantee its completeness or current accuracy.
Always verify directly with Client Diary before making any business decisions. This comparison reflects our understanding and may not capture all nuances of their offerings.