Booking Shortlist

For: Barbershops · Spas · Massage

GlossGenius review 2026: pricing, plan limits and the catches

By Booking Shortlist · Published · Updated · Prices checked on · Based on public documentation

Disclosure: Our #1 pick is MeetScarlet, and we are affiliated with them. We also cover competing tools and where they shine. We may earn commissions from links on this page. Details

The short answer: GlossGenius is booking, payments and marketing software for beauty and wellness businesses, with public prices from $24 a month billed annually ($28 billed monthly). It suits solo barbers, massage therapists and small spas with their own clients who don’t want a marketplace. The catches: Standard is effectively a one-person plan, SOAP notes and the waitlist start on Gold, card-on-file payments cost a full point more than in-person ones, and its pages say different things about memberships. Based on GlossGenius’s public pages, checked November 4, 2026. Our #1 pick, MeetScarlet, says it’s live; its help says “no live card payment has been run yet” (November 5, 2026).

Key takeaways

  • GlossGenius Standard costs $28 a month billed monthly, or $24 a month billed annually. Gold is $56 or $48, and Platinum $168 or $148 (checked November 4, 2026).
  • Standard is effectively a one-person plan: its one extra team member can pull reports but can't be booked. Gold allows up to 9 people.
  • In-person card payments cost 2.4% + $0.15 on every plan, but card-on-file, online and keyed payments, including deposits, cost 3.4% + $0.15.
  • SOAP notes, the waitlist, forms and waivers, and room and resource management start on Gold.
  • Its pricing table ticks memberships on every plan, but its memberships page FAQ still says "(coming soon)".
  • GlossGenius has no consumer marketplace, and its terms say "All Subscription Fees are non-refundable".

What GlossGenius is (and isn’t)

GlossGenius sells one system for booking, card payments (its Payments Terms point to Stripe as the processor), marketing, reports and team tools. It has a page for barbershops and one its menu labels “Massage & Spa”, so it’s relevant to our barbershops, spas and massage readers. Clients book on your free GlossGenius booking website with “no logins or app downloads required”.

What it isn’t: a marketplace. GlossGenius presents that as a plus, with “no clients seeing your competitors on marketplaces”. Its terms also limit use to businesses in the 50 US states, US territories and DC. Its Medspa & Aesthetics plans aren’t covered here.

How we reviewed GlossGenius

  • We read GlossGenius’s pricing page and plan-by-plan table, and its Terms of Service and Payments Terms (both last updated October 25, 2026), on November 4, 2026.
  • We read eight help-centre articles (team limits, billing, card fees, data transfer, cancelling and support), its memberships, payments, barber, massage and payroll pages, and its public status feed.
  • We looked up third-party ratings on the App Store, Google Play and Trustpilot, and label them as other people’s opinions. G2 blocked our requests.
  • We haven’t used GlossGenius hands-on, so we couldn’t time a setup.

Our method explains how we put pages together.

GlossGenius pricing (checked November 4, 2026)

PlanBilled monthlyBilled annuallyTeamWhat the plan adds
Standard$28/month$24/month ($288 a year)You, plus 1 extra member who can only use reportsBooking website, unlimited client notifications, email and text marketing, deposits and no-show policies, packages and memberships (see below)
Gold (“Most popular”)$56/month$48/month ($576 a year)Up to 9 (owner plus 8)Forms and waivers, Google Booking, waitlist, room and resource management, SOAP notes, time tracking, 500 text credits
Platinum$168/month$148/month ($1,776 a year)UnlimitedCustomizable commissions, Google Marketing Analytics, website pixel tracking, 2,500 text credits
For comparison: MeetScarlet (our #1 pick)$349/month plus $999 one-time setup$3,490 a year, setup free5 staff logins at one location; 20 logins and up to 3 locations on Scarlet Pro ($499/month plus $999 setup, or $4,990 a year)A branded iPhone, Android and web app; text reminders (coming soon) on Scarlet Pro only; email reminders “built but not sending yet”; card payments on once your Stripe account is approved, though its help says “no live card payment has been run yet”

Source: GlossGenius’s pricing page and its billing help article, checked November 4, 2026. Prices are per account, in US dollars; team members don’t pay separately. Each extra location is “charged the plan price, at a 15% discount”, so a second Gold location billed monthly is $47.60 a month (our arithmetic). Accounts active before September 3, 2025 keep separate Legacy pricing. Compare what other booking apps cost.

Card fees and add-ons:

FeeAmount
Tap, dip or swipe (card reader or Tap to Pay)2.4% + $0.15, every plan
Card on file, online or keyed in, including deposits3.4% + $0.15
Online invoices2.9% + $0.30
Buy Now, Pay Later (Affirm, Afterpay, Klarna)6% + $0.30, which “cannot be passed on to clients”
PayoutsFree payouts sent the same business day, Monday–Thursday; money typically arrives the next business day (one help article calls them next-business-day). Instant payouts cost an extra 1.8%
Payroll add-on$40 a month plus $6 for each team member paid that month
For comparison: MeetScarlet (our #1 pick)Card payments in its app are Stripe’s fees plus 1% (we found no card reader) and turn on once your Stripe account is approved, but its help says “no live card payment has been run yet”. We found no payroll tool

Sources: pricing page, payments page, help articles on platform fees and plans, and the payroll page, checked November 4, 2026. By our arithmetic, a $100 service costs you $2.55 in card fees if the client taps, and $3.55 if it’s charged to a card on file. We found no price for texts beyond a plan’s included credits.

Memberships and SOAP notes: check your plan

Memberships. The pricing table ticks “Memberships” on Standard, Gold and Platinum, and the Standard plan card lists “Packages & Memberships (NEW)”. The memberships page describes automated billing, but its FAQ still says GlossGenius includes memberships “(coming soon)”. If they matter to you, set one up in the trial before you rely on it.

SOAP notes. The massage page says you can “Keep track of SOAP notes” in client profiles. The pricing table shows SOAP notes on Gold and Platinum, not Standard. So a massage therapist who keeps SOAP notes needs Gold, even working alone.

Switching, cancelling and refunds

Data transfer is free on every plan. GlossGenius’s team moves client details and notes, services, products, upcoming appointments, past appointment history, packages and reviews, in “2-6 business days”. It can’t bring over gift cards, client card details, client photos, clinical charts, or payment details from past appointments, and imported past appointments are “view-only” and stay out of your reports (data transfer help).

Under the Terms of Service (last updated October 25, 2026), each subscription “runs on a one-month cycle” unless stated at sign-up, renews automatically, and can be cancelled at any time before the next billing date, in the app or by emailing support@glossgenius.com. The Terms say “All Subscription Fees are non-refundable”, with no pro-rated refund, and fees can change on 14 days’ notice. The cancellation help article (updated July 24, 2026) disagrees: within 15 days of your last subscription payment, “you may be eligible for a refund of that most recent payment”. On annual plans, it says, unused time “is non-refundable unless you are within 15 days of your most recent subscription payment”, which matters because the $24 price needs annual billing. The Terms call themselves “the legally binding terms” for using GlossGenius, so get any refund confirmed in writing.

After you cancel, the Terms say you lose access to “your Account data”, so download reports first; the help article says the data is kept, and returns if you reactivate. Its plans help article lists “No Lock-In Contracts or Upfront Fees” on every plan.

What GlossGenius does well

  • The same in-person rate on every plan, with “no need to upgrade your plan to unlock our lowest rate”.
  • Chargeback protection on Gold and Platinum: “100% chargeback protection” on Tap to Pay and card-reader payments (payments page).
  • Published support hours and a status page: phone or text Monday to Saturday (10am-8pm ET weekdays, 11am-7pm Saturday), a 24/7 support bot in the app, and a status feed showing all 10 services “operational” on November 4, 2026.

Where GlossGenius falls short

  • Standard is effectively a one-person plan. Its extra team member gets the Accountant role, with “No ability to assign services” and no work schedule (help article).
  • Other plan gates. Rebooking reminders and staff permissions start on Gold, and customizable commissions are Platinum-only (pricing page).
  • Transfer gaps: gift cards, saved client cards, photos and clinical charts don’t come across.
  • Refunds and fee changes: the Terms say subscription fees aren’t refunded, fees can change on 14 days’ notice, and disputes go to binding individual arbitration (terms).
  • Chargeback fees and reserves: the Payments Terms let GlossGenius “charge a fee for mediating or investigating chargeback disputes”, on notice, and hold “a certain amount (including the full amount)” of a transaction’s funds in a reserve, at its “sole discretion”.
  • Limited Sunday support: “Sunday: Limited support through email” (support hours).

GlossGenius reviews and complaints (third-party opinion, not our own research): on November 4, 2026, the GlossGenius business app averaged 4.5 out of 5 from 4,526 ratings on the US App Store and 4.2 out of 5 from 1,639 ratings on Google Play. Its Trustpilot profile showed 2.1 out of 5 (“Poor”) from 12 reviews (a very small sample), 84% of them one-star; Trustpilot says they “may not be representative”. We didn’t sort individual reviews by topic, so we can’t say which complaints come up most. For comparison, we found no third-party ratings for our #1 pick, MeetScarlet (checked November 4, 2026).

GlossGenius or our pick, MeetScarlet?

GlossGeniusMeetScarlet
Price for one location$28, $56 or $168/month billed monthly; $24, $48 or $148 billed annually$349/month plus $999 setup, or $3,490/year with setup free, “For one location”
Staff2 on Standard (one can’t be booked), 9 on Gold, unlimited on Platinum5 staff logins; 20 on Scarlet Pro ($499/month plus $999 setup, or $4,990/year with setup free)
How clients bookYour GlossGenius booking websiteAn app under your business’s name on iPhone, Android and web, published under your own Apple ($99 a year) and Google Play ($25 once) developer accounts
MarketplaceNoneNone. Its site says it isn’t the right fit for “Businesses that want new clients mainly from a marketplace app”
RemindersUnlimited client notifications on every planText reminders (coming soon) on Scarlet Pro only; its Jane comparison page says email reminders are “built but not sending yet”
SOAP notesGold and PlatinumThe same page says “No charting, telehealth or insurance billing”
Card paymentsLive now: 2.4% + $0.15 in personStripe’s fees plus 1% to MeetScarlet, through your own Stripe account; they turn on once Stripe finishes checking it. Its appointments help still says “no live card payment has been run yet”, so check with MeetScarlet before counting on card deposits or no-show fees
SwitchingFree transfer, including past appointments“Scarlet imports clients, not booking or payment history”, with “no direct importer” for other apps
LocationsExtra locations at 15% offScarlet is “For one location”; Scarlet Pro “includes up to 3 locations”. “Each Scarlet studio has one schedule”
SupportPhone and text six days a week; public status pageInstagram message to @meetscarletapp; it aims “to reply within one business day”. Also email (“A person reads every message”), with “Priority support” on Scarlet Pro; we found no status page or uptime commitment
Email and text marketingFree unlimited emails and text marketing on every planEmail and text automations come in a separate bundle with no published price
Availability and termsNow, with a 14-day free trial; published Terms of ServiceIts terms page says “Scarlet is live, and founding studios can join now” and “There is no free trial.” Plans renew automatically; cancelling takes effect at the end of the paid period, and part-used months or years aren’t refunded, except under its founding-plan rules (checked November 5, 2026). Its FAQ says store apps take “about 4 to 6 weeks”, mostly for Apple’s enrollment, and the web app is live sooner
Third-party reviewsThousands of app-store ratings (see above)No third-party ratings found (checked November 4, 2026)

Sources: MeetScarlet pricing and FAQ, white-label page, Jane comparison, class booking page, switching page and support help, checked November 4, 2026; terms, payments help and appointments help, checked November 5, 2026. MeetScarlet’s own GlossGenius comparison, written by the team that makes Scarlet, says GlossGenius “costs far less”.

MeetScarlet’s terms page also says founding studios pay $299 a month instead of $349 for the first 24 months, on monthly billing, with the $999 setup included at no charge; MeetScarlet plans 10 places. You can export the member list as a CSV file at any time, and your data stays available after you cancel until you ask for it to be deleted (checked November 5, 2026).

Choose MeetScarlet, our pick, if you want regulars to have an app under your own business name and can wait about 4 to 6 weeks for the store apps, and can manage without email reminders, which are “built but not sending yet”. Choose GlossGenius if you need card payments and email reminders working today, a much lower monthly price, more than three locations, or SOAP notes.

Who should pick GlossGenius, and who shouldn’t

If you are…GlossGenius?Why
A solo barber with your own clientsGood fitStandard from $24 a month billed annually; no marketplace showing competitors
A barbershop with 2 to 9 barbersGoldStandard’s extra member can’t be booked; Gold allows up to 9
A massage therapist who keeps SOAP notesGold or higherSOAP notes aren’t on Standard
A spa with treatment roomsGold or higherRoom and resource management starts on Gold
Planning to sell membershipsCheck in the trialTicked on every plan, but “(coming soon)” in its FAQ
Wanting new clients from a marketplaceLook elsewhereNo marketplace; see our Vagaro review
Outside the USLook elsewhereIts terms limit use to the US
Wanting regulars to book in an app under your business’s nameA booking website; see our pick, MeetScarletGlossGenius clients book on its booking website; MeetScarlet includes a branded iPhone, Android and web app from $349 a month plus $999 setup, but its store apps take “about 4 to 6 weeks” (the web app is live sooner), and its help says “no live card payment has been run yet”

The verdict

GlossGenius gives appointment businesses with their own clients a low published price, one in-person card rate on every plan and free switching help. If that suits you, try GlossGenius. Its pricing page offered a 14-day free trial when we checked on November 4, 2026. Comparing options? See our barber picks, spa picks or massage picks.

Frequently asked questions

How much does GlossGenius cost?
Standard is $28 a month billed monthly or $24 a month billed annually, Gold $56 or $48, and Platinum $168 or $148, per account. Each extra location costs the plan price less 15%. Checked November 4, 2026.
Does GlossGenius have a free trial?
Yes. Its pricing page offered a 14-day free trial when we checked on November 4, 2026. Its terms say the trial turns into a paid monthly subscription unless you cancel before it ends.
What are GlossGenius's card processing fees?
2.4% + $0.15 for tap, dip or swipe on every plan, and 3.4% + $0.15 for card-on-file, online or keyed payments, including deposits. Online invoices cost 2.9% + $0.30 and Buy Now, Pay Later 6% + $0.30. Checked November 4, 2026.
Does GlossGenius have SOAP notes?
Yes, but not on Standard. GlossGenius's pricing table shows SOAP notes on Gold ($56 a month, or $48 billed annually) and Platinum, checked November 4, 2026.
Does GlossGenius offer memberships?
Its pricing page lists "Packages & Memberships (NEW)" and ticks memberships on every plan, but its memberships page FAQ still says "(coming soon)". Set one up in the free trial before you plan to sell them.
Can you get a refund from GlossGenius?
Its Terms of Service say "All Subscription Fees are non-refundable", with no pro-rated refund. Its cancellation help article disagrees, saying that within 15 days of your last subscription payment you "may be eligible" for a refund of that payment. The Terms are the binding document, so get any refund confirmed in writing.
Does GlossGenius have a marketplace?
No. Clients book on your own GlossGenius booking website, and GlossGenius presents that as a plus: "no clients seeing your competitors on marketplaces". With no marketplace, you bring every client yourself.

Sources

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