The Core Difference
Vagaro is salon booking software that also serves spas and fitness studios. It handles appointments, payments, and basic marketing for service businesses.
Aestheticc is built for medical aesthetic clinics. Practices that need clinical records, consent forms, treatment protocols, and compliance tracking on top of bookings and payments.
If you're doing haircuts and manicures, Vagaro is a solid choice. If you're injecting Botox and performing skin treatments, you need software that understands clinical workflows.
Feature Comparison
| Feature | Aestheticc | Vagaro | |---------|-----------|--------| | Built for medical aesthetics | Yes | No (salons/spas) | | Clinical consent forms | Yes (with photo capture) | Basic forms (add-on) | | Treatment protocols | Yes | No | | Before/after photos | Yes | No | | CQC compliance tracking | Yes | No | | Online booking | Yes | Yes | | Payment processing | Yes (Stripe) | Yes (Vagaro Pay) | | Client records | Clinical-grade | Basic contact info | | SMS reminders | Yes | Yes | | Marketing automation | Yes (included) | Add-on cost | | Membership management | Yes | Yes | | UK-focused | Yes | No (US-based) |
Pricing
| Plan | Aestheticc | Vagaro | |------|-----------|--------| | Solo | £39/month (all features) | ~£24/month (base) + add-ons | | With forms + marketing | £39/month | ~£45-60/month | | Team (2-5) | £69/month | ~£50-80/month + add-ons |
Vagaro's base price is lower, but the features aesthetic clinics need (custom forms, marketing tools, advanced reporting) are all paid add-ons. By the time you've added what you need, you're paying more than Aestheticc while getting a system that still doesn't understand clinical aesthetics.
The Medical Aesthetics Gap
Vagaro was built for the beauty industry. Medical aesthetics has different requirements:
- Clinical records, not just contact details. You need treatment histories, medical questionnaires, and allergy flags.
- Consent forms with legal weight. Photo capture, e-signatures, automatic record linking.
- Treatment protocols. Botox units by area, filler volumes, injection mapping.
- Regulatory compliance. CQC standards, prescriber verification, incident logging.
Vagaro doesn't have any of these because Vagaro's customers don't need them. Hairdressers don't file CQC reports.
When Vagaro Makes Sense
- You're a hair salon, nail bar, or beauty spa
- You need simple booking and payment processing
- You don't perform medical or clinical treatments
- You're comfortable adding paid features as you grow
When Aestheticc Makes Sense
- You perform medical aesthetic treatments (injectables, skin, laser, body)
- You need clinical-grade records and consent management
- You want everything included at one price, not nickel-and-dimed on add-ons
- You're a UK clinic that needs UK compliance features
Built for the clinics Vagaro wasn't designed for. Try Aestheticc free.