Compare · updated August 2026
EaseSeat vs Salonist
Salonist (by Shrivra, Mohali) is a mature all-in-one: booking, POS, loyalty, gift cards, even a free tier. The real differences are what WhatsApp means in each product — nine third-party integrations versus one native number — and whether anything answers your customers when you can't.
Every price and fact below is sourced from Salonist's own published pricing or independent review platforms, linked at the bottom — so you can check us.
Why salon owners choose EaseSeat
- ✓You want WhatsApp campaigns without buying the tier for them — Salonist gates campaigns to its Advance plan at ₹36,000/yr (₹3,000/mo)
- ✓You want a native WhatsApp Business number through Meta, not a third-party provider account (Salonist integrates Twilio, Interakt, AiSensy, Zoko…)
- ✓You want an AI receptionist — Salonist sends automated templates; nothing converses with or books your customers
- ✓Reliability: Salonist reviews report glitching, timeouts, and messaging outages ('not going out for the past 2 months')
- ✓Even Salonist's cheapest India plan (₹19,800/yr ≈ ₹1,650/mo) costs more than EaseSeat Premium at ₹1,149/mo
The narrow cases where Salonist fits
- →You want a genuinely free tier to start on (50 appointments/month, no card)
- →You want an Arabic/RTL interface — Salonist ships 13 UI languages including Arabic
- →You like choosing your own WhatsApp provider from its 9 integrations
What each actually costs
| Salonist | EaseSeat | |
|---|---|---|
| India plans (Techjockey, annual ex-GST) | Essential ₹19,800/yr (≈₹1,650/mo) · Advance ₹36,000/yr (₹3,000/mo) · Expert ₹49,500/yr (≈₹4,125/mo) | ₹849/mo (Elite) or ₹1,149/mo (Premium), ex-GST · ₹229 one-time setup · unlimited staff · public pricing |
| WhatsApp campaigns | Advance tier and above — ₹36,000/yr, via third-party providers | Included; your own Meta-official number; Meta rates at cost |
| Free tier | Yes — 50 appointments/month marketplace listing plan | No teaser tier — one honest public price with everything included from day one |
| Marketplace commission | 15% one-time on new clients from Salonist's marketplace | 0% — no marketplace |
Salonist INR figures are from its Techjockey listing; USD list prices on salonist.io are higher (Essential $590/yr, Advance $1,090/yr). EaseSeat prices exclude GST.
Feature by feature
| Capability | Salonist | EaseSeat |
|---|---|---|
| WhatsApp architecture | 9 third-party integrations (Twilio, Interakt, AiSensy, Zoko…) — separate accounts & per-message costs | One native WhatsApp Business number via Meta official onboarding |
| AI receptionist | None — automated templates (birthdays, reminders, win-back) | EzzyChat answers & books on WhatsApp, 12 Indian languages, 24/7 |
| Owner AI | 'AI automation' appears as an Expert-tier bullet, unspecified | EzzyAssistant — ask your business anything on WhatsApp |
| Loyalty & prepaid | Loyalty points, gift cards, e-wallet | Memberships & prepaid packages — customers pay once, redeem across visits (the job gift cards do), tracked automatically |
| Free tier | Yes — capped at 50 appointments/mo, then you upgrade | None needed — ₹849/mo flat covers unlimited appointments from the start |
| Reliability (from reviews) | 'Highly glitching and very very slow', timeouts, 2-month messaging outage | AI answers verified against records before sending |
| Languages | 13 UI languages incl. Arabic RTL | 12 Indian languages in the AI conversations themselves |
The honest summary
Salonist is a feature-complete suite with real breadth — loyalty, gift cards, an e-wallet, a genuine free tier — and respectable ratings on Indian marketplaces. If you want maximum checkbox coverage with a free on-ramp, it belongs on your list.
The two honest cautions from its own footprint: reliability complaints in reviews are unusually sharp (glitching, timeouts, a two-month messaging outage, billing-after-cancellation disputes on Trustpilot), and WhatsApp is outsourced — nine different third-party integrations, each meaning another provider account and another bill, with campaigns gated behind the ₹3,000/month tier.
EaseSeat's position is narrower and deeper: one native WhatsApp number per salon through Meta's official onboarding, an AI receptionist actually answering and booking on it, and the owner running the business from the same app — at ₹1,149 a month, below Salonist's entry plan.
The verdict
For Indian salons: EaseSeat
Salonist's paid plans start above EaseSeat's Premium, WhatsApp campaigns need its ₹3,000/month tier through third-party providers, and nothing in it converses with customers. EaseSeat includes your own Meta-official WhatsApp number and an AI receptionist that answers and books on it — for less than Salonist's entry plan.
Questions owners ask
Is Salonist cheaper than EaseSeat?
Its free tier is cheaper by definition (50 appointments/month). Its paid India plans are not: Essential is ₹19,800/year (≈₹1,650/month) and WhatsApp campaigns need Advance at ₹36,000/year (₹3,000/month), per its Techjockey listing — versus EaseSeat Premium at ₹1,149/month with WhatsApp and the AI suite included.
How does WhatsApp differ between Salonist and EaseSeat?
Salonist connects to WhatsApp through nine third-party providers (Twilio, Interakt, AiSensy, Zoko and others), which means separate provider accounts and per-message billing outside Salonist. EaseSeat gives each salon its own WhatsApp Business number through Meta's official onboarding — and EzzyChat answers customers on it.
Does Salonist have an AI like EzzyChat?
Not that its public pages document. Salonist automates scheduled template messages (reminders, birthdays, win-backs); 'AI automation' appears as an unspecified bullet on its Expert tier. EzzyChat holds the actual conversation — answers prices and timings in the customer's language, checks live availability and books.
Sources
- Salonist pricing (official)
- Techjockey — Salonist INR plans
- Salonist integrations (WhatsApp providers)
- Capterra — Salonist reviews
- Trustpilot — Salonist
Prices checked August 2026. If anything here is out of date, tell us and we will correct it.
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