Zenoti and SalonIQ both run the appointment book, the till and the client list for salons and spas, but they are aimed at different businesses. Zenoti sells to salons, spas, medspas and fitness brands in more than 50 countries, up to franchise networks. SalonIQ is built in the UK for hair, beauty and spa businesses, from a solo stylist to a salon group, and publishes its prices per bookable team member.
Every fact below comes from the two vendors’ own websites, help centres and documentation, read on 30 October 2026. Neither company reviewed this page. Zenoti does not publish prices, so none are quoted for it.
Key takeaways
- Zenoti covers salons, spas, medspas, fitness centres and barbershops, from one location to franchise groups, and says it is used by more than 30,000 businesses across 50+ countries. SalonIQ says it is used by over 2,500 salons and 180+ salon groups across the UK.
- SalonIQ starts at £47 a month for a solo stylist and reaches £137 a month for eight or more bookable staff, with a setup fee from £175 + VAT and 60 days’ notice to cancel. Zenoti quotes each business separately.
- Both offer online booking, a branded app, Reserve with Google, integrated card payments, automated email and SMS, loyalty points and gift cards.
- The clearest split is retail online. Zenoti’s help centre says that to sell products on its Webstore V2 you must integrate Shopify. SalonIQ sells products through its own hosted E-Shop, an add-on that needs a Stripe account, and its site makes no mention of Shopify.
Zenoti vs SalonIQ: comparison table (2026)
| Item | Zenoti | SalonIQ |
|---|---|---|
| Built for | Salons, spas, medspas, fitness and barbers, single site to franchise | Hair, beauty, barber and spa businesses, single site to salon group |
| Where | 50+ countries; offices include Bellevue (US), Manchester (UK) and Dubai | UK, with an appointed distributor for Ireland |
| Published price | None; a quote, set by footprint for groups | £47 a month solo up to £137 for 8+ staff; 15+ on application |
| Setup and contract | Not published | Setup from £175 + VAT; no long-term contract, 60 days’ notice |
| Online booking | Webstore, branded app, Reserve with Google, Facebook and Instagram | Website and social booking, Reserve with Google, branded app as an upgrade |
| Payments | Zenoti Payments: cards, tap to pay, Apple Pay, Google Pay, text-to-pay links | IQ Pay with integrated card terminals; payouts within 2 working days |
| Marketing and loyalty | Automated email and SMS, loyalty points at checkout, memberships, packages, online gift cards | Automated SMS and email, loyalty points, e-gift cards, direct-debit memberships |
| Selling products online | Through a Shopify store connected to Zenoti | SalonIQ’s own E-Shop, an upgrade that needs Stripe |
| Several locations | Consolidated and per-centre reporting | Group dashboards, central reporting, stock across all sites |
| Developer access | Zenoti APIs, documented publicly, and an app marketplace | IQapi, for third-party software houses |
Who each one is built for
Zenoti’s pricing page describes customers running anything from a single location to an enterprise franchise, and it has a separate franchise offer for multi-location beauty and wellness brands. Its about page lists offices in Bellevue, Brisbane, Dubai, Hyderabad, Jakarta, Kuala Lumpur, Manchester, Manila and Paris, and it serves medspas and fitness studios as well as salons and spas.
SalonIQ is narrower on purpose. It is made by Intelligent Salon Software Ltd in Tunbridge Wells, Kent, which launched SalonIQ in 2013 and calls itself an independently owned software provider. Its pages are written for UK hair, beauty, barber and spa businesses, priced in pounds, and it has had an Irish distributor since 2024. Salon groups are covered by its Group and Enterprise features, so single-site and multi-site salons buy the same system.
Booking and payments
Both let clients book from the salon’s own website, from social profiles and through Reserve with Google, and both offer an app carrying the salon’s own name in the App Store and Google Play. Zenoti lists Facebook and Instagram Book Now buttons alongside its webstore. SalonIQ adds Facebook sign-in for new clients, and sells its branded app as an upgrade.
On payments, Zenoti Payments takes cards, tap to pay, Apple Pay, Google Pay and payment links sent by text, with pay-later options from Affirm, Afterpay, Clearpay, Klarna and Sunbit. SalonIQ’s IQ Pay, launched in 2022, comes with integrated card terminals and pays out within two working days; integrated card payments are listed as an upgrade on its pricing page.
Marketing, loyalty and gift cards
Zenoti sends automated email and SMS based on what each guest does, awards loyalty points at checkout, and sells memberships, packages and gift cards online, through the webstore or the salon’s app. SalonIQ runs automated SMS and email campaigns for new and lapsed clients, manages loyalty points automatically, sells gift cards as plastic cards or e-gift cards, and takes membership payments by monthly direct debit. Two-way SMS is listed as an upgrade.
Selling retail products online: the biggest difference
Zenoti’s help centre is direct about this. Its Webstore V2 handles appointments, memberships, gift cards and packages, and the note on its getting-started page says that to sell products there, you must integrate Shopify with Zenoti. The Shopify integration is turned on by contacting Zenoti, and it needs product SKUs in Shopify to match product codes in Zenoti exactly.
Once connected, every Shopify purchase lowers the stock level in Zenoti, the invoice appears in Zenoti, and Zenoti’s daily and product sales reports include the online sales. On Shopify Plus, guests can sign in to the Shopify store with their Zenoti webstore login. Zenoti lists what the integration does not do: product variants, product exchanges, redeeming Zenoti gift cards on Shopify, in-store pickup and shipping or tracking details inside Zenoti. Refunds are made in Shopify and then show up in Zenoti.
SalonIQ sells products through its own E-Shop instead, an upgrade on its pricing page, and its help centre says the shop needs a Stripe account. We found no mention of Shopify anywhere on SalonIQ’s site or help centre. Its IQapi is offered to third-party software houses, so a Shopify connection would be a custom build rather than something SalonIQ documents.
Pricing
SalonIQ charges by the number of bookable staff, per month: £47 for a solo stylist, then £67, £77, £87, £97, £107 and £117 for two to seven staff, and £137 for eight or more. Groups of 15 or more are priced on application. Setup starts at £175 + VAT, every plan includes the full booking, management and marketing system, and there is no long-term contract, only 60 days’ notice. Training on site, two-way SMS, the branded app, booking deposits, the E-Shop and integrated card payments are extras with no prices shown.
Zenoti’s pricing page shows no figures. Each business asks for a quote, and Zenoti says multi-location pricing depends on the footprint and needs of the group. Its FAQ adds that messaging is billed on consumption.
Which one to shortlist
Shortlist SalonIQ if you run one UK salon or a UK salon group, want to see the monthly price before a demo, and sell a modest retail range that a simple hosted shop can handle.
Shortlist Zenoti if you operate outside the UK or across several countries, run spa, medspa or fitness services next to the salon floor, need franchise-level reporting, or want your retail catalogue sold through a full Shopify store that reports back into the salon system.
Where Shopify fits with Zenoti
Because Zenoti hands retail to Shopify, a Zenoti salon’s website usually ends up as two systems working together: Shopify for the brand site and the product catalogue, Zenoti for booking, memberships and gift cards. The Book buttons, location pages and theme choice are what make the two feel like one site. Our guide to the best Shopify themes for Zenoti covers that build, and our showcase of eleven salons and spas running Shopify with Zenoti shows how other businesses have done it.
Gene Juarez is the build we can point to. Its thirteen salon and spa locations share one Shopify Plus theme, Zenoti runs every booking, the homepage records a 1200 ms LCP, and a guest moves from a landing page into Zenoti booking in under a second. The Gene Juarez case study explains how.
Disclosure: Gene Juarez is our client; its Shopify Plus storefront and the link to Zenoti are our work. If you are planning the same on your own site, our Zenoti Shopify integration service covers the theme, the booking links and the product sync.
FAQ
What is the difference between Zenoti and SalonIQ?
Zenoti is software for salons, spas, medspas and fitness businesses from one site up to franchise networks, used in more than 50 countries. SalonIQ is UK salon software for hair, beauty, barber and spa businesses and salon groups, priced per bookable team member.
How much does SalonIQ cost compared with Zenoti?
On 30 October 2026, SalonIQ cost £47 a month for a solo stylist, rising to £137 a month for eight or more bookable staff, with 15 or more priced on application and setup from £175 + VAT. Zenoti publishes no prices; each business gets a quote.
Does Zenoti integrate with Shopify?
Yes. Zenoti documents a Shopify integration that it enables on request. Shopify purchases update Zenoti’s stock, invoices and sales reports, and on Shopify Plus guests can sign in with their Zenoti webstore login. Product variants, exchanges, Zenoti gift cards on Shopify and in-store pickup are not supported.
Does SalonIQ integrate with Shopify?
Not that its own site says. On 30 October 2026 we found no mention of Shopify on SalonIQ’s website or help centre. It sells products through its own E-Shop, which needs a Stripe account, and offers IQapi to third-party software houses.
Which is better for a multi-location salon group?
Both sell to groups. SalonIQ offers group dashboards, central reporting and stock control across UK sites at published prices. Zenoti adds franchise tools, consolidated and per-centre reporting, and coverage in 50+ countries, priced by quote. A UK-only group can compare both; a group with sites abroad or spa and medspa services will find Zenoti built for it.
Sources: Zenoti’s homepage, pricing page, franchise page, about page, platform pages on online booking, payments, marketing, loyalty and memberships, and its help centre on Webstore V2 and Shopify integrations; SalonIQ’s homepage, pricing, features, group and enterprise, IQ Pay, eCommerce, partners and about pages and its help centre. Everything was read on 30 October 2026; both vendors change features and prices, so confirm the details with them before you sign.
