Which Booking Tool is Better? Cal.com vs. Calendly 2024 Comparison

Need a scheduling solution but struggling to pick the right one? Today, we’ll pin two popular booking tools against each other and examine their:

• Uses
• Features
• Integrations 
• Customer experiences
• Pricing

In one corner, we have Cal.com, the open-source powerhouse offering robust customization and control. 

In the other, we have Calendly, the user-friendly titan known for its seamless interface and plethora of integrations. 

Who will come out on top? Let’s find out!

Cal.com vs. Calendly: A quick rundown of both scheduling tools

Meet Cal.com

Cal.com, formerly known as Calendso, is an open-source scheduling tool designed to offer more transparency and privacy than its competitors. Although founded pretty recently (in 2021), it’s already become a fan-favorite for tech and code-savvy software enthusiasts. 

As Cal.com is a community-developed project, its users can extend or develop features, meaning new, unique features come out more regularly than on a closed platform such as Calendly.

As Benjamin D. shares:

Karan N., a team lead at a small business, dives into the pros and cons of using Cal.com: 

Cal.com ratings

Say hello to Calendly

It’s time to meet a long-standing and well-known player in the scheduling game: Calendly. Founded way back in 2013, it's a flexible and user-friendly booking tool designed to save you time on scheduling meetings.

Offering over 100 integrations, Calendly is a top choice for businesses aiming to streamline scheduling across multiple teams and industries. 

Laurie W., a Small Business Consultant, explains why he chose Calendly:

Randi A. expands a bit on his experience using Calendly:

Calendly ratings

Curious how Calendly compares to other popular booking platforms? We’ve got the details:

• Calendly vs. YouCanBookMe
• Calendly vs. OnceHub
• Calendly vs. Doodle
• Calendly vs. Acuity
• Calendly vs. Chili Piper
• Calendly vs. Google Calendar

Cal.com vs. Calendly: Target customers

Who is Cal.com for?

Since Cal.com is open-sourced, its ideal users are those with development resources. If you have developers on hand, you can customize the scheduling tool to fit your exact needs and workflows. 

It’s also great for companies that prefer to control their own data, as the self-hosting feature allows you to do just that.

Who is Calendly for?

Calendly may be a better fit for teams looking for out-of-the-box collaboration tools without the need for technical expertise in setup or management. 

It also offers many integrations and updates tailored to specific types of teams, such as sales, marketing, customer success, and recruitment.

Cal.com vs. Calendly: Features comparison

Both Cal.com and Calendly are designed to do one thing: simplify your scheduling. That being said, it’s no wonder that the two share several essential booking features, including:

• Scheduling one-on-one, group, round-robin, and recurring meetings
• Unlimited event types
• Time zone management
• Take payment for bookings
• Embed your booking page on your website
• Buffer time between meetings
• Collective availability of multiple team members
• Automatic confirmations, as well as SMS and email reminders
• Custom booking pages with unlimited appointments
• Option to add your branding and colors
• Routing forms
• APIs

Now, let’s jump into the features that set these two tools apart from one another.

Features and functions unique to Cal.com

• Open-source
• Self-hosting option
• Unlimited calendar connections (Calendly only lets you connect six per person)
• AI scheduling assistant 
• Option to overlay your calendar on top of a booking page

Cal.com limitations

Since Cal.com’s target audience is software enthusiasts and power users, those looking for a simpler scheduling solution (in which they don’t have to interfere with the code to customize it) may find it a bit too complex.

Features and functions unique to Calendly

• Android and iOS mobile apps 
• More advanced built-in booking analytics 
• Meeting polls so that participants can vote on the best time to meet

Calendly limitations

Although boasting an impressive array of features, Calendly’s closed code means you won’t be able to tailor it to your needs as precisely as you can with Cal.com.

Cal.com vs. Calendly: Useful integrations

Finding a scheduling tool that aligns with your current software is crucial. After all, you don’t want to complicate your workflow using tools that don't play well together. 

The good news is that both Cal.com and Calendly integrate with a multitude of popular apps, including:

• Calendars: Google, Outlook, iCloud, and Microsoft 
• Video conferencing: Zoom, Google Meet, Microsoft Teams, and Webex
• Online payments: Stripe and PayPal
• CRMs: Hubspot, Salesforce, and Close
• Analytics: Meta Pixel and Google Analytics
• Other: Zapier, Typeform, Make, and WordPress

Each booking tool additionally offers a robust selection of integrations the other doesn’t. Let’s take a look at those to see whether Cal.com or Calendly syncs with your preferred apps.

A closer look at Cal.com’s integrations

While generally offering fewer integrations than its competitor (65 to Calendly’s 116), Cal.com manages to stand out in a few categories:

• Calendar connections 👉Cal.com integrates with a surprising amount of calendars that Calendly doesn’t, such as CalDav, Cron, Zoho Calendar, Lark Calendar, Vimcal, and Amie

• Messengers 👉 The booking tool boasts WhatsApp, Telegram, and Signal in its messaging arsenal
• Video conferencing 👉 Cal.com syncs with 16 video chat tools which Calendly is missing, including Discord, Element Call, Roam, Around, Whereby, and Campfire

Aside from these, Cal.com’s unique integrations include Albie, Sendgrid, Deel, Giphy, n8n, Raycast, Pipedream, Vital, Basecamp3, Deel, Zoho Bigin, Google Tag Manager, Plausible, and Fathom.

Closer look at Calendly’s integrations

Calendly stands out in integration rankings, offering an extensive selection of over 100. Notably, Calendly's booking tool seamlessly syncs with various popular apps, some of which, like Notion, Jotform, Squarespace, Asana, Monday.com, Slack, and Trello, are not supported by Cal.com.

Aside from the sheer number of integrations, Calendly shines in a few team-specific categories:

• Sales and CRM platforms 👉 Calendly integrates with 32 sales platforms (compared to Cal.com’s six), including Zoho CRM, Gong, ActiveCampaign, Honeybook, Freshsales, Pipedrive, and Clearbit
• Recruitment 👉 The booking tool provides eight handy tools to help you land hot talent, such as LinkedIn Messaging, JazzHR, Gem, Lever, and Greenhouse
• Marketing 👉 Marketers will also find 37 tools that might come in handy. A few fan-favorites include Mailchimp, Linktree, Unbounce, ConvertKit, Omnisend, and MailerLite

Cal.com vs. Calendly: Pricing

Cal.com pricing and plans

Cal.com’s plans (billed monthly) include:

• Free Individuals plan for one user with unlimited bookings, calendar connections, and integrations
• Teams plan ($15/user/month) designed for one team with more features such as round-robin scheduling, routing forms, and team workflows
• Enterprise plan made for organizations who need white labeling, higher security, and 24/7 support
• Platform plan designed for those who want to build on top of Cal.com with a Javascript UI and platform-focused API endpoints

Cal.com doesn’t offer a readily accessible free trial; you’ll need to contact the team to request one.

Calendly pricing and plans

Calendly’s plans (billed monthly) include:

• Free plan with basic scheduling features and integrations, as well as one calendar connection
• Standard plan ($12/month/user) for small teams and individuals, with multiple calendar connections, unlimited meeting types, and automated reminders
• Teams plan ($20/month/user) for larger teams, featuring admin tools, lead routing, and round-robin scheduling
• Enterprise plan created for teams of 30 or more, providing advanced security, control, and support

Calendly offers a 14-day free trial of their Teams plan.

Cal.com vs. Calendly: Customer experiences

Who has the best insights on these scheduling apps? Current users, of course!

Take a glance at user reviews for both Cal.com and Calendly to gain a deeper understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of each scheduling software.

Cal.com through customers’ eyes

Jeroen C., a pre-incubator program manager, explains why he chose Cal.com over Calendly:

An employee in a mid-market company specializing in computer software shares their experience using Cal.com:

Calendly through customers’ eyes

Kate M W., Head of International at a small business, shares her experience using Calendly:

Morgan M., a recruiter for a mid-market enterprise, delves into their thoughts on the tool: 

Final thoughts on Cal.com vs. Calendly

In the end, the decision between Cal.com and Calendly hinges on the scope of your business and your specific priorities.

👉 Have developers ready and willing? Cal.com excels with teams capable of developing custom solutions thanks to its open-source nature. It’s also a good choice for those placing a premium on data control and privacy, as well as teams seeking deep integration with their systems.

👉 Prefer a ready-to-go tool? Calendly may be a better choice for teams looking for out-of-the-box solutions, where customization doesn’t require any coding knowledge. Thanks to its vast integrations, it’s also a valuable pick for teams in specific industries (such as recruiting, marketing, or sales).

Want to give your customers the best booking experience possible? Try YouCanBookMe

YouCanBookMe’s mission is to make the scheduling process as easy as possible, ensuring your bookers can quickly book a meeting with you anytime, anywhere. 

Its standout feature lies in its unparalleled ability to meet your customer’s needs and expectations. 

Take the reins of your schedule, tailoring every aspect of the booking journey to your clients' liking. Set availability, choose meeting types and durations, and even fine-tune breaks, notifications, and branding—it’s all in your hands. 

How does YouCanBookMe work?

Sync your preferred calendar, design a standout booking page that reflects your brand and goals, and share your unique booking link effortlessly across platforms—email, social media, website, or even in print with a QR code.

All your customer has to do is click the link, pick a slot, and voila! They just booked a meeting in a matter of seconds.

And with automated confirmations, reminders, and follow-ups, everyone shows up prepared and punctual. 

Ryan M., a small business owner, calls YouCanBookMe:

 “The perfect solution.” 

He adds:

“Customers find it visually attractive, easy to understand and use and aren't pushed away in confusion. We have access to several free options, even parts of all-in-one solutions, included in programs like Kartra, and it's STILL worth it to use YouCanBookMe instead.”

Where affordability meets powerful features

YouCanBookMe offers access to all features for a lower price than both Cal.com and Calendly. Only $10.80/user/month (when paid annually) unlocks all its advanced scheduling tools. 

YouCanBookMe also offers a free forever plan and a free 14-day trial of the paid plan (no credit card needed), which enables you to explore the tool risk-free.

Ready for a scheduling experience that simply works?

It’s official: tedious scheduling tasks are out and simple, easy bookings are in.

With YouCanBookMe, you can finally get back to doing the things that matter and leave the scheduling to us.

Give YouCanBookMe a try today to finally get your time back.

FAQs regarding Cal.com vs. Calendly

Which is better: Cal.com or Calendly?

The answer depends on what your priorities and needs are. Thanks to its open-sourced nature, developers and other code-savvy users who want to build custom solutions may opt for Cal.com. The software is an excellent fit for teams that prefer to self-host and are big on privacy. On the other hand, teams looking for an out-of-the-box scheduling solution might prefer Calendly. With its vast integrations, the tool is a good fit for recruiting, sales, and marketing teams, to name a few. 

What is the primary difference between Cal.com and Calendly?

There are a few major differences between Cal.com and Calendly. As opposed to Calendly, Cal.com has an open-source code and offers the ability to self-host. Since it’s a community-developed project, users can extend or develop features on their own. Calendly, on the other hand, is a more ready-made solution, and customizing within the tool does not require any advanced technical knowledge. 

Which is more affordable: Cal.com or Calendly?

Both booking tools offer a free plan, but Cal.com’s is more robust, featuring unlimited bookings, calendar connections, and integrations. In terms of paid plans, while Calendly has a lower-priced tier at $12/user/month, it lacks several features available only in the pricier Teams plan at $20/user/month. On the contrary, Cal.com offers more features in the first tier of their paid plan, priced at $15/user/month.

What’s an alternative to Cal.com and Calendly?

If you’re looking to give your customers a booking experience that simply works, try YouCanBookMe. With YCBM, you can customize every booking detail to suit your customer's preferences. Control your calendar, meeting types, durations, breaks, notifications, and branding with ease. Plus, it’s more affordable than both Cal.com and Calendly, since you can access all its advanced features for only $12/user/month.