# Salon and barber app development: booking, client notes and reminders, built by ODEL > When a salon, barbershop or beauty brand should build its own booking app, when Square Appointments or Booksy is the better buy, and what ODEL learned building ChairBook. Most salons and barbershops should start with an existing booking platform such as Square Appointments, Booksy, Vagaro or Fresha, because online booking, card payments and a client marketplace already work there. A custom app makes sense when you are building a product for stylists, a branded app for a multi-location brand, or a workflow those platforms do not cover. ODEL builds that kind of app: appointment calendars, service menus with prices and durations, client records with visit history, reminders and subscriptions. ODEL designed, built and publishes ChairBook, an iPhone appointment book for independent hairdressers and barbers, so App Store review, paywalls and multi-language store listings are part of daily work. Each project starts with a discovery call and a written scope, and the app is published under your own developer account, with the source code yours. ## Who it is for - Founders building an app for stylists, barbers, nail techs or other beauty professionals to sell on the App Store - Multi-location salon or barber brands that want their own branded client app - Beauty businesses whose workflow (packages, memberships, education, product sales) does not fit a standard booking tool - Owners of an existing salon app that needs updates, a new paywall or a fix after App Store rejection ## When ODEL is not the right fit - A single shop that only needs online booking, deposits and card payments: Square Appointments, Booksy, Vagaro or Fresha do this today, with no build - Businesses that need a booking marketplace with consumer discovery from day one: that audience lives inside the existing platforms - Projects that need a large team or on-site support at several locations ## What you get - Appointment calendar with day and week views - Service menu with prices and durations - Client records with contact details, visit history and notes - Appointment reminders, sent as push notifications or shared through the stylist's own messaging apps - Revenue and appointment history reports - Subscription or one-time purchase setup with StoreKit, with prices loaded from the store - Home Screen quick actions for new appointments and today's schedule - App Store listing, screenshots and localization - Privacy labels, account deletion (if accounts exist) and App Review submission ## How the project runs 1. **Build or buy check**: In the first call we compare your needs with Square Appointments, Booksy and Vagaro. If one of them covers it, we say so and you save the build. 2. **Written scope**: Users (owner, stylist, client), the booking flow, reminders, payments and platforms, written down with a fixed quote or a phased plan. 3. **Clickable design**: Calendar, client card and booking screens you can try on your phone before code is written. 4. **Build and test on your phone**: Working builds at every milestone, with real appointment data so you can test a full day. 5. **Launch under your account**: App Store Connect setup, subscriptions, privacy answers and review submission under your own developer account. 6. **After launch**: Updates for new iOS versions, ASO, paywall and pricing work, and new features from what your users ask for. ## Technology Expo and React Native, Swift and SwiftUI, StoreKit in-app purchases (expo-iap), expo-notifications, Home Screen quick actions, Node.js and PostgreSQL when bookings must sync across staff, App Store Connect API ## Apps ODEL built and runs - [ChairBook](https://www.odel.dev/app/chairbook.md): ChairBook is an appointment calendar app for independent hairdressers, barbers and beauty pros. ## Questions ### Should I build my own salon app or use Booksy, Square Appointments or Vagaro? Use one of those platforms if you run one or a few shops and need online booking, deposits and card payments: they already work and cost far less than a build. Build when you are creating a product for beauty professionals, when a multi-location brand wants its own client app, or when your workflow does not fit their model. ODEL will tell you which side of that line you are on in the first call. ### How much does it cost to build this kind of app? It depends on whether clients book online or only the stylist uses the app, whether bookings sync across staff (which needs a backend), payments, reminders by push or SMS, and iPhone only or both stores. ODEL quotes each project after a short discovery call, as a written scope with a fixed quote or a phased plan, and publishes no price list. For market context only: Clutch's 2026 pricing guide puts the most common app project budget at 10,000 to 49,999 USD (Clutch does not state its sample size), and a 2022 GoodFirms survey of 267 development firms put simple apps at 12,960 to 30,240 USD. Store costs come on top: Apple charges 99 USD a year and Google Play 25 USD once. ### How long does it take to launch? It depends on scope, how fast decisions get made and whether your store accounts are ready. The 2022 GoodFirms survey put simple apps at 3 to 7 weeks and complex ones at 8 to 14 weeks of development. Then add store time: Apple says it reviews 90% of submissions in under 48 hours, and new personal Google Play accounts must run a 14-day closed test with at least 12 testers before production. A single-user appointment book with no backend is far smaller than a multi-staff booking system with online payments. ### Can clients pay for haircuts through the App Store? No. Apple's guideline 3.1.3(e) says goods and services used outside the app, like a haircut, must be paid with methods other than In-App Purchase, such as Apple Pay or a card processor. In-App Purchase is for digital features, like a pro plan inside a stylist's app. ### What did ODEL learn building ChairBook? A solo stylist wants a fast appointment book, not a full POS suite. ChairBook keeps day and week views, a service menu, client notes and history, and reminders shared through the stylist's own messaging apps, so there is no SMS backend to run. Its 1.1.0 update added Home Screen shortcuts and paywalls that show store-loaded prices with a close button available right away. ### Who owns the app and the client data? You do. The app is published under your Apple and Google developer accounts, and you receive the source code. Where client data is stored (on the device or on your server) is decided in the written scope. ## Sources - https://clutch.co/directory/mobile-application-developers/pricing - https://prnewswire.com/news-releases/develop-a-simple-mobile-app-in-3-weeks-costing-just-12k-says-goodfirms-2022-survey-301542663.html - https://developer.apple.com/distribute/app-review/ - https://support.google.com/googleplay/android-developer/answer/14151465?hl=en - https://developer.apple.com/programs/enroll/ - https://support.google.com/googleplay/android-developer/answer/6112435?hl=en - https://developer.apple.com/app-store/review/guidelines/ - https://developer.apple.com/app-store/subscriptions/ - https://developer.apple.com/app-store/app-privacy-details/ - https://developer.apple.com/support/offering-account-deletion-in-your-app/ - https://squareup.com/us/en/appointments - https://booksy.com/ - https://www.vagaro.com/ - https://www.fresha.com/ Start a project: https://www.odel.dev/services#start (form) or info@odel.dev. ODEL quotes each project after a short discovery call; it does not publish fixed prices. Page: https://www.odel.dev/services/industries/salon-and-barber-apps