Looking for an alternative to Square Appointments?

Manage bookings and payments, or turn high-intent traffic into qualified revenue conversations. Square Appointments streamlines service scheduling and payments. Knock AI qualifies buyers before they reach your calendar.

Contact Knock Team

overall score

4.4/5

Appointment scheduling software tightly integrated with Square’s payment ecosystem.

Best for:

Salons, barbershops, spas, fitness studios, retail service businesses

Key capabilities:

Online booking pages
Square POS & payment integration
Staff & location management
Automated reminders
Inventory + retail integration
Mobile app for business owners

No visitor identification
No intent scoring
No lead qualification before booking
Limited CRM-native revenue routing
Built for appointment + commerce, not B2B pipeline

overall score

4.9/5

Identify high-intent buyers in real time and start conversations instantly. No forms. No delays.

Best for:

Demand gen + sales teams (B2B SaaS)

Key capabilities:

Real-time identity detection
Intent scoring before showing calendar
CRM + Slack routing
Multi-rep pooled scheduling
AI SDR qualification
DM-based follow-ups to reduce no-shows

Vendor emails shared
Direct connections made
Access to Slack workspace

HEAD-TO-HEAD COMPARISON: Knock AI vs. Square Appointments

Primary Use Case

Website Chat

Service bookings + payments

Knock

Revenue-driven scheduling

Lead Identification

Website Chat

Booking form only

Knock

Identifies high-intent visitors before booking

Intent Signal Quality

Website Chat

No intent scoring

Knock

Scores readiness before showing time slots

Lead & Contact Enrichment

Website Chat

Basic customer data

Knock

Enriches company, title, LinkedIn, ICP fit

Sales Readiness

Website Chat

Anyone can book

Knock

Only qualified buyers can access scheduling

CRM & Sales Integration

Website Chat

Limited CRM capabilities

Knock

Deep CRM sync + routing automation

Lead Engagement

Website Chat

Email & SMS confirmations

Knock

Conversation-first scheduling + DM follow-up

SDR Productivity

Website Chat

Not built for SDR teams

Knock

AI SDR qualifies before meeting

No-Show Reduction

Website Chat

SMS + email reminders

Knock

DM reminders + warm follow-ups

Best For

Website Chat

Commerce + service businesses

Knock

B2B pipeline generation

TOP 5 SQUARE APPOINTMENTS ALTERNATIVES

If you're looking for AI-powered interview preparation tools beyond Parakeet AI, here are some top alternatives that offer mock interviews, real-time feedback, and personalized coaching.

Setmore

Best for small businesses & local service providers.

Service Businesses

Paid Appointments

Custom Booking

Coaches & Consultants

Why It Wins:

Setmore offers free scheduling with payment support, staff management, and customer notifications — making it attractive for salons, clinics, and SMB teams.

KEY FEATURES:

Staff scheduling
Online booking page
SMS & email reminders
Payment integrations (Stripe, Square)

Pros & cons

PROS:

Generous free plan
Easy for small teams
Built for service businesses

CONS:

No revenue qualification
Limited sales routing
Not designed for B2B pipeline

Features:

4.2/5

Automation:

4/5

Routing:

3.7/5

Value:

4.3/5

overall score

4.2/5

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Fresha

Best for beauty & wellness marketplaces

Wellness Booking

Appointment Platform

Salon & Spa Management

POS & Client Scheduling System

Why It Wins:

Fresha combines booking software with marketplace discovery and POS tools.

KEY FEATURES:

Online booking system
POS integration
Client management
Marketplace exposure

Pros & cons

PROS:

Good for salons & spas
Built-in client discovery

CONS:

Limited CRM workflows• No buyer intent scoring
Not designed for B2B revenue

Features:

4.3/5

Automation:

4.1/5

Routing:

3.7/5

Value:

4.2/5

overall score

4.3/5

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Knock AI

Best overall alternative for intent-based, conversion-driven scheduling

GTM Strategy

Comparing Scheduling Tools

Revenue Playbooks

How-to Guides

Why It Wins:

Knock AI is the best Doodle alternative for revenue teams that want qualified meetings, not just availability matching.

Unlike Doodle, Knock AI qualifies buyer intent, starts real conversations, and only then allows scheduling — reducing no-shows and increasing pipeline quality.

KEY FEATURES:

Real-time buyer intent detection
AI SDR qualification before booking
Scheduling inside conversations (no forms)
Slack, LinkedIn, WhatsApp & website chat
CRM-aware routing & ownership

Pros & cons

PROS:

Meetings booked only by qualified buyers
No back-and-forth emails or blind booking
Multi-rep & pooled availability scheduling
Built for sales & demand gen teams

CONS:

Not designed for casual/internal scheduling
Overkill for simple group polls
Best suited for B2B & revenue use cases

Features:

4.5/5

Automation:

5/5

Scheduling:

4.5/5

Value:

5/5

overall score

4.9 / 5

Try now

Vagaro

Best for salons, fitness studios & multi-service businesses

Salon & Spa Software

Appointment Booking

POS Integration

Service Businesses

Why It Wins:

Vagaro combines appointment scheduling, POS, memberships, and marketing tools for service-heavy businesses.

KEY FEATURES:

Online booking system
POS & payment processing
Staff & payroll management
Memberships & packages

Pros & cons

PROS:

Built for salons & fitness
Strong POS integration
Marketing add-ons

CONS:

Not designed for B2B sales teams
No revenue qualification workflows
Limited CRM automation

Features:

4.4/5

Automation:

4.2/5

Routing:

3.8/5

Value:

4.3/5

overall score

4.3/5

Try now

SimplyBook.me

Best for service-based businesses needing customization.

Custom Booking Website

Industry Templates

Memberships & Packages

Service Providers

Why It Wins:

SimplyBook.me provides advanced customization, booking widgets, and industry-specific templates for service providers.

KEY FEATURES:

Custom booking website
Industry templates
Payment integrations
Memberships & packages

Pros & cons

PROS:

Highly customizable
Good for niche service industries
Strong payment workflows

CONS:

No B2B qualification logic
No buyer intent scoring
Limited CRM-based routing

Features:

4.1/5

Automation:

3.9/5

Routing:

3.6/5

Value:

4.1/5

overall score

4.1/5

Try now

Final Verdict

Square Appointments is an excellent choice for service businesses already using the Square ecosystem. It tightly connects booking, payments, and POS in one system. However, it is not designed for B2B sales qualification, intent scoring, or pipeline acceleration. If your goal is managing service appointments and retail transactions, Square Appointments works well. If your goal is converting high-intent traffic into qualified sales meetings, Knock AI delivers significantly more value.