Chair vs Salonist

Salonist serves more than 15,000 businesses in 60 countries, with unlimited staff on every plan. Chair is narrower and built for Indian salons: one plan, WhatsApp and the AI assistant included.

Chair

₹1,999/month, everything included

Salonist

₹2,200–₹5,500/month

Side by side

Monthly price

Chair: ₹1,999/month, GST included, fixed for 12 months

Salonist: Essential ₹2,200, Advance ₹4,000, Expert ₹5,500 a month on monthly billing. Annual billing saves 25%. A free listing plan allows 50 appointments a month.

WhatsApp notifications

Chair: 1,000 reminders, bills & thank-yous + 200 offers & “we miss you” messages every month, included

Salonist: Unlimited from Advance (₹4,000). Campaigns through third-party gateways are billed by that provider.

AI WhatsApp assistant

Chair: Included (fair use). Answers from your data and books into your calendar

Salonist: AI Receptionist & WhatsApp agent quoted separately by sales, priced by conversation volume

Memberships and packages

Chair: Memberships and packages included

Salonist: From Essential; membership subscriptions from Advance

Inventory

Chair: Products with stock checks at checkout

Salonist: Full inventory, purchase orders and warehouse from Advance

Staff

Chair: Unlimited professionals; owner + 2 team logins

Salonist: Unlimited staff on every plan

Branches

Chair: +₹1,000/month per extra branch

Salonist: Groups get a custom quote; multi-branch reporting on Expert

Setup

Chair: Free, in person at your salon

Salonist: Free onboarding and data import

Free trial

Chair: 30 days, no card, no automatic payment

Salonist: 7 days, no card

Online booking

Chair: Not yet. Bookings come through your team or the WhatsApp assistant

Salonist: Included, with a marketplace listing

Salonist details are from Salonist’s own public pricing page, checked on 17 October 2026. Prices and plans change, so check Salonist pricing for the latest. Spotted something out of date? Write to hi@chairapp.co and we’ll fix it.

When Salonist is the better fit

  • You need full inventory with purchase orders and a warehouse.
  • You want loyalty points, gift cards and online booking.
  • You have a big team and want unlimited staff on every plan.

When Chair is the better fit

  • You want WhatsApp reminders and an AI assistant at ₹1,999, without moving to a ₹4,000 plan or a separate quote.
  • You want GST bills that follow Indian salon rates.
  • You want 30 days to try it, and setup done in person.

Other comparisons

Try Chair free for 30 days.

Set up in person at your salon. No card. Moving from Salonist? We’ll help you bring your services and clients across.