What counts as a booking fee?

A booking fee is a cut a platform takes from every job you book through it. Some booking marketplaces and lead generation platforms charge a percentage of each booking. Standard card processing (about 2.9%) is separate and runs at roughly the same rate on any platform, so this tool does not count it.

Is a booking fee the same as a deposit?

No. A booking fee is what a platform charges the vendor per job. A deposit is what a client pays the vendor to hold a date. Vendors mix the terms up constantly, and the difference matters for refunds and contracts.

Does BookNox take a booking fee?

No. BookNox uses Stripe Connect direct charges, so deposits land in your own bank account and BookNox adds a 0% platform fee on top of Stripe's standard processing. You pay $29/month flat, which is $348 a year, and nothing per booking.

How do I use this calculator?

Set the annual bookings slider to your yearly booking revenue, then set the booking fee slider to the percentage your current platform takes from each job. The result shows what that fee costs you over a year versus BookNox's flat $348.

Free tool

See what booking fees really cost.

Some platforms take a cut of every job you book. Slide in your numbers and see the yearly difference against BookNox’s flat $29 a month.

Annual bookings$60,000

Their booking fee8%

A platform charging 8% would take

$4,800/year

BookNox, flat

$348/year

You keep $4,452 more a year

Build your quote page

This compares a booking platform fee (the cut some booking marketplaces and lead platforms take from every job) against BookNox’s flat $29/month, which is $348 a year, with a 0% platform fee. It does not include standard card processing (about 2.9%), which runs at roughly the same rate on any platform, BookNox included through Stripe, so it isn’t counted here. Set the fee slider to your current platform’s booking cut to see the yearly difference.

How the math works

Percent of revenue versus a flat subscription.

The comparison. A percentage booking fee scales with your revenue: book more, pay more. A flat subscription costs the same in your best month and your slowest. The calculator multiplies your yearly booking revenue by the fee percentage and puts it next to BookNox’s flat $29 a month, $348 a year.
Worked example. $60,000 in yearly bookings on a platform taking 2% per booking costs $1,200 a year. The same year on a flat $348 subscription leaves $852 with you. At $100,000 of bookings the gap grows to $1,652.
What this tool deliberately leaves out. Card processing. Every platform passes processing through at roughly similar rates, so it cancels out of a fair comparison; the Stripe fee calculator covers that side. And a booking fee is not a deposit: deposit, retainer, and booking fee compared.
Where the money actually lands matters too. Some platforms hold client money and pay you out; with Stripe Connect direct charges the deposit lands in your own account from the first dollar. Where deposits actually land walks through the difference.

FAQ

Common questions.

What counts as a booking fee?: A booking fee is a cut a platform takes from every job you book through it. Some booking marketplaces and lead generation platforms charge a percentage of each booking. Standard card processing (about 2.9%) is separate and runs at roughly the same rate on any platform, so this tool does not count it.
Is a booking fee the same as a deposit?: No. A booking fee is what a platform charges the vendor per job. A deposit is what a client pays the vendor to hold a date. Vendors mix the terms up constantly, and the difference matters for refunds and contracts.
Does BookNox take a booking fee?: No. BookNox uses Stripe Connect direct charges, so deposits land in your own bank account and BookNox adds a 0% platform fee on top of Stripe's standard processing. You pay $29/month flat, which is $348 a year, and nothing per booking.
How do I use this calculator?: Set the annual bookings slider to your yearly booking revenue, then set the booking fee slider to the percentage your current platform takes from each job. The result shows what that fee costs you over a year versus BookNox's flat $348.

Comparing specific platforms? The BookNox vs HoneyBook and BookNox vs Dubsado pages carry verified, dated pricing for each.

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