Simple Salon vs HairBro
Salon Management Built for Every Service, Not Just Barbering
Simple Salon handles your full service menu, with appointments, POS, marketing automation, and reporting that work for any salon business.
No contracts · No card required · Cancel anytime
Colour, lashes and nails covered
HairBro is optimised for barbers. Salons offering colour, lash extensions, nail services or mixed beauty treatments need software handling variable durations, room booking and complex pricing that Simple Salon manages.
POS, stock, rosters, vouchers
A full POS, stock, gift vouchers, memberships, loyalty points, staff commissions and digital forms.
Win-backs and birthday messages
Smart Send sends rebooking reminders, win-back offers, birthday messages and post-visit follow-ups on its own.
Why Salon Owners Are Considering a HairBro Alternative
Simple Salon is a HairBro alternative that handles the full complexity of any service menu, not just barbering. Founded in 2009, it runs colour, lash extensions, nail services and skincare alongside POS, automated SMS and email marketing for salons across Australia and New Zealand. HairBro is a booking app built specifically for barbers, with features like walk-in queue management tailored to the barber shop environment.
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That focus works well for a pure barber shop, but it creates limitations for any salon offering a broader service menu: colour, lash extensions, nail services, skincare, or a mix of barbering and styling. Simple Salon, a HairBro alternative, is a purpose-built salon management platform that handles the full complexity of any service menu alongside POS, marketing, reporting, and staff management.
The real cost: HairBro vs Simple Salon
| Feature / Cost | Simple Salon | HairBro |
|---|---|---|
| Service scope | All salon service types | Barber-focused |
| Resource and room booking | Included | Limited |
| POS and cash register | Full POS included | Limited |
| Marketing automation | Smart Send: rebook, win-back, birthday, follow-up | Limited |
| Reporting | 40+ reports (KPI, rebooking, revenue, staff) | Basic |
| Inventory management | Included | Limited |
| Memberships and packages | Included | Limited |
| Loyalty points | Included | Limited |
| Multi-location | Yes (Dome) | Limited |
| Accounting integration | Xero, QuickBooks | Limited |
| Free trial | Yes | Not confirmed |
| Best fit for your business | Any salon, any service | Barber shops |
This comparison reflects HairBro's public positioning as a barber booking app. The Simple Salon features listed are included in its standard plans.
• Source: hairbro.com.au, accessed April 2026 • Simple Salon features: simplesalon.com, accessed April 2026 • HairBro pricing details were not publicly confirmed at the time of writing.
Built for Any Salon Service Menu
HairBro's feature set is optimised for barbers. Salons offering colour services, lash extensions, nail services, or a mix of barbering and broader beauty treatments need software that handles variable service durations, room and resource booking, and complex pricing. Simple Salon is built to manage all of it.
Business Management Beyond Appointment Booking
Simple Salon includes a full POS, inventory and stock management, gift vouchers, memberships and packages, loyalty points, staff commissions, and digital forms. These are the business management layers that a booking-focused app like HairBro doesn't cover.
Marketing Automation That Brings Clients Back
Simple Salon's Smart Send sends rebooking reminders, win-back offers, birthday messages, and post-visit follow-ups automatically. A booking-focused app like HairBro leaves that work to you. Simple Salon keeps your chairs full by reaching the right clients at the right time.
Reporting That Tracks Business Health
Simple Salon includes 40+ reports covering revenue, rebooking rates, staff performance, service mix, and client retention. Instead of the basic numbers a booking app shows, you get the detail you need to see what is working and where to act.
Fewer Wasted Gaps Between Your Appointments
When a client books online, Simple Salon can offer them the times right beside your existing appointments, either straight after one finishes or just before the next one starts. Your day then stays in bigger working blocks instead of breaking up into short gaps that are too small to fill.
Your data is yours, always
Some providers make it hard to leave, locking your client list and history behind a paywall, charging you to export your own data, or tying you into long contracts and other strange rules. We don’t play those games. With Simple Salon your clients, bookings and reports are always yours: export everything anytime, at no cost, with no lock-in. If you ever move on, you take it all with you.
Switching
Moving from HairBro takes a day, not a month
1
Export your data
Download your clients, services and history from HairBro. We’ll show you exactly where the buttons are.
2
We import it for you
Our team helps bring your client list and appointments across. Once we have your files, most salons are up and running within a day.
3
Keep taking bookings
Share your new booking link on your socials and your book keeps filling, now with no commission on new clients.
Try Simple Salon Free for Every Type of Salon
From barbers to full-service salons, this HairBro alternative handles your appointments, POS, marketing, and reporting in one place.
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
Does Simple Salon work for barber shops as well as salons?
Yes. Simple Salon supports the full range of service businesses, including barbers, hair salons, beauty salons, nail studios, and lash specialists. You get barber-friendly booking plus the wider toolset a growing salon needs.
Why would a salon choose Simple Salon over HairBro?
A barber-only shop may be happy with HairBro's booking tools. But once you add retail and stock, memberships, gift vouchers, multiple locations, or staff commissions, you need a full salon platform. Simple Salon covers booking plus the rest of the business in one place.
Can Simple Salon handle services beyond barbering, like colour, nails, and lashes?
Yes. Simple Salon handles variable service durations, room and resource booking, and multi-step services such as colour, lash extensions, and nail treatments.
What reporting does Simple Salon offer?
Simple Salon includes 40+ reports covering revenue, rebooking rates, staff KPIs, service performance, and client retention.
Does Simple Salon integrate with accounting software?
Yes. Simple Salon integrates with Xero and QuickBooks.
Does Simple Salon support multi-location operations?
Yes. The Dome feature in Simple Salon supports multi-location businesses with consolidated reporting and management.
Is there a free trial?
Yes. Simple Salon offers a free trial with no credit card required to start.
Does Simple Salon include marketing tools?
Yes. Smart Send runs automated rebooking reminders, win-back offers, birthday messages, and post-visit follow-ups, and you can also send your own email and SMS campaigns.