If a "best free scheduling tools" post lists Calendly, Cal.com, Acuity Scheduling, and SavvyCal as four roughly equivalent free options, stop reading it. As of August 2026, only two of those four have a permanent free plan you can actually put in front of clients today. Acuity Scheduling has never had one, it's a 7-day trial and then you pay (source: acuityscheduling.com, pricing page, 2026). SavvyCal used to compete on a real free tier, but that's gone, what's left is a free trial backed by a 30-day money-back guarantee, not a standing free plan (source: meetergo.com, SavvyCal pricing guide, 2026). If you're a solo freelancer picking a booking link tool on a near-zero budget, that cuts your real options in half before you even look at features.
Why the surface-level comparison is misleading
Most roundups treat "has a free plan" as a checkbox and move on, but the four tools in this category aren't just different on price, they're different on what "free" even means. Calendly's free plan caps you at one active event type and one connected calendar, with no integrations included, so a single link works but a second use case (say, one link for consults and another for onboarding calls) doesn't (source: calendly.com, pricing page, 2026). Cal.com's free plan looks far more generous on paper, unlimited event types and unlimited calendar connections, plus over 100 app integrations, but it's capped at one user and keeps Cal.com's own branding on your booking page unless you upgrade (source: cal.com, pricing page, 2026; zeeg.me, Cal.com pricing guide, 2026). Acuity and SavvyCal don't have this comparison to make at all anymore, since neither offers a permanent free tier as of 2026. A list that says all four are "free to start" is only half right, and it's the wrong half if you're trying to avoid a card on file.
What each tool actually charges
Calendly. Free plan: one event type, one calendar connection, no integrations. Standard is $10/seat/month billed annually or $12/seat/month billed monthly, and unlocks unlimited event types, six calendar connections, Zapier/HubSpot/Mailchimp integrations, and Stripe/PayPal payment collection (source: calendly.com, pricing page, 2026; usecarly.com, Calendly pricing guide, 2026). Teams runs $16/seat/month annually or $20/seat/month monthly, adding round-robin scheduling, lead routing, and Salesforce (source: calendly.com, pricing page, 2026). Enterprise starts around $15,000 a year with a 50-seat minimum, irrelevant for a solo operation but worth knowing if a client's booking flow is on it (source: calendly.com, pricing page, 2026).
Cal.com. Free for one user, with unlimited event types and calendar connections and 100+ integrations, but your booking page carries Cal.com's branding and you're locked to a single user (source: cal.com, pricing page, 2026). Teams is $15/user/month billed monthly, or $12/user/month billed annually, and adds round-robin and collective scheduling, routing forms, booking analytics, and branding removal (source: cal.com, pricing page, 2026; zeeg.me, Cal.com pricing guide, 2026). Organizations is $37/user/month monthly or $28/user/month annually, aimed at SSO, SCIM, and compliance needs most solopreneurs will never touch (source: zeeg.me, Cal.com pricing guide, 2026). Cal.com is also open source and self-hostable at no subscription cost if you're comfortable running your own server, an option none of the other three offer (source: zeeg.me, Cal.com pricing guide, 2026).
Acuity Scheduling. No free plan, just a 7-day trial with no credit card required (source: acuityscheduling.com, pricing page, 2026). Starter is $20/month billed monthly or $16/month billed annually, and covers exactly one calendar, meaning one staff member or one service, with no SMS reminders (source: pabau.com, Acuity Scheduling price guide, 2026). Standard jumps to $34/month monthly or $27/month annually for up to six calendars, plus text reminders and membership/package sales (source: pabau.com, Acuity Scheduling price guide, 2026). Premium is $61/month monthly or $49/month annually, covering up to 36 calendars along with HIPAA compliance and branding removal (source: acuityscheduling.com, pricing page, 2026; pabau.com, Acuity Scheduling price guide, 2026).
SavvyCal. As of 2026, there's no standing free plan, only a free trial and a 30-day money-back guarantee once you pay (source: meetergo.com, SavvyCal pricing guide, 2026; savvycal.com, pricing page, 2026). Basic is $10/user/month billed monthly or roughly $8.33/user/month billed annually, and already includes unlimited calendars, unlimited scheduling links, and round-robin, collective, and group scheduling modes (source: savvycal.com, pricing page, 2026). Premium is $17/user/month monthly or roughly $14.17/user/month annually, adding custom domains, delegated scheduling, paid bookings, CRM and Zapier integrations, and API access (source: savvycal.com, pricing page, 2026).
Comparison
| Tool | Free plan? | Cheapest paid tier (annual) | Solo-relevant gotcha |
|---|---|---|---|
| Calendly | Yes, 1 event type, 1 calendar | $10/seat/mo (Standard) | Free tier can't run two different booking links |
| Cal.com | Yes, unlimited event types, 1 user | $12/user/mo (Teams) | Free tier keeps Cal.com branding on your page |
| Acuity Scheduling | No, 7-day trial only | $16/mo (Starter) | No free option at all, and Starter is 1 calendar |
| SavvyCal | No, trial only as of 2026 | ~$8.33/user/mo (Basic) | Free tier removed; used to be a real differentiator |
The decision that actually matters
Two questions to answer before you pick a brand name off a list:
- Do you need this tool to cost nothing while you're pre-revenue, or are you comparing paid tiers? If it has to be free today, your real choice is Calendly (one link, one calendar) or Cal.com (unlimited links, but branded and single-user). Acuity and SavvyCal aren't in that conversation anymore.
- Are you scheduling solo, or do you need round-robin routing across a small team? If it's just you, Cal.com's free plan already beats every other tool's entry-level paid tier on raw event-type and calendar limits, so paying anything at all only buys you branding removal and, eventually, teammates.
FAQ
Does SavvyCal still have a free plan?
No. As of 2026 it's a free trial with a 30-day money-back guarantee once you subscribe, not a permanent free tier (source: meetergo.com, SavvyCal pricing guide, 2026).
Is Cal.com's free plan actually usable for a real business, or just a trial in disguise?
It's genuinely free forever for one user, with unlimited event types and calendar connections, so it's usable long-term. The tradeoffs are Cal.com's branding staying on your booking page and no multi-user features until you upgrade to Teams at $12 to $15 a month (source: cal.com, pricing page, 2026).
What's the cheapest paid plan for a single freelancer who's outgrown free tiers?
SavvyCal's Basic plan at roughly $8.33/user/month billed annually undercuts Calendly's Standard plan at $10/seat/month annually, and both already include unlimited event types (source: savvycal.com, pricing page, 2026; calendly.com, pricing page, 2026).
Does Acuity Scheduling have any free option at all?
No. It's the one tool in this group with no permanent free plan, only a 7-day trial that requires you to pick a paid plan afterward (source: acuityscheduling.com, pricing page, 2026).
If you take one thing from this: check whether a "free scheduling tool" recommendation is still free before you build a client-facing booking link on it. SavvyCal and Acuity both fail that test in 2026, even though older posts still list them as budget-friendly free picks.
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