Boulevard is the premium option in salon and spa software, and it earns that position. The front-desk workflow, the precision of the booking engine, and the client experience at a high-end location are all excellent — it was designed by people who studied how a busy luxury salon actually runs. Mako is not a luxury product. It is a flat-priced business platform for independent operators who need financial clarity more than they need a concierge-grade front desk. Where you land depends on your price point and, more than anything, your location count.
Boulevard: Essentials at $140/month per location (list $176), Premier at $234/month per location (list $293), and Prestige at $328/month per location (list $410) — the lower figures reflect annual billing. Add-ons are priced separately: Forms from around $65/month per location and QuickBooks Sync around $45/month per location.
Mako: Pulse is free. Paid plans are Mako Basic at $139/month, Mako Team at $249/month, and Enterprise at $999/month — roughly 20% less on annual billing at $1,334, $2,390, and $9,588 per year. Additional locations on Team are $75/month each, and Enterprise includes three. Basic includes 3 team members, Team includes 15, Enterprise is unlimited.
Do the multiplication, because this is where the comparison is decided. One location on Boulevard Essentials is $140 against Mako Basic at $139 — a dead heat. Three locations on Boulevard Premier with Forms is roughly $897/month. Three locations on Mako Team is $249 plus two extra locations at $75 each, or $399/month. Per-location pricing is the single variable that moves this comparison, and it moves it a long way.
Boulevard's pitch is precision at the front desk — intelligent booking that maximises column utilisation, a client experience that matches a high-ticket brand, and workflows built for salons where the average service is expensive and the schedule is dense. If you run that kind of business, the premium is defensible: a booking engine that fills one more chair per day pays for itself.
If your average ticket is modest, or your problem is not utilisation but margin, you are paying for sophistication you will not use.
Boulevard: Best in category. Column optimisation, waitlists, and a check-in flow built for volume.
Mako: Solid online booking, appointments, classes, and staff scheduling. Not an optimisation engine.
Edge: Boulevard, clearly.
Boulevard: Designed for premium brands — messaging, profiles, and a polished client journey.
Mako: Clean and professional. Not luxury-branded.
Edge: Boulevard.
Boulevard: Every location multiplies both the subscription and the add-ons.
Mako: $75/month per additional location on Team; three included at Enterprise.
Edge: Mako, substantially, for multi-site operators.
Boulevard: Strong reporting, with QuickBooks sync available as a paid per-location add-on.
Mako: Native P&L, cash flow, service profitability, LTV, and forecasting — included, no accounting add-on required.
Edge: Mako.
Boulevard: Capable commission handling suited to larger teams.
Mako: Tiered commissions, tips, and payout tracking included at every tier.
Edge: Tied — both handle this properly.
Boulevard: Published tiers, but a sales-assisted onboarding is typical.
Mako: Free retention benchmark, self-serve demo, month-to-month, live the same day.
Edge: Mako.
Pick Boulevard if:
Pick Mako if:
Your salon is a business. Not a hobby, not a side project, not a calendar with a cash register. It deserves software that treats it accordingly. If your platform cannot tell you whether you are financially healthy, it is not doing its job. And in 2026, you have better options.
See Mako in action — no sales call required
Mako is built for independent salon and spa owners who would rather spend their time on clients than on demo calls. Open the live demo, poke around, and see exactly how scheduling, billing, and financial intelligence come together in one place.
Try the demo: https://app.makocrm.so/demo
Self-serve. Instant access. No forms, no calendars, no "talk to sales."
