Zoho Bookings vs. Calendly – which meeting booking system is right for you?

Booking meetings should be easy. It should eliminate the hassle of finding available times, avoid back-and-forth emails and ensure that both you and your clients stay on top of your schedule.

Two of the most popular solutions on the market today are Zoho Bookings and Calendly. But what’s the difference? And which one is the best fit for your business?

Two systems, same purpose – but different approach

Both Zoho Bookings and Calendly let you share your availability, allow others to book time with you and automate confirmations and reminders.
But they are built with slightly different users and needs in mind.

1. Integration with the rest of your business

• Zoho Bookings is designed to work seamlessly with the broader Zoho platform – especially Zoho CRMBigin, Calendar, Projects and Flow.
  If you’re already using Zoho (or considering it), Bookings is the natural choice.
• Calendly works well as a standalone solution and offers integrations with many external systems (like Salesforce, HubSpot, Zoom and Teams), but often requires extra configuration or paid plugins.
  
  

In short: Zoho Bookings is best if you use Zoho tools. Calendly fits well in a mixed tech stack.

2. Automation and workflows

• Zoho Bookings allows for building advanced workflows: automatic emails before and after meetings, availability conditions, Zoho Flow integrations and CRM-triggered actions.
• Calendly offers standard features like reminders, confirmations and calendar integrations – but more advanced workflows require a Pro or Teams plan.
  
  

In short: If you need custom automation, Zoho Bookings is stronger – especially when tied to sales or support flows.

3. Ease of use and setup

• Calendly is known for being extremely quick to set up. You can be up and running in 10 minutes – and it works smoothly for personal scheduling.
• Zoho Bookings requires a bit more configuration, especially if used with multiple users, locations or integrations – but rewards you with greater flexibility.
  
  

In short: Solo or single team? Calendly gets you started fast. Multiple teams or systems? Zoho Bookings is more powerful long-term.

4. Booking options and customization

• Both systems offer 1:1 bookings, group meetings, recurring slots and personalized availability.
  But Zoho Bookings 2.0 also offers:
  • Department and location-based booking (Workspaces)
  • “My Space” – a personal overview for each employee
  • Direct integration with Zoho Bigin (CRM)
• Calendly has a cleaner, more uniform interface, but is slightly more limited in design and branding options – especially on free or lower-tier plans.

5. Pricing and licensing

• Zoho Bookings is included in Zoho One and typically has a lower cost per user if you’re already a Zoho customer.
• Calendly has a free version that’s great for solo users, but features like team booking, round robin and automation require a paid subscription.