Outgrowing Square Appointments?
Square Appointments is where thousands of detailers start — the free tier is genuinely good for taking cards and basic bookings. Shinely is where detailers go when the business gets serious: vehicle records, deposits, a lead pipeline, and books that talk to your accountant.
Credit where it’s due: Square’s free individual tier and POS hardware ecosystem are excellent if in-person checkout is your main need.
Side by side
Shinely vs Square Appointments.
| Capability | Square Appointments | Shinely |
|---|---|---|
| Built only for detailers | No (any appointment business) | Yes |
| Free tier | Yes ($0 solo) | No — 14-day trial, flat $49+ |
| Vehicle records (VIN, history) | No | Yes — per-VIN timeline & passport |
| No-show protection (deposits) | Paid plan feature | Included — through your own Stripe |
| Multi-staff booking | Plus plan ($29+/mo/location) | Included, unlimited members |
| Lead pipeline + missed-call recovery | No | Core of the product |
| Bookkeeping, mileage & P&L | No | Included |
| CSV migration assistant | — | Customers + appointment history |
Why detailers switch
What you gain.
The record is the car
VIN-keyed vehicles with a full service timeline and a shareable vehicle passport — Square sees appointments, Shinely sees the garage.
Graduate without losing your book
Export your Square customer directory to CSV and the migration assistant imports it — names, contact info, customer-since, and lifetime spend as paid history.
One flat price as you grow
Square charges per location and gates multi-staff behind Plus; Shinely is one flat price with unlimited team members.
The honest part
If you mainly need free in-person checkout and simple slots, Square’s free tier is hard to beat — keep it. Shinely earns its price when you need vehicle history, deposits, a pipeline, and real books; card payments run on your own Stripe either way.
Good to know
Common questions.
Can I import my Square data?
Yes — export your customer directory from Square Dashboard (Customers → Import/Export) and drop the CSV into Shinely’s import assistant. It auto-detects the Square format, dedupes, and previews before writing anything.
Do I lose my card-on-file customers?
Square doesn’t export saved cards to third parties. Your customers, notes, and history come over; customers re-enter a card the first time they pay through your new booking page.