Mobile hairdresser booking: a deposit up front, paid at the door
Updated 29 October 2026.
A booking app for mobile hairdressers: a deposit confirms each home visit, and Tap to Pay on iPhone or a pay link takes the balance at the door.
No monthly fee for up to three people. 3% when you get paid. No commission on your clients, ever.
A diary with your services in it
| Service | Time | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Cut and blow-dry | 60 min | £45 |
| Colour and finish | 120 min | £85 |
| Gents cut | 30 min | £25 |
Paid at the door, with the visit already confirmed
You’ve driven across town, carried the kit in, and spent two hours on a colour in someone’s kitchen. Waiting for a bank transfer afterwards is the last thing you want.
Open the visit in Hopaby, the £85 balance is already there, and the client taps their card or phone on your iPhone. It’s done before you’ve swept up. No reader, no cash, no waiting for a transfer.
The visit was confirmed when they booked, by a deposit paid through a pay link, so you set off knowing the client has paid to hold the time. You pick the amount for each service, and the client sees your policy before they pay.
And the travel allowance you set on each service is held in the diary around every visit, so the day adds up.
And the rest, for mobile hairdressers
-
A deposit that confirms the booking
The appointment confirms the moment the deposit is paid. You choose the amount, per service if you like.
-
Pay links by text
Send a link that takes a deposit, or saves a card, in one tap. Texts cost 5p a part on pay as you go and 4p on Pro.
-
Your own booking page
A page with your name and your services that clients book on at any hour. No marketplace, and no commission on your clients.
-
A diary that matches how you work
Services with their own durations and prices, time off, and a day view that stays readable on a phone.
-
Reminders by text
A reminder goes out before each appointment, so fewer people forget. Texts cost 5p a part on pay as you go and 4p on Pro.
What it costs at your size
Say your average booking is £50 and you take £3,500 a month by card, about 70 payments.
Pay as you go
£105.00
No monthly fee. 3% of each card payment.
Pro
£104.25
£29 a month, then 1.75% + 20p on each card payment.
Pro costs less from about £3,400 a month in card payments at this average. Below that, pay as you go costs less.
No VAT is charged.
Your cancellation policy
Many mobile hairdressers ask for 24 hours' notice, because a late cancellation also costs the drive and the other visits that could have fitted around it. A modest fixed deposit, often around £10, is common and comes off the price on the day. Keep it small: the CMA's guidance says a deposit you keep in full should not normally be more than a small percentage of the price, so a short gents cut may need none at all. Many add a note that a client who isn't home within 15 minutes of the booked time is treated as a missed visit, and that anyone who agrees to it when booking can have a saved card charged under this policy.
- How Tap to Pay on iPhone works, and what it costs.
- Write yours with our salon cancellation policy template, see whether a salon can keep a deposit and compare what Hopaby costs.
- Sports massage works the same way for therapists who travel to the client.
Questions and answers
How do I get paid at the client's door?
Open Hopaby on your iPhone, enter the price and the client taps their card or phone on the back of it. Tap to Pay on iPhone needs no reader and no cash. The fee is 3% of each card payment on pay as you go, or 1.75% + 20p on Pro. If you would rather not take payment on the doorstep, send a pay link by text and the client pays from their own phone.
How do I allow for travel time?
Hopaby does not work out drive times from addresses, so you decide the allowance. Give each service some prep or clean-up time, say 20 minutes, and that time is held in the diary around every visit, so the booking page does not offer a slot with no room to get there. For a longer drive, add time off in the diary for the day.
Can I charge a saved card if a client isn't home?
Only if they agreed to it when they booked. Say in your policy how long you wait, what you charge, and that booking means they agree. Then the charge comes from the card they saved, under the rule they read.
Do I need a deposit on every booking?
Many mobile hairdressers take one on colour and the longer visits, because a no-show costs the drive as well as the hour. A deposit of around £10 confirms the booking and comes off the price on the day. A quick gents cut for a regular can go without.
Can clients pay before I arrive?
Yes. When someone books on your own booking page they get a pay link by text for the deposit, and the visit confirms when they pay. You can send a pay link for the balance too, so nothing needs sorting out at the door. Texts cost 5p a part on pay as you go and 4p on Pro.
Can I run it alone and add a helper later?
Yes. Pay as you go has no monthly fee, with three team members included and then £5 a month for each extra person. Pro is £29 a month with unlimited team members. No VAT is charged.
Get Hopaby
No monthly fee for up to three people. 3% when you get paid. No commission on your clients, ever.