An honest comparison · figures verified July 2026 · Checked 3 September 2026
Appointbox vs Faces, honestly
Faces is the most-reviewed product in UK aesthetics and it is free to start, which is why it is many injectors' first system. We make Appointbox, so read this with the bias disclosed. The deal: real figures, review scores with their counts, and a plain statement of where Faces is the better choice.
Short answer: Choose Faces if you are starting out, want consent forms and booking at no monthly cost, and value its pharmacy and prescriber marketplace. Choose Appointbox if you want one system to run the whole clinic day, a published flat price with no per-deposit fee, versioned consent tied to the treatment record, and the register checked daily.
The dated price row
| System | Published price (verified July 2026) | VAT position | Getting started | Independent reviews |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Faces | Free core: consent forms, booking, aftercare, client management | Deposits cost 1.8% + VAT + 20p per transaction | Free app, minutes to set up | Trustpilot 4.9/5 (1,222, July 2026); the company replies to negative reviews |
| Appointbox | Solo £39 · Clinic £99 flat (up to 5) · Group £199 per location (up to 15) | Inc. VAT; no platform fee on payments beyond the processor's own rate | 30-day trial, no card; free done-for-you migration | None yet: we are new, and we would rather say so than invent them |
Where Faces is genuinely stronger
Zero monthly cost, the largest independent review sample in the category, and a marketplace that connects injectors with pharmacies and prescribers. For a new injector taking a handful of patients a week, that is a rational place to start, and we would say so.
What free costs
A £50 deposit on Faces carries a fee of 1.8% + VAT + 20p, roughly £1.28. At forty deposits a month that is about £51, comparable to a Solo plan, with none of the rest of the clinic day covered. App-store reviews also flag bugs around multi-treatment pricing and forms named by product rather than treatment class. As clinics mature, most outgrow a freemium tool built around consent rather than clinic operations.
Where Appointbox is stronger
- The whole day, not the form. Diary, deposits, waitlist refill in order, versioned consent, treatment records, payments and messaging in one place. The Today view.
- No fee on your deposits beyond the processor's own rate, and the price is published with VAT.
- Prescriber safeguards built in. Daily NMC PIN check, face-to-face gate for new prescribing patients, an 18+ hard floor at the booking step.
- Consent that survives scrutiny. Versioned to the treatment record, hash-chained, retrievable years later. Why that matters.
How this comparison was prepared: each vendor's own published pages and the independent review platforms, verified July 2026 and re-checked at the stamp above. Corrections: [email protected], fixed within five working days.
Questions
Is Faces really free?
The core app is free. Deposits taken through it cost 1.8% + VAT + 20p per transaction, so the cost scales with how many deposits you take rather than with a monthly plan.
Can I keep Faces for consent and use Appointbox for the diary?
You can, but the point of versioned consent is that it sits with the treatment record. Running two systems means two places a form can be, and two places to search when an inspector asks.
Does Appointbox charge per deposit?
No platform fee beyond your payment processor's own rate. The plan price is the whole price.
Keep reading: All comparisons · Deposits & no-show protection · The seven systems, compared honestly · Appointbox pricing