Head-to-headPrices checked 24 October 2026By Shaish Guni, ApeiroCraft
HoneyBook vs Dubsado in 2026
Both are client-management suites for service businesses: proposals, contracts, invoices and a client portal in one place. They differ on how you pay for them, who handles your client payments, and which features sit on the cheaper plan.
Written by ApeiroCraft, which makes a competing product. HoneyBook and Dubsado are compared on their own published terms; ApeiroCraft appears only in the separate section at the end.
The short answer
- HoneyBook bills monthly or yearly: Starter $36 a month ($29 billed yearly), Essentials $59 ($49), Premium $129 ($109).
- Dubsado's pricing page lists annual prices only: Starter $335 a year (about $28 a month) and Premier $525 (about $44).
- HoneyBook processes client payments itself. Its plan table says card fees start at 2.9% + 25¢, its fees section says 2.7% + 10¢, and bank transfers are 1.5%. Dubsado's pricing page lists no processing fee of its own.
- HoneyBook's scheduler and automations start on Essentials. Dubsado's scheduling and automated workflows are on Premier only.
- HoneyBook is available only in the US, Canada, the UK and Australia.
At a glance
| HoneyBook | Dubsado | |
|---|---|---|
| How the bill grows | Per account, plus a cut of every card payment | Per account, billed annually |
| Published price | $36–$129/mo billed monthly ($29–$109 billed yearly) | $335/yr Starter (~$28/mo); $525/yr Premier (~$44/mo); 3 additional users free |
| Free plan | No — 30-day trial | No — 21-day trial |
| Five people, per month | Not publicly stated | Not publicly stated |
Plan by plan
| HoneyBook | Dubsado | |
|---|---|---|
| Entry plan | Starter: $36/mo, or $29/mo billed yearly | Starter: $335/yr |
| Top plan | Premium: $129/mo, or $109/mo billed yearly | Premier: $525/yr |
| Monthly billing | Yes, on every plan | No monthly price printed on the pricing page |
| Free trial | 30 days, no card | 21 days of Premier, no card |
| Card payments | Through HoneyBook: from 2.9% + 25¢ (plan table) or 2.7% + 10¢ (fees section); ACH 1.5% | No processing fee listed on the pricing page |
| Team members | None listed on Starter; up to 2 on Essentials; unlimited on Premium | 3 additional users free; then $25/mo (4–10 users), $45/mo (11–20), $60/mo (21–30) |
| Scheduling | From Essentials | Premier only |
| Automations | From Essentials | Automated workflows on Premier only |
| Client portal | Every plan | Both plans |
| Lead forms | 2 live on Starter, 10 on Essentials, unlimited on Premium | 1 active on Starter, unlimited on Premier |
| Accounting integration | QuickBooks Online from Essentials | Bookkeeping integration on Premier |
| More than one business | Multiple companies on Premium | $10/mo per additional brand |
| Countries | US, Canada, UK, Australia | No country limit stated on the pricing page |
USD list prices, excluding tax, read off HoneyBook's pricing page and Dubsado's pricing page on 24 October 2026. Where a vendor's page doesn't state something, the cell says so rather than guessing. Spotted a change? Tell us.
Price over a year
On yearly billing the two are close. HoneyBook Starter at $29 a month is $348 a year against Dubsado Starter's $335. HoneyBook Essentials at $49 is $588 a year against Dubsado Premier's $525. HoneyBook Premium at $109 is $1,308 a year, and Dubsado has no plan at that level.
The bigger difference is the option to pay monthly. HoneyBook prints a monthly price for every plan and says yearly billing saves up to 18%. Dubsado's pricing page prints only the annual prices, and says that choosing annual gets you two months' worth of savings, but it does not print the monthly figure, so we have not quoted one.
Those comparisons are the subscription only. On HoneyBook, the cost of taking client payments sits on top.
Fees on client payments
HoneyBook processes card and bank payments itself. Its pricing page gives two starting rates for cards: 2.9% + 25¢ in the plan comparison table, and 2.7% + 10¢ in the processing-fees section and FAQ. Bank transfers (ACH) are 1.5%, and instant deposit is a further 1%, pending eligibility. Premium accounts that transact over $500,000 a year may be eligible for discounted card fees.
On a $3,000 invoice paid by card, that is $87.25 at the plan-table rate or $81.10 at the fees-section rate. Any card processor charges something for the same payment; the point is that on HoneyBook the rate is HoneyBook's.
Dubsado's pricing page does not name a payment processor or a transaction fee. If payment costs decide it for you, check the rate on whichever processor Dubsado connects you to before comparing.
Team seats
HoneyBook's plan table lists no team members on Starter, up to 2 on Essentials and unlimited team members on Premium. A business that grows past Essentials' limit moves to Premium at $109 to $129 a month.
Dubsado includes three additional users free on both plans. Past that, users are an add-on: $25 a month for 4–10 users, $45 for 11–20 and $60 for 21–30, with larger teams asked to email.
Setup: what you configure before the first proposal
Both send a proposal, contract and invoice on the entry plan. Dubsado's homepage describes it as one send — “proposal, contract, and invoice” — and HoneyBook's Starter plan lists proposals and contracts, invoicing and a client portal.
What sits higher up differs. HoneyBook puts its scheduler and automations on Essentials. Dubsado puts scheduling and automated workflows on Premier. Dubsado's 21-day trial gives full access to Premier, so a workflow or booking page built during the trial needs Premier to keep running; it is worth deciding which plan you will be on before you build one.
Dubsado says it was “rebuilt to be simpler” and that you can lean on its team while you ramp up. HoneyBook's trial is the longer of the two, at 30 days with no card, and it offers a full refund within the first 60 days.
Which one to pick
Pick HoneyBook if
- You want to pay month to month rather than a year up front.
- You want card and bank payments handled inside the same tool, at HoneyBook's published rates.
- You want scheduling and automations without paying for the top plan.
- You are in the US, Canada, the UK or Australia.
Pick Dubsado if
- You are happy to pay yearly and want the lower annual price.
- You have a small team: three additional users are included on both plans.
- You run more than one brand and want each for $10 a month rather than a top-tier upgrade.
- You want invoicing, a client portal and a lead form for under $30 a month on annual billing.
Questions
- Is HoneyBook or Dubsado cheaper?
- On yearly billing they are close: HoneyBook Starter is $348 a year ($29 a month) against Dubsado Starter's $335, and HoneyBook Essentials is $588 against Dubsado Premier's $525. HoneyBook also takes a fee on card payments it processes, from 2.9% + 25¢ on its plan table or 2.7% + 10¢ in its fees section. Prices checked on each vendor's pricing page on 24 October 2026.
- Can you pay for Dubsado monthly?
- Dubsado's pricing page lists only annual prices, $335 and $525 a year, and says annual billing gets you two months' worth of savings. It does not print a monthly price, so we have not quoted one. HoneyBook prints both: $36, $59 and $129 a month billed monthly, or $29, $49 and $109 billed yearly.
- Does Dubsado charge transaction fees like HoneyBook?
- Dubsado's pricing page does not list a transaction fee or name a processor. HoneyBook processes payments itself: card fees from 2.9% + 25¢ on its plan table (2.7% + 10¢ in its fees section), ACH at 1.5%, and 1% for instant deposit.
- Which has the longer free trial?
- HoneyBook: 30 days with no card. Dubsado's trial is 21 days of full Premier access, also with no card.
- How many team members do HoneyBook and Dubsado include?
- HoneyBook lists no team members on Starter, up to 2 on Essentials and unlimited on Premium. Dubsado includes three additional users free on either plan, then charges $25 a month for 4–10 users, $45 for 11–20 and $60 for 21–30.
A third option
Where ApeiroCraft fits
ApeiroCraft wrote this page, and we make a competing product. That is why it is down here and not in the table.
ApeiroCraft covers a narrower job than either: proposals with read tracking and e-signature, invoices, a CRM and tasks. It is priced flat per account: a free plan, then Solo for up to three people at $19 a month, Team for five at $79 and Agency for twenty at $149. Invoices carry your own payment link, so payments go through your own processor at its rate, and it is available outside HoneyBook's four countries.
It has no scheduler, no client portal and no automated workflows, and HoneyBook and Dubsado both have all three. If those are why you are choosing between these two, pick one of them.