Salonnare vs Porter - which software fits a salon in the Netherlands and Belgium?

Pricing and cost model

According to their website, Porter works on a subscription aimed at the US market and priced in dollars.^[1] The exact amounts are not always published openly; expect an English-language sign-up flow and payment processing tuned for the US. Salonnare charges in euros and stays fully transparent: the free plan costs EUR 0 per month (1 staff member, 50 bookings per month, no credit card required), Starter is EUR 29 per month (EUR 348 per year) and Pro is EUR 59 per month (EUR 708 per year). The key difference: Salonnare takes no commission on your payments. You connect your own Stripe or Mollie account and only pay the standard provider fees, nothing extra to us. No lock-in, no hidden margin. See all the details on the pricing page.

Built for the Netherlands and Belgium

This is where the biggest difference lies. Porter is primarily focused on the United States and is entirely in English. Salonnare is built NL/BE-first. iDEAL works natively through both Stripe Connect and Mollie, alongside Bancontact, SumUp and card. The point of sale (POS) applies the correct Dutch VAT rates: 21% on services and 9% on retail. You can export an Auditfile for the Dutch tax authority so your bookkeeper or accountant can pick it up directly. The servers are located in the EU (Frankfurt and Amsterdam) and everything is GDPR-compliant. For sensitive health data there is even a dedicated GDPR Article 9 health-data vault, handy for intake and skin information.

Features and daily use

Both platforms cover the basics: online booking, calendar and payments. Salonnare reaches wider for anyone who wants everything in one system, and it suits hair salons, beauty salons, nail studios, barbers and more, not just a single niche. You get an embeddable booking widget for your own website plus a dedicated booking page with your own logo and branding. Clients pick one or more treatments, see time slots per staff member and book in a few clicks. On top of that: client records, inventory management, email marketing and campaigns, recurring memberships via SEPA and iDEAL, gift cards, loyalty, no-show fees and deposits, and forms/intake. It is all included, with no add-on fees and no marketplace pushing competitors to your clients. See the full list on features.

Switching to Salonnare

Coming from another system? Salonnare has a CSV import for migration, so you do not have to re-enter your client database by hand. You start on the free plan without a credit card and only upgrade once your salon grows. Because there is no lock-in and you connect your own payment account, you always remain the owner of your data and your cash flow. Our Dutch-speaking support helps you during office hours with the first steps, no English-only ticket system in a different time zone. Thanks to the modern, localised interface, new staff and interns are often productive within an hour.

Conclusion: why Salonnare wins

Fair is fair: Porter is deeply specialised in one niche. If you work purely as a US tattoo studio, charge in dollars and want English-language software with integrated US payroll, Porter is worth considering. It is a legitimate, well-thought-out package for that specific situation. But for a salon in the Netherlands or Belgium, Salonnare wins on the things that matter every day. You pay a low, fixed price (free tier, then EUR 29 or EUR 59 per month) with no commission and no lock-in, while Porter charges in dollars with a less transparent model. You get iDEAL and Bancontact natively, the correct VAT rates (21% and 9%) and an Auditfile export your accountant can feed straight into the Dutch tax return; Porter is not set up for this. Your data sits on EU servers, GDPR-compliant, and stays entirely yours in your own tenant database. And you get the full package - online booking, POS, inventory, marketing automation, memberships, gift cards, loyalty, no-show fees and forms - with no add-on fees and Dutch-speaking support. For the Dutch and Belgian salon market, that makes Salonnare the better choice.

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