Cliniko vs Timely

Cliniko or Timely? An Expert Industry Tools Comparison

Every business has different workflows, team sizes, and budgets. This comparison of Cliniko vs Timely helps you find the platform that matches your actual needs - not just the one with the biggest marketing budget.

Features compared

50+

Clients advised

98%

Client retention

12+

Years experience

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Feature Comparison

Side-by-side feature analysis for Cliniko and Timely.

Industry fit

Cliniko

Cliniko provides industry fit functionality, popular with Healthcare & Allied Health businesses

Timely

Purpose-built for salons and spas with appointment booking, POS, client management, and marketing designed for beauty industry workflows

Timely highlights industry fit as a core strength. Cliniko offers the capability but does not position it as a primary differentiator.

Job management

Cliniko

Limitation: Inventory management for product sales (supplements, braces, etc.) is basic and requires workarounds or third-party tools

Timely

Purpose-built for salons and spas with appointment booking, POS, client management, and marketing designed for beauty industry workflows

Timely highlights job management as a core strength. Cliniko offers the capability but does not position it as a primary differentiator.

Quoting and invoicing

Cliniko

Cliniko provides quoting and invoicing functionality, popular with Healthcare & Allied Health businesses

Timely

Timely provides quoting and invoicing functionality, popular with Healthcare & Allied Health businesses

For quoting and invoicing, evaluate both platforms against your specific workflow requirements rather than feature lists alone. A free trial or vendor demo will clarify the differences.

Scheduling and dispatch

Cliniko

Cliniko provides scheduling and dispatch functionality, popular with Healthcare & Allied Health businesses

Timely

Online booking with real-time availability synced across staff members reduces double-bookings and phone-based scheduling effort

Timely highlights scheduling and dispatch as a core strength. Cliniko offers the capability but does not position it as a primary differentiator.

Mobile field access

Cliniko

Letter and report templates with merge fields generate professional referral letters and clinical reports in seconds

Timely

Limitation: Per-staff pricing can become expensive for larger salons with many part-time employees who need system access

Cliniko highlights mobile field access as a core strength. Timely offers the capability but does not position it as a primary differentiator.

Compliance features

Cliniko

Limitation: Marketing and patient recall features are limited, often requiring integration with Mailchimp or similar for targeted campaigns

Timely

Limitation: Advanced features like SMS marketing and loyalty programmes require add-on purchases beyond the base subscription

For compliance features, evaluate both platforms against your specific workflow requirements rather than feature lists alone. A free trial or vendor demo will clarify the differences.

Reporting

Cliniko

Letter and report templates with merge fields generate professional referral letters and clinical reports in seconds

Timely

Reporting includes client retention, rebooking rates, staff utilisation, and revenue per service hour for performance optimisation

Timely highlights reporting as a core strength. Cliniko offers the capability but does not position it as a primary differentiator.

Client management

Cliniko

Limitation: Inventory management for product sales (supplements, braces, etc.) is basic and requires workarounds or third-party tools

Timely

Purpose-built for salons and spas with appointment booking, POS, client management, and marketing designed for beauty industry workflows

Timely highlights client management as a core strength. Cliniko offers the capability but does not position it as a primary differentiator.

Inventory and materials

Cliniko

Limitation: Inventory management for product sales (supplements, braces, etc.) is basic and requires workarounds or third-party tools

Timely

Timely provides inventory and materials functionality, popular with Healthcare & Allied Health businesses

If inventory and materials is a daily-use area for your team, the onboarding curve and keyboard ergonomics matter more than feature counts - trial both with a real operator, not an evaluator.

Integrations with accounting

Cliniko

Purpose-built for allied health with patient records, treatment notes, telehealth, and Medicare/DVA claiming built into the workflow

Timely

Purpose-built for salons and spas with appointment booking, POS, client management, and marketing designed for beauty industry workflows

Both platforms are strong here. Cliniko emphasises this as a core strength, and Timely also invests heavily in integrations with accounting. Review each platform's approach to see which aligns with your team's workflow.

Ease of setup

Cliniko

Cliniko provides onboarding resources. Setup complexity depends on your configuration requirements

Timely

Timely provides onboarding resources. Setup complexity depends on your configuration requirements

Both platforms cover the ease of setup basics. The edges - automations, reporting depth, mobile parity - are where their opinions show.

Value for money

Cliniko

Solo from approximately $55/month (1 practitioner), Team from approximately $109/month (2-5 practitioners), Growing from approximately $179/month (6-10 practitioners), Large from approximately $279/month (AUD). Annual billing discounts.

Timely

Build from approximately $39/month (1 staff), Elevate from approximately $59/month (1 staff), Innovate from approximately $79/month (1 staff) (AUD). Per additional staff member pricing applies. SMS credits purchased separately.

Pricing models differ significantly. Compare the total cost of ownership including add-ons and per-user fees, not just the headline price.

Pricing Comparison

General pricing information for each platform.

Cliniko

These figures are estimates based on publicly available pricing. Actual costs depend on your usage, team size, and any negotiated rates.

Timely

Pricing is indicative only and subject to change. We recommend contacting the vendor for a tailored quote based on your Australian business needs.

Pros & Cons

An honest look at the strengths and limitations of each platform.

Cliniko

Pros

Purpose-built for allied health with patient records, treatment notes, telehealth, and Medicare/DVA claiming built into the workflow
Online booking with practitioner availability, service selection, and intake forms reduces receptionist workload and fills empty appointment slots
Telehealth video consultations are included at no extra cost, allowing practitioners to offer remote consultations without a separate Zoom subscription
Letter and report templates with merge fields generate professional referral letters and clinical reports in seconds
Australian data hosting with encryption at rest and in transit meets Australian privacy and health records requirements

Cons

Per-practitioner pricing can be expensive for multi-disciplinary practices with many part-time practitioners
Inventory management for product sales (supplements, braces, etc.) is basic and requires workarounds or third-party tools
Marketing and patient recall features are limited, often requiring integration with Mailchimp or similar for targeted campaigns
Customisation of clinical templates requires understanding of Cliniko template syntax, which has a learning curve

Timely

Pros

Purpose-built for salons and spas with appointment booking, POS, client management, and marketing designed for beauty industry workflows
Online booking with real-time availability synced across staff members reduces double-bookings and phone-based scheduling effort
Client communication automation with appointment reminders, birthday messages, and rebooking prompts improves retention rates
Stock management tracks product usage per service, monitors stock levels, and generates purchase orders for suppliers
Reporting includes client retention, rebooking rates, staff utilisation, and revenue per service hour for performance optimisation

Cons

Primarily focused on hair, beauty, and spa businesses, making it less suitable for other health or service industries
Integration ecosystem is limited compared to Cliniko, with fewer connections to broader business tools and marketing platforms
Per-staff pricing can become expensive for larger salons with many part-time employees who need system access
Advanced features like SMS marketing and loyalty programmes require add-on purchases beyond the base subscription

Best For

Which tool suits which use case.

Choose Cliniko if you need

✓ Healthcare & Allied Health businesses
✓ Field service operations
✓ Moderate data needs (patients, appointments)
✓ Teams needing extensive third-party integrations
✓ Specialised compliance

Choose Timely if you need

✓ Healthcare & Allied Health businesses
✓ Retail & E-commerce organisations
✓ Complex data models (appointments, clients, services and more)
✓ Specialised compliance
✓ Industry-specific workflows

Expert Verdict

Our Harvard-educated consultants' take on this comparison.

Clever Ops Recommendation

Choose Cliniko if Australian allied health practices (physio, chiro, osteo, psychology, speech pathology) that need integrated patient management, online booking, and telehealth with Australian compliance built in. Choose Timely if hair salons, beauty clinics, and spas that need purpose-built booking, POS, and client management with stock tracking designed specifically for the beauty and wellness industry. Avoid Cliniko if medical practices needing GP-specific features (prescribing, pathology ordering) where Best Practice or Medical Director are more appropriate, or fitness businesses where Mindbody is better suited. Avoid Timely if allied health practitioners needing clinical notes and Medicare integration where Cliniko is more appropriate, or fitness studios where Mindbody better suits class-based scheduling. If you are still weighing the trade-offs, Clever Ops offers a free assessment where our Harvard-educated consultants map your requirements to the right platform.

Migration Notes

What to know about switching between Cliniko and Timely.

Migrating Between Cliniko and Timely

Migrating between Cliniko and Timely involves transferring appointments, products and mapping custom fields. Clever Ops follows a structured migration process: discovery, data mapping, test migration, verification, and cutover. We typically complete migrations within 4-8 weeks. Historical data is preserved, and we run parallel systems during the transition to minimise risk. Post-migration, we provide 3 months of support to ensure everything runs smoothly.

Cliniko vs Timely FAQ

Timely is more commonly used in Retail & E-commerce. Cliniko is stronger in Healthcare & Allied Health. That said, popularity alone should not drive your decision. The right tool depends on your specific processes and integration needs. Clever Ops can advise based on what we have seen work for similar businesses.

Yes, both platforms are used by Australian businesses. Cliniko is popular with Healthcare & Allied Health in Australia. Timely is widely used by Healthcare & Allied Health and Retail & E-commerce. Key Australian considerations include AUD pricing, local support hours, GST handling, and data residency. Cliniko offers Australian-specific pricing. Clever Ops, based in Gippsland, Victoria, factors these nuances into every recommendation.

Cliniko uses a REST API (REST API with API key authentication (user-specific shard URL). Rate limited to 200 requests per minute. JSON responses with HAL links for pagination. Webhook support available. Australian-hosted data.), while Timely uses a REST API (REST API with API key authentication. Rate limits apply. JSON responses. Limited public documentation. Primary integrations through native connections with Xero, MYOB, and payment providers.). Cliniko supports 7 core data objects; Timely supports 8. With 12+ of integration experience, Clever Ops can tell you exactly how each API performs in production.

If both tools are in the same category, you typically choose one as your primary system. However, some businesses run both during migration periods or for different teams. Cliniko and Timely share 2 common data types, making integration feasible. Clever Ops can sync them so your data stays consistent across both platforms.

ROI depends on three factors: how well the platform is configured, how thoroughly your team adopts it, and how tightly it integrates with your other tools. Cliniko delivers value through Purpose-built for allied health with patient records, treatment notes, telehealth, and Medicare/DVA claiming built into the workflow. Timely delivers value through Purpose-built for salons and spas with appointment booking, POS, client management, and marketing designed for beauty industry workflows. A poorly set-up tool delivers less value than a well-implemented one, regardless of platform. Clever Ops focuses on maximising your return through proper implementation and ongoing optimisation.

Full onboarding for either Cliniko or Timely, including configuration, data import, and team training, typically takes 4-8 weeks with Clever Ops support. Self-service onboarding can take longer and often results in suboptimal configurations that limit the platform's value.

Switching costs include data migration, team retraining, workflow rebuilding, and potential downtime. Cliniko pricing: Solo from approximately $55/month (1 practitioner), Team from approximately $109/month (2-5 practitioners), Growing from approximately $179/month (6-10 practitioners), Large from approximately $279/month (AUD). Timely pricing: Build from approximately $39/month (1 staff), Elevate from approximately $59/month (1 staff), Innovate from approximately $79/month (1 staff) (AUD). Beyond licensing costs, budget for implementation (Clever Ops typically completes migrations in 4-8 weeks) and training. We run parallel systems during transitions and provide 3 months of post-migration support to minimise disruption.

For Healthcare & Allied Health businesses, prioritise: Industry fit, Job management, Quoting and invoicing, Scheduling and dispatch, Mobile field access. Cliniko is strong on Purpose-built for allied health with patient records, treatment notes, telehealth, and Medicare/DVA claiming built into the workflow. Timely excels at Purpose-built for salons and spas with appointment booking, POS, client management, and marketing designed for beauty industry workflows. Clever Ops can help you build a weighted requirements list and score each platform against it.