The MassageBook alternative
without the surprise fees.
Riverd is a free MassageBook alternative built for solo therapists. You get online booking, clinical SOAP notes, and client records, with no $3.85 client surcharge, no 15% cut of your bookings, and no Stripe lock-in. MassageBook is capable and massage-native with a real consumer directory, but it gates your clients behind a sign-up wall and adds fees to their checkout.
Riverd starts at $0/month for up to 20 appointments. No client surcharge. No booking cut. No processor lock-in.
Last updated June 2026
Start Free, No Credit Card4 signs it’s time to leave MassageBook
If any of these sound familiar, you’re not imagining it.
Your schedule went quiet after the booking-gate change
MassageBook's 2025 update started forcing clients to create an account or hand over an email before they can even see your availability. Therapists have reported bookings dropping off a cliff. Riverd does the opposite: a client lands on your page, sees your real-time availability, and picks a time before any sign-in. No wall in front of your calendar.
A client complained about a surprise fee at checkout
MassageBook adds a $3.85 convenience fee to every online card payment, charged to your client, and you cannot remove it. On top of that sits a 15% new-client marketing fee on directory and Google bookings. Riverd never touches your client's money. There is no checkout surcharge and no cut on your bookings, ever.
You want Square, but you're stuck on Stripe
MassageBook routes payments through Stripe and only Stripe. If you already run Square, or you'd rather just track cash and e-transfers, that lock-in is a daily friction. Riverd lets you connect your own Square so the money settles straight to you, or skip processing entirely and track any payment method by hand.
You've outgrown the massage-only box
MassageBook is built around massage: its brand, its directory, and its note structure all assume it. If you've added bodywork, naturopathic care, nutrition, or coaching, you're forcing your practice into a shape that doesn't fit. Riverd is built for the whole solo wellness category, not one modality.
Side by side
MassageBook details verified against MassageBook’s published pages in June 2026: pricing, convenience-fee FAQ, and the new-client marketing-fee doc. Riverd’s payment behavior is documented on the card payments feature page. Features and fees can change; check each tool’s current pages before deciding.
The honest summary
MassageBook earns its reputation in a few real ways: phone-based human support that practitioners genuinely praise, an established consumer directory at massagebook.com that sends net-new massage clients, built-in intake forms, and a massage-native charting style with anatomical body diagrams. If those are the things you need most, MassageBook is a fair choice and we won’t talk you out of it.
Riverd wins when the economics and the client experience matter more than the marketplace. There is a permanently free tier, never a $3.85 surcharge added to your client’s checkout, never a 15% cut of your new-client bookings, and no Stripe lock-in, you bring your own Square or just track cash. Clients see your availability and pick a time before any sign-in, instead of hitting an account wall. And Riverd is built for the whole solo wellness category, not massage alone. If MassageBook’s fees and booking gate are the reason you’re reading this page, that’s exactly the gap Riverd closes.
“MassageBook was starting to feel dated, and the day a client texted me asking why there was a surcharge on her payment was the day I started looking. Setting up Riverd took a few minutes, it looks beautiful on mobile, and nobody touches my clients’ money but me.”
Mike R.
Independent Massage Therapist, switched from MassageBook
Common questions
Is Riverd a good MassageBook alternative for a solo therapist?
For most independent massage therapists, yes. Riverd covers the core of what MassageBook does for a solo practice, online booking, clinical SOAP notes, automated reminders, client records, and payment tracking, on a permanently free plan for up to 20 appointments a month. Where Riverd is honestly different: there is no $3.85 client surcharge, no 15% cut on new-client bookings, no Stripe lock-in, and clients can see your availability without being forced to create an account first. MassageBook is the better pick if you specifically need its established consumer directory to find net-new massage clients, its built-in intake forms, or phone support, none of which Riverd matches today.
Does MassageBook really charge my clients a fee?
Per MassageBook's own help center, online card payments carry a $3.85 convenience fee charged to the client, which the therapist cannot remove, and directory or Google-sourced bookings carry a 15% new-client marketing fee with a $6 minimum. Those are documented in MassageBook's published support articles, linked below. Riverd works differently: we never process or touch your client's payment. You connect your own Square and the money settles directly to you, or you track cash and other methods manually. There is no Riverd-added surcharge on your client's checkout and no cut taken from your bookings.
Does Riverd have SOAP notes like MassageBook?
Yes. Structured clinical session notes and full client history are included on every Riverd plan, including the free Brook plan. Riverd also includes an AI SOAP Note Generator on the River plan that turns a brief session summary into a structured Subjective, Objective, Assessment, and Plan note, which MassageBook does not offer. The honest concession: MassageBook's notes include anatomical body diagrams that are well-loved by massage therapists, and that specific charting style is part of its massage-native DNA. Riverd's notes are flexible structured text plus a body-map tool rather than MassageBook's exact diagram set.
When is MassageBook the better choice?
MassageBook is the better choice in a few clear cases, and we won't pretend otherwise. If your main goal is to be found by net-new massage clients through an established consumer marketplace, MassageBook's directory (massagebook.com, used by thousands of practices) is a real lead engine that Riverd's healthcare listing does not match yet. If you depend on built-in client intake forms, Riverd does not have them. And if phone-based human support is non-negotiable for you, MassageBook offers it on weekdays while Riverd supports you over email and chat. Riverd wins when you want a fast, modern, fee-free practice tool, the free tier, no client surcharges, no processor lock-in, and booking that doesn't gate your clients.
How does Riverd's pricing compare to MassageBook's?
Riverd's Brook plan is permanently free for up to 20 appointments a month, with no credit card required, which MassageBook has no equivalent of. MassageBook starts at $15/mo (Transition), but the tools most practitioners actually want, text reminders and premium documentation, sit on its $50/mo Amplify tier, with a Clinic tier at $74.25/mo. Riverd's River plan is $39/month (billed annually) and includes SMS reminders, the AI SOAP Note Generator, two-way Google Calendar sync, and saved Patient Books. Beyond the sticker price, Riverd never adds the $3.85 client convenience fee or the 15% new-client booking fee that MassageBook layers on top of its subscription. Prices change, so check each tool's current pricing page before deciding.
Riverd is a practice management tool, not a medical or legal provider. Clinical documentation features support your own professional judgment and do not constitute medical advice. Always follow your jurisdiction’s scope-of-practice and record-keeping requirements.
Keep the practice. Drop the fees.
Get booking, SOAP notes, client records, and payment tracking in one modern tool, with no client surcharge, no booking cut, and no processor lock-in.
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