For a photographer, HoneyBook and 17hats cost almost the same once you want automations: HoneyBook Essentials is $588 a year billed yearly and 17hats’ one plan is $600, a $12 gap. So the choice is about what each plan includes, not the price. HoneyBook Starter, at $348 a year, is the cheapest way in but leaves automations out. The reasons are below, next to where each rival is the better fit. Prices are list prices from each pricing page, read October 29, 2026. HoneyBook’s page currently shows a Fall sale, so you will see lower prices there than the regular list prices quoted here. Before you start a trial, print our free trial checklist.
What HoneyBook and 17hats are (and are not)
Both are client tools for small service businesses: an inquiry form, a proposal or quote, a contract the client signs online, an invoice they pay and a portal where they find it all. For a photographer that is the booking flow: package, retainer or deposit, contract, then reminders before the shoot.
Neither replaces your gallery delivery, your editing software or a full accounting package. 17hats’ help center describes a bookkeeping module for its older membership levels; HoneyBook connects to QuickBooks Online on Essentials. If you book a handful of sessions a month from Instagram messages and a payment link, you may not need either yet. For a wider shortlist, see our best CRM for photographers guide.
How we compared these tools
We read each vendor’s own pages on October 29, 2026, for one photographer, in US dollars.
- Price for a year, on monthly billing and on yearly billing, without promotions or sale banners (17hats’ current sale is noted in its entry).
- Where automations live: which plan or add-on unlocks automated emails, follow-ups and scheduling.
- Paid add-ons on the same pricing page, with their monthly price.
- Trial length and card terms, as each vendor states them.
- Help-center gates: what the vendor’s help articles say about which plan or level includes a feature.
What we did not test. We did not sign up for paid plans, time any task or measure support, speed or mobile apps. We have no ratings to report. 17hats’ pricing page does not itemize features by plan (its code still holds an older level table that visitors don’t see), so every 17hats feature below comes from its help center, and you should confirm the ones you rely on during the trial.
HoneyBook vs 17hats: the best fit for each photographer
The order follows documented fit for a photographer who books packages with a deposit, not price alone. Workspace369 publishes this guide and is one of the options.
1. Workspace369, best for a branded booking flow on the lowest yearly price
Workspace369’s lowest plan, Cadet, is $29 a month or $23.25 billed yearly, $278.99 a year. Its pricing page lists proposals with deposits on acceptance, contracts sent automatically when a proposal is accepted, a client portal for projects, invoices, contracts and files, and up to three automated workflows, triggered by events such as a payment received. Your logo, colors and theme carry onto your proposals, invoices and client portal, and the client verifies their email with a code to open the portal, with no password.
The limits: Cadet has one seat and 3 active workflows, its automations are email only (text-message reminders start on Voyager), and online booking pages with deposits start on higher plans, so a photographer who wants clients to pick a session time online pays more. The trial is shorter than HoneyBook’s: 14 days, card required.
Best for: a solo photographer who wants packages, deposits, contracts and reminders in one branded flow for the lowest yearly bill of the three. Workspace369 pricing
2. HoneyBook, best for a polished booking flow with a long trial
HoneyBook Starter is $36 a month ($29 billed yearly) and includes unlimited clients and projects, invoices and payments, proposals and contracts, a calendar, all professional templates, a client portal, basic reports and up to two live lead forms. Starter’s scheduler covers 1 session type with email-only reminders. The comparison table (read October 29, 2026) lists “1 session” on Starter and “Unlimited sessions” on Essentials. Essentials, $59 ($49 billed yearly), adds more session types, automations, SMS reminders and up to two team members. It also adds the QuickBooks Online integration. Premium is $129 ($109) with unlimited team members.
The limits: Starter has no automations, so a photographer who wants automatic follow-ups is really choosing Essentials at $588 a year. The strength is the trial: 30 days, and HoneyBook’s FAQ says no credit card is required. Our HoneyBook review goes plan by plan.
Best for: a photographer who wants a polished booking flow and a long trial to test it. HoneyBook pricing
3. 17hats, best for one all-in plan with no tiers
17hats sells one all-inclusive plan: $60 a month, $600 a year or $800 for two years, which its page says provides nearly everything you need to organize and automate the business. Its page currently shows a sale banner with 50% off the first year if you skip the trial and buy a yearly ($300) or two-year ($400) plan; like other vendors’ time-limited offers, it is left out of the comparison. Its help center describes a client portal where clients accept quotes, sign contracts, complete questionnaires and pay invoices, workflows that automate emails and to-do reminders, and a bookkeeping module that builds profit and loss and sales tax reports.
The limits are the add-ons and the old levels. Bank connect is a $5 monthly add-on, and the page says you can buy additional users and brands without listing their price. 17hats’ help center still ties advanced workflows to its Premier level and bookkeeping to its Standard and Premier levels, and no page says which level the one plan equals. Check both in the 7-day trial, which its FAQ says you can restart once.
What changed: 17hats did not change its list plan. Our earlier text quoted an older level grid that its page hides; archived copies show the one plan on sale since at least April 2025. Details are in our client software price-change log.
Best for: a photographer who wants one price with no tiers, and will confirm the workflows and bookkeeping in the trial. 17hats pricing
Side-by-side comparison
US dollars, list prices read October 29, 2026. Yearly figures are the yearly totals as listed.
| HoneyBook Starter | HoneyBook Essentials | 17hats | Workspace369 Cadet | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Monthly | $36 | $59 | $60 | $29 |
| A year, billed yearly | $348 | $588 | $600 | $278.99 |
| Automations | No | Yes | Workflows (confirm level in trial) | Up to 3 workflows |
| Scheduling | 1 session type | Scheduler | Not itemized; confirm in trial | Booking pages on higher plans |
| Client portal | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Trial | 30 days, no card | 30 days, no card | 7 days, restartable once | 14 days, card required |
Which fits your situation
| If you… | Start with | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Want the lowest yearly bill with deposits, contracts and automations | Workspace369 Cadet | $278.99 a year, workflows on the lowest plan |
| Want the longest trial before you commit | HoneyBook | 30 days, no card |
| Want clients to book more than one session type online | HoneyBook Essentials | Multi-session scheduler at $588 a year |
| Want bookkeeping in the same tool | 17hats | Help center describes it; confirm in the trial |
Three questions that pick one for you
- Do you need automatic follow-ups? If not, HoneyBook Starter is the cheapest of the rivals. If yes, compare HoneyBook Essentials, 17hats and Workspace369 on what each plan includes.
- Do clients book a session time themselves? On HoneyBook that is Essentials, on 17hats something to confirm in the trial, because its plan page no longer itemizes scheduling, and on Workspace369 a higher plan.
- Who keeps your books? If you want bookkeeping inside the client tool at the entry price, 17hats is the only one of the three that describes one, in its help center for its older levels, so confirm it in the trial.
Whichever you pick, run one real past booking through the trial: the package, the deposit, the contract and the reminder. Then open the client’s view on a phone.
Frequently asked questions
Is HoneyBook or 17hats cheaper?
HoneyBook Starter is cheaper, at $348 a year billed yearly. With automations, HoneyBook Essentials ($588) and 17hats ($600) are $12 apart a year (list prices read October 29, 2026).
Does 17hats have more than one plan?
New sign-ups see one plan on the pricing page, at $60 a month, $600 a year or $800 for two years. The page does not itemize features, and its help center still refers to older levels, so confirm the features you need in the trial.
Which has the longer free trial?
HoneyBook, at 30 days with no credit card required. 17hats’ trial is 7 days and Workspace369’s is 14 days with a card required.
Does 17hats include scheduling?
The pricing page no longer says. It describes one plan with nearly every feature and itemizes nothing, so book a test session during the 7-day trial before you rely on it.
Which plan of HoneyBook do photographers need?
Starter covers proposals, contracts, invoices and the client portal. Starter’s scheduler covers 1 session type; Essentials adds more session types, automations and SMS reminders, which matter once you book sessions every week.
What does Workspace369 cost for a photographer?
Cadet is $29 a month or $23.25 billed yearly ($278.99 a year) for one seat, with proposals and deposits, contracts, a client portal and up to three automated workflows. Online booking pages start on higher plans.
Try the booking flow on your own package
If a branded booking flow on the lowest yearly price fits how you work, start the Workspace369 trial (14 days, card required) and send yourself one real package with a deposit. Run the same booking in HoneyBook’s and 17hats’ trials and keep the one your client would find easiest.
