Booking confirmation: automatic or manual
On 8 October 2026, checking this mode before writing about it, I found a bug: a request the studio had not answered within an hour was cancelled silently. The client got no email, and the booking kept showing as "Pending Approval". We fixed it the next day. The first version of this text ended with a list of four Slotsy minuses: the mode covered the whole studio only, the client did not know before booking, could not withdraw the request, and the studio got no email. Instead of publishing that list, we removed all four. The changes reached production on 9 and 10 October.
Short answer. In Slotsy an online booking is confirmed straight away by default. In Booking Settings you choose which bookings you confirm yourself: all of them, new clients only or selected services only. The client sees this before booking and clicks "Send request" instead of "Confirm". The time is held for them, they get a "Request received" email at once, and they can withdraw the request until the visit starts, with an automatic refund if they paid. You get an email and a push with the time by which to decide, and a reminder when a quarter of that time is left. Time to decide: 1–72 hours, 1 by default. Checked 10.10.2026.
Create a Free Slotsy account: 0 zł for one person, no card, it runs alongside your current system. In 15 minutes you will have a booking page and will have chosen which bookings to approve yourself.
Whom to approve
The field is called "Which online bookings you confirm yourself", in Booking Settings → "Approval".
| Mode | What waits for your decision |
|---|---|
| None | nothing; every online booking is confirmed straight away (default) |
| All online bookings | every booking from the studio page and the widget |
| New clients only | someone who has not yet finished a visit with you; regulars are confirmed straight away |
| Selected services only | services you mark "Needs confirmation" |
The "Needs confirmation" mark also works in "New clients only" mode: such a service always waits, even for a regular. An example: regulars book a manicure straight away, new clients wait for your yes, and lash extensions, which need a consultation first, wait for everyone. Bookings you create yourself in the admin never wait.
What the client sees
- On the service card: "Needs studio confirmation".
- Above the button: "The studio confirms this booking itself and will answer within N h. Your time is held while it decides." The button reads "Send request", not "Confirm". In "New clients only" mode, before the client enters an email, they see "The studio confirms bookings from new clients itself…", because Slotsy does not yet know whether they have been to you.
- They get a "Request received: " email at once: the studio will answer within N hours, and the decision comes in a separate email.
- In My Bookings the status is "Pending Approval", with a "Withdraw request" button that works until the visit starts. Your cancellation cut-off does not apply to a request, because nothing has been confirmed yet. If the client paid online, the money comes back the same way, usually within 5–10 business days.
The same works in the widget on your website.
What you see
- An email to the owner and the staff member who was booked: "Booking request: — decide by HH:MM", with an "Open the request" button (sign-in required).
- A push in the Slotsy Business app and a line in the admin bell: "Needs your approval: … Approve or decline it by HH:MM", on the studio's clock. The owner, admins, managers and the staff member receive it.
- A reminder when a quarter of the time is left (15 minutes before the end with a 1-hour deadline): "Request still waiting: ". One per request.
- If the client withdraws: "Request withdrawn: "; the time is already free.
In the booking you click "Approve" or "Reject". When you reject, you pick a "Rejection reason": "No availability", "Schedule change" or "Other", with a comment. The client gets an email with the reason, the time is freed, and a paid request is refunded automatically. The booking list has an "Approve All" button. The whole process: booking approval.
What happens if you do not decide in time
| Request | What happens | What the client gets |
|---|---|---|
| Paid online | It is approved | the email "Booking approved" |
| Not paid | It is cancelled and the time is free again | the email "Booking not approved": "The studio did not confirm the request in time, so the place has been released." |
Online payment and manual approval work well together: if you miss the deadline, a client who has already paid loses nothing. On payments: online payment or on site.
How much time to decide
As much as you really need to look at your phone: between clients 1–2 hours, once a day 12–24 hours. The options are 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 12, 24, 48 and 72 hours, in the "Time to decide" field.
The longer the time, the longer the client does not know whether they are booked. If you cannot answer even within 72 hours, keep automatic confirmation: unpaid requests would keep lapsing.
When to turn it on
- New clients only, when you want to see who is coming first without making regulars wait.
- Selected services only, when one service needs a consultation or preparation and the rest do not.
- All, when you work alone and decide about every slot yourself.
- None, when you go hours without checking your phone or want the client to get "booked" at once.
How other systems do it
Data from the systems' own pages and help, 9.10.2026, without ratings. "Not described" means I did not find it in their materials, not that the feature certainly does not exist.
| Slotsy | Booksy | Fresha | Bookero | SimplyBook.me | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Whom to approve by hand | everyone, new clients or selected services | the whole business ("Automatyczne potwierdzanie rezerwacji" switch); services at the client's location always by hand | not described in the help; a deposit or card from the client instead | manual or automatic acceptance; automatic can be tied to rules | all services at once ("cannot apply to just a few services") |
| The client knows before booking | yes, a line above the button and "Send request" | not described | — | not described | yes, a notice that an email will come after approval |
| The client withdraws a request online | yes, until the visit, with a refund | not described | — | not described | not described |
| How the studio hears | email, push, bell, reminder | not described | — | a notification at every status change | not described |
| If the studio does not answer | after 1–72 h: paid is approved, unpaid is cancelled | not described | — | not described | not described; a paid booking is approved at once |
| Time held | yes | the help warns that two clients may try to take the same time | — | not described | not described |
Bookero lets you build rules for automatic acceptance. Slotsy has no rule builder: there are four modes and a mark on the service. If you need conditions outside that list, look at Bookero.
Fresha takes another route: instead of the studio's decision there is a deposit or a card from the client. If you approve by hand only to protect yourself from no-shows, Fresha's route is closer to what you need. In Slotsy that is online payment at booking (online payment or on site); on no-shows: how to reduce no-shows.
What Slotsy does not do yet
- A request cannot be moved to another time: the client withdraws it and sends a new one.
- The screen right after sending a request still says "Booking Created!"; the status and the email already say "request" (October 2026).
The cancellation rules the client sees before booking: visit cancellation rules.
Frequently asked questions
Do you have to approve every online booking in Slotsy? No. By default, online bookings in Slotsy are confirmed straight away. You turn on manual approval in Booking Settings: for everyone, new clients only or selected services only (checked 10.10.2026).
Can I approve only new clients? Yes. The "New clients only" mode in Slotsy holds a client who has not yet finished a visit with you; regulars are confirmed straight away.
Can I approve only one service? Yes. In Slotsy you mark the service "Needs confirmation" and choose "Selected services only"; other services are confirmed straight away.
How much time is there to decide? In Slotsy, as much as you choose: 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 12, 24, 48 or 72 hours, 1 by default. When a quarter of the time is left, the studio gets a reminder.
What happens if the studio does not answer in time? In Slotsy a request paid online is approved, an unpaid one is cancelled, and the time is free again. The client gets an email either way.
Can the client withdraw a request? Yes. In Slotsy the client clicks "Withdraw request" in My Bookings any time before the visit; if they paid online, the money is refunded automatically and the studio is notified.
Can another client take the time while a request waits? No. In Slotsy the time is held for the request while the studio decides or until the time to decide runs out.
All the measurements on simple booking are in one place: simple online booking.
Slotsy features checked 10.10.2026; the pages and help of Booksy, Fresha, Bookero and SimplyBook.me 9.10.2026.
Start with one thing: create a Free account and in Booking Settings either keep automatic confirmation or choose whom you approve yourself. 0 zł for one person, no card, your current system can keep running alongside. It takes about 15 minutes.