No-show cost calculator
Most clinics know no-shows are a problem. Very few know what the number actually is. Put your figures in and find out.
Your clinic
Change any figure to see the numbers update.
Booked appointments across all practitioners.
Your average booking value, not your highest priced treatment.
UK aesthetic clinics typically sit between 10% and 18% without deposits.
Take off holidays and any weeks you close.
What no-shows cost you
Appointments booked a year
1,440
Appointments missed a year
At a 12% no-show rate
173
Lost revenue a month
£2,592
Lost revenue a year
£31,104
What you could recover
Bringing no-shows down to 5%
Clinics that take a deposit at booking, send automated reminders and run a waitlist to fill gaps typically bring no-shows down to between 3% and 5%. On your numbers that is worth:
Appointments recovered a year
101
Revenue recovered a month
£1,512
Revenue recovered a year
£18,144
What actually works
Three things that move the number
Take a deposit at booking
This is the single biggest lever. A client who has paid something is far more likely to turn up, and if they do not, you are not left with nothing. Take it at the point of booking rather than asking for it afterwards, because chasing a deposit costs you the time you were trying to save.
Send reminders automatically
A reminder 48 hours out gives someone time to move the appointment rather than miss it. A second one on the morning catches the rest. Doing this by hand works until you are busy, which is exactly when you stop doing it.
Run a waitlist
Some cancellations are genuine and you will never remove them. A waitlist turns a late cancellation into a filled slot instead of an empty hour, which is the difference between losing the appointment and losing the revenue.
Questions about no-shows
What is a normal no-show rate for an aesthetic clinic?
UK aesthetic clinics typically sit between 10% and 18% without deposits in place. Consultations and first appointments are worst, because the client has not committed anything financially yet. Anything consistently above 10% usually points at a missing deposit policy or missing reminders rather than at the clients.
How much does a deposit reduce no-shows?
Clinics that take a deposit at booking and send automated reminders usually bring no-shows down to between 3% and 5%. The deposit matters more than its size. A £30 deposit changes behaviour almost as much as a £100 one, because the client has committed something.
How much should I charge as a deposit?
Most UK clinics take between £20 and £50, or 10% to 20% of the treatment price. Higher value treatments and longer appointments justify a larger deposit, because the gap in your day costs more to leave empty.
Does this calculator include the cost of wasted product?
No. It counts the treatment revenue you lose from the missed appointment only. If you open product, pay staff by the hour, or pay for a room you are not using, your real cost is higher than the figure shown.
Will charging a deposit put clients off booking?
It puts off the clients who were least likely to attend. Most clinics find total bookings stay flat or rise slightly, because the appointments that do get booked are far more likely to happen, and a waitlist fills the gaps that remain.
Deposits, reminders and waitlists in one place
Beautay takes the deposit when the appointment is booked, sends the reminders without being asked, and offers the slot to your waitlist the moment someone cancels.
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