# Free Booking (Book without Payment)

### 💡 When to use Free booking

Free booking works well for:

*  **Consultations / trials** – first visit is free, you charge later if needed
* **In-person services paid on site** – pay in cash or card at your location
* **School visits / tours / demo sessions** – booking only, no fee
* **Services handled by invoice** – you bill customers manually afterwards

If you need customers to pay online, use **Paid services (Pay to book)** instead.

Demo: <https://demo-app-v2-tipo-appointment-booking.myshopify.com/products/couples-spa-package>   (password: 1234)

***

### ⚙️ How to set up a Free service

#### Step 1: Open Services <a href="#step-1-open-services" id="step-1-open-services"></a>

* Open the app > click **Services**
* Click **New service** button

<figure><img src="https://docs.tipo.io/~gitbook/image?url=https%3A%2F%2F2420234940-files.gitbook.io%2F%7E%2Ffiles%2Fv0%2Fb%2Fgitbook-x-prod.appspot.com%2Fo%2Fspaces%252F1ux6d1pfkKFKCAAHuj8H%252Fuploads%252FlASe8qs1MDHUBriOdBjs%252F2025-12-10_16-25-41.png%3Falt%3Dmedia%26token%3D944cc7aa-8a6c-4071-94ff-828b2a07a354&#x26;width=768&#x26;dpr=4&#x26;quality=100&#x26;sign=7ad3ccae&#x26;sv=2" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

#### Steps 2: Choose a service type <a href="#steps-2-choose-a-service-type" id="steps-2-choose-a-service-type"></a>

**Full-day booking**

Best for services that take a whole day (event rental, photoshoot day).

* Customers book an entire day
* Paid via Shopify checkout

**Regular booking**

Best if you collect payment offline.

* Customers book a time slot
* No Shopify checkout required

**Multi-day booking (without checkout)**

* Customers book multiple days
* No checkout

#### Step 3: Create the service product in Shopify <a href="#step-3-create-the-service-product-in-shopify" id="step-3-create-the-service-product-in-shopify"></a>

The app creates/uses a Shopify Product for your service. In the **Add product** screen:

* **Title**: e.g., Yoga class
* **Status**: Active
* **Price**:&#x20;
  * Set the price to **$0**, or
  * Keep a regular price (if you still want to show a value), *the app will ignore it for checkout when using free booking*.

Click **Save**.

<figure><img src="/files/To0d6Ix8dJ02gtX9EN9O" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

#### Step 4: Configure service settings <a href="#step-4-configure-service-settings" id="step-4-configure-service-settings"></a>

**👥 Capacity**

Set how many people can book the same time slot.

* Example: `1` for 1-on-1 appointments
* Example: `5` for group sessions

**⏱️ Duration**

Choose how long each booking takes:

* Quick buttons (30, 60, 90, 120 min…)
* Or **Custom**
* If your service supports it, you can choose:
  * **Less than a day**
  * **Multiple days**

**Example**: Haircut = `60 min`

#### Step 5: Choose payment type <a href="#step-5-choose-payment-type" id="step-5-choose-payment-type"></a>

Choose **No payment required**

<figure><img src="/files/DlVYWug7UFcIriSQ6rhz" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

#### Step 6: Set Availability <a href="#step-6-set-availability" id="step-6-set-availability"></a>

In the **Availability** section, click **Manage**

* Assign team members to this service (required). If you have not had a team member, create a new one.
* Their schedules determine what time slots are available

[Learn more ](https://docs.tipo.io/tipo-appointment-booking/availability-team-members/set-availability-for-services#how-to-set-availability)

#### Step 7: Customize more settings (Optional) <a href="#step-7-customize-more-settings-optional" id="step-7-customize-more-settings-optional"></a>

* In **Location** field, enter the location of the service
* **Color**: helps identify bookings in the calendar
* **Questions & Add-ons**: collect info (name, preferences) or sell add-ons
* **Advanced settings**: booking rules, lead time, buffer time, etc. (if available)

<figure><img src="https://docs.tipo.io/~gitbook/image?url=https%3A%2F%2F2420234940-files.gitbook.io%2F%7E%2Ffiles%2Fv0%2Fb%2Fgitbook-x-prod.appspot.com%2Fo%2Fspaces%252F1ux6d1pfkKFKCAAHuj8H%252Fuploads%252Fb5hhCSDyiPCv9ETBeuWh%252F2025-12-10_16-33-21.png%3Falt%3Dmedia%26token%3D935e8f6a-e347-4668-87e1-4a18493e5980&#x26;width=768&#x26;dpr=4&#x26;quality=100&#x26;sign=bdf1f9ef&#x26;sv=2" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

#### Step 8: Save your changes

***

### 🛠️ Set up free form

Next, set up custom fields to collect customer data for the free appointment:

1. Open the app > click **Settings** > scroll down to **Customer account**
2. Enable the field(s) you want to show
3. Set up field label and set as required if needed
4. Click **Save**

<figure><img src="/files/iRZcXlAdg7XHU6jIiPUT" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

<figure><img src="/files/cJOYgZwQ7KoaAR4Lgl2s" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

***

### 🌐 How it works on your storefront <a href="#how-it-works-on-your-storefront" id="how-it-works-on-your-storefront"></a>

1. Customer opens the service product page.
2. Clicks the **Book now** / **Schedule** button.
3. Chooses date, time, and fills in their details.
4. Clicks **Confirm booking**.

&#x20;Because the service is **“No payment required”**:

* There is no payment method step.
* Shopify checkout is skipped.
* The appointment is created immediately and appears in your app & calendar.

<figure><img src="/files/AgerPmibmASlvZb8ePhp" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

<figure><img src="/files/ecaJfDFk9DsouNaNxgKB" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

***

### 📋 How it looks in admin

After a customer books:

* You’ll see the appointment under **Appointments** in Tipo.
* The order/payment section in Shopify is not created for this booking (unless you manually create one).
* You can still:
  * Reschedule
  * Cancel
  * Add notes

***

### ▶️ A Tutorial video <a href="#a-tutorial-video" id="a-tutorial-video"></a>

{% embed url="<https://youtu.be/mkhQlaZItKA>" %}

***

### ✅ Quick comparison: Free vs Paid services

<table><thead><tr><th width="230.63330078125">Type</th><th>Booking flow</th><th>Best for</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td><strong>Book without payment</strong></td><td>Customer books → appointment created → <strong>no checkout</strong></td><td>Free </td></tr><tr><td> <strong>Pay to book – Pay now</strong></td><td>Customer books → goes to checkout → <strong>pays immediately</strong></td><td>Paid appointments</td></tr><tr><td><strong>Pay to book – Pay later</strong></td><td>Customer books → appointment created → <strong>invoice sent</strong></td><td>Invoice / offline payment workflows</td></tr></tbody></table>

***

### **❓**&#x46;AQ

#### **Q: Can I change a free service to paid later?**

Yes. Just edit the service, change Choose payment type to **Pay to book**, and save

#### **Q: Will customers still get confirmation emails?**

Yes. Confirmation and reminder emails (if enabled) work the same for free and paid bookings.

#### **Q: Do I need a price set in Shopify for free bookings?**

Not required. You can set the price to $0 or leave your normal price, the important part is the “Book without payment” option inside Tipo.

***

**🙋 Still need support?**

If you still need help, please feel free to contact us at <hi@tipo.io>. We’ll be happy to assist you further.


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