About Cal.com

Cal.com is a calendar scheduling tool that prioritizes security, privacy, flexibility, and customization. The product is priced competitively to ensure that businesses of all sizes can take advantage of its seamless integrations, user-friendly interface, and innovative features. Cal.com also offers options that facilitate advanced encryption and HIPAA compliance. This is one of the reasons Cal.com is typically the default choice for anyone who values reliability, efficiency, and innovation.

About Tidycal

TidyCal is a part of AppSumo's Software suite. This product is available for a one-time payment of $29. This is a great deal for anyone who loves the AppSumo brand and is passionate about their original offerings.

Shared features

Cal.com and TidyCal are both calendar scheduling solutions that are designed to help users save time. Both products come with unlimited booking types, custom availability, schedules, and add custom colors to the booking interface. Users can add a booking portal to their personal website by embedding bookable events created in either product. Just like Cal.com, TidyCal offers a free plan. This is one reason the product is a viable option for students, freelancers, and digital nomads.

Main differences

The biggest difference between Cal.com and TidyCal is one of scope. Cal.com has been built with scalability and security in mind. TidyCal advanced features (group booking, monetization, etc) in exchange for a one-time payment of $29. It is important to note though that TidyCal doesn't offer any commitments or promises in regards to longevity and security.

This is highly problematic if you work in an industry (healthcare, consulting, education) that requires basic assurances around privacy and user data protection. It's also worth mentioning that the paid version of TidyCal does not have any of Cal.com's team or enterprise capabilities.

When to choose Cal.com?

Cal.com is perfect for those who value customization, flexibility, and security. The product is ISO 27001, SOC2, GDPR, CCPA Certified, and comes with options for HIPAA compliance.

Cal.com's free plan is powerful enough to meet the needs of everyday users, freelancers, sole proprietors, and students. In addition, the scalable nature of the product means that it grows with your business needs.

Upgrading to a team plan means that users have access to advanced features like round-robin scheduling, managed booking templates, advanced routing forms, and much more.

Cal.com even has options that allow organizations to use the service to build time-based marketplaces. This means that users can use Cal.com to build the next Uber, DoorDash, or TaskRabbit.

What about Tidycal?

TidyCal is the best choice for anyone who loves the AppSumo products and wants to pay $29 instead of signing up for Cal.com's free plan. Once you purchase TidyCal, you'll own it for life and be able to benefit from all of the features it comes with.

The best deal

Ultimately, when it comes to choosing between Cal.com and TidyCal, the main question you have to ask yourself is whether you want room for growth.

All of TidyCal's features are available for free to Cal.com users; however, the opposite cannot be said. In addition, while TidyCal is a one-time purchase, it does not come with a longevity guarantee.

If you need a calendar scheduling solution that's customizable, secure, and prepared to stand the test of time, then Cal.com is the obvious choice.