To switch salon software without losing clients, export everything from your old system before you cancel it, check the files, load them into the new system, and run both side by side for a short overlap. The client list is the easy part. Future appointments, gift card balances, cards on file and your phone number are where salons lose things, because most systems don't export them with one button.
Before you start: what your old system will let you take
Your data is only as portable as your current system makes it. Before you sign up for anything new, find out three things in writing:
- What you can export yourself. Most systems have a client export in the clients or customers area. Others only offer reports, or ask you to contact support for the full list.
- What only support can export. Future appointments, visit history and cards on file often need a request to the company rather than a button.
- When your access ends. Read your contract for the notice period and what happens to your account and data after you cancel. If you lose access the day you cancel, every export has to happen before then.
Ask your old provider these questions by email, not phone, so you have the answers on record.
What to export: a list by area
Clients
Names, mobile numbers, emails, birthdays, and the notes your techs depend on: allergies, nail shape and length, color preferences, sensitivities. Notes are often a separate field or a separate report, so open the export and check they came through. A client list without notes still works, but your techs will feel the difference on the first day.
Visit history
Past services, dates and which tech did them. This is what tells you who your regulars are and who hasn't been in for months. If the system can't export it in full, export a sales report by client for the last year or two.
Future appointments
Every booking from your switch date onward. This is the item most likely to need a support request. If you can't get it as a file, print or screenshot the calendar for the coming weeks and enter those bookings by hand. Do this last, as close to your switch date as you can, so nothing booked in the meantime gets missed.
Gift cards, packages and prepaid balances
A list of every unredeemed gift card with its code and balance, plus any prepaid packages or memberships. This is money your clients have already paid you. Keep a printed copy at the front desk for the first few months in case a card doesn't scan.
Cards on file
Card numbers can't be exported to a spreadsheet, and they shouldn't be. They can only move directly from one payment processor to another, and only if both agree. Square, for example, transfers cards on file only at the account owner's request, only to a processor that is PCI DSS Level 1 compliant, and says the average transfer takes up to two weeks (Square Support). On the receiving side, Stripe's migration guide says processors can take anywhere from a few days to several months to produce the export, that some charge a fee for it, and that card security codes can't be transferred because PCI DSS rules prohibit storing them (Stripe Docs).
Decide how much you rely on stored cards before you start a transfer. If a transfer isn't offered or isn't worth the wait, ask clients to add a card again at their next visit.
Your service menu
Services, prices, durations and add-ons. Menus are short enough that many salons re-enter them by hand, which is also a good moment to fix durations that never matched reality.
Staff and pay settings
Technician names, which services each one does, commission rates, and turn order if you use one. Write down how commission is calculated in your old system (before or after product cost, on discounts or not) so the new system pays the same way. Pay differences are the fastest way to lose a good tech's trust during a switch.
Reports for your accountant
Export sales, tips, commission and payroll reports for every period you might need. The IRS generally asks businesses to keep records for 3 years, and employment tax records for at least 4 years after the tax is due or paid (IRS). Don't rely on still having a login to the old system later.
Opt-outs
If any clients asked not to receive texts or emails, that list has to come with you. A client who replied STOP to your old system should not start getting reminders from the new one. Ask for the opt-out list specifically if it isn't in the client export.
How to export your client list from common systems
Menus change, so check your vendor's help center if these steps don't match your screen.
- Square: Square Dashboard, then Customers, Customer directory, Directory, then Import / Export and Export customers. Choose all customers and download the CSV (Square Support).
- Fresha: Clients in the main menu, open the clients list, then Options in the top right and choose Excel or CSV. Staff need the "Can download clients" permission (Fresha Help Center).
- Other systems: look for Export in the clients or customers section, then in Reports. If there's no export, email support and ask for a CSV of all clients with contact details, notes and visit history.
Once you have the file, open it in a spreadsheet before you send or upload it anywhere. Check that phone numbers kept all their digits (spreadsheets sometimes drop leading characters or turn long numbers into scientific notation), that notes are there, and that the number of rows looks right against what your old system says you have. Then store the file somewhere private: it's your whole client list.
If the file is a mess, or your old system only gives you a PDF, ask your new provider whether they will load it for you. Tilavon does this free; the details are at the end of this guide.
Your phone number and booking links
Salon phone number. If your main salon line is with a phone company, it doesn't change when you change salon software. If your old software gave you a number for calls or texts, ask both companies whether it can be moved and how long it would be out of service. Under FCC rules you can generally keep your number when you change providers in the same area; the FCC's advice is not to cancel the old service until the move is complete (FCC consumer guide). A number used for business texting may also need its texting registration redone with the new provider, so ask about that before you plan your switch date.
Booking links. Write down every place your old booking link lives: your Google Business Profile, Instagram and Facebook bio, website, printed cards and confirmation emails. Update each one on switch day. Your Google reviews belong to your Google Business Profile, not to your software, so they stay where they are.
How long does it take to switch salon software?
The software setup is the fast part. The slow parts are the ones that depend on your old provider: a support request for appointments or history, or a card transfer measured in weeks. Plan backwards from your contract end date:
- Three to four weeks before: request any exports that need support, and start a card transfer if you want one.
- Two weeks before: export clients, check the file, and load it into the new system. Set up services, staff and commission. Train your front desk on a test day.
- Switch week: pick your slowest days. Enter future appointments, update booking links, and keep the old system open read-only so you can look things up.
- After the switch: keep the old account until you're sure nothing is missing and your reports are saved, then cancel in writing.
Tell clients what's changing in person at checkout and by email: a new booking link, a new confirmation format, and anything they need to do, like adding a card again.
Checklist: switching salon software
- Contract read: notice period, cancellation date, data access after cancel
- Export questions sent to old provider by email
- Client list exported, opened and checked (phones, notes, row count)
- Visit history or sales-by-client report exported
- Gift card and package balances exported and printed
- Opt-out list for texts and emails exported
- Card-on-file transfer requested, or plan to collect cards again
- Sales, tips, commission and payroll reports saved
- Service menu, staff and commission rules set up and checked
- Phone and texting number plan agreed with both providers
- Future appointments entered from the old calendar
- Booking links updated everywhere they appear
- Front desk trained; old system kept open read-only
- Old account cancelled in writing after everything is confirmed
If you're still choosing the new system, our guide to choosing nail salon software lists the questions to ask, including how easily you could leave it later. The salon software cost comparison prices the main options for your team size, and our side-by-side comparisons cover Vagaro, Square, Fresha, Booksy and others, including where each is stronger.
Frequently asked questions
How do I move my client list to new salon software?
Export your clients from the old system as a CSV or Excel file, open it to check phone numbers and notes came through, then import it into the new system or send it to their setup team. Do it before you cancel, because some systems remove access when the account closes.
How long does it take to switch salon software?
Setting up the new system can take days. What takes longer is anything your old provider must do for you, such as exporting appointments or transferring cards on file. Square says a card-on-file transfer takes up to two weeks on average, so start those requests three to four weeks before your switch date.
Are there fees for exporting client records from salon software?
It depends on your provider and contract. A self-serve client export is usually included, but card-data transfers between payment processors sometimes carry a fee; Stripe's migration guide notes that some processors charge for them. Ask your provider in writing before you start.
Can I keep my salon's phone number when I change software?
A main line with a phone company isn't affected. A number your old software provided can often be moved, and FCC rules generally let you keep a number when changing providers in the same area. Don't cancel the old service until the move is complete, and ask whether texting needs to be registered again.
Will my clients' cards on file transfer?
Only processor to processor, at the account owner's request, and only to a processor that meets PCI DSS requirements. Security codes never transfer. If a transfer isn't available, ask clients to add a card again at their next visit.
Do I lose my Google reviews when I switch salon software?
No. Reviews on Google belong to your Google Business Profile, not your booking software. Update the booking link on your profile so new clients reach your new system.
How Tilavon helps with switching salon software
If you move to Tilavon, we do the data part of this checklist with you or for you.
- Free data migration. Send us whatever export you have: a CSV or Excel file, a PDF, or photos of a paper book. A person on our team loads your client list, service menu, staff list and products. There is no migration fee.
- Self-serve import with a preview. If you'd rather do it yourself, upload a client, service or product CSV, match the columns, and preview the import before anything is saved. You can skip duplicates by email or phone.
- Commission set the way you pay now. Give each tech their own rate, or set a salon default that new techs inherit, so the first payday matches the old system.
- A practice salon for training. Until you go live, your sandbox salon holds back texts and emails to clients, so the front desk can practice checkouts without anyone getting a message.
- No contract. Plans are month to month, with no software setup fee.
What we can't move: cards on file, which only payment processors can transfer, and gift card balances, which are not part of the import. Keep your printed gift card list.
Start with a free sandbox salon, no card needed, and load your data there first. Your first month is free when you go live. Set up your free sandbox salon, or read how switching to Tilavon works.