What’s The Difference Between Cal.Com And Dotcal?
What Exactly Is The Difference Between Cal.com & Dotcal?
Cal.com and DotCal are two relatively new calendar scheduling platforms. Cal.com was launched in the spring of 2021 and has expanded the field of appointment booking in a new direction by offering the world's first open-source solution. Meanwhile, Dotcal is a bit younger and was launched on Product Hunt earlier this spring. Dotcal changed the game by offering time-saving features like dotlinks.
The real question, though, is how are you going to decide which one of these calendar schedulers to use? To determine that, we'll have to dig a little deeper.
The Similarities
In many ways, Cal.com and Dotcal are similar. They both allow people to integrate already existing digital calendars with the each product and offer friendly as well as easy-to-use interfaces. Both platforms enable users to customize the location of the meeting, and this allows them to specify whether the meeting is virtual, in-person, or on the phone.
Regarding customization, Cal.com and Dotcal allow paying customers to remove the product branding so that the booking interface is either neutral or in line with the individual, organization, or company utilizing it. In addition, when users create bookable events, both Cal.com and Dotcal let users implement custom buffer times to help ensure that clients can catch their breath before and after meetings.
The Differences
One of the main differences between Dotcal and Cal.com is that Cal.com is open-source. This means that Cal.com operates with a rare level of transparency and is highly customizable. Users are free to be as hands-on or hands-off as they want. Community members can join Cal's Slack or Github and submit suggestions and modifications. This interactive community is one reason Cal.com can launch and develop new innovative features at a highly rapid pace. In addition, Cal doesn't place any calendar connection limits on any of their accounts, and all account types can accept payments via Stripe.
Like most calendar schedulers, Dotcal is closed-source, but that doesn't mean it is less innovative. One of Dotcal's most unique features is called dotlinks. Dotlinks help to take the awkwardness out of scheduling emails. After you've created a bookable event, you can click on the dotlink icon to auto-generate a block of text that you can copy and paste into your message. Dotlinks are simple, yet effective. They make it easier to incorporate calendar scheduling as part of your everyday routine when communicating. In addition, Dotcal has several colorful themes to allow the user to customize their experience..
One more thing to keep in mind when comparing the differences between Cal.com and Dotcal is that premium Cal.com accounts have access to a white-label version of Cal.com starting at $12 per month.
The Pricing
Cal.com and Dotcal offer a compassionate pricing plan starting at $0 per month. This plan allows individuals to have up to one event type and one or more (in Cal.com's case) calendar connections. Each platform has three basic membership types, inclusive of the free tier. Cal.com offers pro accounts starting at $12 and enterprise-level accounts starting at $39 per month. Enterprise accounts have basic necessities like an admin console, audit logs, provisioning, and more.
Dotcals pricing structure is very similar and scales from $0 per month to $8 per month for their pro account and $12 per month for their enterprise account. The pro account allows up to two calendar connections, and the enterprise account can facilitate up to six.
One thing to keep in mind when you look at both of these products is that they're both geared to slightly different audiences, which I'll explain more about in the next section.
The Bottom Line
Cal.com and Dotcal are very similar products. They have multiple areas of commonality but ultimately focus on two different types of customers. Cal.com skews to users that are typically minimalist with interest in DIY, even if it's something they only indulge in occasionally. You can think of Cal subscribers as people who want the option to look at a car's engine before buying it to be sure it has the power they need. Cal.com customers likely range from college students to small business owners and municipal services.
Dotcal, on the other hand, skews more toward customers that are more focused on individuality and standing out from the crowd. They can potentially be the type of people who sign up for customized subscription boxes and value the act of self-expression. Dotcal customers likely range from high school students, lifestyle influencers, and sole proprietors.
In short, Cal.com is for users that prioritize the nuts and bolts of backend customization, while Dotcal is for people who love to seasonally freshen up their environment with a new wardrobe.