RetentionTek vs Pabau
RetentionTek vs Pabau
Pabau is all-in-one practice management for clinics: booking, records, payments, marketing and a reputation module, priced per user, reported at $104 a month for a solo practitioner, with no commitment. It is a broad platform. RetentionTek is a $199 retention layer that scores return behaviour. Pabau runs the practice; we work the second visit.
Where they are strong
Where Pabau is strong
- Breadth: booking, records, payments, marketing, forms and a Google reviews module in one system.
- No commitment and published per-user pricing, so it matches our two best terms.
- A 4.7 rating at real volume, around 329 on G2 and 658 on Software Advice.
- 4,000+ practices claimed, which is meaningful social proof for a clinic buyer.
- Unlimited patients on every tier, with no per-patient fee.
Where we differ
Where RetentionTek differs
- A price per location rather than per user. Pabau prices by team size, so a five-person clinic pays five times the solo rate.
- Retention measurement. Pabau has marketing and a reviews module; neither scores whether a patient returned.
- A queue with evidence behind each signal, so the follow-up is checkable rather than assumed.
- No annual-billing pressure. Pabau offers up to 20% off for annual; ours is monthly at one price.
- One job. No records, no payments, no forms to configure before the first useful screen.
Side by side
The differences that decide it
| Axis | Pabau | RetentionTek |
|---|---|---|
| Role | Practice management suite | Retention layer |
| Price model | Per user, ~$104/mo solo reported | $199/mo, no per-seat charge |
| Contract | No commitment; 20% off annual | Monthly, cancel any time |
| Retention score | None | RS-1.0 from completed visits |
| Scope | Records, payments, marketing, reviews | Score, queue, drafts |
| Rating | 4.7 G2 / 4.7 Software Advice | No reviews yet |
Price reality
Per user is the number to check
Pabau prices by team size, reported at $104 a month for a solo practitioner, monthly or annual with up to 20% off for annual, and advertises no commitment. Every tier includes unlimited patients. Capterra lists a $59 starting figure.
- A solo practitioner at the reported solo rate: about $104/mo.
- A five-person clinic: about $520/mo on the same per-user basis.
- Paying annually for the 20% discount commits the year to save about $12 a month per user.
- RetentionTek alongside: $199/mo, whatever the headcount.
Per-user pricing is honest for a suite where every user has a login and a job. It is a poor fit for a queue that one person clears. If you are a solo clinic, Pabau is cheaper than us and you should say so; by five staff the arithmetic has reversed hard.
See the whole price scheduleKeep your booking system
Pabau is the practice. Keep it
If Pabau runs your clinic, keep it and add the layer. Export completed visits, import the file, and the queue sits outside the record. Pabau already sends marketing and review requests, so agree which system owns the follow-up for a given patient before both of you write to them.
Frequently asked questions
Practical answers
Does RetentionTek replace Pabau?
No. Pabau is practice management: records, payments, booking, marketing. RetentionTek is a retention layer over imported visit history. Pabau also has a reviews module and marketing, so check the overlap; the difference is that we score returns rather than run sends.
Is Pabau cheaper than RetentionTek?
For a solo practitioner, yes: about $104 against $199. For a five-person clinic, no: about $520 against $199. The crossover is around two to three users. Compare at your own headcount rather than at the advertised entry rate, which is for one.
What do Pabau reviewers complain about?
The recurring themes are that pricing is expensive for a new business, support can be slow, and occasional bugs slow the system down. The 4.7 rating says the product is broadly liked, so treat those as frictions rather than failures. We have no reviews yet and will not pretend to a rating.
Does RetentionTek do records or payments?
Neither. No charting, no POS, no forms. That is deliberate: a fourth system doing 60% of each is the mistake we sell against. Pabau covers those jobs and we stay out of them.
Is the annual discount worth taking?
Only if you are sure. Twenty percent off is roughly two and a half months free, and it costs a year of commitment. If you are still choosing between platforms, take monthly first and switch to annual once the choice has held for a quarter.
How does the import work?
Export a completed-visit file and import the CSV or XLSX. Customer identifiers, visit dates, attendance, location and service, up to 2 MiB, 5,000 rows and 80 columns. No clinical fields are needed, so the export stays small.
Keep reading
Related comparisons
Add the layer it does not have
Start your 14-day free trial
Import completed visits. Get your Retention Score. See who is overdue. Draft your first win-back message.
$199 a month after the trial, one location included. Card required, monthly, cancel any time.
Sources
Pabau per-user pricing, the annual discount and the no-commitment term are published. Ratings and the complaint themes come from G2, Software Advice and third-party 2026 analyses, captured 28 October 2026. Confirm current plans with Pabau.
Pabau is a trademark of its owner. RetentionTek is not affiliated with Pabau and does not claim endorsement. Vendor features and prices are described from dated public sources and third-party analyses captured 28 October 2026; confirm current plans and terms with the vendor before deciding.