Adventure is a matter of perspective. It's choosing to try a new way of doing things, hoping for improvement, but not being afraid of the challenges that might arise. Every time an individual or organization takes a leap of courage and invests in new processes and software, they're starting a brand-new journey that leads to great rewards.
This is an explorer's mindset, a resilient and dynamic way of walking through the world. It's powered by constructive decision-making, strategic risk-taking, and long-term vision.
This is one of the best mindsets to have when solving problems and integrating new tools. People who think like this are always looking out for what's coming next. They have an almost uncanny ability to identify opportunities that ensure they're always on the leading edge and ahead of the curve.
This is a quality that you'll find in many Cal.com users. That's because Cal.com isn't just a booking solution; it's an entire calendar scheduling infrastructure product. People who end up discovering Cal.com are those who have a keen investigative nature that leads them to seek solutions instead of sitting on problems.
It's this proactive nature that drives the Cal.com discovery and adoption process. If you're reading this post, then you're in the initial stages of trying to decide if our product will be able to meet not just your current needs but your future needs. So, in the interest of making things a little bit easier, here's an overview that will help you understand what Cal.com is about, the benefits of using our product, and some of our key features.
Why Cal.com?
Cal.com is a calendar scheduling solution that has been crafted as an infrastructure product first and foremost. This means that it's capable of scaling with your growth and can be customized based on your needs.
Could it be a product that's privacy-friendly, has HIPAA certification, and is SOC 2 Type II compliant?
Maybe you need a product that you can use to power appointment management at scale, both internally and externally.
Perhaps you're seeking a solution that will let you launch a time-based marketplace, like a platform for tutors, consultants, mentors, or therapists.
Using Cal.com means that you don't have to waste time or money building a custom calendar scheduling in-house. Instead, you can benefit from our modular pre-built features in order to painlessly craft a made-to-measure solution.
The Benefits of Cal.com
At this point, you might be wondering what features I'm talking about. Well, there are a lot, but let's start with the features that are available to all of our users regardless of their subscription type.
All Cal.com users have access to:
Unlimited active event types
Hidden events
Anonymized booking links
Single-use booking links
Granular event-level settings like booking questions and buffer times
Unlimited availability schedules
Date overrides and out-of-office settings
Paid meetings and held payments
Automated workflows
Multi-time zone customization
Multiple calendar view overlays
Pain-free website embeds
Basic API keys
Easy app integrations
Dynamic (me + you) meetings
Subscribers with team-level plans and higher get all of the above plus:
Round-robin scheduling capabilities
Managed event templates
Customizable routing forms
Collective events with designated hosts
The removal of Cal.com branding from booking pages
An insight dashboard with easily exportable data
Advanced admin API access
These features are not the be-all and end-all of Cal.com; however, they are key components that will help you in your decision-making process as you evaluate and cross-compare our product with others.
Hosted versus Self-Hosted
Before we dive into this, I think it's really important to acknowledge that there are two different types of Cal.com customers. One loves getting elbow-deep into code, and the other would just rather not do that.
For anyone who loves tinkering and getting a look under the hood, we have an active GitHub where you can access our core code in order to build your own customized instance of Cal.com. This is the version of the product that you self-host, and as long as you're using it as an individual, it's completely free.
When you choose to self-host Cal.com, you have control over every aspect of the product. This is ideal for high-security environments and enterprises that have the human resources needed to maintain and manage it.
The hosted version of Cal.com, on the other hand, is what you find when you sign up for an account on our website. This is the plug-and-play, no fuss, no muss, things-just-work version of Cal.com. You can't customize it to the same degree as the self-hosted version of Cal.com, but you can do a lot without accidentally breaking anything.
One of the great things about Cal.com's organization, enterprise, and platform-level plans is that they come with the option to purchase additional support from the Cal.com team. This means that if you're looking for an additional level of tailoring, you'll have the support you need to make that happen without having to sweat buckets.
Who is Cal.com For?
Cal.com is for anyone and everyone who needs access to a common-sense calendar scheduling solution. We have a wide variety of plans at competitive price points to help ensure that no one is left behind. Our basic subscription is free for individuals and can be upgraded at any time if a user's needs expand and change.
It's really important to understand that Cal.com was built due to real-world needs. Our founders are self-made entrepreneurs, and because of this, they understand that the only time one size fits all is when it can be adjusted. This is why they've taken the time to craft a product that's focused on usability first and foremost.
You can see this in our open and transparent communication, our commitment to open source, and our passion for consistent iterative improvement. Cal.com's ultimate goal is to connect a billion people by 2031. We're doing this because time is irreplaceable. We know that the more people who use our product, the more people who can benefit, the more resources can be reallocated, and the more breakthroughs can be achieved.
This is why we prioritize keeping our product as simple and minimalistic as possible. We're not flashy, we're not going to tell you how to schedule, we're not going to force you to fit a pre-designated mold. Instead, we just want you to be you because we know that as long as you're provided with a tool that can be shaped around your needs, you'll achieve amazing things.
If you've enjoyed this post, let us know by sharing it on LinkedIn, X/Twitter, and Discord. Thanks for spending time with us, and as always, happy scheduling!
Learn why MentorCruise switched to Cal.com, and how our product changed their scheduling experience for the better by reducing Cancellations by over 50%.
