The Short Answer
Timing has a setting called "Break time": a fixed time, from 5 minutes up to two hours, that is blocked on its own after every appointment, and clients cannot book into it. An appointment that ends at 12:30 with a 15 minute break, and the next time offered to clients is 12:45. The setting is on every plan. For a fixed lunch break you use split business hours, and for a one-off break a time block.
How to Set a Break After Appointments
- Open the menu at the top of the screen and choose "Business settings".
- Tap the "Advanced" card.
- Open "Breaks & gaps".
- Under "Break time" choose a length: 5, 10, 15, 30, 45, 60, 90 or 120 minutes, or "None".
- The change saves at once, with no save button.
The other settings on that screen are explained in the guide to business settings.
Break Time or "Slots Every"?
The two settings sound alike, but they do different things:
| Setting | What it decides | Example |
|---|---|---|
| "Slots every" | Which start times clients are offered | Every 15 minutes: 10:00, 10:15, 10:30 |
| "Break time" | How long you are unavailable after each client | 15 minutes: an appointment ends at 12:30, and the next from 12:45 |
Four Kinds of Breaks
After every appointment
This is "Break time". It suits anyone who needs a few fixed minutes between clients: to sanitise a station at a clinic, to tidy the equipment at a studio, to write a summary after a consulting session, or to travel between clients.
A fixed lunch break
Instead of blocking every day again, add a second range of hours to that day with the + next to the hours, for example 09:00 to 13:00 and then 15:00 to 19:00. A day can hold up to four ranges, and the break between them is never offered to clients. How to set your business hours.
A one-off break
For a doctor's appointment, a nursery pickup or any break that moves from week to week, block time in the calendar. You can block one hour, a whole day or several days, and in a business with a team, for one person only. How to block time in your calendar.
Waiting time in the middle of a service
For a service with waiting time in the middle, such as hair colour or a treatment that has to dry, from the Professional plan you can set up a split service, and the waiting time stays open for other appointments. It is the opposite of a break: a break always blocks, and the wait in a split service frees the calendar. How to create a split service.
How Long to Choose
- 5 to 10 minutes: enough to clean a station and change a towel.
- 15 minutes: to tidy the equipment, write a few lines about the treatment and get ready for the next one.
- 30 minutes and up: when you travel between clients, or when every session needs a room set up.
- No break: if you do not need time between clients, leave it on "None".
Every minute of break is a minute not offered to clients. Start with the shortest time that really works for you, and check after a week whether the calendar stays calm. More ideas on managing time are in the time management guide for business owners.
What the Break Does Not Do
- It comes after an appointment only. No setting holds time ahead of an appointment. When you need time to get ready, add it to the service's length.
- It is one setting for the whole business. The same break applies to every service. For one service that needs more time, a longer service length is the way.
- The client does not have to see the extra time. Made the service longer and do not want the client to see its length? A service has "Hide duration from customers". The available times do not change, and you still see the length on appointments.
Where to Start
Sit down with last week's calendar, and mark where you rushed between clients. That is where your break begins. Start free: creating your business takes about 3 minutes, and the break after appointments is included on the Free plan too.