The best CRM for wedding and event planners in 2026 depends on what you actually manage. Maroo is the top pick for planners who prioritize payment management, contractor payouts, and low fees. Aisle Planner wins for full-service wedding planners who need timelines, style guides, and seating charts inside their CRM. Planning Pod leads for high-volume or corporate event operations. This guide breaks down seven platforms across the features that matter most to working planners: client management, contracts, invoicing, payment fees, and the ability to pay subcontractors.
A general-purpose CRM like HubSpot is built around sales pipelines and contact records — useful for enterprise teams but misaligned with how planners work. Wedding and event planners need software that handles:
Most general CRMs force you to bolt on separate invoicing, payment, and tax tools. Platforms built for the events industry fold all of this together, which is where the real time savings come from.
Maroo is an all-in-one business management and payments platform built specifically for US wedding and event professionals. It started with invoicing and payments and now brings leads and CRM, quotes and proposals, e-signature contracts, contractor payouts, and 1099-NEC e-filing into the same workflow.
Maroo supports passing eligible card and ACH processing fees to clients when properly configured. Under the qualified Business scenario, if every eligible processing fee is passed and no other transaction fee is absorbed, the business pays only the $50 monthly subscription, or $600 per year, while clients pay the shifted eligible fees. Passing shifts the fee rather than eliminating it.
Maroo also offers Book Now, Pay Later: clients split their payments over time, but the planner receives the full amount within approximately one business day. For planners whose clients ask about payment plans, this eliminates the cash-flow risk of installment billing.
For contractor management, Maroo brings free B2B ACH payouts, W-9 storage, and 1099-NEC e-filing into the same workflow.
Pricing (maroo.us/pricing, verified July 21, 2026):
Processing fees:
Current trust signals: Over 15,000 successful businesses; $450M worth of invoices created; 94% paid on time.
Best for: Wedding and event professionals — from solopreneurs on the free plan to established studios on Business or Pro — who want to protect their margins and manage contractors in the same platform.
How Maroo fits a planner’s workflow: Maroo continues to expand its client-management toolkit around its invoicing and payments foundation. It now supports reusable questionnaires with sharing, reminders, status, and response tracking, plus richer contract workflows with addendums, signer tracking, reminders, and linked invoices. Planners who also need built-in timelines, floorplans, or seating charts can pair Maroo with a planning-specific tool; Aisle Planner and Planning Pod remain stronger for native event logistics.
HoneyBook is the most established all-in-one platform in the US wedding industry, with a large template marketplace, AI-assisted workflow automations, and a polished client-facing experience (honeybook.com).
Pricing (honeybook.com/pricing, verified July 21, 2026):
Processing fees:
Best for: Planners who want a large library of pre-built templates and AI-assisted email sequences without manual setup time.
Best fit and tradeoff: HoneyBook offers a polished clientflow with proposals, contracts, invoices, and automation. Businesses with large ACH invoices or contractor workflows should account for the uncapped 1.5% ACH rate and the separate tools needed for contractor payouts and 1099 filing.
Dubsado is a highly customizable client management platform with conditional workflows, public proposals, schedulers, and canned email sequences. It's the tool most often chosen by planners who want to automate every client touchpoint (dubsado.com).
Pricing (dubsado.com/pricing, verified July 21, 2026):
Processing fees (Dubsado Payments, via Stripe):
(Dubsado Help Center – payment processing, verified July 21, 2026)
Best for: Planners who invest time upfront to build complex automation sequences and want to minimize manual follow-up over hundreds of client interactions per year.
Best fit and tradeoff: Dubsado is strong for businesses that want deeply customized workflows and are comfortable investing time in setup. The Starter plan is the simpler option and does not include automated workflows.
Aisle Planner is purpose-built for wedding planners and coordinators, combining CRM and business management with event production tools: timeline builders, style guides and color palettes, seating charts, guest management, and vendor portals (aisleplanner.com).
Pricing (aisleplanner.com/pricing, verified July 21, 2026):
Annual billing saves 10%.
Processing fees: 3.2% for credit/debit and 1% for ACH through Aisle Planner Payments (Aisle Planner Help Center). Optional platform fees can be enabled for card or ACH/EFT payments.
Best for: Full-service wedding planners who manage the entire event production process and want their timelines, seating, and client communication all inside one tool.
Best fit and tradeoff: Aisle Planner is strongest when native event logistics are the priority. Pricing scales with active project volume, and optional platform fees can help offset processing; contractor payouts and 1099 filing remain separate workflows.
Planning Pod is an event-management platform built for planners managing many concurrent events, with task management, BEOs (Banquet Event Orders), attendee registration, event websites, and venue calendar management (planningpod.com).
Pricing (Planning Pod, verified July 21, 2026):
Final pricing depends on event volume and the selected package; request a current quote for an exact total.
Processing fees: Payment options include Stripe, Square, PaySimple, and QuickBooks/Authorize.net, depending on the setup. Processing and fee-passing terms depend on the selected processor and account.
Best for: Venues and event businesses that need operational depth across bookings, event spaces, catering, communications, and multi-event logistics.
Honest limitation: More expensive than most alternatives in this category, and better suited to operational management than the boutique client-experience focus most wedding planners prioritize.
Plutio is a general-purpose business management platform covering projects, proposals, contracts, invoicing, and time tracking. It is broadly featured and competitive on price (plutio.com/pricing, verified July 21, 2026).
Pricing:
Annual billing includes two months free.
Processing fees: Plutio accepts payments through Stripe, PayPal, and Square. Processing rates and any fee-passing options depend on the selected provider and account.
Best for: Event planners who also operate other service businesses (photography studios, styling, consulting) and want one platform for all of it.
Best fit and tradeoff: Plutio is well suited to broad service-business project management. Wedding-specific logistics, contractor payouts, and 1099 filing remain separate workflows.
HubSpot's free CRM is a contact and deal pipeline manager used widely in B2B sales. For planners handling high inquiry volume, its free tools include contact management, deal tracking, email tools, and reporting for up to 2 users and 1,000 contacts (hubspot.com/products/crm).
Pricing: Free tools support up to 2 users and 1,000 contacts. Paid Starter products have a standard starting price of $20/month per seat, although promotional pricing can vary (HubSpot pricing).
Payments and billing: Revenue Hub supports quotes, contracts, invoices, subscriptions, and payment links. HubSpot Payments carries a 0.5% platform fee; connecting Stripe through HubSpot carries a 0.75% platform fee in addition to Stripe processing rates.
Best for: Larger planning agencies or studios with a dedicated sales and marketing team that needs sophisticated lead tracking, CRM reporting, and a configurable revenue stack.
Best fit and tradeoff: HubSpot can centralize sophisticated sales and revenue workflows, including contracts and billing through Revenue Hub. Event logistics, contractor payouts, and 1099 filing remain separate workflows, and the free tier has user and contact limits.
| Tool | CRM | Lead Management | E-Sign Contracts | Invoicing & Payment Schedules | Payment Fee-Passing | Contractor Payouts | 1099-NEC Filing | Event Logistics Tools | Starting Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Maroo ★ | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes, where eligible | Yes, free B2B ACH | Yes | Pair with planning tools | Free |
| HoneyBook | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Manual fee line item | Separate tool | Separate tool | No native | $29/mo (annual) |
| Dubsado | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | 3% eligible-card surcharge | Separate tool | Separate tool | No native | $27.92/mo equivalent ($335/yr) |
| Aisle Planner | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Optional platform fees | Separate tool | Separate tool | Yes | $49.99/mo (Sales Essentials) |
| Planning Pod | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Processor dependent | Separate tool | Separate tool | Yes | Custom; most venues $199–$319/mo |
| Plutio | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Processor dependent | Separate tool | Separate tool | No native | $19/mo |
| HubSpot | Yes | Yes | Revenue Hub | Revenue Hub | Plan/processor dependent | Separate tool | Separate tool | No native | Free (2 users; 1,000 contacts) |
*Data as of March 2026
Sources checked July 21, 2026: Maroo pricing; HoneyBook pricing; Dubsado pricing; Aisle Planner pricing; Planning Pod; Plutio pricing; and HubSpot CRM.
This table models a planner billing $150,000/year in client revenue, with 70% paid by card and 30% by ACH. Where current public rates permit a comparable estimate, it combines annual subscription and absorbed processing costs. The Maroo Business row assumes the business passes eligible fees to clients where permitted; Aisle Planner is modeled without optional platform fees.
| Tool | Annual Subscription | Estimated Processing Fees Absorbed | Estimated Annual Total | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| HoneyBook Essentials | $588 | ~$3,728 | ~$4,316 | Visa/Mastercard and ACH scenario |
| Maroo Business ★ (fees passed) | $600 | $0 | $600 | Eligible fees passed where permitted |
| Dubsado Premier (fees absorbed) | $525 | ~$3,119 | ~$3,644 | Surcharge not enabled |
| Aisle Planner — 16–25 projects | $1,319.88 | ~$3,810 | ~$5,130 | Optional platform fees not enabled |
| Planning Pod | $2,388–$3,828 typical annual range | Processor dependent | Not modeled | Quote and processor terms vary |
| Plutio Pro | $490 | Processor dependent | Subscription + processor fees | Annual billing includes 2 months free |
| HubSpot Free with connected Stripe | $0 | ~$4,244 | ~$4,244 | Includes assumed 0.75% platform fee |
*Data as of March 2026
Assumptions: $150K client revenue; 70% card / 30% ACH; average transaction $3,500 (30 card and approximately 13 ACH payments). HoneyBook uses 2.9% + $0.25 for card and 1.5% for ACH. Dubsado uses 2.9% + $0.30 for card and the $5 ACH cap. Aisle Planner uses 3.2% card and 1% ACH. HubSpot is modeled with connected Stripe processing plus the 0.75% platform fee. Planning Pod and Plutio are not fully modeled because processor terms vary. Confirm rates and legal requirements before switching or enabling fee-passing.
If your biggest pain point is what you're paying in processing fees — or the headache of paying subcontractors and filing 1099s at year-end — Maroo is worth testing. The Starter plan is free with no expiration date for businesses and freelancers invoicing under $5,000/month; review the current plan details before choosing a tier.
What is the best CRM for a wedding planner?
For many wedding planners, Maroo is a strong all-in-one option because it combines client management, questionnaires, contracts, invoicing, payment processing with eligible fee-passing, and contractor payouts in one free-to-start platform. Planners who prioritize built-in timelines, floorplans, and seating should compare Aisle Planner or Planning Pod; planners who prioritize highly customized automations should evaluate Dubsado.
Do wedding planners need a CRM or just a spreadsheet?
A CRM becomes valuable as active client and inquiry volume grows. Spreadsheets do not natively send payment reminders, collect e-signatures, track lead status, or connect client records to payment processing. A CRM like Maroo or Dubsado automates repetitive follow-up, and free or low-cost starting tiers make it practical to test a structured workflow.
What is the cheapest CRM for event planners?
Maroo's Starter plan is free with no expiration for planners invoicing under $5,000/month (up to about $60,000/year). HubSpot's free tools support up to 2 users and 1,000 contacts. Harpsen Essentials is $15.83/month when billed yearly. Dubsado Starter is $335/year (about $27.92/month) and does not include automated workflows.
Which CRM handles client payments with no fees?
Maroo gives businesses the option to pass eligible card and ACH processing fees to clients at checkout on every plan, helping them protect their margins where local regulations permit. B2B ACH transfers to vendors and contractors are free on every plan. Check local rules or consult your CPA before enabling client fee-passing.
Is HubSpot good for wedding planners?
HubSpot can be a strong choice for managing inquiry volume and complex deal pipelines. Revenue Hub adds contracts, invoices, subscriptions, and payments, while event logistics, contractor payouts, and 1099 filing remain separate workflows. Compare the paid-seat and payment-platform costs with a wedding-focused platform before choosing the stack.
