Painta vs. Mindbody: which fits your paint and sip studio?

Painta brings booking, scheduling, instructors and check-in into one system built for paint and sip studios. You can keep your existing website, link to your booking page and take payments through your connected Stripe account.

Mindbody serves fitness, wellness and beauty businesses. Its scheduling tools and consumer marketplace may be a better fit if painting classes sit alongside other services. Start with the work your staff and guests need to complete, rather than counting features.

Painta Studio is $19/month for one location; Pro is $49/month for unlimited locations. Both add $1 per ticket sold. Unlimited has a quoted annual licence and no Painta per-ticket fee. These published prices were checked on 21 October 2026.

For example, 300 tickets on Studio means $19 plus $300 in platform fees before card processing. Whether a platform fee is absorbed or passed to guests affects who pays it; it does not make the fee disappear.

Mindbody charges per location and displays market-specific prices. Compare quotes in the same currency for the same number of studios. Include card processing, marketplace acquisition fees, messaging and other add-ons. Neither a lower entry price nor a longer feature list settles the decision.

One business running several studios and a network of separately owned franchise businesses have different needs. Painta Pro lists unlimited locations and cross-location reporting. Franchise and HQ management sit under Unlimited, which is quoted individually. Mindbody also offers an enterprise option.

A plan name does not establish which controls are available for your network today. Before committing, ask both vendors to demonstrate the same requirements:

• Access: what can a studio manager and HQ each see or change? Can a manager be restricted to one location?
• Reporting: does the figure include ticket sales, refunds, private-event payments and other charges?
• Network changes: how are mixed currencies and studios joining mid-period handled?
• Commercial terms: what is available now, what needs setup, and what does the full network cost?

Do not treat a ticket-sales report as total revenue, profit, royalties or payout reconciliation. If your franchise agreement uses those figures, check how they will be calculated.

Use a real scenario from your studio, with fictional guest details. Ask each vendor to show the booking and operational steps you rely on.

• Book four seats in a class. Check capacity, confirmation, instructor assignment, check-in and the payment record.
• Take a party enquiry through to a deposit and final balance. Confirm plan eligibility and distinguish a payment request from money received.
• For several studios, switch between a studio manager and HQ. Check who can open another studio’s bookings or payment settings.
• Review one month of reporting and account for ticket sales, refunds and party payments separately.

If a step cannot be demonstrated, treat it as unavailable unless a written agreement explicitly commits to its delivery. Agree migration responsibilities and preserve existing bookings before switching.

Mindbody is worth considering when recurring memberships, a broader mix of fitness or wellness services, or discovery through its consumer app are central to the business. Ask about the integrations your team already depends on and the tier required for each.

If paint and sip is your core business, start by evaluating Painta against your actual class night and private-party workflow. A useful comparison ends with a system your team can operate and a bill you understand.