Free Tool · No Signup
No-Show Cost Calculator
What missed appointments actually cost you each month — and what cutting the rate in half would be worth.
Catalog No. 302 · No-Show Cost Counter
Your appointment volume
200
Your no-show reality
14%
Industry: dental 10-15%, hair 15-25%, therapy 20-30%, contractor estimate visits 5-12%.
Direct revenue from the missed slot. Don't include downstream LTV — that's the upside calc.
1.8×
A no-show is also a lost relationship. New clients who no-show are 4× less likely to rebook.
6%
Cancels inside your fill-window (typically <24h) count too. Earlier cancels can usually be backfilled.
You pay the technician / clinician / chair time whether or not the customer shows.
No-shows are costing you
$0
— per year
If you cut the rate in half
$0
recovered per month — through reminders, deposits, or smarter rebooking
No-shows / month
—
Direct revenue lost
—
Idle staff cost
—
Late-cancel lost
—
Industry-typical impact of each fix
SMS reminder 24h beforeCuts no-shows ~25-40%
—2-tap rebooking linkCuts ~10-15% on its own
—Deposit / card on fileCuts ~50-70% for new-client slots
—Waitlist auto-fillRecovers ~30% of late cancels
—How it works
Works out what no-shows and late cancels cost you each month and year, and what cutting your no-show rate in half would be worth.
- No-shows per month = Appointments scheduled per month × Current no-show rate. Late cancels per month = appointments × Late-cancel rate.
- Direct revenue lost = no-shows × Average value of an appointment. Repeat-visit loss = no-shows × value × (multiple minus 1). Idle staff cost = no-shows × Staff cost per slot.
- Late-cancel loss = late cancels × appointment value. Monthly cost = direct + repeat-visit + idle staff + late-cancel loss. Yearly cost = monthly × 12.
- If you cut the rate in half = (direct + repeat-visit + idle staff cost) ÷ 2. Late cancels are left out because halving no-shows does not halve them.
- Fix estimates use fixed shares of the no-show cost: SMS reminder 33%, rebooking link 12%, deposit 45%. Waitlist is 30% of late-cancel loss. Each is figured on its own, so do not add them.
Questions
- What is the repeat-visit multiple?
- It adds the later visits you lose when a client no-shows. At 1.0 it adds nothing. At 1.8, each no-show counts as 1.8 times the appointment value. The page says to keep the value box to direct revenue only.
- What counts as a late cancel?
- The page says cancels inside your fill-window, typically under 24 hours, count as lost. It notes that earlier cancels can usually be backfilled. The calculator treats the late-cancel rate as lost revenue at the full appointment value.
- Are the fix numbers measured for my business?
- No. They are fixed percentages built into the page, applied to your own costs. Treat them as rough what-ifs. Each one is figured from the same starting number, so they overlap.
More free tools
Same deal: free, no signup, and it runs in your browser.