# Sawyer Reviews 2026. Verified Reviews, Pros & Cons | Capterra > Is Sawyer the right Class Registration solution for you? Explore 318 verified user reviews from people in industries like yours to make a confident choice. Source: https://www.capterra.com/p/163567/Sawyer/reviews --- Sawyer 4.5 (318) Provider data verified by our Software Research team, and reviews moderated by our Reviews Verification team. [Learn more](https://www.capterra.com/our-story/) * * * Last updated March 13th, 2026 # Reviews of Sawyer Ease of use 4.2 Customer Service 4.6 ## Pros and Cons in Reviews TL Theresa L CPR InstructorHealth, Wellness and Fitness, 51 - 200 employeesUsed the software for: 1-2 years. “It saves time which in my case is very important as I have a lot of materials to cover in a very short period of time so anything that helps me in that area is a plus.“ November 10, 2024 RB Rachel B CEOEntertainment, 11 - 50 employeesUsed the software for: 6-12 months. “Now we have to have difficult calls with multiple members and attempt to collect back-owed membership fees going back months.“ August 6, 2024 JH Jay H School Administrative ManagerPerforming Arts, 2 - 10 employeesUsed the software for: 6-12 months. “I love the ability to copy classes and semesters to more easily duplicate past schedules.“ November 9, 2024 JH Jay H School Administrative ManagerPerforming Arts, 2 - 10 employeesUsed the software for: 6-12 months. “I dislike that store credit/gift card balance is locked behind a higher subscription tier.“ November 9, 2024 JL James L Executive DirectorEducation Management, 11 - 50 employeesUsed the software for: 1-2 years. “It gives us a more professional face forward, plus helps us manage the fee recovery of our events.“ April 23, 2024 EC Emiko C Owner and EducatorArts and Crafts, Self-employedUsed the software for: Less than 6 months. “Widget is very glitchy on phones and freezes while scrolling.“ November 4, 2024 KG Kimberly G Founder and Managing DirectorEducation Management, Self-employedUsed the software for: 6-12 months. “I like that the system streamlines my registration process for families.“ April 22, 2024 JH Jay H School Administrative ManagerPerforming Arts, 2 - 10 employeesUsed the software for: 6-12 months. “Also no option for attendance records for adults?“ November 9, 2024 ## Showing most helpful reviews Showing 1-25 of 318 Reviews Sort by: Most Helpful Rating Company Size Reviewer's Role Length of Use Frequency of Use Stephanie W. Owner and teacher Education Management Used the software for: Less than 6 months ### "Sawyer is essential!" April 17, 2024 5.0 I recommend Sawyer to anyone who is seeking a more streamlined registration software for any type of class! Pros Sawyer has been SO incredibly user friendly and has allowed me to confidently market my classes and confirm registrations so much easier than using my old method of Google forms. Cons I would love to see more email integrations! Switched from [Google Forms](https://www.capterra.com/p/176571/Google-Forms/) Too many moving parts, confusing payment submission where people had the ability to ignore that option so I had to track them down for payment! Review Source JH Jay H. School Administrative Manager Performing Arts Used the software for: 6-12 months ### "User friendly and great support, but needs some improvement in select features" November 9, 2024 4.0 Overall I enjoy Sawyer and might recommend it over other similar platforms, depending on the needs of the organization. There are some key features that could be improved upon still. Support team is friendly, helpful, and very responsive! The additional webinars and resources provided are helpful too. Pros \- Very user friendly on the customer facing side. - The interface on both the customer and admin side is clear and pretty easy to navigate. - I love the ability to copy classes and semesters to more easily duplicate past schedules. - Class widget is convenient, especially with recent updates. Cons \- Appointments can only be made with minors, not adults, and they do not support small group appointments. - Reporting features could be clearer/more accurate, we've had issues with bugs causing inaccurate financial reports. - I wish there was a way to download registration reports for select classes all at once; the semester-wide registration report includes students who already withdrew, and going class by class is tedious and time consuming. - Class attendance can only be viewed for one student at a time instead of seeing full class attendance across multiple instances. Also no option for attendance records for adults? - I dislike that store credit/gift card balance is locked behind a higher subscription tier. This seems like a basic feature that should not be paywalled. - No way to mass edit activity information currently. Switched from [SmartRec](https://www.capterra.com/p/198905/SmartRec/) Too expensive and not particularly user friendly on the customer side. Review Source WH Whitney H. Owner Arts and Crafts Used the software for: 2+ years ### "A Total Betrayal of Small Businesses" March 18, 2025 1.0 ⭐ 1 Star – A Total Betrayal of Small Businesses I trusted Sawyer as a registration and billing platform for my business—what I did not expect was for them to use my client list to promote my competitors. Without my consent, Sawyer sent marketing emails directly to my customers, advertising other art studios that also use their platform. Let that sink in. I worked for years to build relationships with my clients, only for Sawyer to exploit that trust and undermine my business. This is not just a bad business practice—it’s an outright betrayal of the small businesses that keep their platform running. If you’re a business owner considering Sawyer, ask yourself this: ❌ Do you want your customers being marketed to by other studios? ❌ Do you want to build your business, only for Sawyer to redirect your clients elsewhere? ❌ Do you trust a company that treats your customer list like a free-for-all marketing database? Sawyer isn’t a neutral registration platform—they’re actively working against the businesses they claim to serve. If you value client trust, business integrity, and keeping control over your own customer relationships, look elsewhere. I know I will. Pros Excellent reporting and query capabilities Cons A Total Betrayal of Small Businesses- unethical and predatory Review Source Response from DaySmart Software March 27, 2025 Hi Whitney, I'm sorry to hear that you've had a negative experience with Sawyer. I know we were able to connect and are working together to making this right. Upon creating an account with Sawyer, customers are given an option to opt-in to receiving marketing and communications from your business as well as from Sawyer. Customers can of course opt-out of communication at any time from any of our marketing or promotional emails by clicking unsubscribe on any email they receive. Here is our help center article explaining more: https://help.hisawyer.com/hc/en-us/articles/1500008819322 We appreciate you taking the time to share your experience and feedback with us. We are here to support your needs and hope you continue to find value in working with Sawyer. GM Ginny M. Owner and Operator of Art Studio and Art Instructor Arts and Crafts Used the software for: 1-2 years ### "Sawyer keeps me on track! " November 5, 2024 5.0 Very impressed, they keep me organized (which is nearly impossible)! It’s been a wonderful, but expensive, experience. Definitely worth every penny, at least for the first year, in my opinion. Pros Everyone at Sawyer was super helpful when I was first getting set up. Very easy to talk to, clear & concise communication. I couldn’t have opened up my studio classes without all of their help. The reports helped me tremendously when I was doing my taxes. Cons It is expensive for a business as small as mine. Some months it’s difficult for me to be able to cover the cost of the website plus my rent. I wish I could afford to pay for the Parties option. I think a lot more people would have been booking parties this whole time if they could have done it online. Just recently, after I create an activity, unless it’s brand new, I am unable to add more images to the activity when I try to edit it. It just uploads a solid black image Alternatives considered [Wix](https://www.capterra.com/p/169007/Wix/)[Squarespace](https://www.capterra.com/p/143461/Squarespace/) Reason for choosing Sawyer It was the one I was most familiar with as I had used it as a customer before & found it very user friendly Review Source LC Lesly C. Development Coordinator Education Management Used the software for: 1-2 years ### "Good Software" November 7, 2024 4.0 Overall, it’s good, but a system with integrations to other trending applications would be better, though it may come with slightly higher transaction fees. Pros It is flexible in the option of weekly registrations and can be integrated with the teachers' roster. Cons It does not have CRM integrations or more complete profiles for tracking students or families. Additionally, orders processed by families must allow for late start in prorating and start date selection. Alternatives considered [NinjaOne](https://www.capterra.com/p/184229/NinjaOne/) Reason for choosing Sawyer Flexible option for day-by-day enrollment. Switched from [QuickBooks Enterprise](https://www.capterra.com/p/174984/QuickBooks-Enterprise/)[Salesforce Platform](https://www.capterra.com/p/268338/App-Cloud/) centralizing systems.............................. Review Source KS Kay S. Member Arts and Crafts Used the software for: 1-2 years ### "Overpriced and Overratted (and self serving)" September 26, 2024 1.0 Extremely over rated. Definitely not worth the money. Do not drink the koolaid. Pros The interface has strengths, easy to use but plenty of idiotic limitations Cons After a month, they “informed” me yhey would be adding a $2 fee for every transaction for their R&D efforts. Which is absurd, prices already are so high and they charge a fortune for their service. Also, they marketed other similar businesses via email to MY customers for birthday and special events. Places customers had been to once, they got emails once they were back on Sawyers radar. Onboarding customers is terrible. Work for your customers. Plenty of glitches too. Sawyer is out for 1 business, and that is themselves. Not you. Alternatives considered [Capdesk](https://www.capterra.com/p/179920/Capdesk/) Reason for choosing Sawyer Seemed like the cost would support the product. They said business would increase and they lost us business to nearby competitors via their “marketplace” what a joke Switched from [Jumbula](https://www.capterra.com/p/141309/Jumbula/) It was very glitchy Review Source Response from DaySmart Software October 1, 2024 Hi Kay, It is always our goal to listen and learn from our customers and we appreciate you taking the time to share this feedback. We'd love to speak with you directly to better understand your experience and make things right. Please email support@hisawyer.com so our team can properly assist. We look forward to speaking with you. The Sawyer Support Team YM Yvette M. Director Education Management Used the software for: 2+ years ### "Love Sawyer!" October 30, 2024 5.0 We love Sawyer. There's always room for improvement as things come up with registration but that's a good thing for all businesses. Pros Customer service is great. Most aspects of the portal are easy to use. I also love the fact that they know their clients. Cons It would be nice to have a way for parents to pay through their bank account so they and we are not charged a service fee. For a small business like ours and for our families, every little bit makes a difference. Switched from [iClassPro](https://www.capterra.com/p/127097/iClassPro/) Sawyer was a better fit for our program. the other platform was for gymnastics and didn't offer all the different options that we needed for our classes, summer camps etc. Review Source Karen (Kate) R. exec director Events Services Used the software for: 6-12 months ### "Accounting and Payouts are not transparent" January 20, 2021 3.0 While I appreciate the ability to imbed registration on our website, there is no way to track click rates, their customer service is not at all educated on the software and we've gotten responses on average 3 weeks after the initial question is asked! Poor customer service, micropayouts are not transparent, and the cost for ticket items more than 70 usd is more expensive than eventbrite. Unfortunately I can not recommend this platform! Pros It can be imbedded on your website. Visually it is appealing to the purchaser. Cons Instead of paying out event registration income once, after the event, or one time at the end of each month, they pay out micro payments every 3 days. This renders keeping your checks and balances almost impossible, and we are currently paying extra payroll hours for our accountant to tally up each payment (We are talking about payouts as small as $1.25, when we are receiving as much as 10K a month with their platform). Can you imagine your accountant adding up all of those micropayments to hit 10K? It equates to hours of work. The whole process does not at all match industry standards and is very unrealistic for companies to handle. It's a hidden expense that makes the platform not worth the use. Switched from [Eventbrite](https://www.capterra.com/p/114949/Eventbrite/) We thought that Sawyer would be more user friendly. We were wrong! Review Source Response from DaySmart Software January 31, 2021 I am so sorry that you had a less than stellar experience at Sawyer, that is never our intent nor our goal. We continue to evolve our products because of feedback like this and would love to connect on how we can improve if you're open to it. MR Marleny R. Creative Executive Assistant Arts and Crafts Used the software for: 6-12 months ### "User Friendly for Art Studios & Camps " February 17, 2025 4.0 I am pretty happy with using Sawyer but wish the fees they took out were less. Pros It’s pretty easy to use. I like that I can easily view my upcoming events in the calendar and quickly add new events and publish updates. Cons There is a slight learning curve with learning how to post classes and use certain features. Review Source LB Lilian B. Artist Teacher Arts and Crafts Used the software for: 2+ years ### "Sawyer has helped me better manage my business" October 29, 2024 5.0 It provides me flexibility for accepting payments online from my customers and their families to register when it is convenient for them. Pros Customer Support and help. They are always available to help and address our concerns and special requests in a manner I have not experienced elsewhere. Cons Although their software is extremely versatile and they continue to improve it, it does not offer me (a one-man operation) the precise, simple, user friendly, efficient flexibility. However, they have offered me several alternatives to customize they services to my individual needs. Review Source AS Angie S. Executive Director Arts and Crafts Used the software for: 6-12 months ### "Robust platform" April 9, 2024 5.0 Customer service is PHENOMENAL. I can't say enough about it. Kind, courteous, FAST, and knowledgeable. A pleasure to work with. Pros It does almost everything I need for camp registration, payments, coupons, payment plans, class descriptions, etc. Cons Very expensive. We are a small non-profit and need the functionality, but the price tag is difficult. In addition, our clients pay $1.99 for transactions. I wasn't aware of this at first. I had some upset customers. Reason for choosing Sawyer Had to make the switch to increase our bookings and revenue. Switched from [Ninja Forms](https://www.capterra.com/p/204315/Ninja-Forms/)[Amelia](https://www.capterra.com/p/200413/Amelia/) Needed one platform to do "all the things". Sawyer does that. Review Source AO Aaliyah O. Program Director Health, Wellness and Fitness Used the software for: 1-2 years ### "We enjoy using Sawyer " September 27, 2022 5.0 We have been able to truly retain our clients due to the software being easy to use. Pros Sawyer is so easy to use compared to the software that we left. Viewing of the software is clean and straight forward. We do wish that there was app for both us and the consumer to use to sign up and cancel classes out. Cons We wish that there was app for both us and the consumer to use to sign up and cancel classes out. We also hope that clients will be able to cancel out class themselves Switched from [Jackrabbit Dance](https://www.capterra.com/p/93349/Jackrabbit-Dance/) we weren't able to schedule drop-in classes and semester classes using the jackrabbit software Review Source CG Carl G. Owner Manager Sports Used the software for: 6-12 months ### "Sawyer is important to WAS." April 9, 2024 5.0 I have great confidence in Sawyer as I work to grow my business. Pros Sawyer makes what we do to keep the business moving forward much easier. They have amazing support and desire to grow their product offering. Cons The ability to connect to my google calendar is very important but not yet possible. Reason for choosing Sawyer Price, customer registration ease, ability to merge to the business website. Switched from [Wix](https://www.capterra.com/p/169007/Wix/) Lack of quality support and constant challenges. Review Source TL Theresa L. CPR Instructor Health, Wellness and Fitness Used the software for: 1-2 years ### "Technology at its best" November 10, 2024 5.0 Overall, I like this product. I feel that it was very well thought out to support the users. It saves time which in my case is very important as I have a lot of materials to cover in a very short period of time so anything that helps me in that area is a plus. Pros I absolutely love the ease of using Sawyer. We have a team that inputs the information when students register for camp. That information is very crucial to a successful camp. I like that all I have to do is check my participants in and then check them out each day. I also like that it allows the parents to contact me if necessary and vice versa. Cons I have no complaints to report as I love everything about Sawyer. Review Source TL TR L. Instructor Education Management Used the software for: Less than 6 months ### "Easy tool to use daily " November 11, 2024 5.0 Very good tool to assist with daily tasks Pros Easy to use for daily tasks and simple setip Cons Nothing, it works as it should, all the buttons and screens display what should be there and no added or unnecessary information. Review Source JS Janine S. Owner/Director Arts and Crafts Used the software for: 6-12 months ### "Wish Sawyer had the same features for adults... " January 28, 2022 4.0 Well I'm terribly frustrated I'm also very grateful because I needed something quick and I was not able to pay a web designer to develop this deep of the system. I have a bit of a love-hate relationship to it, I want more features for adults and I want more flexibility in general. Pros Because I was not a web designer and didn't have backend experience, I needed a platform that I could basically input information into, I wish however it was more customizable. I also was drawn to Sawyer because I wanted to create memberships as well as classes and this gave me the opportunity to do both. Cons There are more things I dislike them like unfortunately. Some of them small like wishing I could customize the color other than red, some of them huge in that the forms are rigid meaning I can't have a different form intake for a member from my students. I need more flexibility and options for my businesses I was hoping everything could live under one umbrella. I find it almost impossible to navigate and find things with ease, it is not user friendly and various features are buried inside other futures and I'm constantly going back and forth trying to find things. I get super frustrated with having to pull up FAQs and directives online. The window doesn't stay open when you move from one area of the website to another so I constantly have to keep it searching for the same information. Some days it's brutal and I feel like I spend way too much time on this program. Reason for choosing Sawyer I don't have a web background and I had a limited budget to get my business started rather quickly, this seemed like it had enough built out that I could use it for multiple registration needs as well that's the template for both. Review Source JL James L. Executive Director Education Management Used the software for: 1-2 years ### "YNOT Summer Camp" April 23, 2024 4.0 Better than life was, prior. It gives us a more professional face forward, plus helps us manage the fee recovery of our events. Pros The ability to set up events for automatic online registering and not having AR at the end of the summer, or at the end of a semester. Cons Inability to speak with someone, without buying some annual package. Why not offer technical "spot help" for a flat fee per instance? My IT guy can be reached almost 24/7 and he does alot of things over the phone or via remote connect to my laptop for $20 to $100 per whack. Reason for choosing Sawyer Cost. Targeted vertical. Ease of programming. Review Source JT Joel T. Director Education Management Used the software for: 1-2 years ### "Sawyer Used to be Good" April 14, 2023 3.0 We have lost more business than gained in the past few months as sawyer seems to be melting down into dysfunction. They used to be good. They changed their pricing/business model to charge businesses and their customers BOTH directly. At the same time their service and functionality (along with down time) has cratered. We are frantically looking at other options as Sawyer has now lost more business for us than it has gained due to their dysfunctional, confusing system on the front end. Pros Sawyer is easy to implement and their customer service is helpful at first.They might be good if your customers all use the same main stream web browser (whichever one happens to work that day) and they are registering kids for classes without parent involvement or too many details. Cons There is no option to add a second adult/parent to a family account.The program doesn't work with Duck Duck Go or many web browsers consistently. Review Source Response from DaySmart Software April 17, 2023 Hi Joel, We are sorry to hear that you've had a negative experience with Sawyer. Our VP of Provider Experience has reached out to speak directly with you as we would love the opportunity to discuss more in depth. We do hope to expand our list of supported browsers in the future as we already work with the most commonly used options such as Chrome, Safari, Firefox, and Edge. We appreciate you taking the time to share your feedback with us and look forward to connecting directly. Kind regards, Sawyer Support CM Cheryl M. owner Education Management Used the software for: 2+ years ### "Easy online registration for customers" April 15, 2024 5.0 I enjoy the platform and my customers do too. Pros My customers can learn about all of our programs in one place and register for them easily. I can track registration at a glance and make changes as needed. Cons Rosters are difficult to read when printed and it's an important part of our camps. Review Source AC Amy C. Owner/Operator Arts and Crafts Used the software for: Less than 6 months ### "Easy to use and implement" February 7, 2022 5.0 I have really loved the payment reminders and that the site automatically deposits the money into my accounts. I don't have to think about that. I think it is easy to email and ask for help, or sign up and get a zoom appointment. Pros I loved working face to face (via zoom) with the Sawyer Team. It was nice being able to put a face with a name. \[SENSITIVE CONTENT\] was extremely helpful and eager to solve my problems. I appreciated that Sawyer did everything, including tidying up my website a little. All I did was answer questions and give approval and Sawyer did the rest. Cons I have a different class/session schedule than most outside educators. In order to make my sessions work for my clients we had to wiggle somethings around and call somethings different from the terminology I had previously been using. For example, All private lessons can only be found on my kids page, even if you're an adult, and there is no way to request a semi-private lesson for two people. I also have clients who only want to take one month of sessions confused when they have to go to the "Semester classes" page. I also wish there was a way for clients to pay Venmo or Cash without ME having to be the one that fills in their registration forms. Review Source TT Traci T. Executive Director Non-Profit Organization Management Used the software for: 1-2 years ### "Sawyer Works!" September 20, 2022 5.0 Sawyer has elevated our organization and made our registration process more reliable and manageable. Pros Ease of registration, ability to track clients & finances, reliability of having this online vs manual Cons I would like to be able to customize the reports we can draw from he software, there is critical info that we need to resort to manual methods for, which I know could be accomplished through our registration info. We would like to be able to customize some other aspect of the registration portal Review Source SJ Summer J. Director Sports Used the software for: 6-12 months ### "Works great for camp registration that fills up fast!!" September 21, 2022 5.0 Plan to keep using it for years to come. Pros I love how easy it is to use for both the admin side and the parent side. I also love that the item will be held in your cart for a certain amount of time while you finish registration questions and payment- this was a huge game changer for our camp which sells out in minutes. Cons The only feature I do not like is that if I have a parent register multiple kids for multiple camps, and down the road needs to cancel just ONE of the camps for one of the kids. In both the parent portal, my staff admin side as well as the receipt for tax purposes it will still show that camp that was canceled. I’ve talked with Saywer staff about this and I am hoping that this can be changed in the future. Review Source LA Loren A. Owner/Director Arts and Crafts Used the software for: 1-2 years ### "Unresponsive Tech Support" March 8, 2023 2.0 Terrible. Pros The look of the user interface - everything is on one page with a photo. Cons We have many glitches which are never addressed. Also, you have to enter each class separately every semester - there is no cloning function. There is customer support but nothing has ever been done about ANY of the glitches or issues we have had. Reason for choosing Sawyer Yes Review Source Response from DaySmart Software April 21, 2023 Hi Loren, We are sorry to hear that you've had a frustrating experience with your account. We have reached out directly to discuss your concerns but we haven't heard back from you. We'd love an opportunity to make this right. Looking forward to connecting when the time is right. Kind regards, The Sawyer Team GI Galina I. Owner Entertainment Used the software for: Less than 6 months ### "Review for Sawyer from Tiny Tunes Studio" August 10, 2018 5.0 I love having Sawyer. I don't know what I would do if I didn't have this platform. Simplifies things so much. I would do it over again. Pros I love that it's so easy to use and very user friendly. I didn't need to "learn" to use it - it's very self-explanatory. I like that I get paid very fast with Sawyer direct deposits. I like this new party booking feature - haven't tried it yet but intend to sign up for that! Cons \- it's less flexible in terms of creating one off classes. for example, in pearachute, i am able to create an "impromptu" class with a certain musician. On Sawyer I have to create a new schedule, then a new activity, etc. it's a bit overwhelming. I don't always necessarily want to create an event for one offs but the way the Sawyer system is no you almost have to. - some glitches along the way. i can't always access all the functionalities in my phone (like adding packs to people's accounts for example); certain coupon codes not working after awhile (even without me putting any time restrictions on it); duplicate accounts in Contacts and not being able to delete them (even when there is no packs attached to them) - Reports. I don't really understand how to use them. I will be calling support team to learn more about how I can customize them - If someone comes to studio and pays cash for the class there is no way for me to check them in and note that this is a paid customer because there is no such function in the system. For report purposes I would like to understand paid vs not paid customers. - Function that prompts emails/messages to customers who haven't come to studio in a while. Maybe not an automated email but a reminder email to me saying "Hey, Johnny Smith hasn't come to Tiny Tunes Studio in a while, maybe you want to send them an email offering some sort of a discount for his next visit?" and maybe have like a standard email that each owner can customize then. Review Source JC Jessica C. CEO Education Management Used the software for: 2+ years ### "Excellent Customer Service & Platform" April 26, 2021 5.0 We LOVE Sawyer tools to help streamline our registration needs and enrollment. We have access to easily upload our camp forms, medical forms, and easily disseminate information to our families. This is a very caring company that really cares about their customers. They even sent flowers when they found out we had a newborn. Your aren't just a number to this company, but part of their family. Very user friendly, competitive and inexpensive pricing structure compared to other processing out there. Pros I love that parents have a username and password that saves their information and helps them easily sign up for future events quickly and efficiently. Easy to collect payment and quick deposit times. Love the attendance feature and how quickly I can assign users so they have access to all medical information. Cons Sometimes it is difficult to set up classes . But once I got the hang of it I found this software to be great. Review Source Talk to a Capterra advisor for free and get results within 15 minutes.