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Comparison · CRM

Phorest vs Twenty

A side-by-side editorial comparison of Phorest and Twenty — release velocity, themes, recent moves, and the top alternatives to consider.

Phorest vs Twenty: at a glance

FeaturePhorestTwenty
SectorCRMCRM
Velocity score5.05.0
Sparks · 30d00
Top themessalon-software, booking, staff-management, pricingcrm, open source, ai assistant, inbox
Last editorial update2mo ago8h ago
WebsiteVisit →Visit →

What is Phorest?

Phorest keeps handing salon owners the settings they used to phone support about

Phorest is salon and clinic management software shipping small, well-scoped changes every week or two, written in the voice of the front desk. The recent run is dominated by giving owners control they previously had to request: adding product brands without contacting Phorest, per-staff-per-service pricing, per-staff online booking visibility, and finer permissions on who may edit service versus retail prices. Around that sit operational tools like geofenced clock-in on the mobile app.

Read the full Phorest trajectory →

What is Twenty?

Twenty 2.57 puts the workspace's own assistant name and avatar into the inbox.

Twenty shipped 2.57.0 on November 9 for server, SDK and npm packages, followed hours later by 2.57.1. The patch shows the workspace's configured assistant name and avatar in inbox headers, mentions and previews, still behind the Inbox flag. 2.56.1 on November 5 fixed an upgrade that stalled on workflow code steps containing NUL characters.

Read the full Twenty trajectory →

Phorest vs Twenty: editorial side-by-side

P5.0

Phorest keeps handing salon owners the settings they used to phone support about

◆ Current state

Phorest is salon and clinic management software shipping small, well-scoped changes every week or two, written in the voice of the front desk. The recent run is dominated by giving owners control they previously had to request: adding product brands without contacting Phorest, per-staff-per-service pricing, per-staff online booking visibility, and finer permissions on who may edit service versus retail prices. Around that sit operational tools like geofenced clock-in on the mobile app.

◆ Where it's heading

The through-line is decentralising configuration to the salon and making the booking model match how these businesses actually run. Nearly every recent release either removes a support ticket or lets one staff member be treated differently from another — different price, different online availability, different qualifications. The multi-service booking flow extends the same thinking to the client-facing side, where a visit involving two practitioners was previously modelled as an edge case.

◆ Prediction

Per-staff settings have now landed for price, online visibility and qualifications separately; the obvious next step is a single staff-level view that shows all three together, since the release notes already admit owners are hopping between screens to check them.

T5.0

Twenty 2.57 puts the workspace's own assistant name and avatar into the inbox.

◆ Current state

Twenty shipped 2.57.0 on November 9 for server, SDK and npm packages, followed hours later by 2.57.1. The patch shows the workspace's configured assistant name and avatar in inbox headers, mentions and previews, still behind the Inbox flag. 2.56.1 on November 5 fixed an upgrade that stalled on workflow code steps containing NUL characters.

◆ Where it's heading

Twenty keeps a rapid minor-version cadence while building an AI assistant into an inbox that remains flagged. The recent tags mix assistant and inbox work with upgrade fixes, which suggests the inbox is close to wider release.

◆ Prediction

Expect further 2.57.x patches on the inbox and assistant, with the Inbox flag likely lifted in a coming minor.

Alternatives to Phorest and Twenty

Other CRM products tracked by Sparkpulse, ranked by recent ship velocity. Each card links to a full editorial trajectory and lets you pivot into a head-to-head comparison with either Phorest or Twenty.

See all Phorest alternatives → · See all Twenty alternatives →

Recent activity from Phorest and Twenty

Latest ship moves from both products, interleaved chronologically. ⚡ = editorial spark.

  1. 13h agoTwentyTwenty 2.57.1 shows the custom assistant identity in the inbox
  2. 15h agoTwentyTwenty 2.57.0 packages published to npm
  3. 17h agoTwentyTwenty 2.57.0 tagged with a code cleanup note
  4. 17h agoTwentyTwenty SDK 2.57.0 tagged with a code cleanup note
  5. 4d agoTwentytwenty/v2.56.1
  6. 4d agoTwentyTwenty SDK 2.56.1 tag with no changes
  7. 2mo agoPhorestBooking multiple services with multiple staff? Now way easier to mix up who's doing what 💇
  8. 2mo agoPhorestChoose which team members show up for online bookings — service by service
  9. 2mo agoPhorestPermissions to change service / retail prices
  10. 2mo agoPhorestAdd New Brands
  11. 2mo agoPhorestPricing just got personal
  12. 3mo agoPhorestGeofencing Clock In/Out on Phorest Go

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between Phorest and Twenty?

They serve adjacent needs but don't currently overlap on shipped themes. Phorest and Twenty are shipping at a similar cadence (velocity 5.0 vs 5.0, both within Sparkpulse's "active" band). See the at-a-glance table above for a side-by-side breakdown of velocity, recent sparks, and editorial themes.

Is Phorest better than Twenty?

Sparkpulse doesn't pick a winner — we score release velocity, not feature parity. Phorest and Twenty are shipping at a similar cadence (velocity 5.0 vs 5.0, both within Sparkpulse's "active" band). For your specific use case, the alternatives sections above list other CRM products to evaluate alongside.

What are the best alternatives to Phorest?

Top Phorest alternatives in CRM are ranked by recent ship velocity. Browse the "Phorest alternatives" section above for the current picks, or visit /alternatives/phorest for the full list with editorial commentary on each.

What are the best alternatives to Twenty?

Top Twenty alternatives in CRM are ranked by recent ship velocity. Browse the "Twenty alternatives" section above for the current picks, or visit /alternatives/twenty-crm for the full list with editorial commentary on each.