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Checked · October 2026

coil vs Venue. Free for you. 10% for them.

Venue is booking software built around flash: upload a sheet, open a flash day, let clients grab a slot and pay. Its free plan costs the artist nothing because a 10% card fee goes on every deposit and payment, charged to the client by default. coil is a flat bill to the artist and free to the client, and it adds what Venue doesn't list: aftercare texts, healing photo checks, a cancellation waitlist, touch-ups and a business phone number. If your business is flash events, look hard at Venue. If it's custom work and repeat clients, that's coil.

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The honest read

  • Venue's free plan puts 10% on the client.

    Every card deposit and payment carries a 10% fee, charged to the client unless you choose to pay it or split it. A $200 deposit costs them $220. Solo Pro is $50 a month and lowers the fee to 5%.

  • coil is $59 flat and the client pays coil nothing.

    Your client sees your price. coil never adds a fee and never takes a cut. Stripe's own card rate is the only other cost, same as anywhere.

  • Venue is a flash machine. coil is the whole day.

    Flash days, conventions and events: Venue is built for the drop. coil is built for the custom piece: request to deposit to consent to aftercare to review to the next one.

The price difference.

 CoilVenue

  • What the artist pays

    $59/mo solo$0, or $50/mo for Solo Pro

  • Card fee on deposits and payments

    Venue charges it to the client by default; the artist can pay it or split it.

    $0 from coil10% on the free plan, 5% on Pro

  • A $200 deposit, from the client's side

    $200$220 ($210 on Pro)

  • Ten $200 deposits a month

    Someone pays either way. On Venue's free plan it's the person getting tattooed.

    $59 from you, $0 from clients$0 from you, $200 from clients (free plan)

  • Shop with several chairs

    Studio Pro includes 5 artists, then $35/mo each, at a 5% card fee. On coil, chair 9 and up are free.

    $49/chair, 2-chair minimum, $392/mo at most$0 Studio, or $150/mo Studio Pro

  • Card processing

    Venue pays out in 1 to 2 business days, or instantly for a fee.

    Stripe's standard rateIncluded in Venue's fee

Feature by feature.

 CoilVenue

  • Your own site at your own address

    Venue gives you a booking link. coil gives you a full site built from your photos.

    YesPartly

  • Flash upload and claims

    YesYes

  • Flash days and event booking

    Venue's strongest feature. coil has a convention capture page and a guest-spot text, not an event storefront.

    PartlyYes

  • Custom request form (placement, refs, budget)

    YesYes

  • Clients pick their own time

    YesYes

  • Deposits by card

    YesYes

  • Affirm or Klarna at checkout

    NoYes

  • Deposits by Venmo, Cash App, Zelle or PayPal

    YesNo

  • Reminders before the session

    YesYes

  • Client chat

    coil: a real business phone number, and texts land in your inbox.

    YesYes

  • Consent forms

    Venue sends studios' clients a consent form the day before. coil's is signed on the day with photo ID, with state rules built in for 17 states.

    YesPartly

  • Aftercare texts on a schedule

    YesNo

  • Healing photos checked for you

    YesNo

  • Cancellation waitlist that texts itself

    Venue gives you a last-minute booking link to share when someone moves.

    YesPartly

  • Tips

    Venue asks for a tip at checkout. coil texts a tip link on the day.

    YesYes

  • Touch-up credits

    YesNo

  • Healed-photo reward

    YesNo

  • Reviews on your page

    YesNo

  • Shop splits and monthly reporting

    Venue Studio Pro auto-splits and reports by artist. coil also does booth rent, a front desk and walk-ins.

    YesYes

  • Apprentice bookings wait for your approval

    YesNo

When Venue fits you better

If you sell flash by the sheet, run flash days, travel to conventions, and want a slot grid clients can claim and pay in a minute, Venue is built for exactly that, and its free plan costs you nothing to try. If your clients are fine paying 10% on top, and plenty are for a $100 flash piece, the free-for-you model is hard to argue with. Nothing stops you from running Venue for events and coil for everything else.

When coil is the right call

If your work is custom, your clients come back, and a $600 deposit with a $60 fee on top would make you wince on their behalf, coil is the one that costs them nothing. If you want the aftercare texts, the healing photo checks, the waitlist, the touch-up and a business number handled, that's coil. For a shop, coil adds booth rent, a front desk and walk-ins.

Questions

What people ask.

Does Venue take a cut?
On its free plan, Venue charges a 10% fee on every card deposit and payment, paid by the client unless the artist chooses to cover or split it. Solo Pro ($50 a month) and Studio Pro ($150 a month) lower it to 5%. coil charges the artist a flat monthly bill and the client nothing.
Can coil run a flash day like Venue?
coil has a flash sheet with claims and a convention capture page, but not an event storefront with a slot grid. If flash events are the core of your business, Venue does that better today.
Can I use both?
Yes. A lot of artists would: Venue for the drop, coil for the custom book, the consent form, the aftercare and the shop. Put your coil address in your bio and link Venue when an event is live.
Does Venue handle consent or aftercare?
Venue sends studios' clients a consent form the day before. Aftercare texts, healing photo checks, touch-up credits and reviews aren't on its feature list. On coil they're included.
Are these prices current?
Checked October 2026 against Venue's pricing page: Solo is free with a 10% card fee (charged to the client by default), Solo Pro is $50 a month at 5%, Studio is free, and Studio Pro is $150 a month at 5% with up to 5 artists, then $35 a month each. coil is $59 a month solo, $49 a chair in a shop, and chair 9 and up are free. Both can change; check before you decide.
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