Adminished vs Pembee (2026)
Quick take: Two UK-built tools for running classes and clubs — Pembee is a polished term-and-camp booking system with very low transaction fees; Adminished leans into payments, safeguarding and multi-vertical admin.
What Pembee is: Pembee is a UK-built online booking system for children's activity providers — gymnastics, dance, after-school clubs and camps — built around term-based classes and reusable family accounts. It suits providers whose main need is letting parents find and book sessions online with low payment fees.
Feature comparison
| Feature | Adminished | Pembee |
|---|---|---|
| Card transaction fee | Flat 1% platform fee on Stripe payments, and you can pass it to parents at checkout | Lower application fee — around 0.59% plus Stripe's standard fees, as of 2026 (Pembee wins on headline rate) |
| Pricing model | Capacity-based, not feature-gated: free up to 20 students, Essential £19/mo to 75, Pro £49/mo to 200 — every feature on every tier | Feature-tiered paid plans (roughly Standard ~£30 / Premium ~£70 as of 2026); some features like waitlists and custom domains are higher-tier only; no published free-forever plan |
| Payment rails | Stripe cards and Bacs/SEPA Direct Debit mandates, with auto-charge of saved methods and overdue reminders (dunning) | Stripe cards, Apple/Google Pay, Klarna, plus offline options (cash, tax-free childcare, bank transfer); no evidence of Bacs/GoCardless Direct Debit mandates as of 2026 |
| Booking and family accounts | Enrolment, waitlists/interest lists, multi-guardian/shared-care portal; per-subject and per-student pricing | Strong term-based booking with reusable family accounts, child/medical details, sibling discounts, passes and abandoned-cart recovery — a mature, polished booking flow |
| Safeguarding and consent | DBS status/expiry tracking for coaches; consent forms and e-signing (waivers, codes of conduct, media consent) stored as a legal audit trail with CSV export | Custom booking forms can collect attendee info; no published DBS tracking or dedicated e-signature/consent audit trail as of 2026 |
| Attendance register | Mark present/late/excused/no-show; excused and no-show are not charged | Online registers and attendance tracking, downloadable/printable; reviewers note register sorting is limited (fixed by surname) |
| Customer mobile app | iOS and Android apps (PWA wrapper) plus full web | Web-based booking; multiple reviewers note there is no dedicated phone/tablet app for customers as of 2026 |
| Multi-vertical fit | Built for martial arts, dance, tutoring, scouts, community centres and Kumon-style learning centres, including adult self-learners | Focused on children's activity providers — gymnastics, dance, camps, after-school clubs |
| Migration | Free, done-for-you migration that carries members, classes and saved card + Direct Debit mandates across via Stripe with zero downtime | Self-serve onboarding with a 30-day free trial; no published done-for-you migration of saved payment mandates |
When Pembee is the better choice
If your priority is the lowest possible transaction fee on card bookings and a slick term/camp booking flow with abandoned-cart recovery, Pembee is the stronger pick. Its published application fee (around 0.59% + Stripe's own fees, as of 2026) undercuts Adminished's flat 1%, and Pembee has spent years polishing the parent-facing booking and family-account experience for activity camps and squads.
Pricing
Pembee publishes two paid tiers — roughly Standard from around £30/mo and Premium from around £70/mo, with a 30-day free trial (third-party listings quote varying figures, so check pembee.app for current pricing). Some features such as waitlists, custom domains and abandoned-cart recovery sit on the higher tier. There is no published free-forever plan.
Switch in a weekend — we do the heavy lifting
Already on another tool? We bring your members, their classes and their saved card & Direct Debit mandates across — so payments never miss a beat. Zero downtime, no asking your families to re-sign, and we never charge for it.
- Members, contacts, classes & schedules imported for you
- Saved cards & Bacs/SEPA Direct Debit mandates carried over via Stripe — no re-authorisation
- Live in about a weekend, with your fees collecting as normal
Frequently asked questions
Is Adminished cheaper than Pembee?
It depends on what you weigh. Adminished has a free-forever tier (up to 20 students) and flat monthly pricing where every feature is included, but its platform fee is a flat 1%. Pembee's subscription tiers start higher (roughly £30/mo as of 2026, with some features on a ~£70 tier) but its card application fee is lower — around 0.59% plus Stripe's fees. High-volume card takings may favour Pembee's fee; smaller or feature-hungry providers may favour Adminished's all-features pricing. Check pembee.app for their current numbers.
Does Pembee support UK Direct Debit?
Not that we can find. As of 2026 Pembee runs on Stripe and supports cards, Apple/Google Pay, Klarna and offline methods such as cash, tax-free childcare and bank transfer. We've seen no evidence of Bacs or GoCardless Direct Debit mandates. Adminished supports Bacs and SEPA Direct Debit mandates alongside cards, with auto-charge and dunning. If your families pay by Direct Debit, confirm directly with Pembee before switching either way.
Which is better for safeguarding and consent forms?
Adminished, for that specific need. It tracks coach DBS status and expiry and captures signed consent forms (waivers, codes of conduct, media consent) per child as a legal audit trail with name, timestamp, IP and version hash, exportable to CSV for insurance or safeguarding audits. Pembee can collect attendee info via custom booking forms but has no published DBS tracking or dedicated e-signature audit trail as of 2026.
Does Pembee have a mobile app for parents?
Not a dedicated one, as of 2026 — Pembee's booking is web-based, and several reviewers specifically flag the absence of a phone or tablet app as a drawback. Adminished ships iOS and Android apps (a PWA wrapper) as well as full web. If a native-feel app matters to your families, that's a point for Adminished; if web booking is fine, it won't affect you.
When is Pembee the better choice?
When your main job is selling term places, camps and squads to parents with the lowest card fees and a highly polished booking flow, and you don't need DBS tracking, e-signed consent forms or Direct Debit. Pembee is mature and focused, with abandoned-cart recovery and strong family accounts. Adminished is the better fit if you need safeguarding tooling, Direct Debit, multi-vertical support or a free entry tier.
The verdict
Pembee is a genuinely good, UK-built booking system for children's activity providers, and on two things it can beat us outright: a lower card transaction fee (around 0.59% plus Stripe's fees, versus our flat 1%) and a years-polished term/camp booking flow with abandoned-cart recovery. If those are your priorities and you don't need safeguarding tooling or Direct Debit, Pembee may well be the right call — check their current pricing at pembee.app, as third-party listings vary. Adminished is the stronger choice if you want DBS tracking and e-signed consent audit trails, Bacs/SEPA Direct Debit alongside cards, a free tier to start on, broader multi-vertical support (including adult learners), and native iOS/Android apps. Both run on Stripe, so neither locks you out of card payments.
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