Booksui vs Iris Works
A Booksui alternative to Iris Works
Iris Works keeps studio management simple, and that is its appeal. Booksui keeps the simplicity and adds the pieces a wedding photographer otherwise buys separately: galleries with print sales, a real inbox for inquiries, and a first reply drafted from your own calendar and price list.
Iris Works is known for a straightforward studio manager for photographers — contracts, invoices, workflows and scheduling without the sprawl. The table below sets Booksui’s own features next to that, in plain terms.
| Topic | Booksui | Iris Works |
|---|---|---|
| Built for | Wedding photographers first; the trades a wedding books alongside you too. | Photographers, with an emphasis on simplicity. |
| Client galleries | Built in — proofing, favorites, downloads, print and album offers, and search by what is in the photo. Delivery is part of the same job record as the contract and the invoice. | Not built in; paired with a gallery product. |
| The inquiry | A shared inbox where a website inquiry, its email replies, texts and private team notes sit on one thread next to the event details, and replies to what you send come back to the same conversation. | Contact forms and email templates from the client record. |
| Job pipeline | Phase checklists written for the trade you pick — a photographer’s culling and album phases, a videographer’s edit and revision rounds, a DJ’s music planning, a coordinator’s day-of timeline. | Workflows with tasks and emails you set up. |
| Payments | Through your own Stripe account. Deposits, balances and print sales land in your Stripe, on Stripe’s terms, and Booksui never holds the money. | Through connected payment processors. |
| AI | Optional drafts you read before anything sends: a first reply to an inquiry written from your calendar and price list, contract review notes, and gallery search. Nothing emails a client on its own. | Varies; check their current offering. |
| Price | Starter is free with no card (3 galleries, 1 booking page, 10 active inquiries). Pro $29/mo, Studio $59/mo, Agency $99/mo. 30-day refund on your first paid month. | Set by Iris Works and changed by Iris Works; their current pricing page is the only honest source, so this page does not quote it. |
Who switches, and why
- Iris Works users who want galleries inside the job and one bill.
- Photographers whose inquiries arrive by email and want them threaded with context.
- Studios that want the first reply written for them, from real facts.
What you keep
- Your clients and jobs — CSV import.
- The simple, linear way of working; Booksui’s phases are just as linear.
- Your contract text and emails as templates.
What changes
- Delivery and print sales become part of the job.
- Email becomes a shared inbox with replies threaded.
- Payments through your own Stripe.
How the move happens
- 1Export clients and jobs as CSV.
- 2Import → Upload CSV; map, review, confirm.
- 3Paste your contract into a template.
- 4Connect Stripe; point your website form at Booksui.
Importing
Any CSV of clients or jobs imports through the generic path: upload, map the columns once, review, confirm. Nothing is created until you say so, and a second run of the same file does not duplicate anyone.
When Iris Works is the better choice
If you value the smallest possible tool and deliver through a gallery product you like, Iris Works already gives you that; Booksui is worth the move when the second product starts costing you time.
Questions
- How do I import from Iris Works?
- Export clients and jobs as CSV, then Import → Upload CSV in Booksui; map the columns once and confirm.
- Is Booksui more complicated than Iris Works?
- The day-to-day is the same length: inquiry → contract → deposit → job → delivery. Booksui carries more (galleries, inbox, drafts) but installs it for your trade rather than asking you to build it.
- Do I need a separate gallery product?
- No. Galleries, proofing, downloads and print sales are built in.
- Is there a free plan?
- Yes, no card required; limits are on the pricing page.
Iris Works’s pricing and feature set are set by Iris Works, change over time, and are worth checking on their own site — this page reflects Booksui’s own features accurately and describes Iris Works in general, well-known terms rather than a line-by-line audit of their current product.