AMES vs Legato

AMES provides connected activity management and enrolment software for swim schools, dance studios, martial arts academies, gymnastics clubs and other class-based operators. It includes class scheduling, occupancy visibility, waitlists, mobile booking and enrolment across multiple classes or siblings. Staff can record attendance and absences, generate credits and let parents book replacement sessions subject to availability rules. AMES Pay accepts cards, Apple Pay and Google Pay through Stripe Connect, and GoCardless Direct Debit for recurring class fees. Parent updates, reminders, message history and automated absence and credit notices are part of its communications workflow. Listed integrations include Google Calendar, Xero, QuickBooks, Gmail, Outlook, Facebook, Instagram and Google Reviews; custom API integrations can be built during onboarding. AMES says it helps import existing member data, configure the system with a team and provide support after launch. Standard charges a transaction fee on successful payments collected through AMES, starting at 1.25 % per contact, with no monthly platform subscription or setup fee. Payment-provider processing fees and certain communications and AI services cost extra.

Legato is a studio management platform for music educators and studio managers. It supports lesson scheduling, student records, invoicing, and payment tracking across Android, iOS, and the web. Legato AI can take actions on a teacher’s roster through voice or chat, including scheduling, charging, cancelling, and invoicing. Scheduling includes recurring lessons, rescheduling, student reminders, and conflict detection. Stripe handles invoices, recurring charges, payment tracking, and reminders. Students can use a portal to view lessons, notes, assignments, and invoices, while a practice tracker provides a timer, weekly streaks, and goals. Teachers can import student information from CSV files or notebook photos. Listed integrations include Google Calendar, Apple Calendar, email notifications, SMS reminders, and PDF export; Zoom, push notifications, and an analytics dashboard are marked as upcoming. Legato is a progressive web app installable from a browser on mobile and desktop, with offline support. Legato Pro costs $19.99 a month, billed monthly. Legato says it takes no additional cut from payments; Stripe’s standard processing fee typically applies at 2.9% + 30¢ per US transaction.