No-show rate
Also called no-show percentage, missed appointment rate.
No-show rate is the percentage of booked appointments where the customer doesn't arrive and doesn't cancel. You calculate it by dividing no-shows by total booked appointments over a set period. It tells you how much of your calendar is quietly going unpaid.
Doug's Field Guide · Updated
How to calculate it
Pick a period, like the last month. Count every appointment that was booked for that month. Count the ones where the customer didn't come and didn't cancel ahead of time. Divide the second number by the first and multiply by 100.
Say a dental office booked 400 appointments in September and 28 people didn't show. 28 divided by 400 is 0.07, so the no-show rate is 7%. Keep late cancellations as a separate count. A patient who cancels two hours out leaves the same hole as a no-show, but the fix is different.
Track it by appointment type and by how the booking came in. First visits often no-show more than regulars. Bookings made weeks ahead often no-show more than bookings made for this week. Those splits tell you where to put reminders and deposits first.
What brings it down
Reminders are the first fix. A Cochrane review of randomized trials found that text message reminders improved attendance at healthcare appointments compared to no reminder, and worked about as well as phone call reminders at a lower cost. The same idea carries to a home service visit or a salon chair. People forget, and a reminder the day before catches it.
Make cancelling easy. Many no-shows are people who meant to cancel and couldn't find a quick way. A reschedule link in the reminder turns a no-show into a moved appointment you can refill.
Ask for a deposit on long or high-value appointments. Someone who has paid is more likely to show up or cancel in time. Book closer to the date when you can, too, since a slot three weeks out is easier to forget than one on Thursday.
Measure last month's no-shows
- Pull last month's calendar and count booked appointments, no-shows and late cancellations.
- Split the no-shows by first visit versus returning customer, and look for the bigger group.
- Send a reminder the day before every appointment this week with a one-tap way to reschedule.
- Add a deposit for your longest or most expensive appointment type and compare next month's rate.
Common mistakes
- Lumping late cancellations in with no-shows, which hides which problem you actually have.
- Sending reminders with no easy way to reschedule, so people who can't make it just don't come.
- Charging deposits on every quick visit instead of the long appointments where a no-show really hurts.
How Doug does it
Doug books customers from your set hours or connected Google or Microsoft calendar, and can take a Stripe deposit at booking. Customers can reschedule or cancel with him inside the refund window you set, which turns some would-be no-shows into moved appointments. Doug does not send text reminders.
Keep exploring
- Booking depositMoney paid up front to hold an appointment, so the customer actually shows up.
- Missed call text backAn automatic text to a caller you missed, so they don't call the next shop.
- Speed to leadHow fast you answer a new inquiry. The first reply usually wins the job.
- The weekly visibility checkEach week he asks the assistants your customers' questions and counts your mentions.
Sources
Written by Doug's team from these sources and our own work with local businesses. Search engines change their rules, so check the source before a big decision.
