Compare dog boarding apps

AppBuild.diy compared with 5 providers and the option to vibe code your own app: prices, fees, contracts and whether you get your own branded app.

Best for: dog boarding businesses that want their own branded app on the App Store, Google Play and the web, starting free with 0% AppBuild commission on paid plans.

Your business. Your own app.

A look inside AppBuild: branded app starter, contact and directions example, loyalty rewards example, push notification example.

See dog boarding apps

AppBuild app example showing branded app starter — AppBuild dog boarding app comparison — Branded app starter

AppBuild app example showing contact and directions example — AppBuild dog boarding app comparison — Contact and directions example

AppBuild app example showing push notification example — AppBuild dog boarding app comparison — Push notification example

Providers in this comparison

Gingr (Stay plan)
Pet care / boarding software
Revelation Pets
Pet care business software
Time To Pet (Facility)
Pet care software
RunLoyal
Pet care software with branded app
Rover
Pet sitting / boarding marketplace
Vibe coding
Build from scratch with Lovable, Claude, Base44 or similar tools

Price and features at a glance

Provider	Type	Starting price (as published)	Your own branded app	Order / booking fees	Contract / trial
AppBuild.diy	Branded app builder for local businesses	Free (up to 10 users); $49/month or $299/year; $99/month or $499/year	Yes — App Store, Google Play and web	0% AppBuild commission on paid plans; Stripe card fees apply	No contract; free plan
Vibe coding	Build from scratch with Lovable, Claude, Base44 or similar tools	Variable: AI subscriptions / credits, plus hosting, database and any paid services as usage grows. Free allowances may apply; not a fixed all-in price.	Bespoke branding and features; store packaging and submission require additional setup	Depends on your chosen payment provider and services; processing fees still apply	Depends on the tools and services you choose; free tiers may have limits
Gingr (Stay plan)	Pet care / boarding software	Stay $179/mo monthly or $154/mo annual with Integrated Payments ($209/mo without)	Shared (one Gingr pet parent app; business branding applied via invite code); included	Integrated payments add-on, rate not published	Monthly or annual (9 to 19% saving); trial not stated
Revelation Pets	Pet care business software	Silver $60/mo or $605/yr; £50/mo or £495/yr	Not stated	Integrated payment processing, rate not stated	Free trial, no card; monthly or annual
Time To Pet (Facility)	Pet care software	Facility $79/mo	Shared (Time To Pet client portal and app)	Time To Pet Payments, rate not stated	14-day free trial, no card; month to month, no contracts
RunLoyal	Pet care software with branded app	Jog $119/mo (third-party: Capterra)	Yes (branded app included on all plans per Capterra; RunLoyal site says "provides your business with a branded app")	Not stated	No free trial (third-party: Capterra)
Rover	Pet sitting / boarding marketplace	No subscription	Shared (Rover app)	UK: sitters keep 85%, owners pay 15% service fee (Rover UK help page via search; direct fetch blocked)	None

How AppBuild differs

vs Gingr: Gingr's app is a single shared Gingr app skinned per business; AppBuild publishes a separate app under the kennel's own name.
vs Revelation Pets: Revelation is booking/back-office software from $60/£50 a month; AppBuild is the customer app with loyalty and push from a free plan.
vs Time To Pet: Time To Pet clients use the Time To Pet portal/app; AppBuild's app is the boarding business's own.
vs RunLoyal: RunLoyal includes a branded app from $119/mo (third-party figure); AppBuild offers a branded app from a free plan, $49/mo Pro.
vs Rover: Rover takes a service fee on every booking; AppBuild takes zero commission.

Where AppBuild is strong

Your own branded app on the App Store, Google Play and the web, starting free with every feature for up to 10 users.
Bookings, reminders and repeat-customer offers without per-booking fees.

Where others may suit you better

No job dispatch, quoting or invoicing tools for field teams.
No marketplace listing to bring in new customers.

Key features by provider

Provider	Market	Key features	Source
Gingr (Stay plan)	US	Overnight reservations, kennel/room management, mobile app, marketing, notifications, retail	gingrapp.com, gingrapp.com
Revelation Pets	US, UK	Daycare, boarding, cattery, grooming, training, online booking, reminders, vaccine management	revelationpets.com
Time To Pet (Facility)	US	Client portal and app, invoicing, scheduling, staff GPS app, photo/video updates	timetopet.com
RunLoyal	US	Branded app, reminders, messaging, vaccination tracking, boarding, daycare, grooming	capterra.com, runloyal.com
Rover	UK, US	Marketplace listing, booking, messaging, payments	support-uk.rover.com
Vibe coding	Depends on your chosen tools	Full design freedom. Ordering, bookings, loyalty, permissions and integrations must be built, tested and maintained. Native push, certificates and store submissions need additional technical work or a service such as AppBuild.	lovable.dev, claude.com, base44.com

Gaps in published data: RunLoyal pricing page 404, figures from Capterra (a search summary gave different tiers, $49 to $299, not used). PetExec pricing not on own site. Rover US fee could not be fetched from Rover directly; UK fee from Rover's help page search snippet.

Build from scratch with AI, or start with AppBuild?

Lovable, Claude, Base44 and similar tools are a genuine alternative in any industry. A bespoke build gives you more control over the design and business logic. AppBuild offers a shorter route to launch for supported business needs, with ready-made capabilities you can add without building each one yourself.

Consideration	AppBuild.diy	Vibe coding
Time to market	Start with ready-made pages and features; configure your content and services. Store review still takes time.	A prototype can be quick; production testing, payments, permissions and store preparation add work.
Costs	Published plan price, plus applicable payment processing, store-account and third-party service costs.	Variable: AI subscriptions / credits, plus hosting, database and any paid services as usage grows. Free allowances may apply; not a fixed all-in price.
Flexibility & ease of use	Add supported capabilities such as loyalty, bookings and ordering through the builder; less freedom than a fully custom product.	Bespoke layouts and logic; each new capability needs implementation, testing and ongoing maintenance.
Push & app stores	AppBuild provides push and app infrastructure, subject to setup requirements and store approval.	Native push certificates, signing and store submissions are technical work, not automatically solved by generating a website.
Ongoing responsibility	Shared business-app framework and managed infrastructure; you manage your business content and settings.	You are responsible for security, data access, updates and the services behind your app.

These approaches can work together: build your bespoke experience with AI, then use AppBuild to wrap your app and add supported native capabilities such as push notifications. Wrapping does not automatically add AppBuild’s business features to your custom app.

Tool pricing and allowances vary: Lovable pricing · Claude pricing · Base44 pricing. Check the services your project actually needs.

AppBuild pricing

Plan	Price	What you get
Free	$0/month	Up to 10 app users. Your own app on iPhone, Android and the web.
Business	$49/month or $299/year	Up to 1,000 app users. 0% AppBuild commission on orders.
Business Pro	$99/month or $499/year	Unlimited app users. 0% AppBuild commission on orders.

Card processing fees are charged by Stripe on top of any plan and are not set by AppBuild. Full details on the pricing page.

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Last checked 7 October 2026. Competitor prices come from their own public pages, linked below each table. Where a price isn't published we say so. Spotted something out of date? Tell us via support.