Frequently asked questions

The questions that come up most, answered in a sentence or two, with a link to the full explanation. If yours is not here, Troubleshooting covers things going wrong.

About Business Box#

What is Business Box?#

Booking software for small businesses, built for Japan. You publish a booking page, it stays in step with your Google or Microsoft calendar, and you can take payment in yen through your own Stripe account. It works in English and Japanese throughout, and knows about Japanese public holidays.

Who is it for?#

Anyone who sells appointments: clinics, salons, therapists, tutors, consultants, photographers, trainers, repair services. It suits a one-person business or a small team sharing one diary.

How is it different from Calendly or Acuity?#

Three things, all of which matter if you work in Japan.

• Payment in yen, natively, into your own Stripe account, with no commission added by us.
• Japanese public holidays close your diary automatically, with no list to maintain.
• Both languages everywhere — booking pages, emails and your own event descriptions, so one page serves a Japanese and an English customer.

There is also a difference in how your own calendar is treated: if you move a booking in Google Calendar or Outlook, Business Box follows the move, re-times the reminders and frees the old slot. Most tools go on believing the original time and remind your customer about it.

Does everything work in Japanese?#

Yes. The app, booking pages and every email work in English and 日本語, and your own event names, descriptions and confirmation messages can be written in both. Your customer sees the language their browser asks for. This guide is in English for now.

Cost#

How much does it cost?#

Free, with no time limit and no card, for booking pages, calendar sync, availability, invite links and the website widget. Taking card payment for bookings online is ¥1,200 a month, tax included. Full detail: your plan and billing.

Do you take a cut of my bookings?#

No. Payments are created on your own Stripe account and the money is yours. Stripe charges its own processing fee, which is between you and Stripe.

Is the free plan limited?#

Not in the ways that usually catch people out: unlimited bookings, unlimited event types, no expiry. The one thing it does not do is take card payment online — and even then you can show a price and collect it at the appointment.

Can I cancel any time?#

Yes, from Billing → Manage subscription. It runs to the end of the period you paid for, then you are back on the free plan with nothing deleted.

Bookings#

How many different appointments can I offer?#

As many as you like, each with its own link, price, length, questions and hours.

Can customers reschedule or cancel themselves?#

Yes, from the link in their confirmation email, within the limits you set — how many times they may move it, and how close to the start. You are never limited.

Can several people book the same slot?#

No. Each slot is one appointment with one customer. Group classes and multi-person sessions are not supported yet.

Can my team share one booking page?#

Not with separate sign-ins. One account is one person's diary. A shared reception inbox can be copied on every booking through Booking notifications.

Can I take recurring or repeating bookings?#

Not yet. Each appointment is booked individually.

What about bookings taken over the phone?#

Add them yourself with Add booking on the Bookings list. Your customer still gets a confirmation, reminders and their own link to change it. See adding a booking yourself.

Calendars#

Which calendars work?#

Google Calendar, and Microsoft — Outlook.com, Hotmail, Live and Microsoft 365 work or school accounts. Connect as many as you like. Apple iCloud Calendar is not supported.

Do I have to connect a calendar?#

No, and bookings still work. But nothing in your diary blocks out times, and bookings will not appear in your calendar. It takes about a minute, so it is worth doing.

Can you see what is in my calendar?#

Business Box reads your calendar to work out when you are busy, and creates and updates the entries for your own bookings. The contents of your other appointments are never shown in the app, and an entry Business Box did not create is never altered.

Could I get double booked?#

Not through Business Box. Busy time in a conflict-checked calendar is never offered, existing bookings and their buffers are excluded, and a slot somebody is in the middle of booking is held until they finish or give up.

Payments#

What can customers pay with?#

Cards, online, through Stripe. Convenience store and PayPay payments are not available yet. Anything you accept in person — cash, your own reader, a QR code, an invoice — works with Paid in person.

Can I take a deposit rather than the full amount?#

Yes. Make the price the deposit and collect the balance at the appointment.

When do I get the money?#

It goes into your Stripe balance as soon as the payment settles, and Stripe pays out to your bank on its usual schedule. Business Box never holds it.

How do refunds work?#

Your cancellation policy decides automatically what a customer gets back when they cancel, and it is shown to them before they book and again before they confirm. You can refund any booking in full at any time, and cancelling a paid booking yourself refunds it in full. See refunds.

Can I send invoices?#

Not yet — Invoicing is a separate Business Box product marked Coming soon. For now, card payments produce a Stripe receipt for your customer, and anything else you invoice yourself.

Data and security#

Where is my data?#

See the Privacy Policy for what is collected and how it is handled, and the Terms of Service for the agreement itself.

How do I delete my account?#

Settings → Delete account. It permanently removes your account and data, cancels your subscription and cancels future bookings, and cannot be undone. Refund any paid bookings first.

Can I export my bookings?#

Not as a file yet. Your bookings are in your connected calendar, which most tools can export, and card payments are all in your Stripe dashboard.

Getting help#

How do I contact you?#

Email [email protected], in English or Japanese. Say which screen you were on and quote any error message exactly.

Something I need is missing#

Tell us — the roadmap is shaped by what people running real businesses in Japan actually ask for, and the request costs you one email.

Last reviewed 28 September 2026.