Last updated: April 2026
Researched by the CheckinPulse Research Team
CheckinPulse and Smartwaiver both offer digital waiver and form solutions, but they serve different needs. Smartwaiver (enterprise waiver management with kiosk and api capabilities) has been around since 2012 and starts at From $55/mo for 1 waiver. CheckinPulse is built specifically for small service businesses — tattoo shops, salons, vets, and gyms — with vertical-specific templates, a free tier (25 submissions/mo), and paid plans starting at $29/mo. The biggest differences: CheckinPulse offers industry-specific form templates, built-in age verification, QR code check-in, and a dark-mode UI designed for modern service businesses.
| Feature | CheckinPulse | Smartwaiver |
|---|---|---|
| Free tier | ||
| E-signatures | ||
| Mobile-first forms | ||
| QR code check-in | ||
| Age verification (18+) | ||
| Returning client auto-fill | ||
| Photo upload | ||
| White-label branding | ||
| Vertical-specific templates | ||
| Kiosk mode (iPad) | ||
| HIPAA compliance | ||
| POS integration | ||
| API access | ||
| PDF waiver storage | ||
| Dark-mode UI |
Smartwaiver is a strong choice if you are a high-volume venue — think trampoline parks, ski resorts, or large fitness chains — that processes hundreds of waivers daily and needs enterprise CRM integration. If you need Salesforce sync or a polished kiosk app on dedicated hardware, Smartwaiver delivers that.
CheckinPulse is the better fit if you are a small service business — a tattoo shop, hair salon, vet clinic, gym, or yoga studio — that wants digital intake forms without enterprise complexity or enterprise pricing. You get industry-specific templates that match your business type, a free tier to test the workflow, and paid plans that start at less than a dollar a day.
Smartwaiver targets enterprise and high-volume venues that process hundreds or thousands of waivers per day. Their pricing starts at $55/mo for a single waiver. CheckinPulse is built for small service businesses — tattoo shops, salons, vets — where $55/mo for one form is hard to justify. CheckinPulse starts free and tops out at $79/mo for unlimited everything.
Smartwaiver is primarily a waiver/liability tool, not a general intake form builder. You can put text fields on a Smartwaiver form, but it was not designed for multi-field client intake like medical history, allergies, or service preferences. CheckinPulse was built specifically for service business intake with drag-and-drop field types.
Yes — Smartwaiver has dedicated iOS and Android kiosk apps that work well for iPad setups at a front desk or entrance. This is one of Smartwaiver's strengths. CheckinPulse uses a QR code approach where clients sign on their own phone, which avoids shared-device hygiene concerns.
Yes. You can recreate your waiver in CheckinPulse using our template builder in under 10 minutes. Your existing signed waivers in Smartwaiver should be exported and stored per your retention policy before canceling.
1 form, 25 submissions per month, e-signatures with audit trails. No credit card. See if it fits your business in 5 minutes.
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