# An AI chatbot that books appointments in the chat

> An AI agent that books appointments in chat on WhatsApp, Telegram and your website, from your real open times, into Google Calendar.

Canonical: https://heykiko.io/features/appointment-booking
Last updated: 2026-11-05

Kiko offers your real open times, books the one the customer picks and confirms it in the same chat, on your website, WhatsApp and Telegram. Confirmed bookings go into your Google Calendar, and busy times there are never offered.

## How a booking works

1. **The customer asks**: “Can I book a consultation on Saturday?”, in their own words, on any channel.
2. **Kiko offers open times**: Only times inside your hours and rules, minus anything busy in your Google Calendar, shown as buttons on the web, a list on WhatsApp and a keyboard on Telegram.
3. **The customer picks one**: Kiko books only a time the customer chose, never one it picked itself, and fills in the name and contact details it already knows.
4. **It's confirmed**: Straight away, or pending until you confirm it, as you choose. Confirmed bookings go into your Google Calendar.

Included on every plan, after a 14-day free trial.

## What customers can do in the chat

- **Book**: Choose an appointment type, such as a 30-minute consultation, and a time that's really open.
- **Move or cancel their own booking**: By asking Kiko in the same chat; it happens straight away. A second booking needs them to ask for one.
- **Book during a call**: On plans with WhatsApp calls, Kiko can book while the customer is on the phone.
- **Hear back in the same chat**: When you confirm, cancel or move a booking, the customer is told in the chat they booked from, on whichever channel that was.

## What your team gets

- **One list of bookings**: Every booking from every channel in Bookings, with the chat it came from.
- **Confirm by hand, if you want**: Bookings wait as pending until someone confirms them; bookings your team makes are confirmed straight away.
- **Google Calendar both ways**: Busy times in the calendars you choose are never offered, and confirmed bookings are added to your calendar.
- **The customer's details**: Name, phone and email the customer gave, and their WhatsApp number without asking for it.
- **Your time zone, always**: Times are shown to customers and to your team in your business's time zone, wherever your server or customer is.
- **Hand-off when it's not simple**: If a customer needs a person, the chat goes to your shared inbox with the booking conversation in it.

## What you can set

In Bookings in the sidebar, with Appointment types and Booking settings beside it, for each agent.

| Setting | What it does |
| --- | --- |
| Appointment types | Each with a name, a length, and a description that tells Kiko when to offer it. |
| Opening hours | Per weekday. Until you save your own, weekdays 09:00 to 17:00. |
| Closed days | Holidays and days off, on top of your weekly hours. |
| Book at least | Any time, or from 30 minutes up to 2 days ahead. |
| Book up to | 7, 14, 30, 60 or 90 days ahead; 14 by default. |
| Gap between | No gap, or from 5 minutes to an hour between appointments. |
| Confirming | Confirm automatically, or confirm each one yourself; the customer is told once you do. |
| How times are offered | Show a few open times to tap (the default), or ask the customer for a time and check it. |
| Where people can book | On or off for your website chat, WhatsApp (chat and calls) and Telegram. |
| Calendars that block times | Which of your Google calendars count as busy. |

## Good to know

- **Google Calendar only**: HeyKiko connects to Google Calendar. Outlook, Calendly and Cal.com aren't connected; without a calendar, bookings live in HeyKiko and Kiko still offers only open times.
- **No reminders yet**: HeyKiko doesn't send a reminder before the appointment yet. Customers are told when a booking is confirmed, moved or cancelled.
- **Kiko can't book a time on its own**: A booking is made only for a time the customer chose in the chat. That rule is in the code, not just in Kiko's instructions.
- **WhatsApp's 24-hour window**: Telling a WhatsApp customer that a booking was confirmed or moved is a free-text message, so it reaches them within 24 hours of their last message. Source: [Meta: customer service windows](https://developers.facebook.com/docs/whatsapp/cloud-api/guides/send-messages#customer-service-windows)

## How other tools handle it

From each tool's own pricing and product pages, checked 4 November 2026.

| Tool | Appointment booking |
| --- | --- |
| HeyKiko | Yes, every plan |
| Chatbase | Partly: Cal.com or Calendly |
| SiteGPT | No |
| Tidio | No |
| Respond.io | Yes: Growth and up |
| Intercom Fin | No (not mentioned) |
| Botpress | Yes: Through integrations |

## Questions about appointment booking

### Can an AI chatbot book appointments?

Yes. Kiko offers your real open times in the chat, books the one the customer picks and confirms it, on your website, WhatsApp and Telegram. Confirmed bookings go into your Google Calendar.

### Does it work with Google Calendar?

Yes. Busy times in the Google calendars you choose are never offered, and confirmed bookings are added to your calendar. Outlook, Calendly and Cal.com aren't connected.

### Can customers book appointments on WhatsApp?

Yes. On WhatsApp, open times appear as a list the customer taps, and the booking is confirmed in the same chat. Kiko already knows their WhatsApp number, so it doesn't ask for it.

### Can I approve bookings before they're confirmed?

Yes. Set bookings to be confirmed by hand, and each customer booking waits as pending until someone confirms it. Only confirmed bookings go to your Google Calendar.

### Can customers cancel or reschedule in the chat?

Yes. A customer can ask Kiko to move or cancel their own booking, and it happens straight away. When your team changes a booking, the customer is told in the chat they booked from.

### Does HeyKiko send appointment reminders?

Not yet. Customers are told when a booking is confirmed, moved or cancelled, but there is no reminder before the appointment today.

### Which plans include appointment booking?

Booking is on every plan, after a 14-day free trial with no card.

## Related

- [Clinics](https://heykiko.io/solutions/clinics)
- [Salons and spas](https://heykiko.io/solutions/salons-and-spas)
- [WhatsApp AI chatbot](https://heykiko.io/channels/whatsapp-ai-chatbot)
- [WhatsApp AI voice agent](https://heykiko.io/channels/whatsapp-ai-voice-agent)
- [Pricing](https://heykiko.io/pricing)
- [Human hand-off](https://heykiko.io/features/human-handoff)
- [Shared inbox](https://heykiko.io/features/shared-inbox)
- [Train on your website and files](https://heykiko.io/features/train-on-your-website)
- [Lead capture](https://heykiko.io/features/lead-capture)
- [Live answers from your database](https://heykiko.io/features/database-answers)
- [Product recommendations](https://heykiko.io/features/product-answers)
- [Cases and approvals](https://heykiko.io/features/cases-and-approvals)
- [Test and tune your agent](https://heykiko.io/features/test-your-agent)
- [Knowledge access by role](https://heykiko.io/features/knowledge-access)
- [Ask Kiko](https://heykiko.io/features/ask-kiko)
- [Privacy controls](https://heykiko.io/features/privacy-controls)