Buffer Time & Advance Notice

Two settings on Availability shape how tightly fans can book you:

Setting	Plain meaning
Buffer between sessions	Breathing room after each session before another slot can start
Minimum booking notice	How soon someone is allowed to book — no last-second appointments inside this window

Both apply across your booking page unless a specific booking offer sets its own buffer (see Buffer: account default vs per offer).

Part of Availability

Dashboard → Monetize → Bookings → Availability → right column, middle and bottom cards. Saved with Save changes. Overview: Availability.

Where to edit them

Card	Path
Buffer between sessions	Availability tab → right column → Buffer between sessions
Minimum booking notice	Same page → Minimum booking notice

Helper text in Flo	What it means
Flo blocks this gap after each session automatically.	Buffer spacing is applied when Flo builds time slots and when it checks conflicts
Clients can't book with less than this much notice.	Earliest bookable start time must be at least this many hours from “now”

Schedule preview (below these cards) shows pills like 15 min buffer and 24h notice so you can confirm at a glance.

Buffer between sessions

Choices in the dashboard

Option in dropdown	Meaning
No buffer	Back-to-back session start times are allowed if nothing else is in the way
10 minutes	10-minute gap enforced between slot starts
15 minutes	15-minute gap (Flo’s default for new accounts)
30 minutes	Half-hour gap
45 minutes	45-minute gap
1 hour	60-minute gap

Default if you never change it: 15 minutes.

What the buffer actually does

Flo uses your buffer in two ways fans will notice:

Spacing between offered times — After each possible start time, Flo jumps forward by session length + buffer before offering the next start. Example: 60-minute sessions with a 15-minute buffer → start times might appear at 9:00 AM, 10:15 AM, 11:30 AM, not every hour on the hour.
Blocking around existing bookings — When something is already booked (or busy on Google Calendar), Flo treats the booking as occupying the session plus the buffer after it ends. A 10:00–11:00 AM call with a 15-minute buffer blocks new slots that would overlap until 11:15 AM.

The buffer is after sessions, not before them. It is meant as recovery time — notes, bathroom, overrun — not as “arrive early” padding.

Shorter open windows feel tighter

On a 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM day, a 90-minute session with a 30-minute buffer uses 120 minutes per slot cycle. You will see fewer start times than with a 30-minute session and no buffer.

Buffer: account default vs per offer

Level	Where	When it applies
Account default	Availability → Buffer between sessions	Your main setting; used for public time slots when Flo loads times from your account defaults
Per booking offer	Bookings → Offers (create/edit offer) → Buffer time	Overrides your default buffer for this offer. Used when Flo confirms a booking for that offer (and when your Book a Session block is tied to that offer in the Builder, times on the page usually follow the offer too)

Practical tip: Set the Availability buffer to what you want most of the time. If one offer needs longer breaks (for example a 2-hour intensive), raise Buffer time on that offer only.

Offer buffer choices match Availability: No buffer, 10, 15, 30, 45, or 1 hour.

Minimum booking notice

Choices in the dashboard

Option	Meaning
1 hour	Fans cannot book a slot starting less than 1 hour from now
2 hours	2-hour lead time
4 hours	4-hour lead time
8 hours	8-hour lead time
12 hours	12-hour lead time
24 hours	24-hour lead time (Flo’s default for new accounts)
48 hours	2-day lead time
72 hours	3-day lead time

Default if you never change it: 24 hours.

What notice actually does

Flo compares each possible slot start to right now (in real time, not your timezone label). If the slot would start sooner than your notice window, it is not offered, even if that day is on your weekly schedule.

Examples:

Your notice	Effect
24 hours	Someone visiting Tuesday afternoon cannot book Wednesday 9:00 AM if that is only 19 hours away
1 hour	Same-day booking is possible if the slot is at least an hour out and still inside your open hours
72 hours	Fans must book at least three days ahead — good for prep-heavy sessions

Notice applies to every booking offer on your page. Flo does not set different notice per offer today — only the account setting on Availability.

Notice is not the same as how far ahead fans can browse

Fans can browse roughly 60 days ahead, but only see start times that are both inside your open hours and outside your notice window. The date picker also starts from tomorrow, not today — see Availability overview.

How buffer and notice work together

Both run when Flo builds the list of times on your public page. Flo works through this order:

Start with your weekly open hours (for example 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM).
Remove slots that are already in the past.
Remove slots that fall inside your minimum booking notice.
Remove slots that overlap existing Flo bookings or Google Calendar busy time (buffer counts after each event).
Offer the remaining starts, spaced by session length plus your buffer.

Session length comes from the booking offer (or your Book a Session block), not from these two cards. A 15-minute buffer with a 30-minute session behaves differently than with a 90-minute session.

Example combinations

Settings	What fans see
15-minute buffer, 24-hour notice	Common default. Book from tomorrow onward, with a short gap between offered times.
No buffer, 1-hour notice	Tighter same-day scheduling when your open hours allow it.
1-hour buffer, 48-hour notice	Fewer slots per day; fans must plan at least two days ahead.

Saving changes

Buffer and notice save with the rest of Availability:

Open Availability
Dashboard → Monetize → Bookings → Availability.
Adjust buffer and notice
Pick values that match how you actually work.
Save changes
Save changes (top right) → wait for Availability saved.
Spot-check Schedule preview
Confirm pills show the buffer and notice you expect (for example 15 min buffer, 24h notice).
Test on your live page
Open your public booking block in a private window and check that soon times are hidden and gaps look right.

Unsaved edits trigger Flo’s leave warning like the rest of the Availability page.

Suggested combinations

If you want…	Try
Standard coaching / calls	15 minutes buffer, 24 hours notice
Back-to-back short calls	No buffer or 10 minutes, 4–12 hours notice
Deep work / long sessions	30–60 minutes buffer, 48 hours notice
Same-day only when urgent	15 minutes buffer, 1–2 hours notice (you must keep open hours wide enough)
Workshop prep time	1 hour buffer on the offer or account default, 72 hours notice

Troubleshooting

Problem	What to check
Fans can book too soon	Lower is not stricter — raise minimum notice (for example 24h → 48h)
No same-day slots ever	Notice may be 24h+; open hours may end before a slot fits; date list starts tomorrow
Slots feel stacked with no break	No buffer on Availability or on the booking offer / block; Google Calendar may not add Flo buffer
Fewer times than expected on a long day	Long session duration + large buffer = fewer start times inside the window
Buffer on Availability seems ignored	Check Buffer time on the booking offer linked to your page block — it can override for display and booking
Changed settings but page unchanged	Save changes on Availability; hard-refresh your public page

Guide	Topic
Availability overview	Full Availability page
Weekly schedule	Open hours per weekday
Timezone	Which clock “now” and your hours use
Date overrides	One-off closed or special days
Bookings setup	Offers, duration, and blocks
Google Calendar	Outside busy times blocking slots

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