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6 Best Tanning Salon Software

Are you on the hunt for the best software for your tanning salon? Keep on reading to find out which of our six options best fit your needs.

    Erica Seppala
  • UPDATED

Advertiser Disclosure: Our unbiased reviews and content are supported in part by affiliate partnerships, and we adhere to strict guidelines to preserve editorial integrity.

Owning or managing a tanning salon can be hectic, but fortunately, tanning salon software can help you operate your business more efficiently. Whether you own a small independent tanning salon or you’re involved in a larger tanning salon franchise, there’s a software solution that’s right for your business.

Keep reading to learn more about software for tanning salons and why your business needs it.

Learn More About Our Top Picks

CompanyBest ForNext StepsBest For
Square POS

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  • $0/month
  • Best for small tanning salons
  • Free POS software
  • $0/month
  • Best for small tanning salons
  • Free POS software

Visit Site

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Vagaro

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  • $25-$85/month
  • Best for easy appointment booking
  • Supports numerous service providers
  • $25-$85/month
  • Best for easy appointment booking
  • Supports numerous service providers

Visit Site

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SalonTouch

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  • Contact SalonTouch Studio for pricing
  • Best for customizability
  • 500+ configurations & settings for complete customization
  • Contact SalonTouch Studio for pricing
  • Best for customizability
  • 500+ configurations & settings for complete customization

Visit Site

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Mangomint

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  • $165-$375/month
  • Best for salons with multiple service providers
  • Numerous features & integrations
  • $165-$375/month
  • Best for salons with multiple service providers
  • Numerous features & integrations

Visit Site

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Tan-Link

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  • $129-$199/month
  • Best for tanning memberships
  • Easy EFT billing for salon memberships
  • $129-$199/month
  • Best for tanning memberships
  • Easy EFT billing for salon memberships

Visit Site

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Lightspeed Retail POS

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  • $69-$199/month (with annual plan & Lightspeed Payments)
  • Best for inventory management
  • Advanced inventory management features for tracking lotions, goggles, & other products
  • $69-$199/month (with annual plan & Lightspeed Payments)
  • Best for inventory management
  • Advanced inventory management features for tracking lotions, goggles, & other products

Visit Site

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Show Fewer Options

Read more below to learn why we chose these options.

Table of Contents

What To Look For In Tanning Salon Software

Running a tanning salon can be hectic, but the right software can help you be more organized. With tanning salon software, you’ll be able to avoid mistakes (such as overbooking appointments and forgetting to collect membership payments), while also boosting customer satisfaction.

Before you invest in new software, here are a few key features to look for in tanning salon software:

1. Point Of Sale

Your tanning salon software should offer point of sale (POS) functionality. This will allow you to take customer payments for tanning services, retail products, and other purchases. A good POS system will allow you to easily accept cash, credit cards, debit cards, and even mobile and contactless payments like Apple Pay and Google Pay.

2. Inventory Management

Many tanning salons sell retail products including tanning lotions, bronzers, moisturizers, UV tanning goggles, and other items. An inventory management system allows you to easily keep track of inventory, while the best systems offer features like low stock alerts and automatic reorder points.

3. Scheduling & Appointments

Your tanning software should make it easy for you, your employees, and your customers to make, reschedule, and cancel appointments. Having this system in place helps keep your salon organized without overbooking service providers or tanning rooms. Automated appointment confirmations and reminders through email or text messaging are also good features to look for.

4. Customer Loyalty Program

Reward your most loyal customers by setting up a customer loyalty program, such as earning points to redeem toward products or services or getting a free product or service after a certain number of visits. Find software that allows you to easily create and customize a loyalty program, as well as track and redeem customer points.

5. Gift Cards

Earn extra revenue by selling gift cards or gift certificates for your products or services. There are plenty of software options that allow you to easily create, reload, and redeem physical gift cards, while you can also set up an online store for purchasing digital gift cards.

6. Employee Management

Your tanning salon software should at least have basic employee management features. Features to look for include employee scheduling, integrated time clocks and time cards, and multiple user permissions.

7. Packages & Discounts

Many tanning salons offer discounted packages for multiple tanning sessions, as well as discounts for holidays, new customers, and referrals. Look for software that makes it easy to set up packages and apply coupons and discounts.

8. Memberships, & Recurring Billing

If your salon has monthly memberships (i.e., unlimited tanning for $50/month), you’ll want software that simplifies signing up customers and tracking memberships. Some of the best tanning salon software on the market also offers recurring billing and may even resolve billing issues for you, so you can spend more time growing your business instead of chasing down monthly payments.

The Best Software For Tanning Salons

The best tanning salon software should include payment processing, appointment scheduling, inventory management, customer loyalty, and other features. Start your search with these options from Square, Vagaro, SalonTouch Studio, Tan-Link, and Lightspeed Retail.

1. Square: Best For Small Tanning Salons

Square POS


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Get a free card swiper from Square at no cost when you create a free account. Claim your card reader.

Pros

  • Intuitive UI
  • Easy to use
  • Multi-store capability

Cons

  • Limited customizability
  • Limited payment gateway integrations

square appointments

Square Features

Square offers the basic features you need to run your tanning salon. Additional features are also available as add-ons. Features worth noting that could benefit your business include:

  • POS with contactless payments
  • Booking with Square Appointments
  • Basic inventory management with daily stock alerts
  • User permissions
  • Integrated employee time clock and time cards
  • Free online store
  • Gift cards (add-on)
  • Loyalty program (add-on)
  • Reports

Square Pricing

One of the best things about Square is that its POS software is completely free. If you need more advanced features, paid add-0ns are available. This includes Square Loyalty starting at $45/month, email marketing for $15/month, and physical gift cards starting at $0.80 each. Square Payroll and upgrades for your Square online store are also available to purchase. Check out our guide to Square pricing for more details.

Square Hardware Cost

You can get started with Square with a free magstripe card reader. You can also purchase additional card readers and equipment, including the Square Stand for iPad and the dual-display Square Register. Pricing ranges from $10 to $799.

Square Payment Processing

When you sign up for Square, you will also be signing up for Square’s integrated payment processing. Square has rates of 2.6% + $0.10 for in-person transactions, 2.9% + $0.30 for online transactions, and 3.5% + $0.15 for keyed-in transactions.

Contract Requirements/Warnings

Square offers month-to-month contracts, and you can cancel at any time. There is an option to lease equipment, but we generally advise against doing that and recommend purchasing your equipment outright.

Where Square Really Shines For Tanning Salons

Square doesn’t have all of the tanning salon-specific features you’ll find with other software on this list. However, it does offer plenty of features that smaller, independently-owned tanning salons will find useful, including payment processing, appointments, and inventory management. The software is also completely free, although many salon owners may find it beneficial to sign up for Square’s paid (but affordable) add-ons.

Get Started With Square POS

Read our in-depth review

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2. Vagaro: Best For Easy Appointment Booking

Vagaro


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Pros

  • Numerous features
  • Intuitive UI
  • Accounting & payroll integrations

Cons

  • Add-ons can drive up pricing
  • Moderate learning curve

vagaro scheduling

Vagaro Features

Vagaro is loaded with over 100 features, and add-ons are also available to help you customize the software to fit the needs of your tanning salon, spa, yoga studio, or other business. Standout features include:

  • POS with integrated payment processing
  • Customizable scheduling for multiple service providers
  • Online booking
  • Customer profiles
  • Invoicing
  • List your business for free in the Vagaro Marketplace
  • Inventory management
  • Set up packages and discounts
  • Automated email and text message reminders and confirmations
  • Drag-and-drop rescheduling
  • Recurring appointments
  • Recurring memberships with autopay
  • Customer waitlist
  • Online store
  • Website builder add-on
  • 1,000 free email marketing messages per month
  • Mobile apps for Android and iOS
  • Gift cards
  • Payroll integration with Gusto, QuickBooks, and Xero
  • Reports

Vagaro Pricing

Pricing ranges from $25 to $85/month depending on the number of bookable calendars you need for your tanning salon. Add-ons are available starting at $10/month. Available add-ons include text message marketing, forms, a check-in app for clients, and an online store.

Vagaro Hardware Cost

You can receive a free contactless card reader if you sign up for Vagaro Merchant Services. Or you can purchase other equipment including swivel stands, docks, and the dual-screen Vagaro Pay Desk. Contact Vagaro for pricing.

Vagaro Payment Processing

You can accept payments from your customers by signing up for Vagaro Merchant Services. Rates are 2.75% per swipe or 3.5% + $0.15 for keyed-in transactions. Larger merchants with over $4,000 in sales per month can pay $10/month and receive rates of 2.2% + $0.19 per swipe or 3% + $0.19 for keyed-in transactions.

Contract Requirements/Warnings

There are no long-term contract requirements with Vagaro. Additionally, Vagaro does not charge cancellation fees, signup fees, PCI-compliance fees, setup fees, or contract fees.

Where Vagaro Really Shines For Tanning Salons

Vagaro makes it easy to get your tanning salon ready to accept online appointments. The software makes it just as easy for current and potential clients to find your business and book an appointment. Vagaro is ideal for salons that have multiple service providers and offers numerous other features to simplify running your business.

Get Started With Vagaro

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3. SalonTouch Studio: Best For Customizability

SalonTouch


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Pros

  • Intuitive UI
  • Scalable
  • Highly customizable

Cons

  • Limited payment gateway integrations
  • Nontransparent pricing

salontouch studio tanning software

SalonTouch Studio Features

SalonTouch Studio has a number of great features tailored specifically to tanning salons. Notable features include:

  • EMV-compliant POS
  • EFT processing
  • Barcode system for selling products or services
  • Kiosk option for self check-ins
  • Easy appointment booking and rescheduling
  • Automated emails and text messages
  • Timer settings for UV tanning
  • Automated discounts
  • Inventory management
  • Low stock alerts
  • Customizable activity screen that shows you occupied rooms, status of employees, and rooms that need cleaned or maintained
  • Employee management features including scheduling, time cards, tasks, and goals
  • Vendor tracking
  • Multiple commission structures
  • Gift cards
  • Marketing tools
  • 250+ reports

SalonTouch Studio Pricing

SalonTouch Studio offers numerous configurations customized for your business, so unfortunately, pricing is not disclosed online. Contact SalonTouch Studio to learn more about software pricing.

SalonTouch Studio Hardware Cost

SalonTouch Studio features a list of compatible hardware on its website, including Star Micronics receipt printers, HP all-in-ones, and Digital Personal biometrics devices. Get in touch with a sales professional for more information on pricing. Some third-party hardware may also be compatible with SalonTouch Studio software.

SalonTouch Studio Payment Processing

SalonTouch Studio offers two payment processing options. Worldpay is available for customers in the US, while Bluefin is an option that’s available to users in the US and Canada.

Contract Requirements/Warnings

Because SalonTouch Studio offers a customized solution for each business, you will need to inquire about contract requirements before signing up.

Where SalonTouch Studio Really Shines For Tanning Salons

SalonTouch Studio is truly a customized solution for tanning salons, as well as businesses that offer multiple services including spray tanning, salon services, cryotherapy, and massages. In addition to numerous features designed for tanning salons, this Windows-based system also boasts custom user permissions and over 500 configurations and settings to fit the needs of businesses of any size, including franchises.

Get Started With SalonTouch

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4. Mangomint: Best For Salons With Multiple Service Providers

Mangomint


Visit Site

Pros

  • Easy to use
  • Good customer support
  • Multi-store capability

Cons

  • Limited payment gateway integrations
  • Potentially expensive monthly cost

mangomint scheduling

Mangomint Features

Mangomint comes loaded with the features you need to efficiently operate your tanning salon. Highlights include:

  • POS
  • Online booking
  • Mobile apps for iOS and Android
  • Integrated payment processing
  • Text booking links to clients with Express Booking
  • Route payments directly to other service providers
  • Simplify online appointments with Mangomint’s booking widget
  • Flexible staff scheduling
  • Detailed user permissions
  • Inventory tracking
  • Recurring memberships
  • Automated billing
  • Gift cards
  • Client database
  • Access past appointments and purchase history with client timelines
  • Automated appointment confirmations and reminders
  • Easily create service packages and discounted bundles
  • Create membership perks and benefits
  • Reports

Mangomint Pricing

Mangomint has three pricing plans that range from $165/month to $375/month. The more expensive plans support additional service providers and offer advanced features. Add-ons are also available starting at $25/month. This includes integrated forms and integrations with Mailchimp, WaiverForever, Shopify, and Webhooks. Additional locations can be added starting at $95/month.

Mangomint Hardware Cost

Mangomint offers a front desk display that uses an iPad and card reader, or you can purchase a Bluetooth card reader that can be used with your iPhone. Hardware pricing starts at $100. Contact Mangomint for more details.

Mangomint Payment Processing

To accept payments, you can sign up for the Mangomint Pay integrated payment processing solution. In-person rates are 2.4% + $0.15 for in-person transactions and 2.8% + $0.20 for virtual transactions. Volume discounts are available for salons that process over $50,000 per month.

Contract Requirements/Warnings

Mangomint offers monthly plans, so there are no long-term contracts. You can cancel your subscription at any time.

Where Mangomint Really Shines For Tanning Salons

Mangomint is great for salons with multiple service providers (i.e., spray tan technicians, masseuses, and stylists). Its lowest-priced plan supports up to 10 service providers, while its most expensive plan supports unlimited users. The software has advanced features, integrations, and add-ons, as well as no set-up fees, free data import, and month-to-month pricing plans.

Get Started With Mangomint

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5. Tan-Link: Best For Tanning Memberships

Tan-Link


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Pros

  • Numerous features
  • Easy to use
  • Highly customizable

Cons

  • Limited payment gateway integrations
  • May be too expensive for smaller businesses

tan-link tanning salon dashboard

Tan-Link Features

Tan-Link has a nice set of features designed specifically for tanning salons. Features worth noting include:

  • POS system
  • Appointments
  • Curbside check-in
  • Connects to T-Max timers
  • Real-time tanning bed status
  • Digital contracts and waivers
  • Loyalty program
  • Employee management
  • Inventory management with product-specific settings and detailed reporting
  • Custom-branded gift cards and gift certificates
  • Online store to sell memberships, lotions, gift cards, and other products and services
  • Recurring EFT and membership billing
  • Automated text messaging
  • Email and text message marketing
  • Remote access from Tan-Link’s web-based system

Tan-Link Pricing

Tan-Link has three pricing plans that range from $129 to $199/month per location. Add-ons include a kiosk mode for 24-hour salons and custom security options. An enterprise add-on with custom migration, special reports, and other features is available to add to your plan starting at $250/month per location.

Tan-Link Hardware Cost

One of the best things about Tan-Link is that you can be flexible with hardware. The company recommends you use an iPad, a card reader, and a USB serial adapter. If desired, other components can be added to your system, including a desktop computer, 2D barcode scanner, and iPad stand.

Tan-Link Payment Processing

Tan-Link does offer integrated payment processing. Unfortunately, the company does not disclose information about rates on its website. Contact Tan-Link for pricing and to learn more.

Contract Requirements/Warnings

Unfortunately, Tan-Link does not offer any information on its software contracts through its website. You will need to contact Tan-Link to learn more and schedule your software demo.

Where Tan-Link Really Shines For Tanning Salons

If your tanning salon offers memberships and packages, you’ll find everything you need with Tan-Link. This software eliminates the need for paper contracts and waivers by making everything digital. Tan-Link makes creating packages easy, setting up membership options, and enabling package sharing. You can also easily set up EFT billing, and Tan-Link’s billing system will use re-billing and text notifications to resolve billing issues for you.

Get Started With Tan-Link

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6. Lightspeed Retail: Best For Inventory Management

Lightspeed Retail POS


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Limited time offer. Sign up to Lightspeed by March 31st and get up to $1,500 in complimentary hardware. Claim this offer today.

Pros

  • Advanced inventory management
  • Gift cards
  • eCommerce integration
  • Loyalty program

Cons

  • Potentially expensive monthly cost
  • Moderate learning curve
  • Early termination fee

lightspeed retail inventory

Lightspeed Retail Features

Lightspeed Retail boasts a number of great features making it a suitable software solution for tanning salons. Lightspeed Retail stands out for its advanced inventory, but the software offers even more, including:

  • POS to accept all payment types, including contactless payments
  • Online appointment booking
  • Automated appointment confirmations and reminders
  • Advanced inventory management with custom tags, purchase order management, item variations, and multistore capabilities
  • Easy returns and exchanges
  • Gift cards and gift certificates
  • Lightspeed Loyalty program to reward customers
  • Built-in marketing and SEO tools
  • Basic employee management, including a time clock and customizable roles
  • Reports

Lightspeed Retail Pricing

Lightspeed Retail plans range from $69/month to $199/month if you sign up for an annual plan and Lightspeed Payments. Pricing increases from $89/month to $269/month if you sign up for a monthly plan.

These subscription prices are for users who agree to use Lightspeed Payments, Lightspeed’s in-house payment processor. It will cost an extra $50/month to use a third-party payment processor.

Each plan includes one terminal, with additional terminals adding $59/terminal/month to your bill.

Lightspeed Retail Hardware Cost

Lightspeed sells a wide assortment of hardware, including iPad and desktop kits and individual components, such as card readers, barcode scanners, and mobile terminals. Contact Lightspeed for more information about hardware options and pricing.

Lightspeed Retail Payment Processing

You can sign up for Lightspeed Payments for integrated payment processing (and a discount on your Lightspeed Retail plan). Rates for Lightspeed Payments are 2.6% + $0.10 for tapped, inserted, or swiped transactions and 2.6% + $0.30 for keyed-in transactions.

Lightspeed Retail also integrates with 2Accept, TSYS, and Worldpay, but you’ll have to pay an extra $50/month to do so. This extra fee could be worth it for large businesses that can get lower fees with a custom payment processing rate from a third-party payments provider.

Contract Requirements/Warnings

You can sign up for Lightspeed Retail on a month-to-month or annual basis. To get the lowest monthly pricing, you will need to sign up for an annual plan. However, you will be charged an early termination fee if you decide to cancel your plan early, so consider signing up for a monthly plan until you’re completely sure that Lightspeed is the POS system for you.

If you’re on the monthly plan, you will need to contact Lightspeed within 30 days of your next payment term to avoid being charged for an additional month.

If you purchase hardware from Lightspeed, you must confirm that you have received it within five business days. Otherwise, your hardware will not be covered under Lightspeed’s hardware warranty (14 days for Apple products and 30 days for non-Apple products).

You will pay an extra $50/month to integrate Lightspeed with an outside payment processor, but again, it may be worth it if you can save a substantial amount on payment processing fees.

Where Lightspeed Retail Really Shines For Tanning Salons

Lightspeed Retail’s inventory management features make it a great option for tanning salons that carry lots of inventory. If retail sales make up a large portion of your profits, you’ll want software that can easily track inventory, manage purchase orders, and offers other advanced inventory features — all things you can find with Lightspeed Retail.

Get Started With Lightspeed Retail POS

Read our in-depth review

Jump back to comparison chart

Why We Don't Recommend These Options

TanTrack

On paper, TanTrack seems like a solid choice in tanning salon software. It boasts over 5,000 clients, offers hundreds of reports, and has a number of useful features. Unfortunately, the software has very few user reviews — and some of the reviews it does have point out issues with the software including bugs and glitches, hidden charges, subpar tech support, and unreliable connections.

Which Tan Salon Software Is Right For Your Business?

When choosing tanning salon software for your business, there are a few things to remember. Your monthly budget, the size of your business (and whether you have one or multiple locations), the services provided in your tanning salon, and the features you need are all factors to keep in mind when selecting your software. Before committing to one program, make sure to take advantage of any free plans, free trials, or software demos to help you make your decision.

If you didn’t find what you were looking for here, check out our other great Merchant Maverick resources.

Whether you need POS software for your spa or salon or want more choices when it comes to retail POS systems, we’ve got you covered. Good luck!

FAQs: Tanning Salon Software

What is tanning salon software?

Tanning salon software offers features to easily and more efficiently operate your business. Key features include appointment booking, payment processing, recurring billing for memberships, and inventory management to track your retail products.

What is the best POS software for a tanning salon?

The best POS software for a tanning salon should be easy to use, allow you to accept multiple types of payments from customers, and offer the features you need for your business, such as appointment booking and inventory tracking. POS software like Square may be a good fit for smaller salons that don’t need advanced features. For larger salons with multiple locations, software with features specific to the tanning industry, like Mangomint or Tan-Link, could be the better choice.

How do you schedule a tanning appointment?

Tanning appointments are scheduled easily using tanning software. This software allows you to book appointments for customers that contact you through email, in-person, or by phone. Many programs also provide you with an online booking site so customers can schedule their own appointments.

In Summary: The Best Software For Tanning Salons

  1. Square POS:
    • $0/month
    • Best for small tanning salons
    • Free POS software
  2. Vagaro:
    • $25-$85/month
    • Best for easy appointment booking
    • Supports numerous service providers
  3. SalonTouch:
    • Contact SalonTouch Studio for pricing
    • Best for customizability
    • 500+ configurations & settings for complete customization
  4. Mangomint:
    • $165-$375/month
    • Best for salons with multiple service providers
    • Numerous features & integrations
  5. Tan-Link:
    • $129-$199/month
    • Best for tanning memberships
    • Easy EFT billing for salon memberships
  6. Lightspeed Retail POS:
    • $69-$199/month (with annual plan & Lightspeed Payments)
    • Best for inventory management
    • Advanced inventory management features for tracking lotions, goggles, & other products
Erica Seppala

Erica Seppala

Expert Analyst & Reviewer at Merchant Maverick
An expert in accounting, finance, and point of sale, Erica has been researching and writing about all things small-business since 2018. Erica's insights into personal and business finance have been cited in numerous publications, including MSN, Real Simple, and Reader's Digest. She is a graduate of Limestone College.
Erica Seppala
View Erica Seppala's professional experience on LinkedIn.

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The vendors that appear on this list were chosen by subject matter experts on the basis of product quality, wide usage and availability, and positive reputation.

Merchant Maverick’s ratings are editorial in nature, and are not aggregated from user reviews. Each staff reviewer at Merchant Maverick is a subject matter expert with experience researching, testing, and evaluating small business software and services. The rating of this company or service is based on the author’s expert opinion and analysis of the product, and assessed and seconded by another subject matter expert on staff before publication. Merchant Maverick’s ratings are not influenced by affiliate partnerships.

Our unbiased reviews and content are supported in part by affiliate partnerships, and we adhere to strict guidelines to preserve editorial integrity. The editorial content on this page is not provided by any of the companies mentioned and has not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities. Opinions expressed here are author’s alone.

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