BIZ IT - Yelp Launches the New Yelp Assistant

Transforming Local Discovery from Search to Answers and Actions - The new AI-powered Yelp Assistant works across every category on Yelp and helps consumers book, order and schedule in one conversation

SAN FRANCISCO, USA - (BUSINESS WIRE)

Saturday May 23, 2026

Yelp Inc. the company that connects people with great local businesses, announced its Spring Product Release, introducing more than 35 new features and updates that transform how consumers discover, connect and get things done with local businesses. The release unveils the new Yelp Assistant, an AI-powered chatbot that delivers instant answers, reliable recommendations and seamless booking-from restaurant reservations to beauty appointments-all in one conversation. New integrations with Vagaro, Zocdoc and Calendly expand scheduling capabilities across more categories on Yelp, while enhancements to AI-powered Menu Vision make deciding what to order more visual and engaging. The release also introduces new tools for advertisers, including an AI-powered support chatbot and enhanced advertising tools.

"The new Yelp Assistant is our most significant AI product evolution yet as we reconceive Yelp around instant answers and seamless actions," said Craig Saldanha, chief product officer at Yelp. "The experiences and opinions from real people that power every recommendation are what sets Yelp Assistant apart, delivering trustworthy results that help consumers make confident decisions, faster. And for the first time, consumers can seamlessly move from discovery to action in a single conversation with new and enhanced integrations-from booking a table, to ordering delivery or scheduling an appointment. As we transform Yelp with AI, this is only the beginning of a more conversational, personalized and action-oriented Yelp experience."

Discover and get things done across every category with AI-powered Yelp Assistant

First introduced to help consumers hire services professionals and answer questions about individual businesses, Yelp Assistant now works across every category on Yelp and is accessible at the center of the app through a new "Assistant" tab on iOS and Android. Powered by hundreds of millions of reviews, photos and detailed business information from the Yelp community, Yelp Assistant can handle complex and highly specific requests and surfaces real user-generated content from first-hand experiences in answers to validate each recommendation.

New and existing integrations make it easy to go from discovery to doing, directly from the app:

Reserve a table at thousands of restaurants that use Yelp Guest Manager for table booking, with the ability to join a Yelp Waitlist coming soon.

Order takeout or delivery from more than half a million restaurants through DoorDash, Yelp's preferred partner, as well as Grubhub and other food delivery platforms.

Request a quote from professionals across more than 450 categories, including home, local, auto, beauty, pet and event services.

Book appointments through integrations with Vagaro on iOS for beauty, wellness and fitness businesses, Zocdoc on iOS for healthcare providers, RepairPal for auto shops and, later this summer, Calendly for service professionals.

More ways to book, order and schedule on Yelp

The new integrations available through Yelp Assistant are now also accessible throughout the Yelp app, making it easier than ever for consumers to take action across the platform. New partnerships with Vagaro, Zocdoc and Calendly bring booking, ordering and scheduling capabilities to more categories.

Vagaro: Consumers can now book beauty and wellness appointments-such as haircuts, massages and nail services-on Yelp through a new integration with Vagaro, a leading salon, spa and fitness marketplace. Available on iOS, the Vagaro integration will be available on Android and desktop later this year.

Zocdoc: For the first time, consumers can go from finding to booking a doctor on Yelp through a new integration with Zocdoc, the healthcare access platform that connects patients to great care. Available on iOS, the Zocdoc integration will be coming to Android and desktop later this year.

Calendly: Service professionals can now connect their Calendly schedules to Yelp, allowing consumers to book consultations and appointments seamlessly.

"Through our expanded integration with Yelp, we're making it easier than ever for consumers to move from discovery to booking in just a few taps," said Fred Helou, CEO of Vagaro. "By connecting Yelp's powerful search and recommendation platform with Vagaro's robust scheduling capabilities, beauty, wellness and fitness businesses can capture high-intent customers at the exact moment they're ready to book. We're excited to partner with Yelp to deliver a more seamless, end-to-end experience that benefits both businesses and their clients."

"Booking a doctor's appointment should be just as easy as booking dinner," said Oliver Kharraz, MD, founder and CEO of Zocdoc. "Integrating Zocdoc's healthcare access infrastructure into Yelp is another step toward making access to in-network care simple and immediate, wherever patients begin their search."

"Scheduling should be the easiest part of winning a new customer," said Chirag Chheda, CTO of Calendly. "Our integration with Yelp makes that a reality for service professionals by bringing Calendly's real-time availability directly into the conversation when a customer is ready to book. This partnership represents a deeper expansion into home services, connecting our scheduling platform with one of the largest marketplaces where high intent consumers discover and connect with businesses every day. We're excited to help service pros on Yelp turn more leads into appointments with less effort."

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