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Group fitness business model
- Thread starter umpe
- Start date
I've seen anywhere from $5 - $20 for drop-in sessions for classes. Usually, if you buy a punch card or membership, the price per session goes down. Some facilities have a gym plus they also offer group fitness classes; your membership often covers the gym and the classes, but yoga and pilates are sometimes extra. Other facilities are based on group fitness alone, and I find that they are often on the more expensive side because they don't have the residual income from gym memberships (and counting on people not actually using them). Usually, you can do anything from a single drop-in, to a punch card or monthly memberships.
Each instructor may have a different deal with the facility where they work. Some work only as contractors and may teach classes at many different facilities throughout the week. Others may be employees of the facility and get paid an hourly wage, but this wage is usually much lower per hour than for an hour that a contract instructor gets paid. Employees would also have many different 'jobs' at the facility such as admin work, personal training clients, etc., because they could not possibly just teach classes hour after hour.
Each instructor may have a different deal with the facility where they work. Some work only as contractors and may teach classes at many different facilities throughout the week. Others may be employees of the facility and get paid an hourly wage, but this wage is usually much lower per hour than for an hour that a contract instructor gets paid. Employees would also have many different 'jobs' at the facility such as admin work, personal training clients, etc., because they could not possibly just teach classes hour after hour.
Thank you for all the information. That rounds the picture out.
Regarding the instructor pay range: An employee teaching an included class (aerobics maybe) might be paid as low as $10 for the hour (Just guessing, but hopefully they get some $50-hours of personal training). If a renowned contractor teaches pilates to 30 people at $20/ , how is the $600 divided? Are those numbers realistic? Would it be a one-hour class or longer? How often would such a class take place (daily, weekly, special event of the month)?
Regarding the instructor pay range: An employee teaching an included class (aerobics maybe) might be paid as low as $10 for the hour (Just guessing, but hopefully they get some $50-hours of personal training). If a renowned contractor teaches pilates to 30 people at $20/ , how is the $600 divided? Are those numbers realistic? Would it be a one-hour class or longer? How often would such a class take place (daily, weekly, special event of the month)?
It really depends on the deal that the individual has worked out with the facility. Some instructors want a guaranteed amount per session that they teach, no matter how many people show up. Just for an average guess, they may charge the facility anywhere from $20-50 per class that they teach, depending on what they've agreed upon. OR, they may want a percentage. So using your example above of $20 per participant and 30 participants per class, it's possible that the instructor may work out a deal where they receive, say, 30%... so they would get $180 for that session. The downside is that if only 5 people show up, they only get $30. Still not a bad deal, but you just don't know what your income will be and you're not working consistently, so your actual dollars per hour earned goes down quickly. I honestly don't know what a realistic percentage per hour is for an instructor. More often than not, I'll hear about people charging a set rate per hour. If you teach at more than one facility, you may make a different amount per hour at each place.
As for the length of time of the class and how often it occurs...that's totally up to the demand of the fitness facility.
As for the length of time of the class and how often it occurs...that's totally up to the demand of the fitness facility.
In some gyms, group classes are free (well, paid for as part of the regular membership). In others, the member shave to pay extra for classes, typically in the vein of $10-20. Instructors could be paid a set fee taken from membership costs. They could be paid different amounts based on how many people show up (eg $30/hr + $5 for every 10 people who join the class, or something like that). They could get set pay, but be subject to pay rises if people consistently show up. They could get paid a commission of whatever people spend on the class (eg if 40 people pay $20 to do a class, that's $800, and the instructor might get a 5-20% commission).
I am a group fitness instructor and I have experience working for a civic facility, a non profit facility and private groups.
Civic facility
all group fitness classes are included in membership fee or drop in facility rate
instructors for group fitness (not including yoga) are paid $17.75/hour (basically per class)
yoga instructors are paid $20/class because they are in higher demand and require additional training
Non profit facility
most group fitness classes are included in membership fee or drop in facility rate (yoga and zumba are an additional fee)
regular aquafitness and land instructors are paid $15/class, yoga instructors are paid $25/class and I don't know what the zumba instructors are paid.
Private Group
you can charge what ever you want - you need to factor in things like cost of equipment, renal space, insurance, your membership and continuing education fees, market value of the class, etc
I also worked at a civic centre and if an instructor didn't show up and I was certified to teach the class I would teach but not get any addition pay (just my regular pay) as it was included in my duties.
As a contract instructor I also was given a free membership to the facility.
Civic facility
all group fitness classes are included in membership fee or drop in facility rate
instructors for group fitness (not including yoga) are paid $17.75/hour (basically per class)
yoga instructors are paid $20/class because they are in higher demand and require additional training
Non profit facility
most group fitness classes are included in membership fee or drop in facility rate (yoga and zumba are an additional fee)
regular aquafitness and land instructors are paid $15/class, yoga instructors are paid $25/class and I don't know what the zumba instructors are paid.
Private Group
you can charge what ever you want - you need to factor in things like cost of equipment, renal space, insurance, your membership and continuing education fees, market value of the class, etc
I also worked at a civic centre and if an instructor didn't show up and I was certified to teach the class I would teach but not get any addition pay (just my regular pay) as it was included in my duties.
As a contract instructor I also was given a free membership to the facility.
My Pilates instructor is probably the only woman on Earth whose students tell her she ought to charge more. She charges $35 a ten week session, which includes unlimited classes (up to 6x a week) during that time. It's a steal, since every other instructor teaches 1-2x a week for six weeks, starting at $60. It's no wonder though she has 30 die-hards that train with her for every class.