Every gym software pricing page is designed to show you the lowest possible number. The real cost — once you add staff seats, essential add-ons, payment processing, and any onboarding fees — is almost always higher. For a 300-member independent gym, the difference between the sticker price and the real invoice can be 3–5x depending on which platform you're on. This post does the math on six platforms so you don't have to.
The Two Things That Eat Your Budget Nobody Talks About
Before the platform-by-platform breakdown, two cost categories that appear on almost no pricing page but show up on every invoice:
Payment Processing Fees
Every gym software platform routes your member payments through a processor. The standard rate in 2026 is 2.2–2.9% + $0.20–$0.30 per transaction. This is non-negotiable — it exists on every platform. But it's easy to forget when budgeting from the marketing page.
The math for a 300-member gym at $140/month average membership ($42,000 MRR):
- $42,000 × 2.5% = $1,050/month in processing fees
- $1,050 × 12 = $12,600/year — before a single dollar of software cost
On a $75,000/month revenue gym, processing fees alone are $1,875/month = $22,500/year. This is a standard business cost, not a trick. But it needs to be in your budget from the start.
Per-Seat Licensing
Several platforms charge additional fees per staff member above the included headcount. A 10-person gym on a plan that includes 3 staff seats pays 7 additional seats. At $35–$50/seat, that's $245–$350/month in overage fees that don't appear anywhere on the pricing page.
Platform-by-Platform Pricing Breakdown
Published price: $139–$699/month
What you actually pay (300-member gym, Accelerate plan):
- Accelerate base: $279
- 5 additional staff seats × $40: $200
- Branded mobile app: $199
- Marketing automation: $100
- Payment processing (2.5% on $42K): $1,050
- Monthly total: $1,828 | Annual: $21,936
The $279/month Accelerate plan becomes a $1,828/month real invoice. That's a 6.5x multiple on the sticker price.
Zen Planner
Published price: $117–$227/month
What you actually pay (300-member gym):
- Mid-tier plan: $167
- Marketing add-on: $50
- Payment processing (2.5% on $42K): $1,050
- Monthly total: $1,267 | Annual: $15,204
Zen Planner is meaningfully cheaper than Mindbody on software. The real invoice is cleaner and more predictable.
WellnessLiving
Published price: $89–$349/month
What you actually pay (300-member gym):
- Mid-tier plan: $189
- Branded app add-on: $99
- Marketing module: $49
- Payment processing (2.5% on $42K): $1,050
- Monthly total: $1,387 | Annual: $16,644
Glofox (ABC Glofox)
Published price: Not published. Custom quotes.
What you actually pay (300-member gym, estimated):
- Single-location plan (estimated): $250
- Payment processing (2.5% on $42K): $1,050
- Estimated monthly: $1,300+ | Annual: $15,600+
Glofox pricing is opaque by design. The actual number varies based on what you negotiate. The range reported by users runs $150–$400/month software before processing.
Gymdesk
Published price: $75–$125/month
What you actually pay (300-member gym):
- Mid-tier plan: $100
- Payment processing (2.5% on $42K): $1,050
- Monthly total: $1,150 | Annual: $13,800
Gymdesk is the cheapest software option for a gym that doesn't need marketing automation, financial intelligence, or advanced retention tools. What it saves in software cost, it costs in missing features.
Mako
Published price: $99–$299/month
What you actually pay (300-member gym):
- Pro tier (all-inclusive): $199
- Payment processing (2.5% on $42K): $1,050
- Monthly total: $1,249 | Annual: $14,988
No add-ons. No per-seat fees. The published price is the real price, before processing.
The Full Comparison at a Glance
- Mindbody: $21,936/year — most expensive, most features, enterprise-focused
- WellnessLiving: $16,644/year — strong Mindbody alternative, still has add-ons
- Zen Planner: $15,204/year — best for CrossFit/martial arts, competitive pricing
- Glofox: ~$15,600/year — opaque pricing, strong member app
- Mako: $14,988/year — flat-rate, all-inclusive, financial intelligence native
- Gymdesk: $13,800/year — cheapest software, limited features
The software cost difference between the cheapest (Gymdesk) and most expensive (Mindbody) is $8,136/year for the same gym. Most of that difference is features independent gyms don't use.
What Justifies Higher Software Spend
Paying more for gym software makes sense when:
- Multi-location management that actually reduces ops overhead (Mindbody, WellnessLiving at 3+ locations)
- Marketplace-dependent acquisition where ClassPass or the Mindbody app drives 20%+ of bookings
- Specialty features you actively use — workout logging for CrossFit (Zen Planner), gamification for member retention (Glofox)
- Enterprise permissions and compliance for large teams
Paying more does NOT make sense when:
- You're paying per-seat fees for staff headcount you had anyway
- You're paying for a branded app add-on when the base mobile experience would work fine
- You're paying for features you turned on in your account settings and never touched again
- You're on an enterprise platform because it was the first thing that came up in Google, not because it fits your business
How to Calculate Your Real Current Cost
- Pull your last 3 monthly invoices — add up every line item
- Export your last 90 days of transactions and calculate total processing fees
- Add any third-party tools you run because your platform can't do something (bookkeeping, email marketing, analytics)
- Multiply owner/staff hours spent on manual workarounds by your effective hourly rate
- Compare the total against the platform alternatives above
Most gym owners who run this exercise find their real cost is 30–50% higher than they thought. The ones on Mindbody typically find it's closer to 100% higher.
Your wellness business is a business. Not a hobby, not a side project, not a calendar with a cash register. It deserves software that treats it accordingly. If your CRM can't tell you whether your business is financially healthy, it's not doing its job. And in 2026, you have better options.
See Mako in action — no sales call required
Mako is built for independent studio and service-business owners who'd rather spend their time on clients than on demo calls. Open the live demo, poke around, and see exactly how scheduling, billing, and financial intelligence come together in one place.
Try the demo: https://app.makocrm.so/demo
Self-serve. Instant access. No forms, no calendars, no "talk to sales."
.avif)
