“Which pricing model should I use?” is one of the first questions any gym or studio owner has to answer, and the honest answer is: it depends on the format, and you can usually offer more than one at the same time. Here’s how to think about it.
Duration-based pricing (memberships)
A member pays a flat fee for a fixed period - monthly, quarterly, or annual - and gets access for that entire period, regardless of how often they show up.
Works well for: traditional gyms, CrossFit boxes, and functional training or HIIT studios where members are expected to attend frequently and the value proposition is “come as often as you want.”
The risk: if attendance isn’t tracked and acted on, low-usage members quietly churn without anyone noticing until the renewal doesn’t happen.
Session-based pricing (class packs)
A member buys a set number of sessions or classes upfront - a pack of 10, 20, or 30 - and each attendance deducts one credit. There’s no expiry pressure to attend every week, but there’s a natural point where they need to buy again.
Works well for: yoga studios, pilates studios, and dance or Zumba studios, where attendance is often irregular and members don’t want to pay for weeks they don’t use.
What the software needs to do: track remaining credits accurately, deduct on check-in automatically, and notify the member (and your front desk) when a pack is running low - not just at zero.
Paid single sessions (drop-ins)
A one-off payment for a single class or session, with no ongoing commitment. This is how most studios convert a first-time visitor, and how they capture revenue from travellers, trial visitors, or people between packages.
Works well for: every format, as a supplementary option - especially boxing and MMA gyms and dance studios, where trial classes are a common entry point.
What the software needs to do: take a payment and grant access to exactly one session, without requiring a full plan setup - and without that transaction creating reporting noise in your membership numbers.
Picking a model by format
| Format | Typical primary model | Common add-on |
|---|---|---|
| Traditional gym | Duration-based membership | Paid single sessions (day passes) |
| Yoga studio | Session-based class packs | Duration-based unlimited membership |
| Pilates studio | Session-based class packs | Paid single sessions |
| CrossFit box | Duration-based membership | Class packs for drop-ins |
| Functional training / HIIT | Duration-based membership | Session-based packs |
| Boxing & MMA | Duration-based membership | Paid single sessions (trial classes) |
| Dance & Zumba | Session-based class packs | Paid single sessions |
These are starting points, not rules. Plenty of businesses run a hybrid from day one.
Why the pricing model shouldn’t be a software limitation
The mistake we see most often: a studio picks a pricing model not because it fits their business, but because that’s the only model their software handles well. A CrossFit box forced into pure session-based billing because the platform can’t do memberships properly. A yoga studio stuck offering only monthly memberships because the software can’t track class-pack credits.
Torzil supports duration-based memberships, session-based plans and class packs, and paid single sessions on the same account - so the pricing decision stays a business decision, not a software workaround. Whether you’re running a gym, a yoga or pilates studio, a CrossFit box, a functional training or HIIT studio, a boxing or MMA gym, or a dance or Zumba studio, you can set up the model (or mix of models) that actually fits how your members pay.
Book a demo to see session-based, duration-based, and single-session pricing set up on your own account.
Three-year cost, not monthly price
Monthly price is the wrong number to compare. Four costs get quoted separately:
- Subscription — the headline figure.
- Setup or onboarding fee — often four figures, frequently negotiable, rarely advertised.
- Per-member or per-branch charges — this decides the shape of the curve.
- Add-ons — WhatsApp messaging, biometric licences, the member app, extra staff logins.
A gym growing 200 → 500 members over three years, on flat pricing at ₹1,500/month with no setup fee:
| Year | Members | Annual |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 200 | ₹18,000 |
| 2 | 350 | ₹18,000 |
| 3 | 500 | ₹18,000 |
| Total | ₹54,000 |
On a per-member model at even ₹10 per member per month, the same gym pays ₹24,000, ₹42,000 and ₹60,000 — ₹126,000, more than double, widening with every member added. The pricing model, not the headline price, decides the three-year total.
Ask every vendor to quote the total for your projected member count in year three, including setup, add-ons and any per-member component.
Context for those figures: India has 96,278 gyms and about 13.6 million paid memberships at roughly 0.12% penetration, projected to reach 23.3 million memberships and ₹37,700 crore by 2030. Industry-average annual retention is 66.4% (HFA 2025, 175 companies and 17,000+ facilities), and about half of new members leave before six months — so the software that protects a renewal is worth more than the one that saves ₹200 a month.
Sources: India Fitness Market Report 2025 (HFA), Nutripy retention benchmarks, Health Club Management.
How each model behaves in practice
| Duration membership | Session pack | Drop-in | |
|---|---|---|---|
| What the member buys | Time | Visits | One visit |
| Expires on | A date | Sessions used, a date, or both | Immediately |
| Revenue recognition | Even across the term | On consumption | At sale |
| Suits | Traditional gyms | Yoga, pilates, CrossFit, dance | Travellers, trials |
| Attendance risk | A member paying and not coming looks healthy | Unused sessions are visible | None |
| Renewal trigger | Date | Balance running low | N/A |
The reporting difference matters most. On a duration plan, a member who paid and stopped attending looks identical to your best member until renewal. On a pack, the unused balance shows you immediately.
Choosing the model
Sell duration when access is the product and attendance is unlimited. Sell packs when a coach’s time or a class slot is finite — capacity is the constraint, so charge by consumption. Always offer drop-ins if you get visitors; it is revenue that costs nothing to enable.
Most studios end up selling all three, which is exactly where software that only understands duration plans breaks down.
What to check in the software
- Can a pack decrement on attendance, rather than just expire on a date?
- Can a pack expire on sessions used or a date, whichever comes first?
- Does a no-show consume a session, and is that configurable?
- Can a member hold a membership and a pack simultaneously?
- Can you sell a drop-in without creating a full member record?
- Does reporting separate packs sold from sessions consumed?
A platform answering yes to all six can price any format. Most gym-first platforms answer no to at least three.