Your Pricing Strategy Is Older Than Your Last Software Update. That’s a Problem.
Five rules for fitness operators who want to stop leaving money on the floor.
Kyle Poyar advises Series A–D SaaS founders on pricing and monetization. His recent take: the companies winning in H2 aren’t the ones with the best product — they’re the ones who stopped treating pricing as a one-time decision.
Fitness operators should be taking notes.
Most studios set their membership prices once — usually when they opened — and adjust reluctantly every few years when they feel the squeeze. Meanwhile, boutique class prices have risen 6% year-over-year (the average class now costs $21.32), operational costs are up 5–10%, and the member’s relationship with value has completely shifted. Consumers in 2026 will drop $60 on a single class if the experience matches the price. They’ll also ghost you immediately if it doesn’t.
Here are five pricing rules that SaaS founders are applying right now — and what they actually mean for your studio.
1. If you haven’t revisited your pricing in 18 months, it’s already out of date.
In SaaS, pricing used to be a once-every-18-months exercise. Now it can be stale in six.
Fitness isn’t moving that fast — but it’s moving faster than most operators think. Rents are up. Instructor rates are up. ClassPass is training a segment of your market to expect discounted access. Equinox raised rates. Your neighborhood Pilates studio opened a second location charging $40/class and has a waitlist.
The market is repricing around you whether you participate or not. If you’re not actively reviewing your price point annually — against your costs, your competitive set, and your member mix — you’re drifting.
The move: Put a pricing review on the calendar for Q3. Not a price increase — a review. What does your current price signal to a new member walking in the door? Is it accurate?
