How do you calculate what a class earns per hour?
Revenue per hour is the sum of the class values of everyone attending in that hour. In a group class that is average attendance times the class value, the class value being the package price divided by its credits. A private session has one seat and a duo session two, and earns the class values of those seats. The comparison is made on that hourly figure, after instructor pay.
- Group class
- Average attendance × class value. The number of seats is capped by the apparatus in the room.
- Duo session
- Two seats × the per-person class value of the duo package.
- Private session
- One seat × the class value of the private package, that is, the price of one session.
- Left for the studio
- Revenue per hour - the instructor pay for that class, before fixed costs.
How do you compare group, duo and private classes side by side?
In the example an eight-seat group class has a class value of 450 TL, a duo session 900 TL per person, a private session costs 1,500 TL, and the instructor is paid 1,000 TL per class. A group of six leaves the studio 1,700 TL an hour, the duo 800 TL and the private session 500 TL. A group that drops to three falls to 350 TL. The amounts are an example.
| Class type | Seats | Average attendance | Class value per person | Revenue per hour | Instructor pay | Left for the studio |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Group, full | 8 | 6 | 450 TL | 2,700 TL | 1,000 TL | 1,700 TL |
| Group, thin | 8 | 3 | 450 TL | 1,350 TL | 1,000 TL | 350 TL |
| Duo | 2 | 2 | 900 TL | 1,800 TL | 1,000 TL | 800 TL |
| Private | 1 | 1 | 1,500 TL | 1,500 TL | 1,000 TL | 500 TL |
The amounts are an example chosen for the comparison, not market prices. The same per-class fee is used on every row so that instructor pay does not depend on class type; if your studio pays differently for private sessions, replace that column with your own figure. Fixed costs such as rent and bills have not yet been taken from what is left for the studio.
From how many members does a group class earn more than a private one?
The threshold is the private price divided by the group class value. Comparing the example's 1,500 TL private session with a 450 TL class value, the threshold is 3.3 members: a group class averaging four or more earns more than a private session in the same hour, and one averaging below three earns less. Work the threshold out again with your own prices.
Threshold = private price ÷ group class value. In the example 1,500 ÷ 450 = 3.3: from the fourth participant on, a group class earns more than a private session in the same hour. If the instructor is paid the same for both, the threshold does not move; if not, do the sum on what is left for the studio rather than on revenue.
Read a group class's average attendance over several weeks rather than one: dividing the month's total attendance by the class's total capacity gives its occupancy rate.
Definition of the term: Occupancy rate
How does the instructor pay model change profitability?
Under per-class pay the instructor cost does not depend on attendance, so a full group class earns the most and a thin one loses the most. Under per-participant pay the cost rises with attendance and the gap between the class types narrows. Under revenue share the instructor takes the same percentage of every attendance's class value, so the comparison comes down to revenue per hour alone.
- Per Class
- Instructor cost does not depend on attendance. A full group earns the most and a thin one loses the most; in a private session the fee falls on a single seat.
- Per Participant
- Cost rises with attendance and the gap between the class types narrows. The same fee earns the instructor a single attendance in a private session, so pay for private work is usually agreed separately.
- Revenue Share
- The instructor takes the same percentage of every attendance's class value. The studio's share follows the same ratio, so the comparison comes down to revenue per hour.
- Monthly or Weekly Fixed
- Pay does not depend on class type; the question becomes which class type earns most when it fills the instructor's limited hours.
Running the same month through the different models is the quickest way to see what an instructor earns under each and what is left for the studio.
Run it with your own numbers: Instructor Pay Calculator
The five pay models in detail: Instructor Pay Models
How do the room and the number of reformers limit profitability?
What a group class earns is capped by the apparatus in the room: capacity cannot exceed it. A private session holds the whole room for its hour, so one taught in a room with several reformers also uses up the seats the idle apparatus could have sold. The real cost of a private session is therefore what that hour could have earned as a group class.
- A group class cannot seat more than the room's capacity, that is, its apparatus
- Each extra unit adds a seat to every group class and nothing to a private session
- A private or duo session holds the whole room for its hour; idle apparatus cannot be sold in that hour
- Running two private sessions at once needs two rooms or separately defined areas
- The real cost of a private session is what that hour could have earned as a group class
How do you balance a timetable between group and private classes?
The balance comes from reading each hour by its occupancy. Peak hours where groups fill go to group classes; quiet hours where a group stays below the threshold go to private and duo sessions. That way a private session replaces group seats that would not sell, never a full group class. Rework the timetable after reading a few weeks of occupancy.
Read each hour by its occupancy
Work out each group class's average attendance over a few weeks and compare it with the threshold.
Keep peak hours for groups
Hours whose average sits comfortably above the threshold stay as group classes; do not give them to private sessions.
Open quiet hours to private sessions
Give the hours where groups stay below the threshold to private and duo sessions, or to a quiet-hours package.
Read it again every few weeks
The season, new members and instructor changes move occupancy; update the balance to match.
A price list by class type: Pilates Class Pricing
What else should be weighed besides profitability?
Profit per hour is not the only measure. A private session is where a beginner or someone returning from injury gets ready for a group, and it is often a door into group membership. A group class builds ties between members and supports retention. An instructor's energy and hours are limited too; filling only the most profitable slots can wear them out.
- A private session gets a beginner or someone returning from injury ready for a group
- A group class builds ties between members and supports retention
- An instructor's hours and energy are limited; filling only the most profitable slots can wear them out
- Private members are few but steady; group classes spread across a wider member base
How are group, duo and private classes kept apart in Dakik?
In Dakik every session is one of three class types: Group, Duo or Private. A Private session is fixed at one seat and a Duo at two; a Group session takes the capacity you enter, which cannot exceed the room's. A room holds one session at a time, and the calendar shows a conflict before you save. Each package is defined for one class type, so a group package never books a private session.
- Every session is a Group, Duo or Private class type; Private is fixed at one seat and Duo at two
- A Group session takes the capacity you enter, which cannot exceed the room's
- A room holds one session at a time; the calendar shows room and instructor conflicts before you save
- Each package is defined for one class type and books only sessions of that type
- Instructor pay is calculated from attendance under one of five models; the Overview page shows average weekly occupancy
What the calendar screen shows: Schedule
Whether the hour covers its fixed costs: Studio Break-Even and Occupancy Calculator
Frequently asked questions
How do you set the price of a private session?
Set it with an eye on what the same hour could earn as a group class. Multiply that hour's average group attendance by the class value; the closer the private price comes to that sum, the less giving the room to one person costs. As a floor, it must also cover the instructor pay and the hour's share of fixed costs.
When does a duo session make sense?
A duo session offers two people who want to come together a private experience at a lower price per person, and can leave the studio more than a private session. In the example a duo earns 300 TL an hour more than a private one. When the second person does not come, the class runs with one, so the cancellation rule should be thought through for both together.
Should a poorly attended group class be closed?
Not straight away. Look at the average over a few weeks first: if attendance stays below the threshold, the class can move to another time, merge with a similar class, or the hour can go to private sessions. If the class has regulars, talking the change through with them is how to make the hour pay without losing members.
Can a group package be used for a private session?
In Dakik each package is defined for one class type and books only sessions of that type, so a group package cannot be used in a private or duo session. A member who wants private sessions is sold a separate private package. The split also keeps the different class values of the two class types from mixing.