ClassPass for a Private-Session Pilates Studio: Does It Make Sense?

Someone in your local owners' group says ClassPass filled their Tuesday mornings. Someone else says it trained their clients to wait for a cheaper credit. If most of your income comes from private sessions, you might reasonably wonder whether it applies to you at all.

Pilates is clearly in demand on the platform. Athletech News reported in February 2026 that Pilates was ClassPass's most-booked workout for the third year running, with reservations up 66% on 2024. That figure comes from ClassPass itself, so it's worth reading as the company's own account. Demand on a marketplace is one question, though. Whether that demand suits a private studio is another.

How payouts work, roughly

Marketplace apps sell members a monthly bundle of credits. Members spend credits at partner studios, and the studio receives a payout per visit. The exact terms are negotiated privately, and they've changed over the years.

A few points from neutral sources:

• The payout is a share, not the full rate. An August 2025 NFPT article says reports suggest that "the average payout to the gym or studio is a mere 40% of the drop-in class rate." Treat that as a reported figure, not a contract term.
• Visit limits exist. The same piece notes members can book up to three classes a month at any one studio, and that studios decide "how many ClassPass openings to allow in each class."
• Terms keep shifting. In July 2026, Athletech reported new partner protections, including payouts on late-cancel fees that ClassPass waives, stronger fraud checks, and a tool to stop recent direct customers from booking discounted trials through the app. The full terms sat behind a paywall.

Margins have been a concern for a long time. A 2015 Harvard Business School student case noted studios' "already slim margins are becoming squeezed," and that some cut the spots they offered over complaints that app users crowded out loyal customers. That's old, but the tension it describes still comes up today.

Why privates rarely fit the marketplace model

Marketplaces work best when a studio has spare spots in a class that will run anyway. Ten people are booked, two reformers sit empty, and any payout for those two beats zero. The NFPT article captures that view: some owners see it as "more than zero."

Private sessions don't have spare spots. The hour exists only if someone books it, and it uses all of your attention. A few things follow from that:

• Your margin is the full hour. Selling a private at a fraction of your rate means teaching an entire session at a discount, not filling a seat.
• The relationship is the product. Privates depend on continuity: notes, progressions, injuries, the client's goals. One-off visits through an app can be the opposite.
• Cancellations cost more. On The Pilates Business Podcast in June 2025, Seran Glanfield pointed out that a late-cancelled private usually can't be refilled. If marketplace users cancel more often, a private studio feels it directly.
• Classical teaching builds over time. A system taught in order works best with clients who come back.

That doesn't mean it never works. It means the case for it is weaker than for a busy group schedule.

When ClassPass can help

Some situations where owners do find it useful:

• A brand-new studio with no client base yet, where visibility matters more than margin for a few months.
• Off-peak group classes or mat classes that run regardless of numbers and have room.
• A semi-private or small-group slot that tends to have an empty spot.
• A tourist area or a city where people discover studios on apps rather than by word of mouth.

It depends on what you're trying to fix. If the problem is that nobody knows you exist, a marketplace may help. If the problem is that your schedule is full but your income is flat, it probably won't.

The main trade-offs

Converting marketplace clients to direct

If you do try it, the value is in the clients who stay. Some studios plan the conversion from day one:

• A direct-only intro offer, such as an introductory private or a short pack, mentioned in person at the end of class.
• A personal follow-up after a first visit, in your own words.
• Clear reasons to book direct, like access to privates, priority times or pack pricing.

The NFPT piece suggests studios do best when they "offer extra perks to regular members," which also gives app users a reason to switch.

Sample follow-up text (sent only to people who've given you their number and agreed to hear from you): "Hi Jess, it was lovely having you in class today. If you'd like to try a private, where we can really work on that hip, I have an intro session this week. Just reply and I'll send a couple of times."

Planning an exit

Some owners treat a marketplace as a temporary bridge. A simple exit plan might include:

• A target. For example, a set number of direct regulars, or a share of revenue from direct clients, before you reduce your marketplace spots.
• A taper. Cut spots gradually rather than all at once.
• A list. Keep your own record of every client you meet, with permission to contact them, so the relationship doesn't live only inside the app.
• A date to review. Three or six months, then decide again with real numbers.

Where Wundaful fits

We'll be plain here. Wundaful has no ClassPass integration, by design. It was built inside a working classical studio in Santa Barbara that sells privates directly, and our view is that a private studio does best when it owns the relationship and keeps the thread with each client. Clients text the studio to book, and the conversation stays with you. That's one approach. Plenty of good studios use marketplaces well, especially for group classes.

Questions to help you decide

• Is your main problem visibility, or is it revenue per hour?
• Do you have group or mat classes with spare spots, or is nearly everything private?
• What would a marketplace visit pay you compared with your direct rate?
• How would your regulars feel if app users took their usual times?
• What would you need to see after three months to keep going, or to stop?
• How would you keep in touch with marketplace clients who want to come back?

Sources

1. Should Your Gym be Offering ClassPass?: National Federation of Professional Trainers, August 11, 2025.
2. ClassPass Tops $3B in Partner Revenue in Newly Released Metrics: Athletech News, February 26, 2026.
3. ClassPass Adds New Studio-Friendly Policies, Protections: Athletech News, Courtney Rehfeldt, July 15, 2026.
4. ClassPass: Shaking up the traditional workout regimen: Harvard Business School Digital Initiative (student submission), December 2015.
5. Late Cancel Fees: How to Protect Your Studio Without Losing Loyal Clients: The Pilates Business Podcast, Seran Glanfield, June 30, 2025.