MASTERING FITNESS COACHING: PART 1 - HOW MUCH CAN I MAKE?
How much money can I make as a fitness coach?
The answer to this commonly asked question depends on the stage of a coach you are currently in and where you want to grow to. Through our experience mentoring thousands of coaches along their career journeys, here’s what you can expect at each stage.
The Stages of Coaching and How Much Money You Can Make
Not coaching
You may not have the knowledge you need to be an effective coach, are looking for your first client to gain some practice, or unsure if coaching is for you.
Income: $0
Part-Time Coach
You’re either not sure if you want to do this full-time, are not planning on coaching full-time, or are transitioning to becoming a full-time coach. Most part-time coaches have somewhere in the range of 5-10 clients. This may be a nice side hustle, but we recommend that you don’t quit your day job until you increase your client base.
Income: $10,000 to $20,000
Full-Time Coach
Coaching is full-time, it is your craft, and it’s what keeps the lights on and feeds you. Here, you’re working under another business. You may be content staying here or considering spinning up your own business.
A less experienced coach might have 20 clients paying $250 a month, while a more experienced coach may be able to effectively coach 100 clients at $355 a month. Depending on your rates, the percentage you make, and the number of clients you have, your income can range from minimum wage to six figures.
Income: $40,000 to $250,000
Coach Sam Smith went from $40,000 to making six figures as a remote coach in under 5 years. Read his story here.
Gym Owner
You are coaching full-time and own a business. You are currently a sole proprietor and have no coaches under you. You are either good here or want to build a bigger team and scale your business.
As a sole proprietor without other coaches working for you, chances are your revenue is similar to that of the full-time coach. However, you now have the freedom to decide the vision and direction of your business.
Income: $40,000 and $250,000
Coach of Coaches
You are coaching your coaches full-time while owning your own business. You are either:
Coaching fewer people than you did before and distributing a larger percentage of clients to your other coaches
Still looking to build your book of clients while growing your coaches as well, or
Looking for other ways to scale your business
Your income is no longer only based on the number of clients you coach yourself, as you’ll now be making a percentage from the clients coached by your team.
Income: $80,000 to $500,000
Scale
You have a team under you and own your business. At this point you are looking to open additional facilities or businesses or thinking of other ways to scale your business and widen your presence in the health and fitness industry.
Income: $150,000 to $1 million-plus
How Do I Make More Money as a Fitness Coach?
Growing your income as a coach, whether you want to be a full-time coach or a gym owner, takes time. Lots of time. But why would you expect anything less? It’s par for the course for becoming a professional in anything.
If there’s one thing we’re confident about, it’s that there is a huge amount of potential to make a good living as a coach while providing excellent value to your clients. The numbers provided in this article are based on the experience of OPEX Coaching Certificate Program (CCP) graduates using the OPEX Method of individual design coaching.
Wherever you currently sit in your experience and income, CCP provides a path for growth and the systems you need to get there, something which is unfortunately lacking in many other fitness models.
Share in the success of our network of professional fitness coaches, by taking your next step towards career growth by joining CCP. Click the button below to download the CCP Curriculum Guide to learn more.
This article is the first installment in a 4-part series on mastering your fitness coaching skills:
Part 2: Can I Take Vacations As A Fitness Coach?