Overview

Zen Planner is gym and fitness-business management software for handling memberships, billing, attendance, and classes. It is best suited to martial arts schools, gyms, and studios that want operational tools alongside member communication and mobile access. Its breadth is appealing, but active-member pricing and separately priced options make it important to match the package to your business.

Key features

Membership management, automated billing, online class scheduling, attendance and workout tracking, reporting, and dashboards cover much of the routine work of running a fitness business. Online booking and digital waivers are also supported, and multi-location support is included. That combination gives operators a central set of tools rather than a scheduling-only product.

Martial arts businesses get skill and belt tracking, a useful distinction for schools managing progression as well as attendance. Zen Planner Engage adds marketing and member communication, including automated follow-ups and trial nurturing. Those capabilities are not part of every package: Engage is included with Ultimate, while a standalone subscription costs $249.00 USD per month.

Zen Planner describes member and staff mobile apps; the Member App is available on iOS and Android and is free for members of Zen Planner gyms. Integrations include SugarWOD, Wellhub, ClassPass, Zapier, Google Calendar, Shopify, and Printful, with a custom API option for connecting systems. This should suit teams that need to connect their existing tools, though the breadth of any particular integration is not established by the connection alone.

Pricing

Pricing scales with active members. An active member is someone with a membership or who attended an event in the past month; prospects and staff do not count. The listed lower tier covers 0–45 active members, and prices rise at larger tiers. Subscriptions are month-to-month, with an annual contract available on request.

Studio: starts at $99/mo for 0–45 active members and costs $289/mo at 251+ members. It provides the full Studio feature set at every tier, making it the entry point for businesses that do not need the added Website or Engage package.
Essentials: starts at $198/mo for 0–45 members and reaches $388/mo at 251+ members. It includes Studio plus Website, fitting operators who want a custom website and integrated lead capture within their package.
Ultimate: starts at $348/mo for 0–45 members and reaches $538/mo at 251+ members. It includes Studio, Website, and Engage, so it is the most complete fit for businesses that will use marketing automation and lead management.

Other listed options are a New Business Bundle at $199.00 USD per month, with Studio and Essentials features, a custom website with integrated lead capture, a branded member app, billing, scheduling, and reporting; Website at $99.00 USD per month; Engage at $249.00 USD per month; a Branded app at $39.00 USD per month; and a Card Reader (Lane 3600) at $39.00 USD per month. The website and Engage add-ons provide SEO optimization and lead capture, and marketing automation and lead management, respectively. A branded app add-on is distinct from the free-to-download Member App.

There is no free plan. The lower Studio price keeps the core feature set available, but website and marketing capabilities require Essentials, Ultimate, or add-ons. Pricing is month-to-month by default; the company says it can provide a specialist for setup planning, data migration, and staff training when switching.

Platforms

Zen Planner supports web, iOS, Android, and an API. The member app runs on iOS and Android, while the platform's custom API and named integrations offer routes for connecting it with other systems.

Who it's for

Zen Planner names martial arts and BJJ gyms, CrossFit gyms, personal training gyms, boutique fitness studios, yoga studios, and group fitness businesses as audiences. Its combination of class scheduling, member management, and billing makes it a stronger fit for operators coordinating ongoing memberships and classes than for businesses seeking only a booking tool. Martial arts schools have a particularly clear reason to consider it because of skill and belt tracking.

Pros and cons

Pros: Core operations span memberships, billing, scheduling, attendance, and reporting, reducing the need to assemble separate tools for those jobs.
Pros: Skill and belt tracking addresses a specific operational need for martial arts schools.
Pros: Multi-location support is included, and the month-to-month subscription avoids a required annual commitment.
Cons: The entry price is $99/mo, with no free plan, so it is not a low-commitment option for a small operation comparing free software.
Cons: Website and marketing functions raise the cost: Essentials starts at $198/mo and Ultimate at $348/mo for the smallest active-member tier.
Cons: Active-member pricing means the bill can rise as the business grows, reaching $289/mo for Studio, $388/mo for Essentials, and $538/mo for Ultimate at 251+ members.

Alternatives

Consider Pike13 if unlimited staff seats and client profiles are more important than Zen Planner's martial arts-specific tracking; its Essential plan is $159.00 USD per month on a 12-month contract. TeamUp is another option if you want a paid platform with a free trial and pricing based on active customers; its 101–200 active-customer tier is $189.00 USD per month.

easybook.studio may suit a very small team that can work within 25 customers, one team member, unlimited bookings, and cash payments on its free plan. WellnessLiving is worth comparing if a lower-cost paid entry plan matters: Starter is $62.00 USD per month billed annually and includes one staff member, booking, client and staff apps, and POS.

Momence is an alternative with custom pricing tailored to each business. Glofox is another paid option, with booking, scheduling, member management, payment processing, payroll, and reporting among its Essential features. Gymdesk may appeal to smaller gyms comparing monthly pricing: its plan for up to 50 members is $75.00 USD per month. Arketa is an alternative for businesses looking at an annually billed individual plan at $49.00 USD per month, with a 3% transaction fee plus Stripe fees.

For category-specific comparisons, browse Gym Management Software, Martial Arts School Software, Pilates Studio Software, Fitness Studio Scheduling Software, Class Scheduling Software, or Yoga Studio Software.

Verdict

Zen Planner is a strong fit for fitness businesses that need membership operations, scheduling, and billing together, especially martial arts schools that will use belt and skill tracking. Its integrations, API option, mobile apps, and included multi-location support add useful scope. Choose it if those capabilities justify a starting price of $99/mo; look elsewhere if you need a free plan or want to avoid higher tiers and add-on costs for website and marketing tools.

	GatherAMS	Zen Planner
Free plan	No	No
Free trial	Yes	No
Paid from	$45/mo	$39/mo
Open source	No	No
Platforms	api, Web	Android, api, iOS, Web
Free plan	No	No
Paid from	$45/mo	$99/mo
Member portal	Yes	—

GatherAMS vs Zen Planner

GatherAMS

Zen Planner