EMS Fitness Studio Break-Even: About $56K Monthly Revenue

Fixed costs $45.3K/mo Fixed + payroll

Contribution margin 80.5% After variable costs

Break-even revenue $56.3K/mo Operating breakeven

Break-even timing Month 1 Launch month

Break-even calculator

Use this calculator to test monthly revenue against variable expenses and fixed monthly costs for an EMS fitness studio.

Lean Base Full

Monthly revenue Revenue drives the margin available to cover fixed monthly costs. $ Lower sales Higher sales Variable expenses Use direct costs that rise with revenue, like trainer commissions, marketing, fees, and consumables. $ Tighter costs Higher costs

Money available to cover fixed costs $46,979 $58,365 revenue - $11,386 variable expenses

Margin ratio

80%

Covers fixed costs

Yes

Fixed monthly costs Use the monthly overhead base that contribution margin has to cover. $ Lean overhead Higher overhead

Break-even chart Revenue Total costs

Which expenses are fixed and which move with sales for this electrical muscle stimulation studio?

Cost classification

Break-even is only reliable when rent, payroll, card fees, and client-linked supplies sit in the right buckets. Misclassifying one large line can make Month 1 break-even look safer than the cash plan really is.

Expense	Cost	Break-Even Treatment	Common Mistake
Studio Lease	Fixed	Include the full $12,000 every month in overhead.	Treating rent as optional after slow presales.
Utilities	Fixed	Include the $2,000 monthly amount in base overhead.	Tying the full bill to session count.
Business Insurance	Fixed	Include the $750 monthly policy before opening and during operations.	Omitting liability coverage from break-even planning.
Software Subscriptions	Fixed	Include the $500 monthly booking and payment tools charge.	Burying required systems in generic admin spend.
Suit Maintenance and Consumables	Variable	Apply 4.0% of revenue in the first year.	Treating suits and consumables as one-time purchases only.
Payment Processing Fees	Variable	Apply 2.5% of revenue to card-paid sales.	Ignoring fees on memberships and trial packages.
Marketing and Client Acquisition	Variable	Model 7.0% of revenue in the first year.	Assuming referrals replace launch-month demand spend.
Studio Manager, Trainers, Front Desk, and Owner Salary	Semi-variable	Include about $27,917 monthly in first-year base payroll, then adjust with staffing.	Modeling all payroll as a per-session expense.

How does break-even change as this EMS studio moves from lean to base to full capacity?

Scenario table

As membership density and occupancy rise, contribution margin improves and fixed payroll gets easier to cover. The lean case is close to the line, while the base and full cases build more cushion.

Planning cases only; actual results will move with occupancy, pricing, payroll, and mix.

Scenario	Monthly Revenue	Variable Costs	Fixed Costs	CM Ratio	Operating Profit	Break-Even Signal
Lean opening-month case	$58,365	$11,386	$45,317	80.5%	$1,663	Revenue is just above the $56.3k break-even line, so the cushion is thin.
Base growth case	$119,650	$21,537	$59,067	82.0%	$39,046	Revenue sits well above the $72.0k break-even line, so coverage is stronger.
Full staffed-studio case	$167,670	$27,666	$63,233	83.5%	$76,771	Revenue is well above the $75.7k break-even line, giving the best cushion.

What breaks the break-even plan for this EMS Fitness Studio?

Stress test

The base case clears overhead, but the cushion is thin. A 10% booking drop, a 10% fixed-cost jump, or a small margin squeeze can push the studio into a monthly loss fast.

Stress Case	Changed Assumption	Break-Even Revenue	Revenue Gap	Risk Signal
Current plan	No change.	$56,301	$2,064 cushion	The plan clears break-even, but only by a small margin.
Revenue shortfall	Revenue falls 10% to $52,529.	$56,301	$3,032 gap	Slow presales push the studio below monthly overhead coverage.
Fixed-cost increase	Fixed overhead rises 10% to $49,848.	$61,924	$2,864 gap	Lease creep or staffing load can wipe out the base cushion.
Margin pressure	Variable expenses rise to 22.5% of revenue.	$58,474	$84 gap	Trainer pay, consumables, or device upkeep can erase the edge.
Combined pressure	Revenue falls 10%, variable expenses rise to 22.5%, and fixed costs rise 10%.	$64,319	$9,138 gap	Slow presales plus higher costs create a real monthly cash hole.

Can this EMS studio clear break-even before you sign the lease and buy the systems?

Founder checklist

Treat this like a go/no-go gate. Break-even shows up in Month 1, but only if rent, staffing, pricing, and launch demand all hold; otherwise the studio can hit a Month 4 cash gap before sales catch up.

1Lease Load$45.3K/mo

Approve the $12,000 lease only if it still fits inside the $45,317 monthly fixed-cost and payroll base, because rent is already a big part of break-even.

2Demand Proof$56.3K/mo

Confirm early trial and membership sales can clear about $56,300 in monthly break-even revenue, and keep acquisition spend visible so you know which channels are actually filling classes.

3Margin Floor80.5% CM

At Year 1 pricing and fees, contribution margin is about 80.5%, so any discount has to be paid back with more volume.

4Staffing Ramp1 mgr, 2 trainers, 1 admin

Budget one manager, two certified EMS trainers, and one front desk admin before you count profit, since the opening payroll load assumes that coverage.

5Launch Stack$370K

Fund the $250,000 systems, $120,000 build-out, $500 booking software, and safety setup before opening, because those launch costs sit outside monthly break-even.

6Cash Cushion$665K

Keep at least $665,000 ready for Month 4, because the model's minimum cash point lands there even though break-even starts in Month 1.