How Much EMS Fitness Studio Owners Make With $100K Modeled Pay
You’re testing whether an EMS fitness studio can pay you, not just show big sales This five-year model separates $100,000 owner operator salary, revenue, EBITDA, fixed costs, payroll, startup cash, reserves, taxes, debt service, and reinvestment
Owner income$100kNet margin58%Revenue for target pay$56.3kBusiness difficultyHard
Want the six drivers behind EMS owner income?
1
Occupancy
40%-85%
Raising occupancy from 40% to 85% spreads the $17.4K monthly fixed base over more sessions, so EBITDA moves faster than revenue.
2
Pricing Mix
$99-$849
Moving clients from $99 trials into $399-$849 memberships lifts revenue per slot, so the same studio time earns more.
3
Trainer Productivity
$335K-$550K
Keeping trainer FTE tied to booked sessions holds payroll nearer $335K than $550K, which protects margin.
4
Recurring Revenue
$58K-$168K
More recurring members lifts monthly revenue from about $58K to $168K and smooths cash before owner pay.
5
Facility Costs
$17.4K
The $17.4K fixed base and the 16.5%-19.5% variable load decide how much of each sale becomes EBITDA.
6
Reserve Structure
$665K
The $665K cash floor is the buffer that keeps launch spending and slow ramp from choking owner take-home.
Want to test your EMS studio owner income?
Owner income calculator
Estimate owner take-home and the target-pay gap from revenue, margin, costs, reserves, and target pay.
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Planning note: This is a researched planning estimate only. It is not guaranteed salary, tax advice, or owner distribution advice.
How many members does an EMS fitness studio need to make money?
An EMS Fitness Studio needs about 130 blended paying relationships to make money, not just a high member count. The cleaner benchmark is revenue coverage: $56,300/month break-even against payroll, rent, equipment, and reserves; see What Is The Main Indicator Of Success For EMS Fitness Studio? for the KPI view. Year 1 plan shows $58,365/month from 135 paying relationships, so the cushion is thin.
Break-even math
$17,400/month fixed operating costs
$27,917/month payroll, including owner salary
$8,333/month owner salary included
19.5% variable cost load
Capacity check
135 paying relationships planned
$432 blended monthly revenue each
5 EMS systems in use
22 billable days at 40% occupancy
Can an EMS studio run without the owner?
EMS Fitness Studio can run without the owner, but only if staffing, scheduling, sales, and cash controls are tight. The model already assumes a full-time studio manager at $75,000 and an owner operator salary at $100,000; trainer staffing also rises from 20 FTE in Year 1 to 40 FTE by Year 5, so stepping out of coaching can protect owner time but also lift payroll and push break-even higher. That means the owner salary is not free profit; it only helps if service quality and retention stay strong.
What must work
Manager runs day-to-day ops
Scheduling stays fully covered
Sales keeps filling sessions
Cash controls stay strict
What changes financially
$100,000 owner salary is a real cost
$75,000 manager pay stays in place
20 to 40 FTE raises payroll load
Higher payroll delays safe distributions
What operating costs reduce EMS fitness studio owner income most?
If you're sizing launch costs for How Much Does It Cost To Open, Start, Launch Your EMS Fitness Studio Business?, the biggest hit to owner take-home is payroll, then rent and equipment. Year 1 payroll is $335,000 and fixed overhead is $17,400/month, led by a $12,000 studio lease, while startup capex is $415,000.
Biggest cost drains
$335,000 Year 1 payroll
$75,000 studio manager salary
$120,000 certified EMS trainers
$12,000 monthly studio lease
Cash pressure points
$415,000 startup capex
$250,000 for 5 EMS systems
$665,000 minimum cash need in Month 4
Variable costs start at 19.5% of revenue
Key Takeaways
Capacity limits revenue until utilization reaches 85%.
Pricing only works if retention and occupancy hold.
Trainer payroll and commissions pressure margins early.
High capex and fixed costs demand strong cash reserves.
Compare lean, base, and strong EMS studio owner income scenarios
Owner income scenarios
Owner income changes with billable days, occupancy, and member mix. These cases show the gap between a slow launch and a fully built studio.
Owner income rises as occupancy and membership volume climb.
Scenario
Low CaseLow Case
Base CaseBase Case
High CaseHigh Case
Launch model
This is the lower-income launch path for Year 1.
This is the modeled mid-case for Year 3.
This is the stronger-income path for Year 5.
Typical setup
The studio runs 22 billable days a month at 40% occupancy, with 25 intro trials, 80 standard memberships, 30 premium memberships, about $335,000 payroll, and $406,000 EBITDA.
The studio runs 24 billable days a month at 70% occupancy, with 40 intro trials, 150 standard memberships, 60 premium memberships, about $500,000 payroll, and $5.148 million EBITDA.
The studio runs 26 billable days a month at 85% occupancy, with 50 intro trials, 200 standard memberships, 80 premium memberships, about $550,000 payroll, and $11.713 million EBITDA.
Cost drivers
22 billable days
40% occupancy
25 intro trials
80 standard memberships
30 premium memberships
24 billable days
70% occupancy
40 intro trials
150 standard memberships
60 premium memberships
26 billable days
85% occupancy
50 intro trials
200 standard memberships
80 premium memberships
Owner income rangeBefore owner reserves
$100,000 salaryLow Case
Salary plus profit shareBase Case
Salary plus distributionsHigh Case
Best fit
Use this to stress test a slower start, lower occupancy, and owner pay with no extra distribution.
Use this as the main planning case for a steadier client base and stronger studio utilization.
Use this to test upside if demand holds, occupancy stays high, and staffing scales without waste.
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Planning note: These are researched planning assumptions, not guaranteed earnings, salary promises, tax advice, or distributions; actual owner take-home before taxes depends on reserves, debt service, and reinvestment.
EMS Fitness Studio Core Six Income Drivers
Capacity Utilization
Capacity Utilization
Capacity utilization, or fill rate, is how much of the studio’s available EMS station time gets sold and used. With 5 EMS systems and 22 billable days, the model has 110 station-days a month before no-shows and coach gaps. At 40% occupancy, that is about 44 sold station-days; at 85%, it is about 93.5.
This caps owner income because empty stations still carry rent, payroll, and equipment cost. Premium demand only lifts profit if suits, coaches, and time slots are open. Here’s the quick math: more filled sessions raise revenue, but underused capacity keeps fixed costs high and pushes down take-home pay.
Fill Every EMS Slot
Track paid sessions, stations used, billable days, coach coverage, member slots, and no-shows every week. If the schedule looks full but no-shows rise, the real fill rate is lower than the booking sheet says.
Match staffing to peak demand.
Sell open slots before adding ads.
Cut no-shows with reminders.
The goal is simple: keep the 5 systems busy enough that rent and payroll spread across more sessions. If occupancy stays near 40%, owner draw stays thin; moving toward 85% gives the same fixed base a lot more revenue to absorb it.
Facility And Acquisition Costs
Rent and acquisition spend
The big issue here is the tradeoff between lease size and customer acquisition cost. This studio has $12,000/month rent and $17,400/month total fixed overhead, so the non-rent fixed load is $5,400/month. Marketing starts at 70% of revenue and falls to 50% by Year 5, so early cash flow gets squeezed fast if traffic is weak.
Here’s the quick math: every $100,000 of revenue sends $70,000 to marketing in Year 1 and $50,000 by Year 5. A better site can lift consults and intro conversions, but it also raises break-even risk. Cheap rent with weak demand can still cost more if the studio must buy leads.
Track location and lead quality
Measure the path from lead to member, not just rent. Watch lead cost, consult booking rate, and intro conversion by neighborhood. Also score local awareness, parking, and fit with nearby offices and housing. The best lease is the one that lowers total acquisition spend enough to cover the higher fixed base.
Track lead cost by channel.
Test consult booking rate weekly.
Compare intro-to-member conversion.
Score parking and neighborhood fit.
If a premium location raises conversion, make sure the added gross profit beats the extra rent and ad spend. If it does not, owner pay drops even when the studio looks busy. Keep a simple monthly model that ties lease, marketing % of revenue, and new member conversion to take-home income.
Trainer Productivity
Trainer Payroll Load
Trainer productivity is the margin gate. Year 1 certified trainer payroll is 20 FTE at $60,000 each, or about $1.2M before commissions, bonuses, and payroll taxes. By Year 5, that becomes 40 FTE and $2.4M. If sessions per trainer hour, cancellations, or manager coverage slip, labor grows faster than revenue, so owner distributions shrink.
The key inputs are trainer-to-client scheduling, paid sessions per trainer hour, no-shows, and whether the owner fills shifts. Owner-led coaching can lift early cash take-home, but it is wage savings, not passive profit. If staffing runs ahead of booked sessions, break-even moves up fast and cash that should fund owner pay gets trapped in payroll.
Track Paid Hours, Not Headcount
Track paid sessions per trainer hour, cancellation rate, and coverage by time block. A fuller schedule raises revenue per labor dollar; empty slots do the opposite. Build staffing from booked sessions, not wishful demand, and add manager coverage only where it protects show-up rates or conversion. That keeps trainer pay tied to use, not just roster size.
Stress-test the model with 20 FTE and 40 FTE cases, plus commissions and bonuses that the model loads at 60% of revenue. Then ask: does each added trainer create enough paid sessions to cover salary, taxes, and idle time? If not, slow hiring, tighten scheduling, and keep owner pay as a draw from real margin, not booked-but-unused capacity.
Equipment Cost And Reserves
Equipment Cash and Reserves
The studio starts with $415,000 in startup capex, and the disclosed minimum cash need is $665,000. That cash is tied up before owner distributions, so the owner can look busy and still be short on take-home pay if reserves are thin. Cash spent on equipment does not pay the owner until revenue covers it.
Ongoing suit maintenance and consumables start at 40% of revenue and fall to 30%. Here’s the quick math: every $1.00 of sales needs $0.40 set aside at launch, then $0.30 later. If reserve cash does not cover replacement, warranties, sanitation, technology updates, and downtime, distributions get squeezed fast.
Fund Replacement Before Pay
Track a separate reserve account and fund it from each month’s revenue before owner draws. Use the 40% to 30% maintenance-and-consumables path as the baseline, then test if actual spend is lower. If it runs above plan, the model is not creating real profit yet.
Track maintenance and consumables monthly.
Separate reserves from operating cash.
Plan for downtime and warranty gaps.
Refresh technology before it fails.
Retention And Recurring Revenue
Recurring Members Drive Pay
Retention is the difference between busy days and real owner income. In this EMS fitness studio, recurring members grow from 80 standard and 30 premium to 200 standard and 80 premium. That lifts the recurring base from 110 to 280 members, a gain of 170 paying accounts before any new trials are counted.
Intro trials, renewals, churn, no-shows, contract terms, and consultation conversion all shape cash flow. A full launch month means little if trials do not renew, because intro revenue is one-time cash, not steady income. If churn rises, the owner has to replace lost members with more marketing spend and still risks lower slot use, which cuts profit and owner pay.
Track Renewals, Not Just Trials
Watch the conversion path end to end. Track trial-to-member conversion, monthly churn, renewal rate, and no-shows by package. The core test is simple: recurring members times monthly price must stay ahead of the cost to replace members who leave. If renewals slow, the studio may look busy but still lose take-home income.
Separate intro cash from recurring cash.
Review churn by package monthly.
Push longer contract terms.
Follow up fast after consultations.
Use the contract to protect cash. Premium plans should renew on clear terms, and intro offers should be forecast as acquisition spend, not recurring revenue. That keeps the owner’s draw honest and stops temporary trial sales from overstating profit.
Pricing And Package Mix
Pricing And Package Mix
Price matters, but mix decides profit. In Year 1, the studio charges $99 intro, $399 standard, and $749 premium; by Year 5, those rise to $119, $449, and $849, up about 20%, 12.5%, and 13.3%. Higher prices lift owner pay only if members renew and sessions stay filled.
The real risk is chasing volume with discount-heavy intro offers. Heavy intro traffic can look busy, but if conversion is weak, it creates activity without profit. Empty premium slots do not pay rent, and a stronger premium mix only helps when the schedule, retention, and coach time all hold.
Track Conversion And Renewal
Track what renews, not just what sells. Measure intro-to-member conversion, standard-to-premium mix, renewal rate, discount depth, and add-on consults. Here’s the quick math: a higher package mix raises revenue per client, but the gain only reaches take-home income if renewal stays strong and no-shows stay low.
Set price floors before discounting
Review mix monthly, not quarterly
Cap intro offers that do not convert
Test premium upgrades with clear value
Forecast cash from recurring renewals
If intro sales rise but renewals slip, you are buying traffic, not profit. If premium demand grows, protect seat fill and avoid deep discounts that pull down average revenue per client. The owner’s best take-home comes from a steady recurring base, not from one-time trial spikes.
