Psilocybin Therapy Center Startup Costs: $327K+ Before Opening
You’re budgeting a regulated psilocybin-assisted therapy center before revenue starts, so the first cut should separate startup outlays, monthly overhead, payroll, and cash reserve The model shows at least $327,000 in listed startup spending, plus $24,900/month in fixed operating costs and about $40,800/month in Year 1 payroll This excludes any unpriced initial licensing and legal amount, owner salary, debt service, real estate purchase, and long-term losses
Calculate Fuding Needs
Startup cost summary
This table sums the main startup assets and the separate opening cash reserve for a licensed psilocybin-assisted therapy center.
Highlighted CAPEX$330,000Base planning example
Excluded cash needs$577,000Outside CAPEX total
Funding need$907,000CAPEX + excluded cash needs
Cost Category
Base Estimate
Main Cost Driver
CAPEX Calculator
Clinical Suite Buildout
$150,000
Tenant improvements and room buildout
Yes
Specialized Medical Monitoring Equipment
$45,000
Clinical monitoring and safety gear
Yes
Therapeutic Room Furnishings
$35,000
Patient-room fixtures and finishes
Yes
Initial Licensing and Legal Fees
$40,000
Licensing, legal work, and approvals
Yes
Staff Training and Protocol Development
$60,000
Staff onboarding, manuals, and protocol build
Yes
Opening Cash Reserve
$577,000
Month 12 cash buffer for startup losses
No
Estimate Startup Costs with Calculator
Startup CAPEX Calculator
Estimates capitalized startup assets for a licensed psilocybin-assisted therapy center, not operating cash needs.
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CAPEX only This calculator covers capitalized startup assets only. It excludes working capital, payroll runway, rent deposits, debt service, inventory, marketing, licensing delays, legal fees, and other non-CAPEX funding needs.
What should the CAPEX tab show?
This screenshot should show the Psilocybin-Assisted Therapy Center Financial Model Template CAPEX tab: startup costs, Month 1–8 launch timing, depreciation/amortization, working capital, and funding rollup. Check assumptions against $24,900 overhead and about $40,800 Year 1 payroll, then stress-test scenarios.
CAPEX source lines
$150k buildout, $35k furnishings
$45k monitoring, $12k storage
$25k IT/cyber, $60k training/protocol
Compare 3 Startup Cost Scenarios
Startup cost scenarios
Startup cost changes fast here because room count, staffing depth, compliance load, and working capital move together. Lean trims the build, Base matches the model, and Full adds capacity and control.
Lean, Base, and Full launch cost comparison
Scenario
Lean LaunchLowest upfront cash
Base LaunchBalanced launch
Full LaunchCapacity-led launch
Launch model
Starts small with fewer therapy rooms, lighter furnishings, lean admin coverage, and a shorter working-capital runway.
Matches the source model with a balanced room count, standard buildout, and enough runway to cover early ramp-up.
Builds out more therapy rooms, deeper compliance coverage, a bigger tech stack, and more marketing plus runway.
Typical setup
Smaller footprint with fewer rooms, limited compliance support, basic tech, modest marketing, and tighter working capital.
Mid-size footprint with a balanced room count, standard compliance support, core tech, planned marketing, and a normal runway.
Larger footprint with more rooms, deeper compliance support, stronger tech, heavier marketing, and a longer runway.
Cost drivers
Fewer rooms
lighter furnishings
tighter admin staff
basic tech
shorter runway
Core buildout
standard staffing
compliance coverage
EHR and security
planned marketing
More rooms
higher buildout
deeper compliance team
larger tech stack
stronger marketing
Planning rangeCAPEX only
$250,000 - $325,000Lowest cash
$327,000 - $450,000Balanced build
$475,000 - $700,000Higher cash need
Best fit
Best if you want the lowest upfront cash and can open with a smaller footprint.
Best if you want the model's balanced launch with standard staffing and working capital.
Best if you are building for more volume, tighter controls, and a longer launch runway.
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Planning note: These scenario ranges are researched planning assumptions from the model, not exact quotes or bid prices.
What drives psilocybin therapy room setup cost and clinic buildout cost?
The main cost driver for a Psilocybin-Assisted Therapy Center is facility readiness, not décor: use $150,000 as the base clinical suite buildout for private treatment rooms, accessibility, reception, restrooms, sound control, calming interiors, secure storage, and local code needs. Here’s the quick math: add $35,000 for therapeutic room furnishings and $45,000 for medical monitoring equipment where the care model requires it, so setup can reach $230,000 before opening costs. That is separate from $12,000/month lease cost, deposits, and rent before opening.
Buildout CAPEX
$150,000 clinic suite anchor
Private rooms and reception
Accessibility and restrooms
Sound control and storage
Opening Costs
$35,000 room furnishings
$45,000 monitoring equipment
$12,000/month lease cost
Deposits and rent before opening
How should founders plan psilocybin therapy center funding?
Founders should fund the Psilocybin-Assisted Therapy Center for more than the buildout: plan for at least $327,000 in listed startup spending, plus unpriced licensing, legal fees, deposits, pre-opening payroll, insurance, launch marketing, working capital, and contingency. Here’s the quick math: monthly burn is about $24,900 in fixed overhead plus roughly $40,800 in Year 1 payroll before variable costs, so runway has to cover operations, not just opening day. Use treatment volume, staff capacity, and pricing to test break-even, with Year 1 service prices at $4,500 for the senior lead psychotherapist, $1,200 for medical supervision, $800 for registered nursing staff, $250 for clinical integration, and $150 for group facilitation.
Funding needs
$327,000 listed startup spend
Unpriced licensing and legal fees
Pre-opening deposits and payroll
Insurance, marketing, and working capital
Runway test
$24,900 fixed overhead monthly
About $40,800 Year 1 payroll
Test break-even by treatment volume
Price against staff capacity
What hidden costs of opening a psilocybin therapy center should founders budget?
For a Psilocybin-Assisted Therapy Center, the costs that bite are the ones that hit before the first patient pays: licensing delays, legal and compliance help, insurance, training, EHR, cyber security, intake marketing, background checks, and reserve cash. The opening plan should treat working capital as separate from CAPEX because it funds the ramp-up period before volume covers burn. Budget $60,000 for staff training and protocol development, $6,500/month for professional liability insurance, and $1,800/month for secure health IT and EHR maintenance; see What 5 KPIs Should Psilocybin-Assisted Therapy Center Track? for the metrics that show whether the ramp is working.
Upfront cash traps
$60,000 staff training.
$6,500/month liability insurance.
$1,800/month EHR maintenance.
Budget for rent before opening.
Year 1 ramp costs
40% compliance and legal oversight.
80% intake and digital marketing.
Pay for background checks early.
Hold cash for slow patient ramp.
Key Takeaways
Licensing rules vary, so budget legal and compliance separately.
Buildout needs $150,000 and can delay opening six months.
Furnishings and equipment total $80,000 across treatment rooms.
Staffing readiness and management payroll drive heavy fixed costs.
Psilocybin-Assisted Therapy Center Core Five Startup Costs
Licensing, Legal, and Compliance Startup Expense
Licensing setup
For a psilocybin therapy center, this line covers state application fees where they apply, legal review, compliance consulting, policies and procedures, credential checks, background checks, and regulatory readiness. The model includes an initial licensing and legal fees line, but no amount is guaranteed, so treat it as a placeholder until you get jurisdiction-specific quotes.
Budget inputs
Here’s the quick math: use state fee quotes, attorney hours, compliance consultant scope, and the number of staff and owners needing checks. Also budget 40% of Year 1 compliance and legal oversight as a variable expense, plus $900/month for accreditation and membership fees. That keeps startup cash and operating cash in the same model.
Keep it tight
Lower cost by getting the licensing pathway right before you file, because rework gets expensive fast. Ask for fixed-fee legal scopes, reuse policy drafts only after a local review, and batch credential and background checks together. Don’t cut regulatory readiness; one missed control can delay opening and trigger more legal spend than you saved.
Jurisdiction risk
Rules vary by jurisdiction and licensing pathway, so this is budgeting guidance, not legal advice. Build a local compliance memo before you commit cash, then update it as the regulator changes forms, staffing rules, or documentation needs. If your state path changes midstream, the legal and compliance budget can move quickly.
Staffing Readiness, Training, and Systems Startup Expense
Pre-Open Readiness
$60,000 covers staff training and protocol development from Month 1 to Month 8. Treat it as pre-opening readiness, not payroll. It funds onboarding, session flow, safety steps, and system setup before revenue starts. If opening slips, this spend still lands, so model it as a fixed launch cash need rather than a variable operating cost.
Monthly Payroll
Year 1 management payroll runs about $40,800/month. Here’s the quick math: $240,000 Medical Director, $95,000 Clinical Operations Manager, $55,000 Patient Intake Coordinator, 0.5 FTE (half-time equivalent) Regulatory Compliance Officer at $110,000 annual salary, and $45,000 Administrative Assistant.
Clinical Mix
Year 1 capacity assumes 2 senior lead psychotherapists, 3 clinical integration specialists, 1 medical supervision doctor, 2 registered nursing staff, and 1 group facilitation expert. Use that headcount to map session coverage, supervision, and integration. One line: if the room schedule does not match the staff mix, payroll burns before volume shows up.
Match headcount to booked sessions
Cover supervision every treatment day
Keep integration slots open
Control Burn
Cut this cost by staging hires, but do not cut compliance or medical coverage. Hire the Medical Director, compliance lead, and intake flow first; add support roles as opening dates firm up. The main mistake is hiring all clinical and admin roles too early. If pre-opening work stretches, payroll rises fast while the center still has no treatment revenue.
Facility Lease, Renovation, and Buildout Startup Expense
Buildout Budget
The $150,000 clinical suite buildout covers treatment-room setup, reception, accessibility, restrooms, sound control, contractor work, and code-driven changes. Keep it separate from the $12,000/month lease. Model lease deposits, rent before opening, tenant improvement timing, and a contractor contingency as separate fields so buildout CAPEX doesn’t hide occupancy cash need.
Phase the Spend
From Month 1 to Month 6, phase renovation cash by milestone, not by guess. Use contractor quotes, permit-driven changes, and a contingency line; then tie rent before opening to the lease start date, not the first session date. Every extra month of delay adds another $12,000 of rent before revenue starts.
Watch Delay Risk
The model should show renovation cost, occupancy cash need, and opening delay sensitivity together. If tenant improvements land late, cash gets tied up in the suite while lease and pre-opening rent keep running. Keep the $150,000 buildout separate from operating payroll and equipment so funding needs stay clear before the first treatment.
Cash Need Check
One clean rule: if the buildout slips, the lease still bills. That is why lease deposits, rent before opening, and contractor contingency belong in the startup cash plan, not inside the buildout number itself.
Therapy-Room Furnishings and Equipment Startup Expense
Room Setup
This line item usually covers $35,000 of therapeutic room furnishings from Month 3 to Month 6 and $45,000 of specialized medical monitoring equipment from Month 2 to Month 5. That is about $80,000 in setup spend before replacements, with timing spread across the opening window.
Furniture Scope
The furnishings budget should map to each treatment room and service mix: recliners or couches, blankets, lighting, audio equipment, practitioner seating, storage, and calming room elements. Here’s the quick math: total room package cost divided by room count. If you need group space, count it separately so one area does not hide another room’s cost.
Cost Control
Control spend by standardizing the room kit, buying durable items once, and staging purchases to match opening dates. Don’t overbuy before you know room count or service mix. Replacement cycle matters too: if chairs, blankets, or monitors wear fast, build a refresh reserve into the budget instead of treating the first buy as final.
Budget Inputs
Ask four things before you lock the budget: number of treatment rooms, group space needs, equipment standards, and replacement cycle. Those inputs decide whether the setup is a single shared room, a multi-room clinic, or a mixed model with more monitoring gear per client-facing space.
Insurance and Risk Management Startup Expense
Coverage Stack
Insurance is a fixed launch cost, and the model uses $6,500/month for specialized professional liability coverage. Budget for general liability, property, workers’ compensation, and cyber too, since carriers price the full risk stack, not one policy alone.
Pricing Inputs
Use the monthly quote, coverage months, staff mix, patient volume, state rules, and clinical oversight to estimate this line. More clinicians, more sessions, and more data exposure usually raise underwriting. Do not treat $6,500 as guaranteed. One clean line: the quote can move fast.
Request quotes by policy type.
Model 12 months of coverage.
Stress-test cyber and malpractice risk.
Risk Controls
Tight protocols, clean records, and strong supervision can help hold the line, but savings depend on carrier appetite and state availability. If licensing, oversight, or data controls are weak, premiums can rise or coverage can narrow. Put insurance near the top of fixed overhead before opening.
Underwriting Drivers
Underwriters look at the clinic’s staff mix, treatment volume, state rules, and clinical oversight. Higher-risk assumptions can change both price and availability, so the budget should allow for a wide range around the $6,500/month base line.
