Cost-to-Teach Calculator

💵 Per-Class Labor

Instructor pay per class ⓘThe base rate you pay an instructor to teach one class — before taxes or benefits. Most owners price off this number alone and stop. It's only the start of the real cost.

Payroll tax & load factor ⓘEmployer payroll taxes, workers' comp, and any paid training/meeting time, as a % of base pay. W2 instructors typically add 20–30%; 1099 contractors closer to 0%. We multiply base pay by this to get fully-loaded labor.

🏢 Monthly Overhead

Rent / lease ⓘYour monthly rent or lease payment — the biggest fixed cost, and the one owners forget to load into a single class.

Utilities ⓘElectricity, water, gas, internet, heating/cooling — the monthly running costs. Heated rooms and reformer studios run higher.

Software & booking fees ⓘYour booking platform, payments, email, website — the monthly tech stack. (If it's a lot, try our Duct-Tape Tax tool next.)

Cleaning ⓘProfessional cleaning, supplies, disinfectant — what it takes to reset the room between classes.

Laundry & consumables ⓘTowel laundry, mat spray, grip socks, reformer springs, wipes — the small recurring costs that add up per class.

📅 Schedule & Revenue

Classes per week ⓘTotal weekly classes — we use this to divide your monthly overhead into a per-class allocation.

Average heads per class ⓘAverage attendance across the whole schedule — not just the packed peak classes. Blended average, like fill rate.

Average price per head ⓘEffective revenue per client per class after membership discounts — not the drop-in price. This is what each body in the room actually earns you.

Payment processing rate ⓘThe % Stripe/your processor charges per transaction. Most studios pay 2.5–3%. It comes out of every dollar that runs through the room.

✨ Your True Cost-to-Teach

Fully-Loaded Cost Per Class

$109

instructor pay is only 50% of the real cost

Cost Breakdown (per class)

Instructor pay (loaded) $69

Rent allocation $46

Utilities $6

Software & cleaning $8

Laundry & consumables $2

Payment processing $8

                            Revenue per class
                            $280
                        

                            Contribution margin / class
                            +$171
                        

✅

Healthy margin

Your labor is 25% of revenue and your contribution margin is 61%. That's a sustainable class.

💡 What This Means

🎯

Break-even heads

4 heads

⚖️

Labor as % of revenue

25%

📊

Contribution margin

61%

Stop pricing blind.

Zipper's unified reporting shows your real Cost-to-Teach and contribution margin live — per class, per instructor, per format. No more 9pm spreadsheet reconciliations.

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What Does One Class Really Cost You?