Privates and duets: should a small studio offer them, and at what price?
A private earns more per hour than almost anything else you can teach. It also takes a whole room for one person, and that trade is the whole question.
Group classes are the engine of a reformer studio: one instructor, several reformers, several payments per hour. Privates and duets work differently. They pay better per client, worse per reformer, and they bring in people a group class never would: the post-surgery client, the nervous beginner, the person who wants their programme built around one hip.
The maths you are really comparing
Do not compare a private to one group spot. Compare it to the group class that could have run in the same hour.
| Same hour, taught as | Typical takings | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Group class, 6 reformers, 4 booked at €18 | €72 | Depends entirely on fill |
| Private at €60 | €60 | Guaranteed if booked; one client |
| Duet at €40 per person | €80 | Often the best hour of the lot |
The numbers are an illustration, not a price list. The point is the shape: a private rarely beats a well-filled group class, but it comfortably beats a thin one. That is why privates belong in the hours that do not fill as groups.
How to price them
- A private is commonly priced at around two and a half to four times a group drop-in. Lower than that and you are underselling an hour of undivided attention; much higher and it prices out the people who most need one.
- A duet sits between: more per hour for you than a private, less per person for them. Couples, friends, parent and teenager. It is the easiest private to sell.
- Packs of privates (three or five) are worth offering. A single private is a trial; a pack is a programme, and programmes are what bring the post-injury client back.
Keeping them from eating your week
- 01Set private hours. A fixed set of slots, usually mid-morning and early afternoon, rather than fitting them wherever a client asks.
- 02Never in a peak group slot. An 18:00 private that replaces a full group class is a pay cut.
- 03The same cancellation rule as groups, or stricter. A cancelled private is a whole empty hour, not one empty reformer.
- 04Decide who teaches them. Privates are also how instructors build a following. Be clear up front whether they are booked through the studio.
In Reformer Pilates Booking each class has its own capacity, and packs can include as many classes as you choose, so you can decide how privates and duets sit alongside your group schedule and what they cost.
Set up your group classes, then decide where privates fit.
Start for freeCommon questions
- How much should I charge for a private reformer session?
- Commonly around two and a half to four times your group drop-in price, depending on your market and the instructor's experience. Offer packs of three or five as well, since a programme brings clients back more reliably than a single session.
- What is a duet Pilates session?
- One instructor with two clients, usually friends, partners or family. Each person pays less than for a private, the studio earns more per hour than from a private, and it is often the easiest one-to-one format to sell.
- Should a small studio offer private sessions at all?
- Yes, in the hours that do not fill as group classes. A private rarely beats a well-filled group class but comfortably beats a thin one, and it reaches clients a group class never would, such as people recovering from injury.