This is a thorough guide to personal trainer rates in the US. It is meant primarily for those who are curious about the costs of hiring a personal trainer, but will also be useful to aspiring personal trainers who are trying to get a sense of earning potential.
The Complete Range:Â $20-$300 per hour.
If you live in a rural area, are willing to work with someone who isn’t certified, works in gym franchise, with only a high school diploma and less than 1 year experience you might be able to get a session for $20.  This doesn’t count any subsequent medical bills caused by the session.
If you live in Beverly Hills or Manhattan, work with an independent trainer, who has a masters degree and 15+ years experience, and has trained celebs like J. Lo or Stallone then you are looking at the $300/hr range.
Your Likely Range: $50-$120
Most people living in urban areas in the US are going to find rates in this range. But this is still a rather large spread. To narrow it down even further we need to dig into the factors a bit. But if you are in a hurry and just want quick and dirty answer to how much a decent trainer is going to cost you here is the ballpark answer.
Ballpark Hourly fee for Trainer in a Gym: $50/hrÂ
Ballpark Hourly fee for Independent Trainer: $75/hr
Tip for aspiring trainers: So why not just be an independent trainer and retire rich?  Even though you don’t have a gym to pay, there are plenty of expenses that you have to cover now that the gym is not covering your expenses.Expenses include: health insurance, transportation cost, continuing education, marketing costs.
Also its important to realize that you will spending much of your time working on things besides actually training clients. This nonpaid time includes: communication/scheduling with clients, planning for client sessions, travel time, and marketing.
Not to mention that if you are not an experienced trainer with an established client base you’ll struggle to get hours. If you have between 5-10yrs experience you can charge 75/hr and can expect to actually make between $30 and $50/hr.
These ballpark figures are an educated guess. I’m sure there are a few dynamite trainers working in respectable rural gyms who charge $30/hr. Likewise you can find some real duds who charge upwards of $100/hr that have managed to inflate their hourly wage through shrewd marketing rather than offering a real value.
But for most US residents we would be suspicious of anyone charging less than $50/hr. Likewise anyone charging over $120 is overcharging unless they are working with a very specialized subset of the population (olympic athletes, bodybuilders, weird looking supermodels, etc.)
If you have the time to dig a little further we can break it down for you by the various factors influencing the wage.
The factors that determine the hourly rate of personal training services include.
- Geographic Location
- Level of Education
- Years of Experience
- Type of Certification
Personal Trainer Rates by US Region
All the charts below are constructed using only data from trainers working in gyms and athletic clubs. This data is much easier to come by then data from independent trainers.  To adjust for independent trainers simply add $25-$50 per hour.
Source: American Council on Exercise
Personal Trainer Hourly Rates by City
The findings of this data seem to contradict the regional data as Los Angeles is a fairly inexpensive place to seek training. This suggests that hourly rates are determined more on the local than the regional level.
Source:Â National Federation of Personal Trainers
Personal Trainer Salary by Education
As you might expect, more education means a higher pay rate. It also means a higher hourly. I’m glad to see this trend. Trainers who have a master’s degree have spent several years studying the body and how it works. Trainers who only have the certification may have only studied for a month. Those with a Bachelor’s earn 10% more than those without a degree. But those with a Master’s degree earn over 40% more than those without.
Source: American Council on Exercise
Personal Trainer Salary by Years Experience
I don’t know about you but I if I could pay 10% more and hire someone with 3 years experience vs someone with no experience I would do so in a heartbeat. Also there seems to be little difference between someone with 4 years experience and someone with 20 in terms of pay.
The takeaway? Pay a little extra for someone with at least a few years experience. Also, if you want an experienced trainer you might as well find someone who is very experienced vs. someone in the mid range. The cost will likely be comparable and you’ll get better training, in general, from someone with 15 years experience than someone with only 5.
Source: American Council on Exercise
Personal Trainer Salary by Certification Type
The highest paid trainers are NASM certified. This is only fair as it is the most difficult certification to acquire. Some of the other programs on the list, I won’t name names, can be acquired in as little as two weeks time.  It is truly a scary proposition to mix someone with two weeks of book study, an inexperienced exerciser and a barbell.  Ask your trainer where they are certified and if they say NASM you know you are in good hands, if they say something else then you’ll need to dig a little deeper.  They may be great but then again…
Source:Â SimplyHired.com
29 thoughts on “Personal Trainer Hourly Rates”
This info on salaries was terrific! As a former personal trainer recertifying, it is imperative I get payrate figures. Thanks for keeping it real!
No problem Valerie! I’m glad it is useful. Good luck with the re-certification.
Thank you for this- I have multiple certs from NASM and have been a trainer for over 20 years- but i live in a mixed rural area – my rates I wanted to have lower for my seniors so it would be affordable for pp who need it…but I was still undercharging for many years!
Thanks for the comment Becky! Pricing is truly one of the most difficult decisions in the business of personal training.
Perhaps you could have a regular rate and a seniors rate?
this really helped thanks looking to be a personal trainer
So having a masters and a NASM certification, even though I am just technically starting out as an official personal trainer for a gym, what would an adequate hourly wage rate be worth asking for where there are no other costs or benefits from this gym?
That’s a good question. Of course it depends a lot on the business model of the gym. But I should think you should earning upwards of $40 per client hour.
Hi, I have a site that looks at personal trainer salaries in the UK. It seems there’s not that much difference here.
One thing that I think can help PTs make more money is by becoming an expert in your industry and establishing yourself as an authority figure on social media channels such as twitter and facebook.
Then you can move on to perhaps creating your own podcast or guest speaking at public fitness events such as BodyPower here in the UK. Getting your name out there and networking will help grow your client base and once people perceive you as an expert in the PT field it can open up lots of doors to new clients and perhaps celebrity clients that pay much much higher.
Thanks,
Kevin
Excellent point Kevin! Thanks for the ideas.
HI Thanks for this post. I have been teaching Group Exercise for 3 years and have recently been certified as a personal trainer. The fitness studio that I have been teaching at wants me to take on personal training clients, which was one reason why I got certified. However, she is offering 60/40 split, 60 for her, 40 for me. I carry my own liability insurance, responsible for own continuing ed cost, CPR/AED cert., help with marketing, as well as scheduling client and keep proper records for each, and cleaning up before and after each training session. I’m starting to feel like she is taking advantage. Your thoughts on the situation would be appreciated.
That really does sound out of balance. I’m certain you can get better deal elsewhere.
Help with marketing? And cleaning?
That is lunacy. Might I ask where you live? If it is a particularly small town that has only one gym they might be able to justify it but it seems out of whack to me.
Thank you for putting this together! Great & helpful information. I am from Long Beach, CA and recently certified.
Your most welcome Allan. Good luck with the business!
I live in bergen county NJ. I have an in home trainer who charges $85 an hour. She does have a studio as well. Should I expect a lower hourly fee if I travel to her studio and would you say that $85 an hour is high for an in home trainer?
I’d say $85 is a reasonable rate for an experienced trainer.
Thank you! Great info especially since I have more than 20 years experience and an NASM certified, as well as several other Certs!!!! Is it a good idea to get insurance for in home training? Now to find some good marketing suggestions!!!!
Yes, but insurance for personal trainers usually covers an in-home practice as well.
AWESOME! really helped a lot
I was just certified and live in MS. I have been teaching a Stretch class at a gym for over a year at $15/hrly. The gym owner wants me to sign a contract to train at his gym and no other gyms for 60/40 of $50. Is it just me or is that ridiculous?!
If I independently trainer what would be some basic equipment you would suggest outside of a matt, ball and tension bands?
Hi Carmen, thanks for the comment, unfortunately gyms really seem to try to gouge trainers. It does seem ridiculous to me, especially the non-compete clause. But I’m afraid it is fairly standard for the gym world.
It is amazing how much you can do in-home with the simple equipment you suggested. Some other possibilities include getting certified in kettlebells, TRX, or Pilates Matwork(all highly portable equipment).
Independent training is great but it really requires you to be a business person as well as personal trainer. It can be complex and client growth can be slow without a facility. That said, in my opinion, it is worth every ounce of effort for the freedom.
But it may be hard to make ends meet at first…
I really like this article…I mean, I googled it and it said things that I like. I have been a personal fitness trainer for over 15 years and have had the craziest fluctuations in rates. I started in San Antonio, Tx…I worked as a group fitness instructor for $25/hr;and as a Personal Fitness Trainer $40/hr, $25/hfhr. This is attainable for any one for 1 great training session. But more importantly, to encourage further sessions, one should discount for continued business. Fifteen years, and a financial crisis, later I still use the same rates. I now live in a more rural and conservative area of Texas, Amarillo. I have always discounted 8 (2/week) prepaid sessions because…$160 (8/$20hfhr) is greater than $50 (2 regular priced half hour sessions). Currently I charge 3 people $400 per month, 5 days a week for 1full hour; and a couple 2 days each per week for $320/month…all this averages $20/session. But often, because this is a discount rate, I charge by the month…sick days for me are virtually non existent…but when the client is traveling or sick or just plain weak in the mind…i reap the reward. Basically as extra gym time for me. Gym rent is a whole ‘notha thin’ al’tagetha. I worked for a gym in southern Cali and they wanted to charge 70/30 split…in negotiation with the dipshit owner I convinced him to reverse the ratio to 1/3 or 66% to the trainer. He had balked at 75%. Needless to say, that gym closed shortly, thereafter. My only other option near was L.A. Fitness at $8/hfhr session..,it took me a long time to choke it down; but I now realize this was a great rate because they could feed me 16 half hour sessions per day. Truly, nothing greater than corporate rape but for the area, the rules of supply and demand will always apply. Crazy how everything in like, fitness, economics, sales..all revolve back to fundamentals.
I’ve been reading around and noticed that a lot of gyms have problems with personal trainers that are independent. What do those trainers do for a gym? You mentioned some great tips for payment rates starting out. What do you have to say about finding a place to train?
Good question! Most gyms won’t allow independent trainers. Or if they do the fee is ridiculous. Outside trainers can be source of revenue for a gym. But more often the fear of an unclear legal situation and lack of control scare gyms away from using independent trainers.
In order to find a place to train I’d recommend training in-home. Many clients are open to it. Apartment gyms are great! Some trainers have the resources to build a space in their garage.
If you really want to find a gym to train as independent trainer I’d stick to small independent gyms. You may be able to form a relationship with the owners and avoid corporate bureaucracy.
hey loving all the great insights from everyone. I’m curious to know your thoughts in a field of ( Independent private boxing/fitness training? i’m a former professional boxer and i unfortunately never ended up making the enormous amount of money so i could just sit around retired. However i did manage to atleast find myself developing my workouts into cash. So question is – What do you think a reasonable fee to charge clients that ” Wanna learn the trade of boxing, or lose weight , or just get in shape though i have no degrees in fitness, or cpt or anything kinds of certifications except the facts on my 25yrs of Am/pro boxing experience and medals and tournaments ive won on a national level of competition? And that’s what i’ve been using as my marketing tool ? but it seems since i live in a very small state since i started promoting ” my ( box/fit several years ago ) most people that originally 😂 but off at me first few yrs and nowseems have stolen my ideas of business while i’m still independently struggling in a friends small privately own gym. so is there any help you advise me to please in regards to all this negativity? thanks
Figure out who your target audience is. Young men who are aspiring boxers? Middle aged women who want to get fit? And then figure out how to get in front of their eyes. Pricing will go easier once you have a steady stream of new business.
Thank you for this wonderful article and information. Do you foresee any plans of updating?
Yes it is getting a bit out of date. I hope to have time to do an update before long.
Hi,
Thanks for this article! I’m developing a fitness business located in West Virginia, and I’m having a difficult time assessing the average personal training rates for the state. I wanted to look deeper into the average rates by region on the ACE website that you mentioned in the first graph, but I cannot find the source. Do you know where I might be able to search for the average rates in my locality apart from contacting a huge number of gyms individually?
Thanks!
Hi Stephan, Here is a resource I found on salaries by state – http://www.exercise-science-guide.com/careers/personal-trainer/salary/. You might look at that and work backwards to come up with a reasonable hourly wage.