Whether you’re an experienced personal trainer or just starting out, a great fitness coach app can help transform the way you do business. Switching to a reliable software app for your business can help you eliminate paper calendars and endless email chains that result in confusion or miscommunication, streamlining your business and increasing client satisfaction. 

9 Best Apps For Personal Trainers To Grow Your Business

The right apps can be a game changer for personal trainers, making daily operations and client management a breeze. This article will explore what apps for personal trainers are and how they can grow your business, as well as the key features to look for, and a breakdown of different apps you can try for yourself. 

What Is The Purpose Of An App for Personal Trainers And Fitness Coaches?

Apps for personal trainers and fitness coaches provide a platform for these professionals to make managing your business easier. With the right software, you can automate day-to-day administrative duties, manage client interactions, set schedules, and even foster a positive community within your clientele. The best online personal training software should give you the power to control how users interact with your business, allowing you to customize and improve their experiences. 

What Features Should An App For Personal Trainers Have?

When searching for the best personal trainer app, look for features that are easy to navigate and designed to make your life easier. Below are some basic features you’ll want included in your personal training app.

Appointment Scheduling

Appointment scheduling lets you manage your training classes with ease. Giving clients the ability to see class schedules (like for group workouts) and book their own sessions means less time spent on the phone or answering questions about availability. 

Workout Assignments

A personal trainer app for clients that lets you schedule and assign workouts can save you time and a whole lot of emails. This feature allows you to compile personalized workout plans for your clients and schedule them to send out at a time of your choosing.

A Secure Client Database

Take time to review the app software’s privacy policy and ensure they take their data protections seriously. Some personal training apps store sensitive data like credit card numbers or personal details like gender, weight, and other health information, and it’s important you never choose a program that could put your clients at risk of exposure. 

SMS And Email Reminders

Automated reminders can take another tedious task off your plate by doing the grunt work for you. The most useful software lets you customize and schedule your appointment reminders so that clients have no excuse to no-show. 

Fitness Tracking And Goals

Sure, plenty of trainees will come equipped with their own fitness tracking gadgets like Apple Watches and Fitbits, but it’s helpful to have an app that can keep all the details of a client’s workout and fitness journey in one place. Set goals for your clients and track their progress all within a central hub, making it easy for you both to view and make adjustments as necessary. 

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9 Best Apps For Personal Trainers

So you know what you need in a personal trainer app for clients (and how it can benefit your fitness business), but there’s so much software out there to choose from. Luckily, we’ve curated a list below that can highlight all the pros and cons of the best personal trainer apps on the market. 

GlossGenius

GlossGenius isn’t just for salons and spas, it also functions as an all-in-one platform for a variety of other self-care/niche businesses. With GlossGenius, you can handle bookings, client and staff management, notifications, and marketing for your personal training business. GlossGenius’ subscription plans start at $24/month for all the features you need to start your business, and other tiers are available with more advanced features and larger teams. 

• Pros: GlossGenius’ key features can support your fitness business, including online scheduling, payment processing, appointment deposits, customizable websites, schedule/calendar management, client notes, and feedback survey options. GlossGenius also offers two plans: Standard and Gold, the latter of which includes several advanced features like waitlists for fully booked classes, waivers, and rebooking reminders.
• Cons: GlossGenius does not offer targeted fitness features like health tracking or workout goals but stay tuned, we’re always rolling out new features.

Mindbody

Mindbody is another comprehensive program that supports the fitness, beauty, and wellness sectors. The software comes with a variety of plans, from Starter to Ultimate Plus, and prices start at $169/month per location. 

• Pros: Like GlossGenius, Mindbody is a flexible software choice for your personal training business. Depending on the Mindbody plan you choose, you can have access to features like session scheduling, progress tracking, marketing support, third-party app integrations, reporting, and employee tools. Mindbody also offers demos for those looking to try out the software before committing.
• Cons: Some users report that the Mindbody interface feels outdated, has difficulty handling inventory, and a finicky mobile app. Users also complain about the wait time for customer service, and that the software feels geared toward bigger businesses rather than small ones. 

ABC Trainerize

ABC Trainerize offers a free subscription plan that allows management of one personal training client, with prices starting at $9 for two clients, and $19.80/month for up to five (with yearly billing). 

• Pros: ABC Trainerize offers training templates, client tracking, and fitness libraries filled with pre-built workouts so you can customize your own targeted exercise plans. But Trainerize doesn’t just offer physical fitness training, it also provides options for nutrition and habit coaching, video lessons, and client notification features like in-app messaging, notifications, and automated communications. You can also manage marketing leads and documents (like waivers and contracts), and provide achievement badges clients can share on social media.
• Cons: Some common issues with the Trainerize software include buggy features like a faulty chat function, glitchy nutrition tracking, slow loading videos, and constant troubleshooting with clients. 

TrueCoach

With annual billing, a subscription to this fitness coach app starts at $26.34/month for management of five clients. The Standard Plan costs $57.99/month and lets you manage up to 20 clients. 

• Pros: With TrueCoach, you can build custom workout programs, track clients’ progress, access a specialized coaching dashboard and resources, and provide access to a video exercise library full of demos and instructional videos. TrueCoach offers nutrition and habit coaching, real-time messaging, as well as multimedia message support. TrueCoach also offers integration with MyFitnessPal.
• Cons: TrueCoach app users say that the coaching app is lacking, with clunky programming options and not enough updates/improvements for the price point. Others say they continuously experience difficulty when uploading pictures or videos, and encounter issues when dealing with clients across time zones.

My PT Hub

My PT Hub is an affordable software option that costs $48/month with annual billing, and includes a variety of basic features (along with a 30-day free trial so you can test them out for yourself). 

• Pros: My PT Hub offers unlimited clients, workouts, and nutrition plans as part of its monthly subscription. Along with these features, there is also instant chat for trainer/client communication, event streaming options, public calendars and waiting lists, along with branding features and an integrated marketplace to help you grow and improve your business. 
• Cons: Some users report that the interface is hard to navigate, especially on the client end, and that it’s hard to get refunds when canceling the software. Other reviews claim the app is buggy, with a host of issues plaguing both desktop and mobile apps, including poor video quality and faulty workout tracking. 

Acuity Scheduling

Acuity Scheduling is Squarespace’s appointment scheduling solution. With plans starting at $16/month (if you pay annually), Acuity Scheduling can work for personal trainers who run small to medium-sized fitness businesses. 

• Pros: With Acuity, you can book and edit appointments, process payments, and provide online intake forms for clients. You can also access features such as calendar sync and appointment reminders to cut down on no-shows and late arrivals. Acuity provides social media integration, allowing you seamless business promotion, as well as custom appointment types. 
• Cons: Some note that Acuity has limited customer support and reporting options, and if you have multiple business locations, the pricing can get rather expensive. Also, because Acuity is a general scheduling program, there aren’t any targeted fitness features like health or progress tracking. Others dislike the fact that issuing refunds requires logging in to Stripe, and that there aren’t options to customize the booking page. 

Virtuagym

Virtuagym is another one of the many useful apps for personal trainers. The company doesn’t publicly list their pricing on their website, but you can fill out a form to get a personalized quote to fit your needs. 

• Pros: Virtuagym provides appointment scheduling for clients, payment processing, and member management tools. With Virtuagym software, you can draft training schedules for your clients and track their progress, create custom meal plans, and establish an online community for your clients to interact with each other. There’s even an option to include challenges and leaderboards to help motivate your clients and inspire healthy competition. 
• Cons: Some issues with the Virtuagym software include faulty functionality with features like the workout editor and client messaging system, as well as problems getting quality customer service support for troubleshooting issues. Other users complain about poor mobile app integration and lack of seamless marketing capabilities. 

Vagaro

Vagaro also functions as a personal training app for clients, offering a suite of tools to help manage your fitness business. Vagaro's pricing starts at $30/month for individual business owners with no employees. If you have multiple team members or want to grow your business, Vagaro charges an additional $10 per user per month.

• Pros: Vagaro supports features like online booking, waivers, payments, and a marketplace for promoting your business. Take advantage of their robust scheduling capabilities, which include booking integrations through your business page, social media, review sites (like Yelp), or map apps (such as Apple Maps). Vagaro offers safe and secure payments, as well as no-show protection and cancellation fees. 
• Cons: Some users report issues with certain forms not sending out to customers, faulty email/marketing campaigns, and problems with getting timely customer support. Additionally, many premium features cost extra, like an additional $10/month for check-in, another $20/month for text marketing, and $200/month for a custom branded app. 

FitSW

FitSW is software specifically geared toward fitness professionals, with targeted features that make it easy to manage your business. With an annual plan, the price for trainers with five or fewer clients works out to a monthly rate of $19, increasing with the number of clients you add. 

• Pros: Since FitSW is dedicated fitness software, it offers quite a few features to support your personal training venture. You can streamline your workout programs by scheduling them to clients ahead of time, send out push notifications, and even use AI to analyze your clients’ exercise form to help provide valuable insights into their abilities or deficiencies. FitSW lets you set session rates, track inbound payments, and create packages for your clients. 
• Cons: Some users report difficulty navigating the interface and glitchy interactions, such as issues with lagging, and disappearing videos. Other reviews also mention a lack of customization options and analytics

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Level Up Your Personal Training Business with GlossGenius

The best online personal training software should cater to your professional needs and facilitate a seamless experience for your clients. While there are plenty of different apps for personal trainers to choose from, GlossGenius can help you grow and manage your business, letting you provide clients with top quality service while keeping your daily operations organized and on track. 

GlossGenius offers an all-in-one solution for your personal training app needs, such as Client Notifications, Scheduling & Calendar, and Point of Sale features. 

Signup with GlossGenius today or start a free trial to see how we can best support your personal training business.