GymMaster vs Mindbody: which is actually right for your gym?
Two very different products that both get shortlisted for the same search. Here’s what each one is actually built for, priced honestly, with sources.
TL;DR
GymMaster is New Zealand-built admin and access-control software — twenty-eight years in the market, the highest-rated NZ-native platform in the category, and strongest for gyms that want one vendor for software and door hardware.
Mindbodyis a US-built platform built around its consumer marketplace — a public booking app with 3M+ users — and it’s strongest for studios where being found by new customers is the actual problem, not just running the ones you have.
If your gym already has the members and needs better access control and admin, that’s a GymMaster-shaped problem. If you’re trying to get discovered by people who’ve never heard of you, that’s what Mindbody’s marketplace is actually for.
At a glance
| GymMaster | Mindbody | |
|---|---|---|
| Built for | NZ gyms, access-led operations | Studios (yoga, Pilates, boutique fitness), marketplace discovery |
| Founded | 1997, Christchurch | 2000, US |
| Pricing model | Per gym, by member band | Per location |
| Starting price /mo | $145–210 (Foundation, ≤100 members) | A$89 (Go), per location |
| Top tier | Professional, ≤1,300 members, $341–406 | Growth, A$369, per location |
| Payment processing | Via their processor | Not published — ask in writing |
| Branded member app | +$200/mo + $600 setup | $249–299/mo, or bundled at top tier |
| Door access control | Built in — proprietary hub and readers | Not a core product feature |
| Consumer marketplace | No | Yes — 3M+ users, ~22,000 first bookings/month platform-wide |
| Review score | 4.7/5 (165 NZ reviews) | 4.0/5 overall, 3.6/5 on value (~3,000 reviews) |
Sources: GymMaster and Mindbody pricing verified against their pricing pages 2026-08-24; review figures 2026-08-09 against public aggregators. Mindbody publishes in AUD, per location, and publishes no processing rate. Re-checked quarterly.
Where GymMaster is stronger
Twenty-eight years of NZ-specific operation. Deep local support relationships and a track record most competitors in this market can’t claim.
The highest review score in the category — 4.7/5 from 165 New Zealand reviews. That’s not incumbency alone; people who use it rate it well.
One vendor for hardware and software. If a gym has no access system at all, GymMaster supplying, installing and supporting the whole thing — software and door hardware together — is a genuinely simpler starting point than sourcing them separately.
Broad member ceiling on one plan. The Professional tier covers up to 1,300 members without needing a custom quote.
Where Mindbody is stronger
Real, sizeable consumer demand. The Mindbody marketplace app has 3M+ active users and generates roughly 22,000 first-time bookings a month across every business listed on it. That’s a genuine discovery channel — most gym and studio software has nothing comparable.
Feature depth built over 25 years. Mindbody’s product surface is larger than GymMaster’s in areas outside access control — particularly around class and studio operations.
Multi-location maturity. For an operator running several sites, Mindbody’s cross-location tooling is more developed than GymMaster’s.
The real cost of each
GymMaster, Advanced tier plus a branded member app: roughly $410–476/month ($210–276 subscription + $200 app + amortised $600 setup). No separate payment-processing cut beyond what your processor charges.
Mindbody, mid-tier (Core, A$279/month per location) for a studio processing $20,000/month: they don’t publish a processing rate, so the total depends entirely on what you’re quoted. At 3% that’s $600 a month on top, bringing it to roughly $880; at 3.6%, about $1,000. Get the number in writing before you sign — it decides the total. And if new clients arrive through the marketplace app, add 20% of their first purchase (capped at $30) per client on top.
The marketplace fee is the thing most often missed.It isn’t a subscription line — it’s charged per new client who books through the app, once, on their first purchase. Worth pricing in before deciding the marketplace is “included.”
Access control: the part that surprises people
GymMaster’s door access is built in — but on GymMaster’s own hardware (their hub, their RFID/Bluetooth readers), professionally installed. If a gym already owns smart locks, GymMaster can’t connect to them; they’d need replacing. And if a gym ever leaves GymMaster, those readers only ever worked with GymMaster — they don’t carry over to anything else.
Mindbody doesn’t offer built-in door access control as a core product feature at all — gyms needing that typically integrate a separate access system.
Who should choose which
Choose GymMaster if: you’re a New Zealand gym that wants proven local software, values a single vendor for access hardware and admin, and your growth depends on running the members you already have well rather than being discovered by new ones.
Choose Mindbody if: you’re a studio where new-customer discovery through a public marketplace is a real part of your growth plan, you’re comfortable with per-location pricing and a processing commission, and you don’t need built-in door access control.
A third option, if neither quite fits
Both of these are built primarily for the gym’s side of the business — admin, billing, access, discovery. Neither gives your members anything to open between visits.
PATO takes a different starting point: an AI companion your members actually talk to — logging meals, building plans, noticing when someone’s gone quiet — alongside the access, billing and class management both GymMaster and Mindbody also do. No per-location pricing, no marketplace commission, and no charge on what your members pay you.
If what’s pulling you toward GymMaster or Mindbody is really “I need better admin and access,” or “I need people to find me,” worth seeing whether the actual problem — keeping the members you get — is better solved a different way. See how PATO compares → · Work out the real cost →
FAQ
Depends what the gym needs. GymMaster is NZ-built and NZ-focused, with the higher local review score. Mindbody’s advantage is its consumer marketplace, which is a US-based product used globally, including in NZ.
For a single gym without marketplace bookings, GymMaster is typically cheaper on subscription alone, but its branded app is a substantial add-on. Mindbody does not publish a processing rate, and whatever they quote you applies to every payment — which is what decides the total at volume. Ask for it in writing.
No — neither GymMaster nor Mindbody offers a member-facing AI companion. Both platforms' automation, where it exists, is built for gym staff.
They're separate products built by separate companies with no native integration between them — you'd be running two systems rather than one.
Figures on this page last verified 2026-08-09 against vendor pricing pages and public review aggregators. Pricing and review scores change — if you’re reading this more than a quarter after that date, treat the numbers as a starting point and confirm current rates directly with each vendor.