TrueCoach pricing in 2026 starts at $19.99/month (Starter, 5 clients) and scales to $99.99/month (Pro, 50 clients), with a custom tier above 50. The headline change is a 5% TrueCoach Payments processing fee added in January 2026. At 20 clients paying $150/month, that fee alone costs $1,800 per year, more than the Pro subscription itself. You can bypass it by billing via Stripe-direct and using TrueCoach only for programming.
Last reviewed: May 2026
If you priced TrueCoach in 2025 and bookmarked the number, throw the bookmark out. The 2026 pricing page looks almost identical on the surface (Starter, Standard, Pro tiers, same client caps), but a quiet line in the terms of service now reads "5% processing fee on payments collected through TrueCoach Payments." That single sentence rewrites the math for every coach billing clients in-app.
This post does what other TrueCoach pricing breakdowns refuse to do: it actually quantifies the 5% fee at every realistic roster size, shows you the Stripe-direct bypass that legally avoids it, and benchmarks the all-in cost against Trainerize, MyPTHub, and PT Distinction. If you're choosing a coaching platform in 2026 or deciding whether to stay, this is the math that matters.
TrueCoach pricing 2026 at a glance
Here is the 2026 TrueCoach price card, fees included, as of the May 2026 published pricing page.
| Plan | Monthly | Annual (per month) | Client cap | Payment fee |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Starter | $19.99 | $17.99 | Up to 5 | 5% on TC Payments |
| Standard | $49.99 | $44.99 | Up to 20 | 5% on TC Payments |
| Pro | $99.99 | $89.99 | Up to 50 | 5% on TC Payments |
| Custom | Quote | Quote | 51+ | 5% on TC Payments (negotiable above 100) |
Everything else (programming, messaging, video upload, habit tracking, client app) is included at every tier. The only things gated by tier are the client cap and a few admin niceties like assistant coach seats on Pro.
The 14-day free trial is the same across all three tiers and does not require a card.
All 3 plans broken down (Starter, Standard, Pro) plus over-50 custom
Starter ($19.99/mo, up to 5 clients)
The "are you actually a coach yet" tier. Five client cap is tight. The full programming library, exercise demos, in-app messaging, and habit tracking are all unlocked, so feature-wise you're not handicapped, just capped. Good for: side-hustle coaches, post-rehab specialists with a tiny caseload, anyone validating the workflow before committing.
Cost per client at the cap: $4.00/month per client (monthly billing) or $3.60/month (annual).
Standard ($49.99/mo, up to 20 clients)
The most common tier among independent coaches per public reviews on r/personaltraining and the Trustpilot listing. Twenty clients is roughly where a full-time online coach sits if average client value is $150 to $250 per month. Standard adds the program library export and a few small workflow touches.
Cost per client at the cap: $2.50/month per client monthly, $2.25/month annual.
Pro ($99.99/mo, up to 50 clients)
Adds assistant coach seats (so you can hire a junior to write programs under your account), advanced reporting, and bulk action tools. At 50 clients you are running a business, not a side hustle, and Pro reflects that.
Cost per client at the cap: $2.00/month per client monthly, $1.80/month annual.
Custom (51+ clients)
Sales call required. Reports from coaches who have negotiated suggest pricing of $150 to $250/month at 75 to 150 clients, sometimes with the 5% fee renegotiated down to 3% above 100 active billing clients. If you're at this scale, always ask for the fee to be capped or scrapped. They will negotiate, especially against a Trainerize Studio quote.
The 5% payment fee: what it actually costs you (year 1 math)
Here is the part nobody is publishing. The 5% is calculated on every dollar collected through TrueCoach Payments, on top of the Stripe processing fee (2.9% + $0.30), which TrueCoach Payments passes through. So your real take rate on $100 collected is roughly $91.80 after both fees ($5 TrueCoach + $3.20 Stripe).
Let's run the year-1 cost of the fee at three realistic average client values:
| Clients | $50/mo client | $100/mo client | $200/mo client |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5 | $150 fee/yr | $300 fee/yr | $600 fee/yr |
| 20 | $600 fee/yr | $1,200 fee/yr | $2,400 fee/yr |
| 50 | $1,500 fee/yr | $3,000 fee/yr | $6,000 fee/yr |
| 100 | $3,000 fee/yr | $6,000 fee/yr | $12,000 fee/yr |
Read that bottom-right cell again. A coach with 100 clients at $200/month is handing TrueCoach $12,000 per year in payment fees, on top of their custom-tier subscription. That's a luxury car payment annually for the convenience of one click.
True cost per client at 5, 20, 50, 100 athletes (with fees baked in)
Subscription cost spread per client looks cheap. Subscription plus fee at $150 average client value looks very different.
| Roster | Plan | Sub cost/yr | 5% fee/yr ($150 avg) | All-in/yr | Per client/mo |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 | Starter annual | $215.88 | $450 | $665.88 | $11.10 |
| 20 | Standard annual | $539.88 | $1,800 | $2,339.88 | $9.75 |
| 50 | Pro annual | $1,079.88 | $4,500 | $5,579.88 | $9.30 |
| 100 | Custom est. $2,400 | $2,400 | $9,000 | $11,400 | $9.50 |
Notice the per-client all-in cost barely drops as you scale. The economies of scale on the subscription are completely erased by the fee, which scales linearly with revenue. This is by design. TrueCoach captured 2025 with low sticker prices, then in 2026 locked the upside.
TrueCoach Payments vs Stripe-direct: the bypass that saves 5%
Here is what the TrueCoach sales team will not volunteer: you are not required to use TrueCoach Payments. You can use TrueCoach purely as a programming and communication platform and bill clients directly via Stripe, Square, or a tool like Stripe Checkout, Gymdesk, or even a basic Stripe Payment Link.
The setup looks like this:
- Create a Stripe account (or use the one you already have). Pay 2.9% + $0.30 per transaction, that's it.
- Build a Stripe Payment Link or recurring subscription product for each coaching package.
- Send the link to new clients on intake. They subscribe through Stripe directly.
- Inside TrueCoach, add the client and use it for programming, messaging, video review, habit tracking. No money changes hands inside TrueCoach.
- Track who's paid in Stripe (or push the data to Notion / a Google Sheet via Zapier).
What you give up: the in-app "Pay now" prompt for clients, and one-click invoicing. What you keep: 100% of the TrueCoach product (programming, app, messaging) and an extra 5% on every dollar collected.
At 20 clients × $150/month, that bypass is worth $1,800/year. At 50 clients × $200/month, it is worth $6,000/year. The opportunity cost of the convenience is enormous.
Hidden fees: chargebacks, refunds not credited, monthly billing premium
The 5% is the headline fee. There are three more line items that bite:
- Chargebacks: $15 per disputed charge, separate from the Stripe chargeback fee ($15 also). Total cost of a single chargeback: $30, plus you lose the original transaction. Common when clients ghost mid-program.
- Refunds: the 5% TrueCoach fee on the original transaction is non-refundable. If a client pays $300 and you refund them, you eat the $15 fee. Stripe at least refunds their processing in some cases. TrueCoach does not.
- Monthly billing premium: paying month-to-month vs annual is roughly a 10% surcharge. The Standard plan at $49.99/mo monthly works out to $599.88/year vs $539.88 on annual. That $60 gap is real money on a tight P&L.
None of these are unique to TrueCoach but together they add ~$100 to $300/year of friction for a typical 20-client coach.
Annual vs monthly: the 9 to 10% premium for flexibility
The published discount on annual is 10%. Standard goes from $49.99/mo to $44.99/mo. Pro goes from $99.99 to $89.99. Starter goes from $19.99 to $17.99.
For Starter, the savings are $24/year, not worth pre-committing if you're testing. For Standard and Pro, the savings are $60 to $120/year, worth it once you're certain TrueCoach is your platform. Note: there is no quarterly option. It is one month or twelve.
If you're new to TrueCoach, take the trial, then go monthly for 60 to 90 days, then flip to annual once your workflow is locked. That's the cheapest "low-regret" path.
TrueCoach vs Trainerize vs MyPTHub on all-in 2026 cost
Sticker price comparison is misleading. All-in cost at 20 clients × $150 average monthly revenue is the only number that matters.
| Platform | Sub/yr (20 clients) | Payment fee | Fee at $36K rev | All-in/yr |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| TrueCoach Standard | $539.88 | 5% + Stripe | $1,800 + Stripe | $2,339.88 |
| Trainerize Studio | $1,068 | 0% (Stripe direct) | $0 | $1,068 |
| MyPTHub Pro | $948 | 0% | $0 | $948 |
| PT Distinction 25-client | $1,068 | 0% | $0 | $1,068 |
TrueCoach is the cheapest on subscription but the most expensive all-in once the 5% kicks in. Trainerize, MyPTHub, and PT Distinction all let you bring your own Stripe with zero markup. At 20 clients, switching away from TrueCoach Payments saves $1,000+ per year.
Caveat: Trainerize's nutrition module is markedly better. MyPTHub's UK billing infrastructure is better for European coaches. PT Distinction's progression tools are stronger. Cost is one input, not the only one.
14-day free trial: what you can and cannot test
The trial gives you everything: full programming library, exercise demo videos, in-app messaging, client mobile app, habit tracking, assistant coach features on Pro tier. No card required, no contract. You can add a real client and run them through a full two-week microcycle.
What the trial cannot test: TrueCoach Payments (you'd need to connect a real Stripe account and process real charges), the 5% fee in practice (no fees during trial), customer support escalation behavior (trial users get the slower-tier support queue), and how the platform feels at the client cap (you won't have 50 clients in 14 days).
The 14 days are enough to evaluate the programming UX, exercise library, messaging, and mobile experience. Use them. Bring at least one beta client. Write at least three programs. If those three things feel right, the platform is right.
When TrueCoach is worth the price (programming-focused 1:1 coaches)
TrueCoach is the right answer if:
- You're a 1:1 strength, hybrid, or sport-specific coach and your differentiator is program quality, not nutrition or community.
- Roster is 5 to 30 clients with average value $200+/month, so the fee in absolute dollars is manageable and the workflow win is real.
- You don't want to manage Stripe yourself and the convenience genuinely matters.
- You hate every other platform's UX, which is a legitimate reason. TrueCoach's interface is the cleanest in the category, full stop.
- You want assistant-coach hand-off (Pro tier) for a small team setup.
In other words: high-value, low-volume, programming-led 1:1 coaching. That's the sweet spot.
When to switch (high-volume nutrition coaches, 50+ clients)
Don't stay on TrueCoach if:
- You're past 50 clients and the 5% fee crosses $4,000/year, the math on switching gets compelling fast.
- Nutrition coaching is more than 30% of your service. The macro tracking + meal logging in TrueCoach is the weakest feature in the platform.
- You run group challenges or community-led programs. There's no group feed or community module worth using.
- You serve clients outside the US and the in-app payment FX rates plus 5% become punitive.
- You're already running Stripe direct, in which case the question is just "do I need this UI or could MyPTHub do the same for $200/year less."
Trainerize is the most common destination for nutrition-heavy coaches leaving TrueCoach. MyPTHub is the cheapest no-frills alternative. PT Distinction is the most powerful for periodization-heavy coaches.
More from AIToolsBakery: TrueCoach review, TrueCoach vs Trainerize, how to choose personal trainer software.
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FazFaz is the founder of AIToolsBakery. Every tool on this site is personally tested with real-world writing tasks before a single word gets published. No sponsored rankings, no recycled press releases.
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