Cost of private studio rental vs opening your own gym in Amsterdam

You have three choices as a personal trainer in Amsterdam: rent a studio by the hour, lease a space, or open your own gym. Each path has completely different costs, different risks and a different break-even point. No sales pitch — pure math with real 2026 Amsterdam numbers.

The three options at a glance

Before we look at the numbers, the definitions. These are the three models most freelance trainers in Amsterdam consider:

• Rent per hour: You book a private studio per session (like SculptClub). No fixed costs.
• Lease space: You rent your own space for a year or longer. Fixed monthly costs, your fit-out.
• Open your own gym: You buy or commercially lease, do your own fit-out and investment. Full control.

In practice 95% of Amsterdam freelance trainers weigh the choice between renting per hour and opening their own gym. Leasing commercial space just for your own clients tends to be too expensive as a middle option. So we focus on those two extremes.

Renting a private studio at SculptClub — what €12/hour gets you

At SculptClub on Egelantiersgracht in the Jordaan you rent a private studio per session. You only pay for the time you actually use. No membership, no contract, free cancellation anytime.

With a session pack you save up to 23%:

• Starter — €89: 10 sessions, ~10% off
• Routine — €199: ~15% off, most popular pack
• Pro — €349: ~20% off
• Volume — €549: ~23% off for trainers running 3+ sessions/week

Included: all equipment (Rogue power rack, cable machine, dumbbells, sled, Echo Bike, kettlebells), wifi, music, cleaning and door code via WhatsApp. No add-ons.

Monthly cost at 8 sessions/week: 8 × 4 weeks × €12 = €384/month. With Routine pack: ~€326/month.

Leasing space in Amsterdam — what it really costs

Opening your own gym starts with a commercial ground-floor unit. In Amsterdam Jordaan and centre you pay around €500 to €700 per square metre per year in 2026. A workable PT studio is at least 60 to 80 m².

Rough cost calculation for a 70 m² gym in central Amsterdam:

Plus the startup investment: equipment (power rack, benches, dumbbells, cable machine, flooring) runs €15,000 to €40,000 depending on how serious you go. Build-out and acoustics another €5,000 to €25,000. Realistically you're €30,000 to €60,000 in before you take your first client.

Opening your own gym — investment math + payback time

Say you open a gym with €5,050 in monthly fixed costs and a €45,000 startup investment. What do you need to break even?

Break-even on fixed costs first: at €65 per session you need 78 sessions per monthjust to cover fixed costs. That's ~18 sessions per week — five workdays, three-plus sessions per day. Zero room for your own income.

To also pay yourself a Dutch median income (≈€3,000 net/month, so ≈€4,500 gross profit/month), add ~70 sessions per month on top. Total: ~148 sessions/month, ~34 sessions/week.

Add depreciation on your investment (€45,000 over 5 years = €750/month) and that's another ~12 sessions per month. Realistic break-even for a healthy own gym: 38-40 sessions per week.

That's achievable for established trainers with a full client book and a waitlist. For starters or mid-career trainers it's an aggressive target with serious risk.

Which option fits which trainer

The choice isn't really about what you want — it's about where you currently are. An honest matrix:

The mistake a lot of starting trainers make: they want their own gym before they have 20 paying clients. The result is fixed costs eating your net, stress about utilization, and burnout within 18 months.

Tax breaks + deductions per option

This is not tax advice — for your situation go to a tax advisor or the Belastingdienst. The below is informational.

Both models share that costs are deductible from your profit. But the structure differs:

• Per-hour studio rental: Direct expenses, no inventory or depreciation. Simple: invoice in, expense out.
• Own gym: Equipment depreciates (3-5 years), rent is directly deductible. KIA (small-scale investment deduction) kicks in above €2,601 in qualifying investments.
• Both: Zelfstandigenaftrek (€2,123 in 2026) and MKB-winstvrijstelling 14% — identical in both models.

What Jordaan trainers actually do in 2026

A short round-up of trainers we know — anonymous:

• Trainer A (3 years in, ~12 sessions/week): rents at SculptClub per hour. Took the Pro pack. Saves ~€200/month vs renting their own space.
• Trainer B (8 years in, ~30 sessions/week): opened their own 60 m² studio in West last year. Fixed costs €4,200/month. It works — but it's hard.
• Trainer C (5 years in, ~22 sessions/week): keeps renting per hour, even though they could afford their own space. Reason: "With no fixed costs I sleep better. No client = no expense."

The thread: an own gym is not a status symbol — it's an operational decision with immediate cashflow consequences. Those who can carry it, do. Those who hesitate rent per hour and build their book first.

Three concrete scenarios

Three concrete situations:

• You have 4 regular clients and run 8 sessions/week. → Studio per hour with Starter pack (€89 for 10 sessions). Your fixed costs stay at zero.
• You have 12 regular clients and run 22 sessions/week. → Studio per hour with Pro or Volume pack (~€10/hour). Own space doesn't pencil yet.
• You have 25 regular clients + waitlist and run 38 sessions/week. → Own gym is mathematically interesting. Investment pays back within 2-3 years with stable utilization.