Momence vs Mindbody: Which Fitness Studio Management Platform Should You Choose?

Running a fitness studio or group activity business shouldn’t mean you’re forced to spend hours figuring out complicated booking software – or pay sky-high fees for another company to manage daily classes.

Modern fitness group class owners want a simple, streamlined solution that offers just what they need to run their business effectively. There are plenty of options to set up and run schedules for group fitness, but many studio owners find themselves stuck between two primary options: Mindbody and Momence.

While both Mindbody and Momence offer scheduling capabilities, many activity providers are discovering that these platforms may fall short when it comes to handling the unique demands of group bookings and multi-session courses.

To make sure you are using the right platform for your fitness business, we’ve put together a quick comparison of Mindbody and Momence – looking at their core features, the pricing, and how well they work for different business styles. If you are thinking of switching from Mindbody to Momence, or vice versa, make sure you read through the article to help you find the best online booking system for your fitness class.

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Mindbody vs Momence: At A Glance

When choosing the best group fitness class scheduling option, knowing which one has the features you need while not charging you more than you want is key. Here’s a quick rundown on the main features that Mindbody and Momence offer, as well as how Pembee compares.

While each platform has strengths, which you choose will likely depend on your business model and how you like to engage with your customers or clients.

Mindbody offers enterprise-scale features at a premium price, while Momence provides simplified tools for basic studio management. When it comes to striking a balance of features and value, Pembee offers an excellent alternative to larger-scale platforms.

What Is Mindbody?

The Leading Wellness Business Platform

Mindbody has long positioned itself as the go-to fitness studio management software for larger enterprises. The all-in-one platform offers an extensive feature set and infrastructure, positioning itself for established fitness chains and multi-location businesses that can justify its premium pricing and complex setup requirements.

Think of Mindbody as the corporate enterprise system of the fitness world - powerful but often overwhelming for smaller operations. It may be best suited for businesses that:

• Run multiple locations with dedicated administrative staff
• Need extensive point-of-sale and retail capabilities
• Value marketplace visibility over booking flexibility
• Have the budget to invest in premium features and add-ons
• Can dedicate significant time to staff training and system setup

Mindbody users often share positive experiences in general: highlighting increased income, software support, ease of scheduling, and the importance of data ownership. But within those same user testimonials lay some issues with the platform’s massive feature set.

Key Features and Capabilities: Marketing Tools

Mindbody offers a huge suite of business management tools that reflect its aim at enterprise-level clients. While impressive in scope, many studios find themselves paying for features they’ll never use, and many find that they struggle with the basics of class management.

Just a short list of the features Mindbody offers includes:

• Class scheduling and membership management, though with notably rigid parameters around recurring events and group bookings
• Integrated payment processing, albeit with processing fees that can eat into your margins
• Marketing tools and access to their consumer marketplace – which can help with visibility but come at a premium
• Staff payroll and commission tracking for larger teams
• Mobile apps for both business management and client booking
• Integration capabilities with popular fitness tracking devices and third-party services
• Branded app with implications for customer data ownership, emphasizing the need for transparency regarding data ownership and additional features offered

Where Mindbody Shines

For larger studios with the resources to fully utilize its capabilities, Mindbody offers several notable advantages:

• Brand Recognition: Their marketplace presence can help drive client discovery, particularly in larger urban markets where Mindbody has strong consumer adoption.
• Impressive Reporting Tools: The platform provides detailed analytics and reporting capabilities, though accessing the most useful reports often requires upgrading to higher-tier plans.
• A Solid Integration Ecosystem: Years of market presence have resulted in a wide range of third-party integrations, making it easier to connect with other business tools.

The Not-So-Good: Common Pain Points with Mindbody

While the features are extensive, many smaller fitness studio owners find themselves frustrated with several key aspects of the Mindbody platform:

The Cost Structure Can Make Mindbody Unaccessible for Smaller Teams

Despite offering a lower price compared to some competitors, Mindbody’s starting price of $200 per month quickly escalates with add-ons and premium features. This makes it more than just a burden for growing businesses – the hidden costs can quickly spiral:

• Payment processing fees that exceed industry standards (varies by region but can be as high as 3.5%)
• Additional charges for marketing features
• Premium pricing for advanced reporting
• Per-location fees for multi-site operations
• Extra costs for staff accounts beyond basic limits

User Experience Challenges

The platform’s interface often feels dated and unintuitive, requiring extensive training for staff members. Many studio owners report spending hours just learning basic functions – and when you have trouble using a platform, you’re likely to stop using it.

The Platform Has Limited Flexibility In Design

Despite its comprehensive feature set, Mindbody as a customizable platform can be surprisingly rigid. Many report issues trying to customize the features and class schedule setup to their business, such as:

• Setting up recurring classes with varying schedules
• Managing waitlists effectively
• Handling course registrations and multi-session bookings
• Customizing booking rules for different class types

Customer Support Is a Premium Feature

While technically available, quality customer service and support often require upgrading to premium plans, leaving many users frustrated when issues arise.

What Is Momence?

The Streamlined Alternative with Growing Pains

As you can see, while Mindbody can offer quite a few impressive bells and whistles, it leaves many smaller companies and fitness teams looking for an easier alternative – a gap that Momence has been happy to fill.

Momence has emerged as a popular Mindbody alternative, marketing itself as a more user-friendly and affordable software provider. But does simpler always mean better for group activity providers?

Who is Momence for?

Momence targets small to medium-sized fitness businesses looking to escape Mindbody’s complexity and cost structure. The platform is particularly appealing to:

• Solo instructors and boutique studios
• Businesses prioritizing straightforward scheduling over advanced features
• Studios focused primarily on one-on-one sessions
• Those seeking a more modern, mobile-first experience

Momence is also suitable for wellness businesses – allowing users a bit more when it comes to tailored solutions for appointment booking and marketing. So, while Momence can certainly fit the fitness industry, it also offers a bit more flexibility in the overall booking experience market.

The Momence Experience

Unlike Mindbody’s overwhelming interface, Momence takes pride in its clean, intuitive design. The platform offers:

A Streamlined Scheduling Setup: A simplified approach to class management, though this can become limiting for complex scheduling needs like multi-week courses or varying recurring patterns. Momence helps streamline operations by combining various workflows into a single platform, enhancing overall efficiency in managing classes and client interactions.

An Easy-To-Use, Modern Interface: The mobile-first design feels current, but some users report frequent updates that can disrupt daily operations.

Integrated Booking Updates and Messaging: While basic communication tools are included, users often note limitations in automated messaging and customer engagement features.

Secure Payment Processing: Standard payment integration is available, though with fewer options for package sales and recurring payments compared to more specialized platforms.

Where Momence Falls Short

Does Momence offer all the benefits of Mindbody, but in the perfect (smaller) package? Recent user feedback actually highlights several issues with Momence that could make you hesitate to sign up:

Clients Report Challenges with Customer Support

Multiple reviews of Momence mention slow response times and difficulties resolving technical issues, particularly around billing and refunds. Some users have reported challenges with data migration when transitioning from other platforms, which can disrupt business operations.

Limited Group Booking Features

While Momence is more than adequate for basic class scheduling, some users of the platform report struggles with:

• Managing waitlists effectively
• Handling complex course structures
• Supporting multi-session bookings
• Offering flexible payment options for packages

Platform Update Issues

Users report frequent disruptions from mandatory updates, sometimes affecting critical business operations – an issue that a fitness business can’t afford to deal with.

The Price Tag

Momence’s pricing starts lower than Mindbody, beginning at $149/month – but costs can add up once you start adding more users and features. You’ll start seeing a bump in your subscription as you add:

• Additional staff accounts
• Advanced marketing features
• Custom branding options
• Premium support access

For growing businesses, particularly those focused on group activities, these limitations often become more apparent as they scale.

For example, if you need to add more staff accounts or want to implement custom branding, you may find yourself paying significantly more than the base price. This can be a major pain point for businesses looking to expand and improve their operations.

Why These Traditional Solutions Fall Short for Group Activities

Managing group activities demands specialized tools, yet most activity providers struggle with software designed for different purposes.

Yoga studios, in particular, face unique challenges that require tailored solutions to manage operations and enhance the experience for both studio owners and practitioners. The limitations of existing platforms aren’t just inconvenient – they’re actively holding businesses back.

The Hidden Costs of Inadequate Tools

Studio owners often spend hours each week compensating for software limitations.

• Creating a simple eight-week course means manually entering each session.
• Managing waitlists requires spreadsheets and constant monitoring.
• Processing course payments becomes a juggling act of manual tracking and follow-ups.

These inefficiencies quickly escalate and can easily hinder the ability to attract new clients and keep them around. Nobody wants to deal with a team that is seen sacrificing quality for convenience.

These tasks shouldn’t require workarounds. Yet both Mindbody and Momence force activity providers to adapt their operations to fit software limitations rather than provide tools that match how group activities work.

Fundamental Design Flaws

Mindbody’s enterprise focus means paying premium prices for features most activity providers never use while still lacking essential group booking capabilities. Its rigid structure assumes every business operates like a traditional gym – fixed schedules, standard memberships, and simple check-ins.

Momence’s simplified approach works for basic class scheduling – but even it breaks down when handling the need for flexibility. Business owners need effective software options to manage course management, flexible payment options, and multi-session bookings without frustration.

These aren’t edge cases – they’re core needs for any business focused on group activities. The market needs a solution built specifically for these challenges, one that understands how activity providers actually operate.

Pembee: The Mindbody and Momence Alternative Built for Group Activity Management

While Mindbody and Momence struggle with group bookings, Pembee offers a refreshingly different approach. Built from the ground up for activity providers, Pembee’s all-in-one platform approach tackles the real-world challenges that fitness instructors, dance studios, and course providers face every day.

Pembee Offers Class Management That Actually Works

Managing group activities shouldn't require jumping through hoops. Pembee's intelligent scheduling system understands how real fitness businesses operate.

The automated class roster system keeps all your records in one place with real-time updates, letting you update customer information, log payments, and generate staff registers instantly.

Real-time attendance tracking eliminates manual record-keeping, while the automated waitlist function ensures your classes stay full. Need to repeat a successful activity? Simply clone it with all details populated automatically.

Your customers get a better experience, too – with detailed activity pages featuring sections, images, and attachments. Multiple ticket types - from single sessions to course tickets and trial passes - give them the flexibility they need.

Pembee’s Payment Processing Grows With Your Business

Pembee's integrated payment system handles everything your business needs through secure online payments.

Track offline payments like cash and bank transfers, manage refunds with one click, and let automated balance reminders handle payment follow-ups. Generate stable revenue through subscription payments and session passes while offering flexible discounts for multi-session bookings or siblings.

Pembee Offers Smart Tools for Better Management

Everything you need to run a studio lives in your Pembee dashboard – your HQ for analyzing performance and gaining customer feedback.

Integrated marketing tools, including automated cart recovery emails, help convert visitors into customers. Track your customer journey with simple, real-time analytics and keep everyone engaged with automatic email confirmations.

Other tools Pembee offers out of the box include:

• Configure booking forms with customizable fields to collect exactly the information you need
• Personalize system emails with your branding
• Add flexible add-on items to any booking
• Create custom filters to help customers find the right activities
• Easily view customer history in your customer database
• Customizable reports that offer valuable business insights

Fair Pricing, Real Support

Unlike platforms that charge for every feature, Pembee offers transparent pricing at $45/month for up to 5 admin users – a fraction of Mindbody's starting price. No hidden fees or surprise charges.

When you need help, you'll work with real people who understand activity businesses. With comprehensive documentation and personal onboarding assistance, you're never left struggling to figure things out on your own.

Looking For A Momence or Mindbody Alternative? Trust Pembee For Your Fitness Activity Business Management

Remember: every day spent wrestling with inadequate software is a day you could be growing your business instead. With Pembee's 30-day free trial, you can experience what purpose-built software offers to see if it is the alternative platform you’ve been hoping for:

• Start managing group activities effectively from day one
• Set up your first course or class series in minutes
• Process payments and manage bookings immediately
• Get personal onboarding support to ensure your success

Ready to stop compromising? Start your free trial today – no credit card required. Our team is here to help you build a better fitness activity business, and Pembee makes it easy to get started!

Try Pembee Now for FREE