VIA vs The Rest

Know exactly what you are choosing.

Most platforms make it hard to compare on purpose. We have done the maths so you do not have to. Four scenarios, four honest breakdowns.

Option 01 Mindbody

The big platform. The big price.

Mindbody is built for multi-location enterprise studios. As an independent instructor, you are paying for infrastructure you will never use, locked into a 12-month contract, and invisible inside a marketplace of 90,000 other businesses.

The real cost, based on $800/week in bookings Mindbody Go is A$89/mo but their processing rate (3.6% + $0.30 per transaction) runs higher than standard Stripe. A branded app is a separate paid add-on not included in Go. Marketplace commission adds 20% on new client purchases on top of that.

Based on ~139 bookings/month at $25 average ($3,464/month total revenue). Processing fee shown is the payment processor cut, not VIA's.

	Mindbody Go $89	VIA Monthly $99	VIA Annual $79
Subscription	$89.00	$99.00	$79.00
Platform commission	$0 (+ 20% on new client bookings via marketplace)	$0	$0
Processing fee	$166.40 (3.6% + $0.30)	$102.32 (standard Stripe)	$102.32 (standard Stripe)
Branded app	Paid add-on, not included	Included	Included
In your pocket	$3,208.60	$3,262.68	$3,282.68

Mindbody's Australian pricing updated May 2026. Marketplace commission not included in totals above as it does not apply to every transaction. This is an illustrative example, not a quote.

Option 02 Momence

Starts affordable. Gets expensive fast.

Momence looks cheaper upfront but stacks costs through commission on every booking. Their free plan charges 5% of every payment. Even at $60/month, they take 2.5%. And their processing rate runs above standard Stripe. What looks like a deal adds up.

The real cost, same $800/week example At the free tier, Momence's 5% commission alone costs more than VIA's entire monthly fee. At their $60 Pro tier it is still more expensive than VIA once commission and processing are combined.

Based on ~139 bookings/month at $25 average ($3,464/month total revenue).

	Momence Free	Momence Pro $60	Momence Custom $199	VIA Annual $79
Subscription	$0.00	$60.00	$199.00	$79.00
Commission to Momence	$173.20 (5%)	$86.60 (2.5%)	$0	$0
Processing fee (3.9% + $0.30)	$176.80	$176.80	$176.80	$102.32 (standard Stripe)
In your pocket	$3,114.00	$3,140.60	$3,088.20	$3,282.68

Momence's higher processing rate markup is included in the processing row above. At the Custom tier Momence is competitive on cost but priced for mid-to-large operations. This is an illustrative example, not a quote.

Option 03 Class Manager

Free to sign up. Not free to run.

Class Manager advertises zero monthly subscription and it is true, there is no monthly fee. What they do not lead with is that they charge a per-transaction fee on every single payment you process. That fee is not publicly listed, which should tell you something. The more revenue your studio generates, the more you pay them.

The model works against you as you grow A flat subscription stays the same whether you have 10 members or 200. A transaction fee scales with your success. The faster your studio grows, the more Class Manager earns from you.

Class Manager

✕ No monthly fee, but a % cut of every payment you take
✕ Fee not publicly listed, requires a sales call to confirm
✕ One shared "Class Manager" app in the App Store, no studio branding
✕ Cost scales with your revenue, you pay more as you grow
✕ No content hub, no video library, no community features beyond messaging
✕ Built primarily for dance studios with multiple staff and family enrolments

VIA

✓ Flat $79/month, the same whether you have 10 or 300 members
✓ Zero commission on bookings, ever
✓ Your own branded app, your logo, your colours, your name
✓ Cost is predictable, growth is all yours to keep
✓ Video library, on-demand content, playlists, community chat
✓ Built for solo instructors, one plan, everything included

Class Manager's transaction fee was not publicly accessible at time of writing. Their pricing calculator requires JavaScript to render and did not return a figure. The comparison above is based on their publicly stated model.

Option 04 DMs + Eventbrite / TryBooking

The most expensive option. And it looks free.

Most independent instructors start here. Instagram DMs for bookings, a bank transfer for payment, Eventbrite or TryBooking for events. It works until it does not. And the cost is not what the platform charges, it is everything you are silently losing.

Time has real dollar value Managing 20 members manually via DM, chasing payment, confirming spots, updating a spreadsheet. If that takes 5 to 8 hours a week, at a conservative $60/hour, that is $300 to $480 a month in time cost. Every week.

What running on DMs actually costs you each month

Time managing bookings, confirmations, payment follow-ups (est. 5 hrs/week) $300 to $480

Eventbrite / TryBooking platform fees (typically 3.5% to 6.5% + per-ticket fee) $121 to $225 on $3,464 revenue

Missed bookings from unanswered DMs, delayed replies, or no clear booking link Unquantified but real

No member data, no retention, no community, starting from zero every term Long-term brand cost

Eventbrite owns your customer relationship, not you Your list is not your list

VIA, everything handled, automated, and branded $79/month flat

DMs + ticketing software

✕ Manual booking via DM, one message at a time
✕ Bank transfer payment, chasing who has and has not paid
✕ No waitlist, no automatic reminders, no pass tracking
✕ Ticketing platforms take a cut and own the customer data
✕ No professional presence, no branded identity
✕ Does not scale, every new member adds more admin

VIA

✓ Members book themselves, 24/7, no DM needed
✓ Payment at booking, passes, memberships, automatic receipts
✓ Waitlists, reminders, cancellations all handled automatically
✓ Your members are your members, the data stays with you
✓ Your own branded app, your community, your identity
✓ Scales with you, 10 members or 300, same $79/month

Eventbrite fees vary by plan. TryBooking charges approximately 38c per booking + 1.5% for Australian events. Time cost estimate is illustrative and based on common instructor experience. Your actual figures will vary.

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