Gymdesk

What Gymdesk does

Gymdesk, operating under the legal entity Martial Arts on Rails, LLC, is a cloud-based SaaS gym management platform founded in 2016 and headquartered in Austin, Texas. The company serves more than 4,000 gym owners across 34 countries, with a primary vertical focus on martial arts schools (Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, MMA, taekwondo, judo, Muay Thai, karate) and an expanded footprint into fitness gyms, yoga and Pilates studios, dance studios, gymnastics centers, CrossFit boxes, and membership clubs. The platform is differentiated by domain specialization for martial arts: built-in rank and belt progression tracking with automatic skill qualification based on sessions attended, days at current rank, training hours, minimum age, and skill requirements, alongside family membership management for parents and guardians of minors.

The product is a unified platform that bundles modular capabilities into every plan without tiered add-ons or per-staff fees: memberships, automated billing with failed-payment recovery and overdue alerts, attendance tracking via numeric code/name search/barcode/QR/kiosk, class booking and scheduling, an integrated SEO-optimized website builder, point-of-sale retail, email and SMS marketing automation with referral programs, reporting analytics, and a branded member mobile application with a self-service member portal. Proprietary and integrated components include Gymdesk Payments (native payment processing built directly into the platform) and a Kisi smart-lock integration enabling 24/7 unmanned facility access via QR codes and RFID. The platform additionally supports customer-brought payment processors (Stripe, Square, Authorize.net, GoCardless, Ezypay) at user-negotiated rates.

Gymdesk operates a subscription SaaS revenue model with monthly fees starting at $75 and scaling with active member count, plus transaction-based revenue from Gymdesk Payments. Distribution is product-led through a 30-day free trial with no credit card required, supplemented by a sales-assisted 'Talk to Sales' motion for mid-market and multi-location operators. Marketing relies heavily on SEO, content marketing (blog, Gymdesk Originals video series, templates, interactive calculators), a customer referral program, and SEO-optimized head-to-head comparison pages against named competitors including Mindbody, Zen Planner, Kicksite, Pushpress, Glofox, Gymmaster, Hapana, Mariana Tek, Momence, and Spark. The company maintains SOC 2 / PCI DSS / GDPR-compliant infrastructure and is privately held, having received a $32.5 million growth investment from Five Elms Capital in July 2024.

Name

Gymdesk

Legal name

Martial Arts on Rails, LLC

Website

https://gymdesk.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2016

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Gymdesk is a cloud-based gym management platform serving 4,000+ fitness businesses across 34 countries, with primary focus on martial arts schools. It provides integrated billing, attendance, booking, marketing, website building, and payment processing on a monthly subscription model starting at $75/month.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Gym Management Software

NAICS

Fitness and Recreational Sports Centers (713940)

SIC

Sporting & Athletic Goods, Nec (3949)

akta.pro primary industry

General Personal Training (In-Person & Virtual) (HSADAAAA)

Keywords

• Gym management software
• Martial arts software
• Membership management
• Fitness studio software
• Club management platform

Headquarters

HQ city

Austin

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Technology or R&D, Personnel, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Operations

Revenue model

1. Subscription SaaS: Monthly subscription fees that scale with active member count. Plans start at $75/month and increase based on the number of active members. All features included in every plan with no tiered add-ons. No contracts, month-to-month billing with annual payment option available.
2. Payment Processing: Gymdesk Payments integrated payment processing. Users can also connect external processors (Stripe, Square, Authorize.net, GoCardless, Ezypay) at their own negotiated rates with no Gymdesk markup. Standard payment processing fees apply.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Gymdesk is a cloud-based SaaS gym management platform that consolidates memberships, automated billing, attendance tracking, class booking, marketing automation, website building, point-of-sale, reporting, member mobile app, and facility access into a single integrated system for fitness businesses and martial arts schools. Every feature is included in a single subscription plan that scales with active member count, with no tiered add-ons, per-staff fees, or long-term contracts. The platform is sold on a month-to-month basis with a 30-day free trial and an integrated optional payment-processing service (Gymdesk Payments).

Product overview

Gymdesk is a unified gym management software platform designed for fitness businesses, martial arts schools, yoga studios, Pilates studios, gymnastics, dance, and CrossFit gyms. The platform combines a core management system with integrated modules for memberships/billing, attendance tracking, class booking/scheduling, marketing automation, website building, point-of-sale retail, reporting analytics, and mobile apps. Key differentiators include built-in belt/rank tracking for martial arts schools, automated payment collection with failed-payment recovery, and a branded mobile app for members. All features are included in every plan without tiered add-ons, per-staff fees, or long-term contracts.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Gymdesk Core Platform

Named customers10 records

Segments7 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration6 records

Feature6 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• CliqstrategicTechnology or Integration · 27 March 2025Strategic partnership to integrate Cliq's payment technology into Gymdesk's gym management platform. Benefits fitness businesses across 34 countries by improving payment processing, streamlining administrative tasks, and offering financial services to gym owners.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights7 records

Direct peers

• Mindbody: Market-leading gym, studio, and salon management SaaS with integrated payments and a large marketplace. Direct competitor to Gymdesk across fitness verticals with broader feature depth and substantially more capital, but less martial-arts specialization.
• Zen Planner: Gym and martial-arts management software focused on Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, MMA, and fitness gyms. Direct competitor in the same primary use case, with a mature product and significant gym-owner mindshare — explicitly listed in Gymdesk's competitive comparison pages.
• PushPress: Gym management software originally built for CrossFit boxes that has expanded into general fitness. Direct competitor in the same SMB gym software category with active franchise/multi-location product positioning.
• Glofox: Boutique fitness studio management platform with branded apps, bookings, and integrated payments. Direct competitor in the SMB fitness SaaS category, particularly for studios (yoga, pilates, martial arts), and named in Gymdesk's comparison pages.
• Mariana Tek: Premium boutique fitness and studio management SaaS used by brands like Barry's and [solidcore]. Direct competitor in the studio segment with enterprise-grade capabilities, competing with Gymdesk on the higher end of the SMB-to-mid-market customer spectrum.
• ClubReady: Club and gym management platform with billing, member engagement, and member acquisition tools. Direct competitor in the fitness and club management SaaS category.
• Kicksite: Martial-arts-focused gym management software with belt tracking, billing, and member management. Direct competitor specifically in Gymdesk's core martial-arts vertical and explicitly named in comparison pages.
• Momence: Modern studio and class-based fitness management platform with bookings, payments, and marketing. Direct competitor in the SMB fitness/studio category, named in Gymdesk's comparison pages.
• Hapana: Operations and member management platform for fitness studios and gyms with booking, billing, and lead management. Direct competitor in the SMB fitness SaaS category, named in Gymdesk's comparison pages.

Emerging players

• Wodify: CrossFit and functional fitness gym management platform with athlete tracking, class scheduling, and performance analytics. Competes with Gymdesk in the CrossFit and progression-tracking gym segment with comparable SMB-focused positioning.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@gymdesk
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/gymdesk
• Facebookfacebook.com/gymdesk
• Instagraminstagram.com/gymdesk
• Xx.com/gym_desk

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors1 record

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Gymdesk