Most gyms price their first simulation day by guessing what feels fair, then find out afterwards whether it made money. You can do better in an hour with a spreadsheet: list the costs, check the real ticketing fees, work out how many athletes you can physically start, and set prices that break even well short of capacity.
This guide is a worked example, not financial advice. Every figure in the cost table below is an illustrative assumption; replace it with your own quotes. Ticketing fees are quoted from the providers’ own pages as of October 2026 and change from time to time, so check your account before you set prices.
SimDay is independent and is not affiliated with, endorsed by or sponsored by HYROX or DEKA (Spartan).
The cost lines
Split costs into two groups, because they behave differently.
Fixed costs are the same whether 20 or 70 athletes turn up:
- Equipment hire or transport. An extra sled, a couple of borrowed ergs, a van for a morning. Wodify’s case study (vendor content) describes Sisu Fitness borrowing sleds and ski ergs from other gyms for its first sim, which is a sensible first-year move.
- First-aid cover. Whether that is a booked first aider or your own trained staff taken off other duties. HSE says the first-aid regulations do not require employers to provide first aid for the public, but strongly recommends including the public in the needs assessment and making provision for them. If non-members are racing, budget for it.
- Insurance. Some policies cover member classes but not a ticketed event with non-members. Ask your insurer what is covered and whether an extension is needed; the figure below is a placeholder, not a guide price.
- Judges and volunteers. Most gyms use members and pay them in food, coffee, a free entry to the next sim or a T-shirt. It is still a cost.
- Printing and signage. Judge sheets, heat sheets, station signs, lane tape and cones.
Per-athlete costs rise with every entry:
- Medal. Optional, but expected at many races; Spartan’s DEKA FIT page, for instance, lists a finisher tee and medal for every finisher.
- T-shirt. Usually the largest per-athlete cost, and the one most worth making optional.
- Water and fruit.
- The ticketing fee, which depends on price and platform.
Ticketing fees as of October 2026
These are the standard published rates. Eventbrite’s help centre lists them by payout country; RunSignUp lists its rates on its pricing page. Free tickets cost nothing on either platform.
| Platform | Published fee | On a £30 / $40 / A$40 ticket |
|---|---|---|
| Eventbrite UK | 6.95% + £0.59 per sold ticket; no separate payment processing fee | About £2.68 on £30 |
| Eventbrite US | 3.7% + $1.79 per sold ticket, plus 2.9% payment processing on the total order | About $4.43 on $40 if you absorb fees (assumes processing on the $40 order) |
| Eventbrite Australia | 5.35% + A$1.19 per sold ticket; no separate payment processing fee | About A$3.33 on A$40 |
| RunSignUp (US) | 6% + $1 per cart for carts from $0.01 to $249.99; lower percentages above that | $3.40 on a single $40 entry |
Two details change the maths. First, on Eventbrite you choose per ticket type whether to absorb the fees or pass them on; Eventbrite’s help page also notes that processing fees are calculated on the total order, including service fees and tax, so the exact figure depends on that choice. The “How fees work” breakdown on each ticket type shows the real number, taxes included. Second, RunSignUp charges per cart, not per entry, so a doubles pair or relay team checking out in one cart pays the fixed $1 once. RunSignUp also lets you choose whether the registrant pays, you absorb it, or you split it.
If you sell on the door through the Eventbrite Organizer app, the UK fee is £0.50 per paid ticket plus 1.6% per order, and offline payments such as cash are free of that fee.
Member and non-member pricing
Members already pay you every month, so a member price is a thank-you and an incentive to train for the day. Non-members are paying for a race and a look at your gym, so they can carry a higher price. Common structures:
- Member and non-member tiers, with members getting early access for the first week.
- Doubles priced per pair, slightly below two singles, because the pair uses one lane.
- A non-member ticket that includes something, such as a free week or a class pass, so the gap between the two prices feels like value rather than a penalty.
- Spectators free. They are your marketing; charging them puts people off.
Set your transfer and refund policy before sales open. Lanes are scarce, so many gyms allow transfers to another athlete up to the start-list deadline and keep a waitlist instead of offering refunds.
Capacity: how many athletes you can start
Your ceiling is set by lanes and the start interval, not by how many people want to come. Two formulas from the heat planning guide do the work:
- Athletes per hour of starts = lanes × 60 ÷ start interval in minutes. Four lanes at an 8-minute interval is 4 × 60 ÷ 8 = 30 athletes an hour. Six lanes at 6 minutes is 60.
- Heats = (start window ÷ interval) + 1, rounded down.
Worked through: you have the floor from 08:00 to 13:30, first heat at 09:00, a 75-minute time cap, and you want 45 minutes after the last finish for results and pack-down. The last athlete must finish by 12:45, so the last start can be no later than 11:30. That is a 150-minute start window: 150 ÷ 8 = 18.75, so 18 intervals and 19 heats, the last at 11:24. With 4 lanes that is 76 athlete slots. If half your entries are doubles, the lanes stay the same but the athletes on the floor go up.
Worked break-even example
A gym with 4 lanes and the 76-slot capacity above. Tickets are on Eventbrite UK with fees absorbed: £30 for members and £40 for non-members. It expects 60% of entries to be members. All cost figures are illustrative.
| Line | Amount | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Equipment hire and van | £150 | Fixed |
| First-aid cover | £120 | Fixed; your quote |
| Insurance extension | £60 | Fixed; placeholder, ask your insurer |
| Judge and volunteer thank-yous | £100 | Fixed; food and drinks for about 10 people |
| Printing, signage, lane tape | £40 | Fixed |
| Total fixed costs | £470 | |
| Medal | £4.00 | Per athlete |
| T-shirt | £8.00 | Per athlete |
| Water and fruit | £1.00 | Per athlete |
| Per-athlete costs | £13.00 | |
| Member ticket £30, less Eventbrite fee £2.68 | £27.32 net | Contribution £14.32 |
| Non-member ticket £40, less Eventbrite fee £3.37 | £36.63 net | Contribution £23.63 |
| Blended contribution at 60/40 | £18.04 per athlete | 0.6 × £14.32 + 0.4 × £23.63 |
| Break-even | 27 athletes | £470 ÷ £18.04 = 26.05, rounded up |
Twenty-seven athletes is about a third of the 76 slots, which is a comfortable margin for a first event. At 64 athletes (38 members, 26 non-members) the contribution is about £1,159 and the surplus after fixed costs about £689.
Now test the levers:
- Drop the T-shirt or make it an add-on. Per-athlete costs fall to £5, the blended contribution rises to about £26.04, and break-even drops to 19 athletes.
- Pass the fee on instead of absorbing it. Net rises to the full ticket price, but the price athletes see at checkout goes up.
- Fewer non-members than expected. At a 90/10 member mix the blended contribution falls to about £15.25 and break-even rises to 31. If your gym has no reach beyond members yet, price as though everyone is a member.
Wodify’s case study reports that Sisu Fitness’s first sim drew 120 registrants, many of whom had never heard of the gym, and that a half-distance option brought in athletes who would not have entered the full race. That is vendor-reported, but it is a reason to model a half sim tier at a lower price rather than one price for one format.
Before you publish the price
Check four things. Your lanes and interval give you enough slots for the break-even number with room to spare. Your insurer has confirmed cover in writing. Your fee setting (absorb or pass on) matches the price you advertise. And your refund and transfer policy is on the ticket page.
Then plan the day in the simulation guide, check your kit list in the equipment checklist, and build heats from your entries in SimDay, free during the beta. For getting those entries in the first place, see marketing a sim event.