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Best PushPress alternatives for martial arts gyms (2026)

PushPress is excellent functional-fitness software. Six alternatives for gyms whose centre of gravity is the mat, with vendor-verified pricing throughout.

The short version: if your gym's centre of gravity is functional fitness, PushPress may be the software to keep, it rates 4.7 on Capterra, publishes everything including its card rates, and its free tier is real. This guide is for gyms whose centre is the mat, where three edges show: belts behind the $159 Pro tier, a 4.99% free-plan card rate that grows with revenue, and martial arts as a vertical rather than the core. Six alternatives, vendor-verified as of August 2026.

Where PushPress stops fitting a martial arts gym

Say the fair part plainly: PushPress is some of the best-run software in this market. Pricing is published to the decimal, Free at $0 with unlimited members on a 4.99% plus 30 cents card rate, Pro at $159 and Max at $229 on 2.89%, add-ons in the open, and its Capterra reviews (4.7 across roughly 190) read like a support team's highlight reel, with mobile-app performance the recurring complaint.

The edges are about emphasis. Rank Tracking is genuinely good and belongs to the paid tiers, so belts cost $159 a month if belts are why you came. The free plan's economics invert at volume, above roughly $7,600 a month in card payments it costs more than Pro, the full arithmetic is in our PushPress pricing breakdown. And the product grew up in functional fitness; a gym that lives by gradings, mat time and multi-art ranks is adapting the tool rather than being its intended user.

Published monthly price ranges for PushPress and six alternatives on one axis, vendor pages checked August 2026; PushPress spans $0 with a 4.99% card rate to $229
Core plan ranges; add-ons and processing differ by vendor

Mat Track, the mat-first mirror image

Ours, weigh accordingly. Mat Track shares PushPress's two best habits, published pricing and a real free plan, and inverts the two things that pinch. Nothing is taken on payments on any plan, you pay Stripe's or GoCardless's standard rate with no platform percentage, so free stays free at any volume. And the martial arts layer is the core, not a tier: multi-art rank ladders with grading criteria in the member app, retention alerts on each member's own 60-day pattern, streaks, badges and community, all in every plan including free. Free to 200 contacts, $99 Growth, $199 Pro, as of August 2026.

Mat Track's gym console
Mat Track, August 2026

Where it wins:

  • Takes nothing from your payments, no matter how much you collect.
  • Belt tracking and retention alerts are in the free plan, not behind a paywall.
  • Built for the mat rather than adapted to it.

Where it falls short:

  • The free plan caps at 200 contacts where PushPress's is unlimited.
  • Nothing like PushPress's Train add-on for programming workouts.

The switch detail is on our PushPress switching page.

Gymdesk, the simple incumbent

The most-installed platform in our 5,191-site crawl, with the plainest pricing anywhere, $75 to $200 by member count, month to month, website builder included, 4.8 on Capterra across about 150 reviews. Its gaps run opposite to PushPress's: pricing is simpler but the branded app costs $100 a month, and there is no free tier at all.

Gymdesk's homepage
Gymdesk, August 2026

Where it wins:

  • Simple, predictable pricing with no surprises.
  • A website builder is included in every plan.
  • The most-used platform among martial arts gyms, so help and peers are easy to find.

Where it falls short:

  • There is no free plan.
  • The branded member app costs an extra $100 a month.
  • Rank tracking is basic, and you get reports to check rather than alerts that find you.

Our Gymdesk alternatives guide treats it as the subject.

Kicksite, the belt specialist

Where PushPress gates ranks behind Pro, Kicksite makes belt administration the whole product: custom curricula, testing events, one-click promotions, every feature at every tier from $49 to $199, 4.8 on Capterra across about 130 reviews. Students get a mobile web portal rather than a native app, and automation watches invoices rather than attendance.

Kicksite's homepage
Kicksite, August 2026

Where it wins:

  • The best belt-testing and grading administration in the market.
  • Flat, published pricing with nothing gated by tier.
  • A loyal base of traditional schools who vouch for it.

Where it falls short:

  • Students get a website to log into, not a real app on their phone.
  • Nothing watches attendance for you; spotting a fading member is still your job.
  • The feature set thins out once you step outside belt administration.

The Kicksite alternatives guide looks from the other side.

Wodify, the closest athletic cousin

Wodify is the natural PushPress rival, same class-based DNA, deeper performance tracking, real retention features, and a mostly-BJJ martial arts base. Buying it takes more care: Essentials lists at $199 per location (promoted at $99 with a demo as of August 2026), belt tracking sits in the unpriced upper tiers, cards process from 2.7% plus 30 cents, and there is an onboarding fee of undisclosed size.

Wodify's homepage
Wodify, August 2026

Where it wins:

  • Performance tracking beyond even PushPress's Train.
  • At-risk member identification.
  • Whiteboard culture.

Where it falls short:

  • The belt and rank features sit in tiers with no published price, so you find out the cost on a sales call.
  • It takes a cut of every card payment, from 2.7% plus 30 cents.
  • Less pricing transparency than the tool you are leaving.

Details on our Wodify switching page.

TeamUp, for mixed programming

TeamUp suits gyms running martial arts alongside classes, courses and appointments: usage-based pricing where only active customers count, $189 at the 101 to 200 tier, no contract, no setup fee, member app included with a branded version at $99. Belts and gradings are absent from the advertised product.

TeamUp's homepage
TeamUp, August 2026

Where it wins:

  • Unusually fair usage-based billing.
  • Month to month throughout.
  • Clean multi-programme scheduling.

Where it falls short:

  • No belt, grading or rank features at all.
  • The branded app is extra.
  • Barely any martial arts gyms use it, so you will struggle to find peers to ask.

More on our TeamUp switching page.

Zen Planner, the module veteran

Two decades of martial arts pedigree with native belt testing, sold as a core ($99 to $289 by member count) plus modules, app $39, website $99, Engage marketing $249, reaching about $616 configured for a 150-member school. It rates 4.3 on Capterra across 270 reviews; support is praised, billing friction including charges after cancellation is the recurring complaint. Coming from PushPress's transparency, read the Zen Planner pricing breakdown before the demo.

Zen Planner's homepage
Zen Planner, August 2026

Where it wins:

  • Belt testing as mature as anything here.
  • A real website product.
  • Long pedigree.

Where it falls short:

  • The configured bill climbs fast: core plus the app, website and marketing modules reaches about $616 a month.
  • The price jumps steeply each time your member count crosses a tier.
  • Its own reviewers complain about billing, including being charged after cancelling.

How to choose software after PushPress

You are leaving one of the most transparent vendors in the market, so keep the standard you are used to: refuse any shortlist candidate whose price you cannot compute from its own website at your member count and card volume. Then decide by centre of gravity. If the mat defines the business, Mat Track and Kicksite put belts and members first; our gym member retention guide explains the attendance-alert mechanism that separates them from reporting tools. If you want PushPress's athletic DNA with more performance depth, Wodify, with your eyes open on its quoting. Mat Track's full price list is one page at mattrackapp.com/gyms, the fastest baseline while you compare.

Frequently asked questions

What is the best PushPress alternative for a martial arts gym?

For gyms whose identity is belts, gradings and mat time, Mat Track includes multi-art rank ladders, retention alerts and the member app in every plan, free to 200 contacts then $99, as of August 2026. Kicksite is the belt-administration specialist at $49 to $199. Both publish full pricing, so the comparison takes minutes rather than a demo.

Why would anyone leave PushPress?

Usually fit rather than failure, as of August 2026. The free plan's 4.99% card rate becomes the expensive option above roughly $7,600 a month in card volume; rank tracking requires the $159 Pro tier; and the product's centre of gravity is functional fitness. Capterra reviewers rate it 4.7, praising support, with the mobile app the recurring gripe.

Is PushPress good for martial arts gyms?

It can be, especially for combat-sports gyms that also run functional fitness classes. Rank Tracking on the paid tiers handles promotions with custom criteria, and the platform is polished and transparent. The question is emphasis, belts arrived later and live behind the Pro tier, whereas martial-arts-first platforms build the mat into every plan, as of August 2026.

Which PushPress alternatives publish their prices?

Most of the credible field, as of August 2026. Mat Track ($0, $99, $199), Gymdesk ($75 to $200), Kicksite ($49 to $199), Zen Planner ($99 to $289 core plus modules) and TeamUp (usage-based, $189 at 101 to 200 customers) all publish. Wodify publishes only its $199-list Essentials tier, currently promoted at $99 with a demo.

How do I compare PushPress's free plan with other free plans?

Price the processing, not the subscription. PushPress Free takes 4.99% plus 30 cents on cards against 2.89% on its paid tiers, so a $10,000-a-month gym pays about $499 in processing. Mat Track's free plan adds nothing to your processor's standard rate but caps at 200 contacts. Which is cheaper depends entirely on your card volume and roll size.

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