Comparison
Looking for a Zen Planner alternative?
Gyms, boxes and studios, with an add-on catalogue. Here is where each of us is stronger, with prices we checked on 31 August 2026 and the sources listed at the bottom.
The difference that is not a feature
Most membership platforms tell you how many members you have. Very few tell you why they leave — and that is not a screen somebody forgot to build, it is a consequence of how long they have been keeping records and in what shape.
Black Belt CRM has been running membership businesses since 2011 and keeps the whole record: every status change, every promotion, every attendance mark, every payment. That is what makes cohort retention curves, tenure at cancellation and churn as a rate possible. A platform holding two years of shallow data cannot produce them by adding a report.
What Zen Planner does better
A branded member app is a real product they sell and we do not offer one.
We do not sell a branded member app. If that is a requirement rather than a nice-to-have, weigh it honestly.
Where we are stronger
You can read our price on a page right now. Theirs is a conversation, and the add-on ladder means the number you are first quoted is rarely the number you end up paying — reported full stacks run past $500 a month. Every feature we have is on every plan.
Their add-ons exist because some businesses genuinely want a branded app and a marketing suite from the same vendor.
Pricing, side by side
Zen Planner: By active member count — but as of 2026 the base price is quoted by sales rather than published.
Zen Planner
| Base, by active members | Not publishedhistorically about $99 – $348; now contact-sales |
| Engage marketing add-on | $249 |
| Website add-on | $99 |
| Branded app add-on | $39 |
Black Belt CRM
| Up to 25 members | $39 |
| 26 – 100 members | $59 |
| 101 – 250 members | $85 |
| 251 – 500 members | $125 |
| 501 – 1,000 members | $155 |
| 1,001+ members | $195 |
Every feature is on every plan. Nothing is held back for a higher tier and there are no per-staff charges. Charged on top only if you use them: extra Locations at $39 each, payment processing, and text messaging.
Switching
The trial runs 30 days, asks for no card, and switches every feature on. Bring one program across and run it alongside what you have — that is a more honest test than any demo, including ours.
One thing we will not pretend about: we have no import tool. Moving your records across is manual work today. If somebody tells you migration is effortless, ask them to show you.
Sources
Zen Planner pricing verified 31 August 2026 from:
Their pricing changes and ours has gone stale before, which is why these pages carry a date. If you are reading this well after the date above, check their site — and tell us, so we can fix it.
Try it against your own numbers
Thirty days, no card, no contract. Or work out what churn is costing you first — two numbers, no sign-up.
Start your 30-day trial