Zen Planner and Class Booking are both used by martial arts studios, but they start from different places. Zen Planner is a US-based studio management platform, part of Daxko, with a long track record in martial arts schools: BJJ academies, karate dojos, taekwondo and Krav Maga programmes. Class Booking is a European booking and membership system built for class-based studios, from yoga and pilates to boxing fitness and open-mat sessions. Which one fits depends on how your school actually runs.
We make Class Booking, so read this as a vendor's view. We have kept to what each product is built for and where it fits well, and we point you to the questions worth asking in a demo of either.
What Zen Planner is
Zen Planner is member management and billing software for gyms, fitness studios and martial arts schools. It is part of Daxko, a US company that makes software for fitness and wellness businesses. Many schools choose it for the workflows that matter in traditional martial arts: belt and rank tracking, attendance toward promotion, family accounts and recurring billing on membership agreements. It has served martial arts schools for many years, and its feature set reflects that.
Where Zen Planner fits well
Belt and rank progression
This is the central point for many schools. Zen Planner offers rank tracking built around martial arts grading: instructors can follow each student's rank, attendance and readiness for the next promotion. For a BJJ academy with stripe promotions or a karate school with kyu/dan grading, this is a daily tool.
Class Booking does not have built-in belt or rank tracking. If grading is core to how your school operates, that is a real difference, and it points toward Zen Planner.
Family accounts and agreements
Schools with many children often bill per household: one parent, several children in different programmes. Zen Planner has long supported this kind of household setup. If your business model also uses fixed-term agreements, look in a demo at how signing, billing through the term and cancellation work, since that is the kind of workflow Zen Planner is built around.
Class Booking lets one account book for several participants, such as a parent booking for children, and handles memberships, subscriptions and punch cards. It does not have a dedicated contracts module.
Where Class Booking fits well
Class-based training that runs like a fitness studio
Kickboxing fitness, boxing classes, BJJ open mats without formal stripe tracking, MMA conditioning and self-defence courses often run more like a boutique studio than a traditional dojo. Members book a class, join the waitlist when it is full and pay with a membership or punch card. That is the pattern Class Booking is built for: online booking, waitlists, memberships, punch cards and term-based courses.
European setup and self-serve plans
Class Booking is built in Europe, with prices in euros and other currencies. The monthly plans are published on the pricing page, and you can sign up and start without a sales call. Payments go through your own Stripe account, so the money goes directly to you at Stripe's own rates.
Booking from the phone
Members can book in any mobile browser without downloading an app, and a member app is also available for iPhone and Android. On a busy open-mat evening, instructors can follow the class list as it fills.
Quick overview
| Need | Zen Planner | Class Booking |
|---|---|---|
| Built-in belt/rank tracking | Yes | No |
| Booking for family members | Yes, household accounts | Yes, several participants per account |
| Fixed-term agreements | Supported | No dedicated contracts module |
| Memberships and punch cards | Yes | Yes |
| Pricing | See Zen Planner's website or ask for a quote | Monthly plans published online |
| Payments | Check the options for your country | Your own Stripe account |
Which one should you pick
Zen Planner is likely the better fit if your school runs traditional rank progression, belt tracking is something you use every day, and you bill families on fixed-term agreements. A BJJ academy with regular stripe promotions, a karate school with kyu/dan grading or a Krav Maga programme with formal level tests will find those workflows ready from day one.
Class Booking is likely the better fit if you run martial-arts-inspired fitness where the daily pattern is closer to a fitness studio: kickboxing fitness, boxing classes, open mats, MMA conditioning or self-defence courses. You get online booking, waitlists, memberships and payments through your own Stripe account on a published monthly plan.
A simple test: if you already know you need belt tracking, you probably do. If you are unsure, booking and memberships are likely what you use most.
For a school in between, such as a mid-sized BJJ academy that wants both easy booking and rank tracking, list the five things you do every week and try each of them in a demo or trial of both systems. The one that handles your weekly routine with the fewest workarounds is the right one.
See our feature list for full detail, pricing for the monthly plans, or our migration guide if you are evaluating a move.