What are people charging for massage

[GlennMypeseantee]

Just wondering as I am nearing the end of my course.

I'm sure this has been covered before but haven't seen anything lately.

I have already massaged many friends/family and, of course, do it free as I'm not insured etc. and still studying.

They have all enjoyed it and have started asking what it would cost when I am qualified. I would prefer to do it from my own home rather than carrying my gear around to other people's houses.

Thanks.

 

[Kds]

Ask your friends how much they would be prepared to pay; this will set the lower bench mark

Ask yourself how much you would pay for a massage from yourself as a newly qualified practitioner if this were possible.

Work out who your potential customers might be and how much they might be able to afford.

Look at how much others are charging and if they are still working in 6 months time.

Don't look at how you need to cover the mortgage, holidays, sick leave, food, visits to the theatre, admin. , new laptop, electricity etc. because your customers DON"T CARE!!

Add up the above 4 prices and divide by 4 = your average ask.

If lower end price, clients may desert you when you start getting greedy (human nature) and shoving the cost up.

If higher end price, no customers.

£20 to £30 an hour

 

[Stefi28]

I charge £30 Twohoots for 75 mins and £22 for 30 mins

 

[jizciybk]

Hi Toohoots,

I've been practising in central London for over 13 years and therefore charge:

In clinic
30mins = £35
45mins = £50
60mins = £65
90mins = £96

Home visit
60mins = £80
90mins = £115
120mins = £150

I'm at the top end of the market due to experience and training.

Cheers, Sue

 

[arou42]

Prices do vary depending where you are in the country and the type of massage and facilities you offer.

I do think you need to consider doing a business plan because that will tell you how much you need to charge. And yes you do need to take into account your overheads because if your business isn't sustainable it will fold.

So the more research you do the more knowledge you'll have to make informed decisions. There's lots of free business advice out there and have a look at your local business link and do their free courses.

I would also say, don't even worry about working from home or mobile yet. Consider them, but also consider renting a room. Keep all options open, because that way you will find what's right for you. When I finished my course I thought I would work from home. Well I never I did that, I ended up renting rooms at 2 different locations. I was able to find out what worked for me and what didn't.

HTH,
Myarka

 

[Pompal 09.]

wow that is expensive

 

[Raunnie]

Hi Keenly,

What you need to remember is that you're paying for years of expertise just like in any other business, and I am in business. Also I'm not the most expensive in London. I know of a facialist who charges £320 per session and she's got a long and impressive client list.

Remember it's all relative to the city or place of practise, service provided and it's not unreasonable to pay a couple of hundreds pounds for a Barrister and even more for a QC for their specialised knowledge, the same applies to us. I offer a specialised services with a high level of experience so I charge accordingly.

Cheers, Sue

 

[adettadia]

So, what is a normal rate to you/ how much do you like to pay?

How much should the OP charge as a new practitioner?

 

[dearijjoh]

Sue is good, though! And for central London, I think she's very competitive. I'm out in Cornwall, which the EU tells me is poorer than just about anywhere in Europe, but I base my rates for bodywork on £35 for 50min.

 

[Tegan]

How come Andy you are charging £35 for 50mins and I'm charging £35 for 60mins! Just jokingly, splitting hairs with you, lol ;-)

As Andy says Cornwall is a relatively poor country according to EU statistics, yet we can still charge decent prices. I think Sue's Central London prices is very reasonable. If I was working in London, I would charge the at least the same. One reason for this is that it would be expected by those city slickers. If it comes across as cheap, it can't be no good. There is a psychology behind pricing, not just the costings.

My advice to you 2hoots is to do either ring local therapists or look at their websites to see what they are charging and average it. When you have some experience under your belt, stick the price up. If a regular client can't afford the new price, charge them the old price, and charge the new series of clients with the new price.

Best Wishes

RP

 

[yagiman900]

There was a similar thread three years ago http://www.healthypages.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?t=44337

I’m in Croydon and qualified in 1999: at first I charged £20 per hour. I have recently increased my prices and now charge £40 per hour. I have a regular ‘therapy swap’ partner who charges £35 per hour, and I used to visit a good local massage therapist near me who charged only £25 per hour. As other contributors have pointed out, the price of a massage will largely depend on where a therapist works: a therapist in a wealthy area can charge high prices, whereas a therapist working in a low-income area probably can’t. There was a survey a few years ago which purported to show the average income for each Parliamentary constituency. For example, the average income in Kensington & Chelsea was over £50,000 pa, whereas the average income in Croydon North was only £18,800 pa. So I would expect that therapists working in Kensington & Chelsea would be able to charge a lot more than therapists working in Croydon North !!

Alan

 

[rosa_giffin]

RP - I don't include tea-breaks! Or maybe it goes back to my time in academia: an academic hour at university always used to be 50 minutes back in the day and seeing as I have a tendency to over-run, it's easier on the appointments book for a 50min slot to become an hour slot than it is an hour slot to become an hour and ten minutes one.

 

[OsbMarauiu]

Our local masseurs charge £35 - I think E Yorks must be similar to Cornwall - a bit out of the way!

 

[Nabeel]

Understand what you mean Andy, I'm always 10 minutes over, lol

 

[qkmfakjj]

I charge £45 swedish massage 60 mins.
Deep tissue massage £55 60 mins.

I live in Bromley

 

[LFCfan]

Hi botantic

Why the price different between the two?

RP

 

[Nvr2L8]

I am glad Sue makes a living at those rates! My main experience is with London outcall mobile agencies. The going rate is £40-£50ph (sometimes with a discount for longer sessions). I have noticed that some of the agencies have attempted to drive these rates up, generally without success. There are some at the top end of the market charging the sort of rates which Sue can command, but they are rare. Most clients find therapists at the lower bracket from agencies where the quality is a bit hit and miss but where one or two therapists are excellent. I also gain the impression that the large number of entrants into this mobile massage area is keeping down prices and spreading work more thinly.

My general experience is that those charging £80ph are often offering specialist treatments (such as naturist, esalen etc- and frankly I dont see how they justify it) or their services are at the "exotic" end of the market where a full body massage really is "full".

 

[Bonzo The Wonder Pig]

Hello Botanic, I'm in Chislehurst

Twohoots, I'm just starting out and charging £30 - 60 mins, £45 - 90 mins, but that is for a mobile service and the time quoted is for the actual massage. So in effect I'm going to be earning much less per hour of my time spent on the treatment (eg I gave a friend a 90 min treatment, which actually took me 3 hours including travelling, setting up etc and consultation.) However I can't work from home, can't yet afford to hire a room, and can't really get away with charging any more than that - nor would I want to as an inexperienced masseuse. It seems to be the going rate round here - until I manage to tap into the market of the wealthy folk living in our borough!

 

[SNFcj (Back on my grind)]

When I first started out as a mobile therapist in 2007 I was charging £30 per hour. I covered a 20 mile radius but over time cut it down to 10 miles as I seemed to be spending most of my time driving. I think as you gain more experience and if you ever train to offer different treatments (IHM, pregnancy massage etc), then you can up your prices.

I now charge £40 per hour. As a mobile therapist you mustn't forget that you have to pay for your petrol, your travel time, washing your towels/couch covers, oils and insurance. People look and think "wow" you're earning £40 per hour but they don't realise the hidden costs we have to account for.

 

[deckels]

Another consideration with doing mobile work is the time it takes to travel to a client, parking costs and if in London then congestion charge. In doing a 1 hour mobile treatment might really take up 2 or more hours of your time, in terms of getting to the client, setting up, doing the client consultaion or discussing any changes since the previous treatment. Depending on where your clients are located there may be a limit to the number of clients you can see in one day.

I personally think that mobile massage should be charged at a premium but that is just my opinion.