How to work out teacher pay per class
Teacher pay per class is set by one of four models: a flat fee per class, a rate per head, a share of the takings, or that teacher's own rate. Pick the model by running it against last month's real attendance, not the attendance you hope for. On a 19-person night taking $399, a $60 flat fee, $4 a head ($76) and 30 per cent of the door ($120) are three very different costs; on an 8-person night taking $168 they are $60, $32 and $50. Record who taught each class on the night, so the amount owed is a list, not a memory.
The four models
| Model | Example | Good | Bad |
|---|---|---|---|
| Flat fee per class | "$60 a class." | Simple. The teacher knows what they will get. Easy to budget. | A thin night costs you the same as a full one. The fixed cost raises the break-even. |
| Per head | "$4 a head." | Pay tracks the room. Rewards teachers whose classes grow. | A teacher can't predict their pay. A small class pays almost nothing, which is hard on a good teacher in a new slot. |
| Share of takings | "30% of the door." | Pay tracks the money, not just the heads. Pass discounts and free trials are shared fairly. | Needs the takings known on the night. Same unpredictability as per head. |
| Teacher's own rate | "Sam is $70, Alex is $50." | Reflects experience. Lets you pay a senior teacher more for the same slot. | Several rates to remember unless the system does it. |
Any of these can carry a minimum ("at least $50") or a maximum ("no more than $150"), which is how studios share the risk of a thin night and the upside of a full one.
The same two nights, four ways
From our made-up demo studio. Beginner Swing averages 19.4 people at about $21 each ($407 a night). Lindy Hop Level 2 averages 8.5 at $22 ($187). Two teachers per class.
| Teacher pay for the night (both teachers) | Beginner Swing (19.4 × $21) | Lindy Hop 2 (8.5 × $22) | Left after $90 hall (Beginner / Lindy) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Flat $60 each | $120 | $120 | $287 / $67 |
| $4 a head, split | $78 | $34 | $329 / $153 |
| 30% of takings, split | $122 | $56 | $285 / $131 |
| 30%, at least $50 each | $122 | $100 | $285 / $87 |
On the full night the flat fee and the 30 per cent share cost almost the same. On the thin night the flat fee costs you double what the share would, and the share pays each teacher $28, which a good teacher will not accept twice. "30 per cent, at least $50 each" lands between: the thin night still loses you a little less than the flat fee would, and the teacher still gets a wage.
Choosing
- Take last month's real attendance per class, not the average across the studio. One number per class.
- Run each model against it. The class profit calculator does the hall and teacher sum in a second.
- Check the break-even with the pay in. A $120 flat teacher cost on a $90 hall needs 10 people at $21. If the class averages 8, the model is wrong or the class is.
- Pay each teacher their own rate if they differ. Don't pay a senior teacher junior money to keep the sum simple; let the system remember the rates.
- Write the rule down, with a worked example, and give it to the teacher. "30% of the door, at least $50, paid monthly by bank transfer" is a sentence; "we'll sort it out" is a dispute.
Keeping track of who is owed what
The pay sum is the easy part. The hard part is knowing who taught which night. Record it on the night, at the door: the class's usual teachers as one-tap buttons, anyone else by typing the first letters of their name. Then, at the end of the month, what each teacher is owed is a list of classes with an amount each, not a memory. Pay several at once, by bank transfer or cash from the tin, and mark them paid. If a teacher is later removed from a class that was already paid, that should be flagged, because that is how overpayments happen.
If nobody recorded the teachers for a night, estimate the cost from the class's usual teacher cost and label the estimate. Profit that silently assumes a free teacher is the most expensive mistake in the report.
What ClassMetrix does
Pay rules are settings: a flat amount, per head, a share of the takings, or each teacher's own rate, with an optional minimum and maximum, and example students to try the rule on before it is switched on. The door records who taught (usual teachers offered as one tap). The money page lists unpaid classes per teacher with the rule that set each amount; the owner ticks several and pays them by bank transfer or from a cash tin, and they are locked. A paid class whose teachers change is flagged. Missing teachers are estimated from the class's usual cost and the report says so.
See the unpaid list in the demo
The demo studio has four teachers, two pay rules and a month of classes waiting to be paid.
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Questions
How much should I pay a dance teacher per class?
It depends on your country, the teacher and the class, so there is no single number. What matters is choosing a model you can afford at your real attendance: a flat fee is simple and predictable, per head rewards a full room, and a share of the takings keeps pay in proportion to what the class earned. Run the model against last month's actual numbers before you offer it.
Flat fee or a share of the door?
A flat fee is fair to the teacher and risky for you on a thin night. A share of the door is safe for you and risky for the teacher. A share with a minimum ("30 per cent of the door, at least $50") shares the risk and is the most common compromise at drop-in classes.
What if two teachers take a class?
Decide whether each gets their own rate or they split one amount. Partner-dance classes usually pay each teacher their own flat rate; that doubles the fixed cost, so check the break-even with both teachers in it.
How do I keep track of what teachers are owed?
Record who taught each class on the night. Then the owed amount is the list of unpaid classes per teacher, and paying is marking several of them paid at once, by bank transfer or from the cash tin. Doing it from memory at the end of the month is how people get paid twice or not at all.