Groundbreaking Salary Survey Reveals How Hard COVID-19 Has Hit Personal Trainers in 2020

TORONTO, Sept. 25, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Everyone knew the pandemic would be devastating to personal trainers. But until now, no one just how bad it would get.

In short, it's bad.

That's according to the 1,169 fitness professionals who participated in the second annual salary survey conducted by the Personal Trainer Development Center.

The average pre-pandemic income for personal trainers was $46,000 a year; 75 percent of them expected to make more money in 2020.

But when COVID-19 hit and gyms closed, 58 percent of trainers lost some or all of their income, and 23 percent were furloughed or laid off. Six percent hadn't yet found new jobs during the survey period from August 6 to 13, 2020.

The news wasn't all bad, however. One in five trainers made more money during the pandemic, and about the same number said their income didn't change.

How COVID-19 will change the fitness industry

Before the pandemic, 60 percent of trainers worked with their clients in person, 7 percent coached online, and 32 percent combined in-person and online training.

Post-pandemic, just 14 percent plan to coach primarily in person?a 75 percent decline. Twenty-one percent plan to work primarily online?a 300 percent increase?while 62 percent will combine in-person and online training.

Just 1 percent of trainers said they're going to leave the fitness industry.

Who participated in the salary survey

Seventy-one percent of the trainers who participated in the survey are 25 to 44 years old.

Fifty-nine percent are male, and 69 percent live in the U.S. or Canada.

Fifty percent have a bachelor's degree and 19 percent have a master's degree or beyond.

About the Personal Trainer Development Center

The Personal Trainer Development Center is the premier source of information and education for ambitious, passionate fitness professionals.

Founded by Jonathan Goodman in 2011, the PTDC has published more than 1,000 articles, offers two certification programs for online coaches (Online Trainer Academy Level 1 and OTA Level 2), and provides an exclusive coaching service for fitness and nutrition professionals.

About Jonathan Goodman

Jonathan Goodman began training clients as a college student in 2005. He was still working as a personal trainer in a Toronto gym when he launched the PTDC in 2011. The success of his first book, Ignite the Fire: The Secrets to Building a Successful Personal Training Career, took him out of the gym and into a full-time career as a writer and publisher serving fitness professionals.

Goodman, who was among the first to see the potential of online personal training, opened the Online Trainer Academy in 2016, with a focus on successfully running an online business.

In 2020 he launched the Online Trainer Academy Level 2 and Online Trainer Coaching, which serves the unique needs of fitness and nutrition coaches.

For more information

See the complete Personal Trainer Salary Survey, or connect with the PTDC on Facebook or Instagram.

Media Contact:
Avigayil Basser
[email protected] 
416-522-9221

SOURCE Personal Trainer Development Center