MatPilot vs PushPress
PushPress was the first of the big US platforms to ship a real free plan, and its rank tracking names BJJ stripes, kyu and dan, geup and poom. The comparison is mostly about the fees behind the free plan and the price of the paid ones. Both columns are the vendors' own words, as of 14 September 2026.
PushPress is a good product used by a lot of good gyms. This page is for you if you are choosing between the two, and it says where PushPress is the better fit for you.
PushPress
Left: PushPress Staff, members directory, from its App Store listing. Right: MatPilot, members list.
Price, terms and what each knows about martial arts.
| As of 14 September 2026 | MatPilot | PushPress |
|---|---|---|
| Monthly price | $79 a month on Pro, flat, unlimited members. Free plan at $0. | Free at $0; Pro $159 a month; Max $229 a month. A member app and a training product are priced on top. |
| What sets the price | Nothing. The same price at 40 students and at 400. | The plan. Free is for small gyms; Pro and Max add features and lower processing rates. |
| Contract | Monthly. Cancel in Settings and it ends at the end of the billing month. | Month-to-month, no contracts. |
| Notice to cancel | None. | Their terms ask for written notice 30 days before the end of the subscription term, and fees paid are non-refundable. |
| Setup or exit fee | None. No exit fee either; your data exports from the app. | None stated. |
| Fee on payments | 0.49% of each payment on Pro, on top of Stripe's own; 2% on the Free plan. | On Free, card processing is 4.99% + 30¢ and ACH 2.89% + 30¢; on Pro and Max, cards are 2.75% to 2.89% + 30¢ and ACH 0.79% + 30¢. |
| Card processing | Stripe's own rate, paid to Stripe, into your own Stripe account: 2.9% + 30¢ on cards, 0.8% capped at $5 on ACH. | Through PushPress; rates as above. |
| Free plan or trial | A Free plan with no time limit, no card. Pro is a switch you flip later. | A free plan with no time limit and no card required. |
| Belt and rank tracking | Nineteen arts, each with its own ladder or none: the IBJJF adult and kids ladders, nine karate styles, WT and ITF taekwondo, judo kyu and dan, armbands for Muay Thai. A rank per art on every profile, every promotion dated. | Yes: a customizable rank system naming BJJ stripes and belts, karate kyu and dan, taekwondo geup and poom. |
| Family billing | One parent pays once for every child on one subscription split per plan; a guardian signs a minor's waiver from their own phone. | Yes: family plans, sibling discounts and multi-program pricing. |
| Kiosk check-in | Self check-in from the app or a front-desk kiosk, a coach's roster, a TV mode with the round timer and the live roster. | Not stated on their martial arts page; waivers can be signed on a tablet on site. |
| Waivers | Signed before the first class, from the join link, the kiosk or the app; a minor's by a guardian. | Yes: built-in digital waivers before a first class. |
| Accounting | Xero on Pro: each payment becomes an invoice and a payment against a clearing account, VAT per plan mapped to your tax rates. | Reports and exports; no accounting integration stated on the site. |
| Where the data lives | AWS in the EU (Stockholm); export and erasure from the app. | Not stated on the pricing page. |
PushPress's column is read from their pricing page and their martial arts page on 14 September 2026, quoted where it matters; "not stated" means we looked and did not find it. Prices and terms change: check theirs before you decide, and tell us if a cell is out of date. PushPress's logo belongs to PushPress and is shown to identify them.
Where each one fits better.
PushPress may fit better if you want
- A small US gym that wants a full member app and billing for $0 a month and is fine with 4.99% + 30¢ on each card payment.
- A rank system you configure yourself, with the belt names your school uses.
- The PushPress ecosystem of add-ons (training, branded app) as the gym grows.
MatPilot may fit better if you want
- A Free plan that charges 2% on payments rather than 4.99% + 30¢, and a Pro plan at $79 rather than $159 with 0.49%.
- The ladders shipped as the federations write them, in nineteen arts, with a rank per art.
- No notice period; cancel in Settings and the month ends it.
- Xero on Pro, with VAT per plan, and data in the EU.
Six things you will not find in the usual gym software.
Seminars and courses, waiver firstOne link for a visiting black belt's seminar: register, sign the waiver, then pay, at the member price if you are one. A free seminar needs no Stripe account at all.Read how it works → 
A poster studioTwenty-four designs per size, filled from the seminar's own title, date, price and QR code. Drag, retype, swap the photo, export for Instagram, a story or A4.Read how it works → 
A co-pilot that actsAsk it to announce a closure, cancel a class, add a schedule or chase failed payments. It shows the action, you confirm, it runs.Read how it works → 
3,700 techniques in a libraryNineteen arts, every move named and linked to its neighbours. Your syllabus points at them, and each student's record fills in as classes are taught.Read how it works → 
An injury log with follow-upsTap the body map, say how bad. A serious injury schedules staff check-ins at one, three, seven and fourteen days, and billing can pause while they recover.Read how it works → 
Curriculum coverageWhat the syllabus says, what was actually taught, class by class and belt by belt, so a gap shows before a grading does.Read how it works →
Checked against PushPress's website and app listings on 14 September 2026. If they have one of these and we missed it, tell us and this page changes.
What the left column looks like.
Export members from PushPress to a spreadsheet and import them. Cards stored with PushPress cannot move; members re-enter one card through your join link, signing the waiver in the same flow.
Nobody trains before the waiver is signed, whichever way they arrive.
Questions you might have about the two
Both have a free plan. Which is cheaper?
It depends on your volume. On $5,000 a month of card payments, PushPress Free's 4.99% + 30¢ is roughly $250 plus the per-transaction cents; MatPilot Free's 2% is $100 on top of Stripe's own 2.9% + 30¢. Run your own number; the platform fee is the line to compare.
Does MatPilot have a training product?
A member's own training log, goals and game plans on the technique graph are part of the app rather than a separate product. PushPress Train is priced separately.
Is there a notice period to leave?
None on MatPilot. PushPress's terms ask for 30 days' written notice before the end of the subscription term.
See it with your own roster.
No card required. Import your members from a spreadsheet in an afternoon.