Quick answer. Log every payment by source and note the form you expect in January (W-2, 1099-NEC, 1099-K or none). Track each prepaid package against the sessions you deliver, so you always know what's owed. Keep certification and CPR expiry dates in one list with 120 days' warning. Gym memberships are listed as taxable in New Jersey; personal training isn't on the list, so confirm your own setup with the Division of Taxation.
Employee at the gym, business owner everywhere else
How a gym or studio pays you decides what arrives in January. On payroll, you get a Form W-2 and the gym withholds tax. Paid as a contractor, you may get a Form 1099-NEC and nothing is withheld. Many trainers have both, plus their own clients who pay by card or app, which can lead to a Form 1099-K from the payment processor.
Which one you should be is a legal question about the working relationship, not something you or the gym can settle by choosing a form. New Jersey applies the ABC test for unemployment and wage purposes; our guide to the New Jersey ABC test explains the three parts, and the Contractor vs Employee in New Jersey Kit has a worksheet. To compare what a contract offer is worth against a salary, try the contractor vs employee cost calculator. If you think you're classified wrongly, the NJ Department of Labor or an employment attorney is the place to ask.
Track income by source
One line per payment, the day it arrives: date, source, who paid, the gross amount, any fee taken out, and the form you expect for it. Sources worth separating are gym paychecks, gym or studio contract pay, private clients, package sales, classes you run yourself, and online clients or apps. In January, each W-2 and 1099 you receive should match a group of lines. When one doesn't, you'll find out with time to ask the payer, rather than after your return is filed.
Record the gross, not what landed in your bank. A payment app that keeps a processing fee reports the gross on Form 1099-K; the IRS says box 1a has no adjustment for fees or refunds (see what changed in the 1099 rules for the reporting thresholds). Recording the fee separately keeps both numbers honest.
Classes and studio splits
Yoga and group fitness instructors are often paid per class, per head or as a split of what the studio takes in. Keep your own record of each class: the date, the studio, how many people came and what you were told you'd be paid. When the studio's payment arrives, check it against your list. Headcounts also tell you which time slots are worth keeping if you rent space and run classes yourself, where your pay is what's left after the room rent. Record the rent and the class income as separate lines, not just the difference, so both show up in your books.
Prepaid packages: sessions left
When a client buys ten sessions up front, you hold their money before you've done the work. Track it package by package: sessions bought, price paid, sessions used. Sessions left times the price per session is the value of work you still owe. It answers the client who asks how many sessions they have left, and it's the number your preparer will want when a package straddles December 31 or expires unused. Which year that income counts in is their call; your job is to keep the dates and counts.
Enter the sessions and the price paid.
Put your expiry and refund terms in writing and give them to clients when they buy. "Renew soon" here means two or fewer sessions left, a good moment to offer the next package.
Certifications, CPR and continuing education
Each certifying organization sets its own renewal period, continuing education credits and fee, and CPR and AED cards carry their own expiry dates. We don't summarize any organization's rules: copy them from its official site, with the date you checked, into one list. Set a reminder 120 days before each expiry, enough time to finish credits without paying rush fees. Many gyms ask for proof of current certification and CPR, so keep a scan of each card where you can send it in a minute.
Equipment, studio rent and other costs
The 2026 Schedule C has lines for advertising (8), car and truck expenses (9), depreciation and section 179 expense (13), insurance other than health (15), rent of other business property (20b, which covers studio space or rented time at a gym), supplies (22) and other expenses (27b) (Schedule C 2026). Equipment that lasts more than a year may be depreciated rather than deducted at once; keep the receipt and the date you started using it, and let your preparer decide. Driving between client homes, parks and gyms is business mileage at the IRS rate of 72.5 cents a mile for January 1 to June 30, 2026 and 76 cents from July 1 (IRS). If you run a studio rather than work in one, see bookkeeping for gyms and fitness studios.
Sales tax in New Jersey
The Division of Taxation's sales tax guide (S&U-4) lists memberships in health, fitness, athletic and sporting clubs as taxable, and fitness equipment such as weights, exercise balls and steps as taxable when sold. Personal training isn't on the list. In Letter Ruling LR-2017-2-SUT, the Division concluded for one business that "charges for personal instruction are not subject to tax" where clients paid for sessions, not access to a facility. A letter ruling binds the Division only for the business that asked, on its facts. If you sell memberships or equipment, or your arrangement is different, ask the Division.
Sources
- IRS: Schedule C (Form 1040) 2026
- IRS: Standard mileage rates
- NJ Division of Taxation: S&U-4, New Jersey Sales Tax Guide (Rev. 07/22)
- NJ Division of Taxation: Letter Ruling LR-2017-2-SUT (personal training)
General information checked November 2026 against the official sources above. An organizer and calculator only, not tax or legal advice; it doesn't decide what applies to you. The check on this page runs in your browser, and nothing you enter is sent or saved.
Common questions
Is a personal trainer at a gym an employee or a contractor?
It depends on the facts of the working relationship, not on the label or the form you get. New Jersey applies the ABC test for unemployment and wage purposes. Read our ABC test guide, and ask the NJ Department of Labor or an employment attorney about your own situation.
Do personal trainers charge New Jersey sales tax?
Personal training isn't on the list in New Jersey's sales tax guide. A 2017 letter ruling for one business concluded that charges for personal instruction weren't taxable where the fee bought sessions, not facility access, but a letter ruling binds the Division only for the business that asked. Memberships in health and fitness clubs and fitness equipment are listed as taxable.
How do I track prepaid session packages?
Record each package with the date bought, sessions bought and price paid, then log every session against it. Sessions left times the price per session is the value of work you've been paid for but haven't done yet. Ask your preparer how prepaid and expired packages are treated on your return.
Where do studio rent and equipment go on Schedule C?
The 2026 Schedule C has a line for rent of other business property (20b) and one for depreciation and section 179 expense (13), along with supplies (22) and other expenses (27b). Your preparer decides which applies to each purchase.
Which certification renewal rules apply to me?
Each certifying organization publishes its own renewal period, continuing education requirements and fees, and CPR and AED cards carry their own expiry dates. Check the organization's official site and note the date you checked.