What is the Salary of a Life Coach?

A certified life coach salary range is between $27K – $101K.

The average salary of a certified life coach in North America as of 2019 is $62,500.

The average global life coach salary is $47,100.

Average Life Coach Salary Globally

The 2019 ICF Global Coaching Study surveyed over 22,547 coaches in 161 countries and territories throughout Africa, Asia, Australia, Europe, North America, and South America and received the following results:

Average Life Coach salary in:

• North America $62,500
• Latin America & the Caribbean $20,900
• Western Europe $51,100
• Eastern Europe $19,100
• Middle East & Africa $34,900
• Asia $33,600
• Oceania $61,100

According to PayScale.com, the average median life coach salary in 2020 is $48,780a year. The lowest $28K range and the highest $101K range.

According to Glassdoor.com, the average life coach salary in 2020 is $48,089 a year. The lowest $ $27K and the highest $63K.

Life Coaching Hourly Rates

The average fee for a 1-hour coaching session is $231.

However, fees quoted per one-hour session varied by coach experience:

• 10+ years $321 per hour
• 5- 10 years $256 per hour
• 3 – 4 years $194 per hour
• 1 – 2 years $152 per hour
• Less than 1 year $128 per hour

Average Number of Clients and Hours Worked

The average number of clients that a coach maintains at one time is 10.

The average hours per week a coach works is 13 hours.

75% of Coaches expect to see an increase in clients and revenue within the coming year.

Business Coach Salary and Hourly Rates 

A Business Coach helps clients develop knowledge and skills and help clients start, run, and grow their business.

According to the Sherpa Executive Coaching Survey 2018 reports:

Business Coach Salary: $61,000, up 10% since 2014.

Business Coaches: $279 per hour, up from $235-$245 since 2014.

Executive Coach Salary and Hourly Rates

An Executive Coach works with companies and their employees to enhance skills and business behavior.

According to the Sherpa Executive Coaching Survey 2020 reports Executive Coaches with:

15+ years experience earn $160K and charge $450 per hour

10-15 years experience earn $122K

Business and Executive coaches see different numbers of clients, which affects their annual earnings but not hourly earnings. 

For example, new coaches in the 0-2 year range earn less overall; however, their hourly rates are high.

New Business and Executive Coach earnings increased from about $200 per hour five years ago to nearly $300 per hour the last two years. 

Coaching rates for seasoned coaches are more leveled.

New coaches see two clients a week. Many of them are internal coaches, with other duties assigned.

What determines a coach’s salary?

A coach’s salary is based on various factors, including credentials, experience, knowledge, skills, abilities, the range and mix of services offered, and the client market they serve. However, the years of experience is the most important factor of a coach’s salary.  

According to ICF’s Global Study, 94% of coaches offer other services in addition to coaching. 

• Consulting – 60%
• Training – 60%
• Facilitation services – 54% 

However, the results of this survey are for coaching only.

Internal vs. External Coaches

Internal coaches work within organizations as an employee. 

External coaches are self-employed and may contract with organizations.

According to Sherpa, 94% of coaches this year described themselves as external coaches.

According to ICF, One in five coaches works as both an internal and an external coach. On average, they devote a higher proportion of their time to their internal work.  

Who sees the most clients per week, life coaches, business coaches, or executive coaches? 

According to Sherpa Executive Coaching Survey, most life coaches and business coaches have five clients or less. In comparison, executive coaches tend to have a higher number of clients.

• Two-thirds of life and business coaches see five clients or less.
• One-fifth (18%) of executive coaches report seeing 10 or more clients per week.
• A majority of executive coaches serve from 3 – 10 clients per week.

Life Coach Salary – Amid COVID 

Life, Business, and Executive Coaches have been widely affected by the COVID pandemic. 

According to ICF’s Global Study:

• 49% of coaches said they had experienced reduced income
• 37% said their hours had been reduced. 
• 34% said they had not experienced adverse effects from the pandemic on their income and employment.

On average, Business Coaches felt more of the effects of the COVID pandemic compared to Life Coaches. The classification of Business Coaches here means coaches who specialize in leadership, executive, business/organization, or small business coaching. This was mainly due to the higher proportions of coaches with a Business Coaching specialty reporting lost income (54% versus 44% of Life Coaches). 

Across the main coaching specialties, the majority of coaches felt one or more effects from the pandemic.

• 70% of Business Coaches felt one or more effects from the COVID pandemic 
• 62% of Life Coaches felt one or more effects from the COVID pandemic 

Income and Employment Effects

29% of Business Coaches were more likely to report a significant adverse effect compared to 22% of Life Coaches. In contrast, positive impacts were more likely to be cited by Life Coaches.

External vs. Internal Coaches

28% of external coaches compared with 11% internal coaches and 17% of coaches who coach both internally and externally reported significant adverse effects.

Clients, hours, and income amid COVID

Since the beginning of the pandemic:

• 51% of coaches have experienced a decrease in their number of active clients. 
• 48% have seen a reduction in their hours of coaching. 
• 57% of coaches have suffered reduced income from coaching since the pandemic started.

For a small percentage of coaches, the COVID pandemic has been positive in terms of clients, hours, and income/revenue. 

• 21% increase in clients
• 27% increase in hours
• 14% increase in income

Decrease in income globally: 

• 52% decrease in North America 
• 65% decrease in Latin America and the Caribbean. 

Looking Ahead

Business, Executive, and Life Coaches are cautiously optimistic that coaching will emerge stronger from the COVID pandemic over the next six months.

• 42% saying they are “somewhat confident” 
• 23% ”very confident”

Reflecting their views on the overall outlook for coaching, Business, Executive, and Life Coaches are broadly optimistic about their coaching business prospects over the next six months.

• 45% saying they are “somewhat confident”
• 21% “very confident.”

Respondents were in general agreement that Life Vision and Enhancement Coaching will become more prevalent over the next six months. 52% of coaches agreed, with a further 11% strongly agreeing.

How to Make Money as a Coach?

As stated earlier, these studies are based on respondents who practice coaching alone. Coaching would be classified as 1-on-1 or group coaching collaborative sessions. However, Life and Business coaches make 6-7 figures by mixing coaching with other services.

Here are ways to make six figures as a Life or Business Coach:

• Coach 1-on-1 through VIP days
• Facilitate group coaching programs
• Host seminar and webinars
• Conduct online and offline workshops
• Host retreats
• Become a motivational speaker
• Write personal development and coaching books
• Create personal development and coaching audiobooks
• Create a course
• Develop a personal development or coaching app
• Sell self-paced coaching programs
• Contract with companies as a corporate trainer
• Combine business coaching with consulting services
• Start a mentorship program
• Start a membership website
• Start a YouTube channel and/or coaching blog

I created a separate post about ways to make money as a coach. The posts go into more detail about each of the above ways. Read Ways to Make Money as a Coach.

When you join Universal Coach Institute, you get access to our Business Center and group calls. We show you how to increase your salary as a life coach. We teach you how to get clients and how to start, run, and grow your business. At Universal Coach Institute, you will get access to training and group calls that will prepare you to make the switch from your current job to owning your own life coaching business. No experience necessary!