AMES

AMES is class-management software for activity providers that need to coordinate enrolment, recurring payments and family communications. It is best suited to swim schools, studios and clubs running scheduled sessions. Its subscription-free Standard plan limits fixed costs, but transaction and service charges deserve close attention.

Overview

AMES connects class administration with the family-facing parts of running an activity business. Staff can manage schedules, attendance, absences and rosters, while parents can register online, use a portal and book sessions through mobile flows. That joined-up scope makes it more relevant to recurring class operators than to businesses looking only for a basic booking calendar.

The company began in 2020 after its founder, an activity-business operator, found existing software a poor fit for class-based organisations. AMES says it serves independent teachers through multi-location enterprises; its blended member bands and custom terms at larger scale give that range a corresponding pricing structure.

Key features

Bookings and capacity

Class scheduling includes occupancy visibility and waitlists, and families can enrol in multiple classes or register siblings. These tools help operators manage capacity and family bookings together rather than treating each registration as an isolated transaction. Staff roster management is also included.

Payments and attendance

AMES Pay supports card, Apple Pay and Google Pay through Stripe Connect, as well as GoCardless Direct Debit for recurring class fees. Staff can record attendance and absences, issue credits and allow parents to book replacement sessions subject to availability rules. The link between absences, credits and replacement bookings is useful for businesses that need to manage missed sessions without losing track of capacity.

Family communications and integrations

Parent updates, reminders and message history sit alongside automated absence and credit notifications. The integrations page names Google Calendar, Xero, QuickBooks, Gmail, Outlook, Facebook, Instagram and Google Reviews; custom API integrations can be built during onboarding. AMES also says it helps import member data, configure the system with a team and provide post-launch support, a meaningful consideration for operators moving established records and processes.

Its stated security measures include GDPR UK and EU compliance, PCI DSS via Stripe Connect, TLS 1.3 and AES-256 encryption, and immutable audit logs. Payment-provider processing fees are separate from AMES's platform fee; SMS, phone services including number rental, and metered AI also carry separate charges.

Pricing

Standard

Standard charges 1.25 % per contact, billed as a transaction fee on successful payments collected through AMES, with no monthly platform subscription and no setup fee. The rate is blended across member bands: the first 150 at 1.25%, the next 350 at 1.00%, the next 1,500 at 0.75%, and the next 8,000 at 0.50%. At 10,000 or more members, terms are custom. This structure suits operators who want to avoid a fixed subscription, but the effective cost depends on successful payment volume and member count, and processing and communication charges are additional.

AMES has a free plan and a free trial. Those lower-commitment options may help a business assess fit, but they do not remove the need to account for transaction and separate service charges when estimating ongoing costs.

Platforms

AMES is available on Android, iOS and the web, covering mobile access as well as browser-based administration.

Who it's for

AMES is a strong fit for swim schools, dance studios, martial arts academies, gymnastics clubs and other operators built around scheduled classes, particularly those coordinating multiple family registrations, attendance and replacement sessions. Independent teachers can use the same core workflow, while larger operators should weigh the blended member bands and custom terms. It is less compelling for a business that does not need class-specific attendance and family administration, or one that needs predictable costs independent of payment volume and add-on usage.

Pros and cons

• Pros: Scheduling, capacity, waitlists, sibling enrolment, attendance and replacement bookings are connected, which addresses the recurring administration of class businesses.
• Pros: Card and wallet payments plus Direct Debit cover both one-off payment methods and recurring class fees.
• Pros: No monthly platform subscription or setup fee keeps fixed platform costs down.
• Cons: The transaction fee is tied to successful payments, and payment-provider processing fees are separate, so the no-subscription model does not mean cost-free payment collection.
• Cons: SMS, phone services and metered AI cost extra, which can make total spend less straightforward for operators relying on those services.

Alternatives

For a camp-focused operator, Campium is a paid option with custom pricing and Android, iOS and web access. CampOrganizer may suit a provider that prefers usage-based charges: its Usage-Based plan is €0.25, paid once, billed €0.25 per participant per event or €1.00 per participant per day, with no fixed monthly subscription and unlimited sessions, staff and parents. For enrichment programmes seeking curriculum and professional-development resources alongside analytics, Arly offers a custom-quote Learning Experience plan. nextRec is another paid option with Android, iOS, web and API platforms.

Camp operators can also consider CampMinder, whose paid plans include Classic, Deluxe and Professional; ACTIVE Camp & Class Manager, with pricing available from an account manager; or CIRCUITREE, whose Enterprise plan targets multiple locations and more than 1,500 registrations, with optional HR, fundraising and premium support. Campwise is another paid alternative for camp operators.

For category browsing, see Camp Management Software and Music Lesson Scheduling Software.

Verdict

Choose AMES if your business runs recurring classes and needs enrolment, attendance, payments and parent communication in one workflow without a monthly platform subscription. Its class-specific administration is the clearest reason to choose it. Look elsewhere if you need predictable costs that avoid transaction and service charges, or if your operation is not organised around classes.