Coaching contract template.
A plain-language coaching agreement you can fill in and send today. Add your business, your client, what the package includes, the price and the notice periods, then print it or save it as a PDF for signing. Free, no sign-up, and written to be read by a client rather than a lawyer.
build your agreement
the two sides
what they are buying
Be specific about frequency and response time. Most disputes start here.
the terms in one line
Fill in the package and the price to see the summary your client will read.
after the print
If a document like this goes out to every client, the rebuilding is the part worth retiring: in Coachway, forms, programs and meal plans live in the client app - sent, filled in and stored per client, no printer involved.
see inside Coachwaythe short answer
A coaching contract is a short written agreement between a coach and a client that records what is included, how long it runs, what it costs, when payment is due, how either side cancels and what happens when a session is missed. It also states plainly that coaching is not medical care. For most independent coaches a clear two-page agreement in plain language does the job; you do not need a twenty-page document. Build one above, then have a qualified adviser in your country read it once before you reuse it.
The six clauses that prevent almost every dispute.
Coaching disagreements are rarely about coaching. They are about a client who thought daily messaging was included, or who cancelled on day 29 of a 30-day notice period, or who missed three sessions and expected them back. Each of those has a one-sentence fix, written down before it happens. The six below are the ones that do the work; if you want the reasoning behind each clause rather than the finished wording, we go through them line by line in the clauses coaches actually need, and the health screening that belongs beside a signed contract is the PAR-Q form.
1. scope
Say what is included and, just as importantly, what is not. Name the frequency and your response time: a plan updated every four weeks and a reply inside two working days are checkable; ongoing support is not.
2. term
Rolling monthly or a fixed block. Both are fine, but they cancel differently, and a client who thinks they bought a rolling month while you think they bought twelve weeks is the single most common problem.
3. price and payment
The amount, the currency, when it is due, and what happens if a payment fails. One line about a failed payment pausing delivery saves an awkward conversation later.
4. cancellation
How much notice, in writing, and what happens to the period already paid for. Be aware that consumers buying online often have statutory rights you cannot override.
5. missed sessions
Give a notice window for rescheduling and say what happens inside it. Without this you will end up making a fresh judgement call every time, which clients notice and compare.
6. health and scope of practice
State that coaching is not medical, physiotherapy or psychological treatment, that the client confirms they are fit to train, and that they will tell you if that changes. Pair it with a signed readiness form.
From filled-in template to a signed agreement.
Send it before the first payment
The agreement is what the payment is for. Sending it afterwards turns a routine document into an awkward one, and it is the point at which a hesitant client asks the questions you would rather answer now than in week six.
One reviewed version, reused
Get it read once by someone qualified in your country, then change only the client name, dates, price and term for each new person. A template you rewrite every time is a template nobody has checked.
Store it where you can find it
A signed PDF in the client's folder, not a shared inbox. It holds their name, contact details and payment terms, so it is personal data in most of Europe and needs the same care as any other client record.
If you are still deciding what to charge before you write any of this down, work the number out first with the coaching rate calculator, and see what a full onboarding sequence looks like in the client onboarding checklist.
Frequently asked questions.
Do I really need a contract for online coaching?
You need something in writing, yes. Most coaching disputes are not dramatic legal fights: they are disagreements about what was included, how much notice a cancellation needed, or whether a missed session gets refunded. A short written agreement settles those in advance and costs you nothing. It also signals that you run a real business, which tends to attract better clients. Whether it must be a formal contract, and what it has to contain, depends on where you and your client live, so treat this as a starting point and get it checked locally before you rely on it.
Is this coaching agreement legally binding?
A written agreement that both people sign, that describes the service and the price, is generally the kind of document courts take seriously. But binding is not the same as enforceable in your jurisdiction, and consumer-protection rules can override what a contract says, particularly around cancellation and refunds for consumers buying online. This is a plain-language starter template, not legal advice. Have a qualified adviser in your country read it once before you send it to clients, then reuse your reviewed version.
What should a coaching contract always cover?
Six things do most of the work: what the client is buying and what they are not, how long it runs, what it costs and when payment is due, how either side cancels and with how much notice, what happens when a session is missed or rescheduled, and an honest statement that coaching is not medical care. Everything else is refinement. If you only write down those six, you have already removed the reasons most coaching relationships end badly.
How do I handle refunds and cancellations fairly?
Decide the rule before you need it and write it down in one sentence a client can understand. Common approaches are a notice period for rolling monthly coaching, no refund on a completed block but the ability to stop the next one, and a short cooling-off window at the start. Be aware that consumers buying online in many countries have statutory cancellation rights that you cannot write away, and that your payment provider has its own dispute rules. A clear, fair policy you actually honour prevents far more chargebacks than a strict one you enforce inconsistently.
Can I use one agreement for every client?
For the same service, yes, and you should: one reviewed template you reuse is far safer than a fresh document written in a hurry for each client. Keep the standing clauses fixed and change only the details that genuinely differ, which is usually the client name, the start date, the length, the price and the payment schedule. If you sell something structurally different, for example group coaching alongside one-to-one, write a second version rather than bending the first one to fit.
Where should the signed agreement be stored?
Somewhere private, access-controlled and findable two years from now. A signed PDF in a client folder in your coaching platform or a locked drive is fine; a shared inbox, a public drive link or a phone camera roll is not. The agreement usually carries the client name, contact details and payment terms, which makes it personal data in most of Europe and elsewhere, so keep it only as long as you have a reason to and tell clients where it lives if they ask.
This page and the agreement it produces are a starter template and general information, not legal advice. Contract and consumer law differ by country, and nothing here creates a lawyer-client relationship. Have a qualified adviser in your jurisdiction review the document before you rely on it.
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